HCM CITY — Pop star Minh Hằng of HCM City will compete in the MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) Best Southeast Asia Act 2018 in Spain next month.  

The singer will compete with five others from Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore via the website asia.mtvema.com.

The nominees were chosen based on their professional activities, including record sales, frequency of appearances on radio and television, online watching and listening, popularity on social media, and ticket sales.

Votes for the Best Southeast Asia Act award will be taken through MTV EMA networks, including websites, Facebook and mobile applications.

The MTV EMA 2018 awards ceremony will be held on November 4 in Barakaldo.

The event will attract international stars from the Europe, the US and Asia.

Born in 1987 in HCM City, Hằng began her professional career in both music and film when she was at school.  

She performed as the lead singer in girl bands Pha Lê, Tiamo and J8687.

In 2007, her role in the 60-part TV series Gọi Giấc Mơ Về (Dream Comes Back), a production by veteran director Xuân Cường, became a hit.  

She won the HTV Awards for Most Favourite TV Actress presented by HCM City Television in 2008. More than 10,000 people chose her for the prize. 

“I love movies. But I wanted to challenge myself in music,” said Hằng.   

A year later, she worked as a solo singer. Her first album, Một Vòng Trái Đất (Around The World), included major hits.

Her highlighted albums include Queen of the Night, Giờ Em Biết (I Know), Break the Rules, Ngôi Sao Cô Đơn (Alone Star) and Điều Em Cần Chỉ Là Anh (All I Need is You).

These albums won several top prizes at national music awards presented by leading organisations, including the HCM City Television and Voice of HCM City.

Established in 1994, originally an alternative to the American MTV Video Music Awards, the MTV EMA is a popular celebration of what MTV viewers consider the best in music.

In 2016, young pop star and songwriter Đông Nhi of HCM City was honoured as the Best Southeast Asia Act award at 2016 MTV Europe Music Awards (MTV EMA) in Milan, Italy.

The singer defeated six competitors, Gentle Bones of Singapore, Sarah Geronimo of the Philippines, Thaitanium of Thailand, Raisa of Indonesia, and Yuna and Bunkface of Malaysia. — VNS