L.A.-based Vietnamese-American artist Thuy Thi Thu Tran, aka thủy, has rightly caused quite a stir in recent years. Especially after her song "girls like me don't cry" went viral on TikTok and in YouTube shorts in 2023, many people suddenly took notice of this exciting independent newcomer with the angelic voice that shifts between pop and R&B like a dream. Those who came to her via the hit discovered a discography that already had some gems to offer: Her debut 9-track EP "i hope u see this" from 2021 already had two veritable hits with "chambers" and "universe" and the full EP "girls like me don't cry" fulfilled all expectations that old and new thủy fans could have. Their songs now have over 650 million streaming plays, while brands such as Levi's, Puma, Samsung and Google are only too happy to work with thủy.
This year, thủy also became the first Vietnamese-American artist to ever perform at Coachella. She later said in an interview about this show: "I realized afterwards how important this moment was for my own community and how much we want to see each other on these stages."
At the beginning of October, thủy released her new album "wings": nine songs that showcase amazing facets of her voice and her work. While "hair down" marries R&B with liquid drum'n'bass, "cloud 11" is a dazzlingly produced dance-pop song, "crash & burn" is R&B on trip-hop beats and the title track "wings" is a pure, intimate acoustic guitar ballad. The fact that this curiosity for new styles still works for thủy is mainly due to her voice, which brings it all together in a velvety-soft way. She herself says: "I think people will be surprised when they hear these many different sounds from me that still sound coherent."
As with many vocal artists, however, the same applies to thủy: to fully understand her magic, you have to hear her voice live.