Vietnamese pop singer tlinh is a pink queen of the fungi in her newest video for single ‘nếu lúc đó’ – and she’s as cute as Princess Peach herself. The track was released on the 2nd March and was produced by long-time collaborator 2pillz. It’s the second single from tlinh’s upcoming debut album set to drop later this year.
The 22-year-old Hanoi-born rapper, singer, and dancer is one of Spotify’s most streamed artists in Vietnam and is on track to steal hearts around the globe gaining exposure through her recent billboard in Time Square, jingle for Maybelline, and incredible performance on the COLORS YouTube channel.
The video for the single, which now has over 11M views, starts with the singer elegantly reclining on a podium in a glowing dress that matches the hot pink background and her pink ghost-like subjects. Her glowy blush-heavy make-up and long floral acrylics are a treat on the eyes but the real stand out is her headdress. Baby pink mushrooms and a dramatic tulle train sprout from her head like a fungi crown. Amid her army of pink ghouls, she breaks down whilst brooding on her heartbreak before being envelopment in a consoling hug. She emerges in a gorgeous geometric tulle wedding dress complete with a long veil and raps under a drizzling sky with tears streaming down her face.
Though the singer looks every bit the soft ethereal fairy in the video her lyrics are intimate meditating on heartbreak and all the things the couple could have done differently to save the relationship. The retrospective song (the song’s title translates to “if at that time”) will be a hit with sad girlies who need a good comforting heartbreak anthem. tlinh smoothly unifies rap, pop, and R&B in the track moving between delicately sweet vocals and swift rap seamlessly – it’s the kind of girly glam that Ariana Grande fans will be all over.
The flowy pink look was inspired by Schipiarelli, Balenciaga, and Rihanna according to tlinh’s stylist Tiger in an Instagram post with the pink colour representing a “picture perfect” life which is “hard to get in reality” reflecting the lyrics in the song. Tiger also wrote that the burn holes in the cloud-like wedding dress destroy the illusion of perfection suggesting a flawed relationship.
Born Nguyễn Thảo Linh, the singer first gained recognition in the music world when she reached the finals of Rap Việt, a national reality TV competition, and performed with beloved Vietnamese rapper Suboi. Since then, she has gained a loyal following and released a number of impressive singles including the soft ballad ‘Yêu Thầm’ alongside Hoàng Yến Chibi and TDK, the spicy Latin pop-inspired ‘Gái độc thân’, and the sensual R&B track ‘Strip ‘em Down’ featuring 2pillz.
The fiercely feminist singer is dedicated to showing strength in feminity. Earlier this month the singer performed at a concert for Billboard to celebrate International Women’s Day. “I want people who listen to my music to feel more feminine, to feel more confident,” the singer said in an interview with Paper magazine, “There are feelings I believe we all have, but that people are not used to expressing in Vietnamese. I’m here to help people — women — get in touch with those emotions”.
Words by: Molly Sutherland
Header Image: Tlinh
