One day, the name HKT came back to life when member TiTi held a wedding with his DJ girlfriend.
There, TiTi and Ho Gia Hung exchanged an intimate hug, instead of confirming that the two had truly overcome the tension to make up with each other. After more than 5 years, the audience saw the moment the HKT trio smiled brightly in one frame. And from that change, many audiences dream of a scenario where HKT reunites.
HKT was a disaster in terms of hair and costumes.
Why does HKT cause fever?
Ho Gia Hung’s appearance at TiTi’s wedding overshadowed everything. Many viewers felt satisfied when the two members of HKT were no longer in conflict. Tens of thousands of comments on posts related to HKT online, expressing nostalgia when seeing two photos with the same style, but opposite, of 3 members from nearly 20 years ago and now when they are both over the age of 30.
Then, many stories were discussed around the name HKT.
Is, “If HKT is still active, what will happen now?”, an audience member asked. Another audience member thought to himself: “Maybe in the past I was too strict with HKT.”
20 years ago, HKT marked its presence in the Vietnamese music market with an album No big deal. At that time, the youngest member of the group – Ly Tuan Kiet – was only 13 years old.
This is the period when the audience has great favor for child singers. Before HKT, little Xuan Mai achieved a lot of success before even entering first grade. After that, another “kid” phenomenon appeared and caused a fever, little Chau (Nguyen Huy).
HKT members started their careers later than Xuan Mai and Chau but are still classified as child singers. Right from the first products on the album No big deal, HKT was condemned by many audiences for pursuing music that deviated from age standards. Specifically, these are child singers who sing teenage love music.
HKT was labeled a “Vietnamese music disaster” for doing things that were unlike anyone else.
While Vietnamese artists 15-20 years ago followed very strict standards of standardization, HKT chose unusual costumes and hairstyles. Many HKT songs from 2005-2010 were criticized for borrowing ideas from Chinese and Korean music. There are products like Dance of 6 brothers HKT copied the composition, melody and choreography of the group BEAST.
The disaster of HKT 10 years ago also came from the 3 members dancing too much, with a series of movements, assembled together like a “mixed pot”.
That was the period when Vpop favored Teen Pop and Pop Ballad songs, while HKT’s music was a mixture with the main emphasis on Dance. HKT once had bricks thrown at the stage by the audience. That was the peak of the years when TiTi, Ho Gia Hung, and Ly Tuan Kiet suffered prejudice from a large audience.
From an image of musical disaster, after 20 years, why is HKT being praised?
Amidst the many disasters of HKT, there are still undeniable bright spots in the 3 members. That is HKT’s ability to sing live and dance at a very high frequency. The audience commented that after all these years, not many young artists dance as well as HKT, not to mention dancing and singing at the same time.
HKT is the childhood of many audiences, especially in the West. During their peak, the three HKT members were most closely associated with Phuong Tuong’s stage.
A show with HKT and many artists associated with other provincial stages, the ticket price only fluctuates a few tens of thousands of dong. 15 years ago, when YouTube was just starting to develop and digital music platforms did not have strong coverage, for rural audiences, HKT, Pham Truong, Lam Chan Khang… were big idols.
Regardless of whether it is a disaster or an idol, HKT is associated with the memories of many audiences. That’s why the reunion of the 3 members attracts special attention.
After the disbandment, the three members all built their individual careers.
What is the chance for HKT to return?
There are many comments from the audience praising HKT as legends and monuments of Vietnamese music. But in reality, the influence of TiTi, Ho Gia Hung and Ly Tuan Kiet is not that strong.
In the mainstream Vietnamese music market, HKT has never had a product win a major award or be able to perform on a major stage. HKT’s stature is limited to the audience at provincial shows and fairs…
Right now, three members of HKT are all developing their own careers. Ly Tuan Kiet works most seriously, constantly releasing new products and having a high frequency of running shows. Ho Gia Hung also sings at many events. TiTi is no longer too interested in music, turning to many fields since announcing her departure from HKT in 2018.
HKT reuniting is a dream scenario, but making this happen is a difficult problem. All three artists have their own crew and have their own career orientation instead of joining the same entertainment company like when they were under the name HKT. Compared to 10-15 years ago, provincial stages and fairs gradually “turned off the lights”, audiences from far away places now have more access to music, instead of having almost only one choice. is waiting for the loudspeaker to announce “HKT and music stars” coming to the countryside.
The three HKT members are no longer young. Ly Tuan Kiet’s music has changed a lot and is pragmatic with the times. Ho Gia Hung is similar to Kiet.
If HKT returns, in what direction will its career develop? Continue to attack the provincial segment or upgrade and completely encroach on the market race? Looking at that, we can see that there are many difficult problems that need to be solved before the reunion of HKT as expected by many audiences.
Among dozens of HKT songs, the most famous is probably Add A Pain Times. Dong Thien Duc wrote the Vietnamese lyrics Add A Pain Times.
Dong Thien Duc is an interesting case to mention when discussing the upcoming reunion (if it happens) of HKT. Thien Duc, from a musician specializing in composing or writing lyrics for HKT and many other artists in the fair and small-town segment, has now become a hit-maker of Vietnamese music through a series of products. AI’ll be faithful forever, Tomorrow I’ll get married, Goodbye. From HKT, Dong Thien Duc now together with Tung Duong caused a fever with the song A round of Vietnam .
Do TiTi, Ho Gia Hung and Ly Tuan Kiet have the courage to take a leap like Dong Thien Duc, which is to reunite the group, return to the market and seriously invest in their careers to have products that completely escape? from being labeled a “disaster”?
