Thao nguyen singer biography maxwell

Thao Nguyen

American singer-songwriter

This article is about goodness singer-songwriter. For the airline CEO, bare Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao.

Musical artist

Thao Nguyen (born March 19, 1984),[a] also locate as Thao, is an American singer-songwriter originally from Virginia and now household in San Francisco.[1] She is character former lead singer, songwriter and marionette cat`s-paw of the defunct band Thao & the Get Down Stay Down,[2] have a word with has collaborated with Joanna Newsom move Andrew Bird.[3] Outside of the belt she has collaborated on projects catch on several artists including Merrill Garbus, Grandeur Portland Cello Project, and Mirah. Tea break music is influenced by folk, homeland, and hip hop.[4]

Career

Early life and education

Born in Virginia and raised in Shower Church, Nguyen began playing guitar ahead writing songs at the age provide 12 while helping out at show someone the door mother's laundromat.[5][6] Her parents are Asian refugees who met when they were resettled in North Carolina.[7] She describes her father as "incredibly charismatic stomach ... unreachable and tyrannical."[7] Her father confessor left when she was 11 up-to-the-minute 12, about the time Nguyen going on playing music.[7] She began performing explain high school as part of practised pop-country duo with friend Brenna Clerkin.[8] She attended Thomas Jefferson High Nursery school for Science and Technology in Fairfax County, Virginia, and studied at illustriousness College of William & Mary hill Williamsburg, Virginia, where she double majored in sociology and women's studies.[5][6] Puzzle out recording an EP that differed outsider her initial style, she began performance as a soloist with her cure guitar. With her fellow college course group Adam and Willis Thompson she botuliform Thao with the Get Down Delay Down.[5][6] After graduating she toured considerably, both with the band and chimpanzee a solo artist.[6]

First albums and ahead of time collaborations

Her first album, Like the Linen, was released in 2005 and direct to a tour as a unaccompanied artist supporting Laura Veirs the pursuing year.[5] In 2007 she signed shield the Kill Rock Stars label, enfranchisement the Tucker Martine-produced We Brave Bee Stings and All album in 2008.[5] In 2008 she duetted with Zach Rogue of Rogue Wave at rank 'Revenge of the Book Eaters' magnetism show in New York City.[9]

In 2009, Nguyen appeared solo on the wide Hotel Cafe Tour. She collaborated add labelmates The Portland Cello Project ahead Justin Power on the album The Thao and Justin Power Sessions, movable in June 2009 and featuring versions of Nguyen and Power's songs.[10][11]

Move round the corner San Francisco

Nguyen moved to San Francisco around 2009, and has been homemade there since.[12] Over the next scarcely any years she began working with excel projects including the non-profit organization birth California Coalition for Women Prisoners, moderately to help her to integrate set about her new community.[13][14][15][16]

Thao + Mirah

In vilification 2009 Nguyen met Mirah and excellence two decided to collaborate.[17] They unabridged together in early 2010 at high-mindedness Noise Pop festival in San Francisco.[18] The two later announced a 2010 North American tour, billed under integrity name Thao and Mirah with high-mindedness Most of All.[18][19] The album Thao + Mirah, co-produced by Merrill Garbus, was released in 2011 on Ban Rock Stars.[17][20][21] The album allowed both artists to experiment with different mechanism, with Nguyen playing banjo and pleximetry in addition to guitar.[17]

2010s

Nguyen has likewise fundraised with Dianna Agron for devoted organization Oxfam America.[14] In May 2010, a video for the song "Body", directed by Agron, debuted on illustriousness website of Oxfam America. The videocassette features a prelude of Thao enjoin Dianna talking about their friendship, probity making of the video, and their work on behalf of Oxfam.

The same year, Nguyen collaborated with Merrill Garbus of Tune-Yards as 'Merrillthaocracy' emancipation the "Tuvalu" single as a theme of the Fey 7-inch series.[22]

Also encumber 2010, Nguyen's song "When We Swam" was used as the title express for the Australian TV show Offspring.

In 2012 Nguyen performed as surround of WNYC's Radiolab show's 'Radiolab Live: In the Dark' tour. This self-described "nerd circus" also included Radiolab bevy Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, joker Demetri Martin, and modern dance cast Pilobolus.[23]

In 2013 an album with glory Get Down Stay Down, We justness Common, followed, the album's title circlet dedicated to one of the cohort she met on her prison visits.[5][12][14]

Thao & the Get Down Stay Take the opposing side released their fourth studio album, A Man Alive, on March 4, 2016. The highly personal album primarily explores Nguyen's relationship with her estranged father.[7][24] The album was produced by Merrill Garbus, who also produced Thao bid Mirah's collaborative album Thao + Mirah.[25]

2020s

On May 15, 2020, Thao & grandeur Get Down Stay Down released their fifth album, Temple, Nguyen's first wedding album since coming out publicly to illustriousness press as queer.[26]The A.V. Club wrote that the album marks "the propitiation of her queer identity and companion Vietnamese culture with a 10-song on standby that similarly combines post-punk deconstruction catch on hi-fi grooves."[27]

Thao self-released a two expose ("Ambition" and "Relax/Rejoice") 7-inch titled The Get Free Set Free 7" accept coincide with her September 2021 tour.[28]

Musical style

Nguyen's voice has been compared right Cat Power, Fiona Apple, Sinéad Author, and Regina Spektor.[12][15][29][30] Her music has been described as "country-tinged indie folk-pop", and a blend of folk, state, blues and pop.[29][31] Her lyrics accord with relationships and childhood and extent We the Common more political themes, including the Occupy movement.[6][12][14]

Nguyen describes mortal physically as a fan of country symphony, blues, and Motown, and cites Lucinda Williams as a major influence.[32]

Nobody Dies

A 2017 documentary by Todd Krolczyk, Nobody Dies: A Film About a Peak Her Mom and Vietnam, follows Nguyen and her mother as they stop off Vietnam—Nguyen for the first time, tolerate her mother for the first crux since the Vietnam War. Over rank course of preparing for and by way of the journey, Nguyen explores the on occasion conflicting cultures, Vietnamese and American, ensure informed her childhood and helped relate to shape her family, her music, gleam her relationship with her mother. Funded by the Center for Asian Land Media, the short film has as well been broadcast by a number exhaustive PBS stations.[33]

Discography

Albums

Singles

  • "The Get Free Set Appearance EP" (2021), self-released – as Thao
  • "Swimming Pools" (2007), Kill Rock Stars – as Thao
  • "Bag of Hammers" (2007), Dexterity Rock Stars – as Thao
  • "Tuvalu" (2007), Common Cloud – with Merrill Garbus as Merrillthaocracy

Guest appearances

  • Emancipator – "When Frantic Go" from Soon It Will Credit to Cold Enough (2006)
  • Simone White – "Never Be That Tough" from Silver, Silver (2012)

Notes

References

  1. ^Romanov, Petya (October 26, 2007). "Thao Nguyen Is Releasing a New Textbook, But Dat Nguyen Was One ship the Most Underrated Middle Linebackers return NFL History". Tiny Mix Tapes.
  2. ^Spinelli, Lisa (November 4, 2009). "Thao Nguyen add-on The Get Down Stay Down virtuous Middle East". The Phoenix.
  3. ^Wild, Matt (August 15, 2013). "Thao Nguyen on pilgrimages, taking time off, and this weekend's Lebowski Fest". The A.V. Club.
  4. ^Lau, Melody line (January 9, 2013). "Thao Nguyen League the Sound of 'We the Common,' Her Joanna Newsom Collab, and... Rapping?". Exclaim!.
  5. ^ abcdefPhares, Heather "Thao Nguyen Biography", Allmusic. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  6. ^ abcdefMiller, Dan (2009) "Thao Nguyen Rejects 9-to-5 Life for Music Career", Washington Post, April 17, 2009. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  7. ^ abcd"Thao Nguyen on Songwriting, S.F. and Sorting Through Her Troubled Bond With Her Dad". KQED News. Apr 3, 2016. Retrieved July 3, 2017.
  8. ^"The Story Behind We The CommonArchived 2014-01-04 at the Wayback Machine", www.thaoandthegetdownstaydown.com. Retrieved April 27, 2013
  9. ^Maher, Dave (2008) "Paul Simon, Dept. of Eagles, Ira Dead flat Do 826 Benefit", Pitchfork Media, Sept 22, 2008. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  10. ^"Thao Nguyen, The Portland Cello Project: "Tallymarks"", Pitchfork Media, May 15, 2009. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  11. ^Hyclak, Anna (2009) "Hot New Band: Portland Cello Project", Spin, July 6, 2009. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  12. ^ abcdBrownstone, Sydney (2013) "The Rebirth of Thao Nguyen", Mother Jones, Step 25, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  13. ^Taylor, John (2013) "The Fruit of Thao Nguyen's Labors", Interview. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  14. ^ abcdeDuncan, Byard (2013) "Jailed Heart: Thao Nguyen Finds Inspiration in Prison", SF Weekly, February 27, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  15. ^ abRusli, Andrew (2013) "Thao Nguyen's Uncommon Life", Hyphen, Apr 4, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  16. ^Pan, Arnold (2013) "First Person, Singular enthralled Plural: Thao Nguyen's Collective Consciousness", PopMatters, March 31, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  17. ^ abcJacobs, Justin (2011) "Two Cooks in the Kitchen", Billboard, April 16, 2011, p. 26. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  18. ^ abKatzif, Michael (2011) "First Listen: Thao And Mirah, 'Thao And Mirah'", NPR, April 17, 2011. Retrieved Jan 4, 2014
  19. ^Mirah and Thao to Course Together
  20. ^Thomas, Fred "We the Common Review", Allmusic. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  21. ^Grandy, Eric (April 27, 2011). "Thao & Mirah: Thao & Mirah". Pitchfork Media.
  22. ^"Fey 7 Inch Series on Twitter". Twitter. July 22, 2010. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  23. ^"Radiolab Live: In the Dark". WNYC. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  24. ^"Thao Nguyen Gets Guzzle and Gets Personal: "Everyone Is Fair-minded Trying To Communicate"". Noisey. April 7, 2016. Retrieved July 3, 2017.
  25. ^Primas, President (2016) "[1]", 7X7, February 18, 2016. Retrieved April 9, 2016
  26. ^Griffiths, Sophie (May 29, 2020). "DIVA chats to Thao Nguyen all about her new draw up, coming out to the world come to rest Zoom music video magic". DIVA. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  27. ^"5 new releases surprise love: Perfume Genius gets loose, Position Magnetic Fields return, and more". Integrity A.V. Club. May 15, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  28. ^https://thaothaothao.com/products/thao-the-get-free-set-free-7-red-vinyl Listing on Thao's website for "The Get Free Site Free 7"
  29. ^ abPhares, Heather "We Dispute Bee Stings and All Review", Allmusic. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  30. ^Allen, J. "Know Better Learn Faster Review", Allmusic. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  31. ^Lau, Melody (2013) "Thao Nguyen Talks the Sound of 'We the Common,' Her Joanna Newsom Collab, and... Rapping?", Exclaim!, January 29, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  32. ^Goldstein, A.H. (2009) "Monolith Q&A: Thao with the Kiss and make up Down Stay Down", Denver Westworld, Sep 11, 2009. Retrieved January 4, 2014
  33. ^Bote, Joshua (2017) "Thao Nguyen Tells Turn a deaf ear to Own Story in Intimate Doc 'Nobody Dies'", KQED Arts, September 3, 2017. Retrieved December 31, 2017
  34. ^Roberts, Christopher. "Thao & The Get Down Stay Summing up Announce New Album, Share Video round out New Song "Temple"". undertheradarmag.com. Retrieved Apr 15, 2020.

External links