After a period of fighting a serious illness, singer, musician, People's Artist The Hien breathed his last at 9:30 p.m. on October 1, 2025 at Military Hospital 175 , at the age of 71. The passing of the talented artist, dubbed by the public as the "soldier's musician", left behind grief for colleagues, friends and the music-loving public...

Artist of soldier love songs

The last time we met musician Thế Hiển was at a meeting organized by the Veterans' Traditional Liaison Committee of Division 5 (Military Region 7) in coordination with the Ho Chi Minh City Association for Supporting Families of Martyrs, at the end of 2024. It was a meeting of special significance, paying tribute to the severely wounded soldiers of Division 5. It was also almost the last time Thế Hiển sang in public. Most of the delegates were officers and soldiers who participated in the war and sacrificed their youth and part of their bodies to protect the southwestern border and perform international duties in Cambodia in the 1980s. Although his health was poor at that time, the presence of People's Artist Thế Hiển with the song "Nhanh Lan Rung", performed with his familiar guitar, inspired and gave life-loving energy to the wounded soldiers and veterans. Among the attendees were many officers and soldiers who had been served by Thế Hiển during the fierce years on the battlefield. And it was also from a performance trip serving the Vietnamese Volunteer Army at the 479th Front of Cambodia in 1986 that The Hien created the famous song "Nhanh Lan Rung". The song was composed right next to the trenches and then sung directly to the soldiers. The passionate melody, clear and lively lyrics, full of romance and humanity of the song quickly touched the hearts of music lovers, especially soldiers. "Nhanh Lan Rung" is one of the outstanding songs of contemporary Vietnamese music on the theme of the armed forces. This song is also the "stamp" that guarantees The Hien to be affectionately called "musician of soldiers" by the public.

Musician, People's Artist The Hien. Photo from character's Facebook

The Hien's real name is Lai The Hien, born in 1955 in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), originally from Nam Dinh (now Ninh Binh province). He showed his musical talent from a young age, participated in the mass art movement and then studied intermediate vocal music at the Lotus Art Troupe. In 1980, The Hien officially became a singer of the Troupe, starting tours to units and localities, bringing his songs to serve the public.

Growing up in the mass arts movement, he joined the Ho Chi Minh City Youth Union's Young Composition Club. In 1982, The Hien wrote his first song "When the balloons fly", which was warmly welcomed by the audience. Just one year later, during a tour to serve cadres and soldiers at the northern border, he composed the song "Sing about him". After being popularized, the song quickly became a mark that helped him become famous. The image of "A backpack, a gun on the shoulder / A soldier familiar with hardships..." along with a youthful melody, "painted" a beautiful picture of a soldier in music. The Hien's compositions about Uncle Ho's soldiers all have a youthful, bustling rhythm, easy to sing, easy to remember, suitable for all audiences.

Imprints from the border to the islands

The Hien is a multi-talented artist. During more than 4 decades of artistic activities, he has composed, popularized and directly performed hundreds of musical works. Many songs have become the spiritual memories of generations of the public, such as: Hat ve anh, Nhanh lan rung, Toc em doi ga, Linh dao truong Truong Sa, Thanh nien tuyen nguyen, Chuyen ngay xua chuyen nay, Cho du co dau dau, Doi cho trong con mua, Chuyen nguoi doi, Hoai niem dau yeu, Dau cau cau, Hat tren nong truong xanh, Nhong nhong nhong nhong...

In 2012, The Hien was awarded the title of Meritorious Artist. In 2023, he was honored to become a People's Artist, a noble award from the Party and State in recognition of the artist's persistent and outstanding contributions to his artistic career. The Hien was deeply attached to and left a deep impression on the Army units. Throughout the 1980s, 1990s and the following years, he continuously participated in performing trips to serve the troops, from the Southwestern border, the North to Truong Sa and the seas and islands. It was this attachment that created an abundant source of inspiration for his compositions. His songs about soldiers are filled with camaraderie, love between the army and the people, love for the homeland, country and romantic love between couples.

In 2022, he released the collection "Singing about you - Wild orchids", including 40 songs, including 32 songs about soldiers and 8 songs about love for the homeland and country.

When he was in his old age and his health was declining, he still continued his artistic and volunteer activities. He participated in many fundraising performances to support veterans, wounded soldiers, and poor patients... For him, artistic activities were an effective spiritual remedy to help him live optimistically, love life, and build up positive energy to fight against illness. The public will always remember the image of a tall, thin artist, holding a guitar, singing passionately in the middle of the training ground or on the deck of a ship in the middle of the ocean with a "fiery" style and a rustic, powerful bass voice. He once confided: "I feel happy when I can sing for the soldiers and I have to write and sing to express their feelings."

He passed away, leaving in the hearts of his colleagues and fans the image of an optimistic artist, loving life, living sincerely, simply, with great determination, and completely in love with music until the last minute, like "The wild orchid branch has bloomed beautiful white petals"...

PHAN TUNG SON

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    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/van-hoa/doi-song/nhac-si-the-hien-dep-mai-nhanh-lan-rung-848899