Following the success of the previous programmers, this year’s ‘H-Artistry’ concert brings together three international talents who realised their dreams in the world of music in 2008. David Cook plays rock sounds from America; Alexandra Burke is an R&B superstar in the UK, and singer-songwriter Thanh Bui represents the contemporary sounds of Vietnam.
American rock singer and songwriter David Cook is eager to perform the tunes that took him to the top as well as new songs from his latest album “This Loud Morning” for the Vietnamese audience at the 2011 H-Artistry concert. He won the seventh season of American Idol in 2008 and rewrote chart history with a record-breaking 14 debut hit on the Billboard Digital Songs chart. His platinum debut album in November 2008 ranked No 3 on the Billboard album chart.
“I am very happy when people call me American Idol David Cook instead of just David Cook, like a few years ago. American Idol is an amazing platform but it is not a golden ticket to stardom,” said Cook at the Hanoi press conference on June 15.
The second big star performing in the concert is UK R&B diva Alexandra Burke. She just arrived in Hanoi yesterday and was thrilled with the warm welcome she received from the Vietnamese people. “This is my first time here and I got the biggest shock of my life at the airport because I’ve never been welcomed like that before, ever! I am so grateful to those who came to the airport to greet us with flowers and it literally brought tears to my eyes.”
Born in London in 1988, Burke enchanted the 13 million people who watched the 2008 'X-Factor” competition in the UK. Since winning the competition, she has released two solo albums, ‘Hallelujah’ and ‘Overcome.’ ‘Hallelujah’ still holds the record for the most singles sold in 24 hours, with 105,000 copies sold across Europe. Her single ‘Bad Boys’ on ‘Overcome’ reached number one on the British charts after selling 710,000 copies.
According to Benny Ng, managing director of show organisers Moet Hennessy, the favorite is the “Vietnamese element,” Thanh Bui. This is the first time a Vietnamese-Australian has been invited to perform at the concert. Vietnamese-Australian Thanh Bui is a hot name on the Southeast Asian music scene and has had many songs in the top regional music charts. He became famous amongst Vietnamese audiences with his 2010 song ‘Lang Tham Mot Tinh Yeu’ (Silent Love) featuring Vietnamese popular singer Ho Ngoc Ha.
Also at the press conference, Thanh Bui spontaneously sang ‘Tham Lang Mot Tinh Yeu’ and received great applause from the audience.
Aligning with the “The Global Art of Mixing’, the H-Artistry 2011 concert combines various genres of music and the blends top talents and emerging artists from around the world, said Do Quang Quy, director of the Performing Arts Centre under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, which is a co-organiser of the event.
“H-Artistry Hanoi is definitely a celebration of great contemporary music blending the hottest international talents for the enjoyment of music lovers in Vietnam,” he added.
