The Vietnamese music market is expected to be bustling in the last months of the year with many concerts planned. 

Uyen Linh has announced she will hold a live concert in Hanoi and HCM City to celebrate her 15 years of career as a singer. To mark the milestone of 30 years of singing, Ha Tran plans to hold a live concert called ‘Thien ha tinh khoi’ (Pure Galaxy) in HCM City on August 10 and Hanoi on August 24. 

Nearly one year after the successful show ‘1589’, Trung Quan Idol is about to hold a live concert, 1689, with famous guests My Linh, Ho Quynh Huong, Huong Tram and Suboi.

Phuong Thanh’s show will take place in Ha Long and HCM City in September, while Cam Ly will hold a show at the Hoa Binh Theatre on August 3.

Vpop and live shows

Music nights in Vietnam are organized under many different forms, such as mini shows and live shows. 

According to musician and producer Anh Tu, live shows and live concerts have much larger scale than mini shows, and require higher sound and lighting quality. And most importantly, there must be a story that connects songs. 

Meanwhile, at mini shows, artists’ performance is just like at ordinary events.

Some live concerts were very successful in the first half of the year, which were mostly held in HCM City and Hanoi. On average, each show attracts 4,000-5,000 attendants. Ha Anh Tuan is the only singer organizing three concerts in Singapore and Sydney, just some days ago.

The admission tickets of the organized concerts ranged between VND1 million and VND6-7 million. The tickets to My soul 1981 by My Tam, for example, were VND1.5-5 million, while Doa hong gai (thorny roses) by Phuong Thanh was VND1-6 million in Hanoi. 

These are also the average ticket prices for live concerts to take place in some days (VND1.2-4.8 million for tickets to Thien ha tinh khoi and VND1-4 million for 1689).

In some cases, tickets are much more expensive. The audiences had to pay VND10 million for a ticket to Dam Vinh Hung’s concert in HCM City in early May. Tickets are cheaper for concerts organized in smaller cities and provinces.

There were seven price levels for Phuong Thanh’s show on June 22 in Ha Long, Quang Ninh, from VND350,000 to VND2.1 million. However, the show has been postponed until September.

The quality of live shows varies as it depends on singers and their sponsors. According to Anh Tu, if live shows and live concerts are organized by event and media companies (the companies invite artists to perform at concerts and pay fees), then obtaining as much revenue as possible will be the top priority. 

Meanwhile, shows organized by artists themselves must have high requirements on sound, lighting and content. The revenue can hardly cover the investment.

Phuong Thanh said she authorized a media company to organize Doa hong gai on May 25, but her company will organize the upcoming shows in Ha Long and HCM City. The singer anticipates a loss as the event will be organized without the support of event organizers.

According to Thanh, the biggest difference between a live show organized by an event organizer and a live show organized by artists themselves is the quality. 

“Incurring losses is foreseeable. But in return, I can be free to perform the way I want and leave personal imprints in the market, while affirming my fame and brand,” Thanh said.

Financial problems

Asked about the revenue from the live show which took place some days ago in Hanoi, Thanh said she ‘did not take a loss’, because it was organized by an event and media company. 

The singer admitted that previously, she always felt pressure when organizing shows. When she held a live show at a stadium, the cost was very high. But she no longer feels this pressure as she has become more famous.

Quan said in 2023, he had to spend all the money he saved in the last 15 years to organize show ‘1589’. The event did not bring a profit, but it conquered the hearts of the audience.

Asked about the upcoming show, Quan said the investment would be even higher.

Tinh Le