From a Small Town in Thai Binh to the Billboard Charts: The Rise of Vietnam's Pop King Son Tung M-TP
He was cut from Vietnam Idol at the first screening. A decade later, he became the only Vietnamese artist to chart on Billboard.
In Vietnam, Son Tung M-TP is practically synonymous with pop music.
His social media following numbers in the tens of millions, and his YouTube channel has amassed over two billion views.
He is the only Vietnamese artist to chart on Billboard, and one of the few Southeast Asian singers to have collaborated with Snoop Dogg.
Before all of that, he could not even pass the first screening of Vietnam Idol.
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Son Tung was born Nguyen Thanh Tung in 1994 in Thai Binh, a rice-farming province in northern Vietnam.
His mother performed in the local cheo folk opera troupe.
His father played seven instruments.
Music ran in the family. By the age of two, he was already showing a knack for singing.
At eight, he enrolled in Thai Binh's Children's Arts and Culture Palace to study electronic keyboard.
In high school, he formed underground bands with friends and started writing his own songs.
His parents wanted him to focus on school. His father pushed him toward a business degree.
The young Nguyen Thanh Tung did not listen to his parents.
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In 2012, the 18-year-old Son Tung auditioned for Vietnam Idol Season 4.
He waited from morning to afternoon, ready to perform "Khong Con Mua Thu."
There were too many contestants. He was eliminated in the preliminary screening, before he ever stood in front of the judges.
Vietnamese media later described it as being cut at the "parking lot round," meaning he never made it through the door.
He called his aunt afterward: "I didn't make it. I'll go back to Thai Binh to see my parents tomorrow."
The story did not end there.
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That same year, Son Tung enrolled at the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music.
He added "M-TP" to his stage name, standing for Music, Talent, and Phong cach (Style).
He signed a management deal with Huy Tuan's Van Production and began his professional career.
In late 2012, his self-written track "Con Mua Ngang Qua" (A Passing Rain) spread online.
In 2013, "Em Cua Ngay Hom Qua" (You of Yesterday) surpassed 100 million streams on Zing MP3, Vietnam's largest music platform, within three months.
He was 19. Nearly every young person in the country was listening.
Over the next few years, hits followed: "Chac Ai Do Se Ve," "Lac Troi," "Noi Nay Co Anh."
Each music video crossed 100 million views on YouTube.
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Two years later, he left Van Production amid disputes and joined Quang Huy's WePro Entertainment.
After another two years, in late 2016, Son Tung decided to go fully independent and founded his own label, M-TP Entertainment.
In its first year, the company generated about 40 billion dong in revenue, and turned a profit.
A 22-year-old singer became a 22-year-old CEO.
He later announced plans to build a social media platform called SkySocial. The project never launched, but it showed the scope of his ambition.
His younger brother, Nguyen Viet Hoang (born 2000), debuted in 2022 under the stage name MONO, also signed to M-TP Entertainment.
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In July 2019, Son Tung released "Hay Trao Cho Anh" (Give It to Me), featuring Snoop Dogg.
The music video surpassed 25 million views in less than a day, setting a YouTube premiere record for a solo artist at the time.
Billboard covered the release. Snoop Dogg himself shared the results on Instagram.
Son Tung went on to chart on multiple Billboard charts. He remains the only Vietnamese artist to achieve this.
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Fame brought scrutiny.
Plagiarism accusations have followed Son Tung throughout his career.
In 2014, several early songs were flagged for using unauthorized backing tracks.
"Em Cua Ngay Hom Qua" was found to resemble EXID's "Every Night." "Con Mua Ngang Qua" was matched against a track by Korean act Namolla Family.
The Vietnamese music program "Bai Hat Yeu Thich" removed three of his songs, and the Lan Song Xanh (Green Wave) Awards dropped "Em Cua Ngay Hom Qua" from its nominations.
Son Tung initially denied the allegations. He later admitted that his early works had used unauthorized instrumental tracks.
In April 2022, he released the English-language single "There's No One At All."
The music video featured a character falling from a rooftop, drawing criticism for appearing to romanticize suicide.
Vietnamese authorities intervened. M-TP Entertainment was fined 70 million dong, and the video was permanently removed. A new version, without the controversial scene, was later uploaded.
These incidents did not destroy his popularity, but they remain a recurring topic in Vietnamese public discourse.
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After a quiet stretch, Son Tung delivered two new releases in 2024.
"Chung Ta Cua Tuong Lai," released in March, topped YouTube's Vietnam trending chart for over a month.
"Dung Lam Trai Tim Anh Dau," released in June, hit No. 1 on YouTube's global chart on its first day and held the top trending spot for 34 days.
He released no new music in 2025 but signaled a major comeback in 2026.
The fan community is already counting down.
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Son Tung M-TP's trajectory tracks closely with the growth of Vietnam's pop music industry.
When he debuted in 2012, V-Pop was still a vague concept.
Over the past decade, he has put Vietnamese pop music on the map beyond Southeast Asia, with more than 10 music videos surpassing 100 million views, Billboard chart entries, and collaborations with global artists.
He has won Best Southeast Asian Act at the MTV EMAs, the Breakthrough Vietnamese Artist award at the MAMA Awards, and multiple Lan Song Xanh awards.
His YouTube channel has over 10 million subscribers. He was the first Vietnamese singer to reach that milestone.
From the teenager cut at the Vietnam Idol parking lot to the defining figure of Vietnamese pop music.
The journey took over a decade, marked by controversy and criticism. But the numbers speak for themselves.
