LiveSpace: Inspiring passion for young Vietnamese artists

The group Limebócx will perform in the first show of the LiveSpace Vietnam project. (Photo: provided by character)

Hanoi, (VNA) - LiveSpace Vietnam, a music talent project initiated by the L'Espace, in collaboration with Monsoon Music Festival, Believe record label (France), and The Thao & Van Hoa (Sports & Culture), officially kicked off on January 12.

Director of L’Espace Thierry Vergon, head of LiveSpace project, expressed his belief that the programme is expected to connect young Vietnamese artists together, enable them to dream and reignite their passion and, most importantly, help them have an opportunity to go further in their career in the professional music environment of Vietnam and the region.

With the collaboration of musician, music producer Quoc Trung and Monsoon Music Festival; Believe record label, and Sports & Culture newspaper (Vietnam News Agency), the official hopes this model will change the market and strengthen the cooperation between Vietnam and France in the field of music in particular and culture in general.

Difficulties for young artists

Before Quoc Trung became a popular name in the Vietnamese music industry, he had struggled with his passion. He started playing music at the age of 15 and joined the band Phuong Dong in 1991.

Quoc Trung will be one of the experts in training and supporting young artists in the project. (Photo: provided by character)

Ever since he became an artist, he has dreamed of performing at festivals and playing music for many people. At that time, young artists like Quoc Trung had to rely on a record label to make albums and perform. Today, artists who are just starting out on the musical path have more advantages and control of their works where they can work independently and promote their works through various platforms to gain audience. It is the start of many indie artists and bands. However, the most important thing is whether their music stands the test of time. Quoc Trung affirmed that advantages always go hand in hand with challenges for young artists.

“It is because of the development of digital technology platforms that audiences have many options for entertainment. That is why young people have to be very creative in organising shows and releasing music,” he noted.

Quoc Trung recalled the first time he attended a music festival abroad, he asked a producer for advice on which record label to sign. "You should practice more and then think about choosing a record label," the producer said.

“It means that when artists have good products, they will be confident enough in choosing a partner to launch the product. In Vietnam, bands have difficulty finding a clear direction for their development. In addition to playing music, they also have to learn how to promote their work and organise performances. Underground bands have always struggled financially. Therefore, we want to help them shape their style and develop their music careers,” Quoc Trung said.

Trang Le from the group Limebócx agreed with Quoc Trung, sharing her challenges that the two-member group is facing: “First of all, it is important to arrange time to practice music together because. We are both teaching music and having families of our own to care for. We have our own financial pressure besides being passionate about music, we also have to take care of our own family.

“The effort and passion are there, but we do not have a clear direction on our musical path. If there is a problem in the production or promotion of the album, we usually just ask our friends. I think that's the common difficulty of indie groups."

Helping young artists on the professional path

L’espace director Thierry Vergon said he understands that young artists in Vietnam face many difficulties and challenges in promoting their names, developing and managing their careers or even producing demos.

"The rapid growth of the Internet and media allows young artists to showcase and build a lot of content online. However, building a real roadmap allowing young artists to become professionals is still beyond their reach,” he said.

“The Vietnamese music industry has yet to meet all the necessary conditions and factors to create a favourable environment and enable new talents in the field of music to enter the international market. Professional and qualified concert halls for top-notch live concerts are really rare, and music labels dedicated to supporting emerging artists almost zero.”

Artists at the project launch on January 12. (Photo: Minh Thu/Vietnam+)

The official also pointed out that the majority of young artists still do not have the necessary knowledge regarding the regulations and processes for the distribution of music products. Therefore, the LiveSpace Vietnam project will help Vietnamese artists overcome these difficulties to develop.

Specifically, when registering to LiveSpace Vietnam, young artists will be able to perform at the professional stage of L'Espace; enjoy supports from music industry’s veterans to record a work; and participate in consulting workshops on professional performance, composition, recording technical standards for artists and live performance techniques on both large and small stages led by domestic and foreign experts in the Vietnam music industry.

It is expected that this year, L’espace will organise five concerts for artists, from which a group or an individual artist will be selected to sign a production contract with Believe record label to perform at Monsoon Music Festival and tour many big cities nationwide./.