A jury that just sits around doesn't suit me.

By chance, I met the nightingale of the Central Highlands, Siu Black, during a recent business trip to Ho Chi Minh City. I heard her share about the Global Voice of Vietnam program, which she accepted as a judge for the second time, as well as the concerns and career stories of the veteran artist...

Singer Siu Black during a filming session at Ho Chi Minh City Television Station with MC Nguyen Khang. (Photo: NVCC)

Global Vietnamese Singing 2024 is a playground to find good voices for Vietnamese people around the world . In addition to the purpose of finding good voices that can become professional singers, the contest is also a playground for those who love singing to exchange, learn and shine on stage.

For Vietnamese people living abroad, this contest will be a place for them to test their passion for singing, show off their talents, and honor values ​​imbued with cultural identity, preserve and conserve Vietnamese identity, connect love, and look back to their roots.

Promises a high quality exam season

Veteran singer Siu Black said that this year's competition will be stricter, more qualitative and more systematic. Viewers can judge from the judges to the contestants, not just the judges sitting and listening to the contestants sing. That's why she agreed to participate.

“If I just sit there and listen to the contestants sing, then the role of the judges is not suitable for me. In a singing competition, contestants must choose a song that suits their voice and shows off their voice. At that time, the judges must help the contestants choose the song and sing it correctly. Even, when necessary, they will demonstrate - sing a sample so that the contestants can enter the song correctly. The role of the judges here is to help the contestants show their true abilities and show off their best voice, not just sit and listen and give scores,” singer Siu Black shared.

I recall many competitions that Siu Black participated in as a judge, and it is true that she was called the "saver of weak voices". When asked about this, she enthusiastically shared: "I once single-handedly opposed the Organizing Committee when they set the condition that if this voice was not allowed in, I would quit my job and not do it at all. That was a singing competition, not a model judging competition. It was not because she was cute, tall, and had a little singing voice that I let her into the next round. For example, the same thing happened with Uyen Linh's voice, now she is very famous. The program at that time was Vietnam Idol, I definitely chose Uyen Linh because I saw that this girl had a good voice and that year Uyen Linh became the champion. Later, Uyen Linh's singing career exceeded all expectations."

Recalling the 2010 competition season, when singer Uyen Linh entered the fifth round of the competition, she said: “I told her, don’t be subjective when you see the judges’ praise. In the next round, the song selection is very important and you have to get the audience’s points, not just the judges’. You have to win the audience’s hearts, that is your highest score. When competing, Uyen Linh was only one point ahead of the other two contestants and the possibility of being eliminated was normal. The following week, contestant Uyen Linh stood out, I was so happy that I cried. At that time, director Quang Dung also told me: Siu is good, you encouraged her like that, she did very well.”

Singers like Trung Quan or Quoc Thien.... are all voices that Siu Black had to "fight" with the Organizing Committee to keep in the competitions where she was a judge. Now, seeing them become famous, she is very proud.

The voice of a veteran from the Central Highlands

As a famous artist who is always passionate about her profession, Siu Black shared: “There is one thing about the current generation of young singers that I am very concerned about. In the past, we, the old generation of singers, sang songs that have been with us for a long time or songs by Trinh Cong Son that have been around for a long time, and still resonate with listeners. Therefore, now, if young singers take the time to research a little to find songs that suit their voices, they can still choose very good songs. The songs that Nguyen Cuong chose, for example, will last forever... Choosing a song is very important, like singer Khanh Ly is associated with the immortal compositions of Trinh Cong Son or Ngoc Anh is associated with the love songs of Phu Quang...".

Holding back a sigh, she said, “Young people today choose songs that are very temporary, and they forget them after listening for a short while. If you only like to choose songs that are a little bit catchy, easy to sing, and you can memorize them after listening to them for a while... then after singing them for a season, you will forget them, they won't linger, they won't connect.”

She recalled, “When I sang Ly ca phe Ban Me, I asked Nguyen Cuong and he shared that every morning he drank a cup of Buon Me coffee and went to find out how people made this Ban Me coffee. From the coffee harvesting stage, then how the coffee was roasted, then how the love they put into a cup of Ban Me coffee and how the love of the people who made that cup of coffee blossomed... Then, he sat sipping a cup of strong black coffee, looking at life with very real eyes and expressing that love and affection through the lyrics of Ly ca phe Ban Me. Nguyen Cuong is very hard-working. He went into the forest for a whole month with only a mat, a mosquito net, pots, pans... to live and absorb the beauty of the vast mountains and forests, then put it into his compositions. Therefore, when I sing his song, I feel the same way, feeling every word, every image in the song. Only then can the song live long.”

The author is interviewing artist Siu Black. (Photo: Cat Phuong)

Alone in a style

The conversation paused when the host friend brought Siu a glass of ice water. Seeing our surprise, the host said: “ Science cannot explain Siu’s case. Before, she often drank beer with ice. Her throat can drink very cold water without getting hoarse. No matter how cold the weather is, Siu still has to drink cold water to be able to sing.” Hearing that, the singer of the mountains and forests immediately affirmed that her throat needs to be “chilled with ice” to be able to sing well.

Looking back on her singing career, she remembers her childhood days the most. She loved singing so much that her grandmother beat her just to be able to sing. She said: "If you sing, you will be beaten. Do you choose to sing or do you choose to be beaten?" So Siu Black chose both, singing and being beaten. She was afraid that her grandchild would follow the "vile singing" profession, with no future. Being punished by her grandmother for so long, she was so scared that she went to school to ask to stop singing. But the teachers at the secondary school came to her house to ask her permission. She passed exams from one school to another, then the teachers took her to sing in Pleiku, 50 km away from home. Finally, she and her whole family gave up.

She shared: “I have had diabetes for about eight years now, and my blood pressure is also affected. For more than a year now, I have been advised by a doctor on a scientific weight loss method, combining exercise and a moderate diet. When I first started, I was very discouraged. Every morning, I practice breathing, sit-ups, and walking. Exercise helps me feel healthier. I lose weight not because I want to be beautiful, but mainly for my health. Only losing weight is good for my body and health. Therefore, I was determined to lose weight and use the method, with the support of a few friends. Now my health has stabilized, from over 70kg now I am over 50kg.”

In recent years, Siu Black has often sung for the church choir and occasionally accepts programs that she finds meaningful. The rest of the time, she spends more time with the choir and her family. She is still the same, true to the Ba Na people and with the same hearty laugh as before. She said, “I sing for the local church choir but never bargain for the fee, I accept whatever the congregation gives me. This time, I went to Ho Chi Minh City to meet the members of the contest's organizing committee, to sit together for the upcoming event. But now, if anyone asks me what I like, I just like taking care of my grandchildren and living with the Ba Na people in my village.”

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/nghe-si-siu-black-ban-giam-khao-ma-chi-ngoi-khong-hop-voi-toi-278473.html