Famous singer Paolo Tuan: Washed dishes for hire, worked as a waiter when he came to America, U80 mysterious personal life

In the US, at first the Vietnamese community was not large so Paolo Tuan had to do other jobs to make a living. The once famous rock singer in Saigon had to wash dishes, do nails... But the fire of music still burned inside him.

Paolo Tuan's real name is Dao Thieu Doan, born in 1946 in Hanoi. Since the age of 4, Paolo Tuan has loved music, often humming along to songs heard on the radio. Throughout his school years, he held important positions in the school's art club.

With a gift for foreign languages, Paolo Tuan speaks both English and French well. He knows by heart French and European and American songs on CDs.

"Every noon, I would watch foreign programs and I was attracted by these unique and vibrant musical materials. Rock songs at that time were like a virus that penetrated my soul and I began my journey of singing rock music," the famous singer said in the program Artist's Life.

Although he loved singing, Paolo Tuan once thought that one day he would become a star, "hunted" by the public. He came to the professional singing career as a destiny after moving to the South with his family in 1954.

Recalling the memory of the first time he stood on stage to perform rock music, famous singer Paolo Tuan recalled: "When I was 15 years old, I and a few friends went to sing at a tea room in Ho Chi Minh City. By chance, musician Nguyen Ngoc was sitting below, he asked me to join a band in which his son was the guitarist.

I accepted and invited a few of my friends to form the group The Black Caps, specializing in rock music" - according to the program Artist's Life.

At that time, the Vietnamese music market favored pre-war music and folk songs, but suddenly there appeared "cool" boys in all-black outfits and vibrant rock music. It was this difference that brought The Black Caps group to widespread coverage on the streets of Saigon.

He once confided in Tien Phong newspaper: "At that time, the rock music movement began to spread around the world and in Vietnam, the audience was eagerly waiting for this music genre. Therefore, my appearance met the audience's expectations, which was also a natural thing and I became the first Vietnamese person to sing rock."

The Black Caps' name continued to "rise in rank" when director Thai Thuc Nha asked them to record 2 songs in the movie "Saigon by night".

During his time with the band, the male singer took the stage name Thanh Tuan. Every time he appeared, he performed French and European-American songs.

Not long after that, while on tour in Da Nang, the manager of a dance hall in Saigon offered to collaborate with him as an independent artist. Since then, the male artist officially went solo and the stage name Paolo Tuan was born.

Not only successful with rock music, Paolo Tuan also successfully performed many immortal French and English lyrical songs.

When his career was flourishing and his life was rich, the male singer left behind all his assets, house, and even relatives to go to America in 1975.

"I left without knowing why I left. Perhaps the panic of some people around me made me follow, leaving behind all my assets, home and relatives. At first I thought it would just be a short trip, but unexpectedly that trip lasted for decades," the male singer told Tien Phong newspaper.

Like many other Vietnamese people when arriving in a foreign land, the male singer had to do many manual labor jobs to make a living such as washing dishes, doing nails, and waiting tables.

Recalling this period, Paolo Tuan told the program Artist's Life: "I was like everyone else, people washed dishes, I also washed dishes and then became a waiter. Gradually, the Vietnamese community overseas gathered together to organize art performances and programs, I was invited back, at the same time I still went to work for the company."

Not long after that, he sang at a tea room and "caught the eye" of a show producer in the US. They invited him to join the band and the name Paolo Tuan once again shone overseas. This time, he not only sang rock music and French music but also performed many songs by musicians Trinh Cong Son, Ngo Thuy Mien, Vu Thanh An...

Paolo Tuan sang all over America, released CDs... and became a familiar voice in overseas music shows. However, the nostalgia for his homeland still ached in the famous singer's heart. He still wished and even craved to sing in the place where he was born, where he took his first steps on stage.

That dream came true when he was invited to sing in Khanh Ly's show "Like a farewell" in Hanoi in 2018. In 2019, the next time he was able to sing in his homeland, the famous singer asked to regain his Vietnamese nationality to be able to bring his singing to serve his home audience.

Recently, the famous male singer moved to Saigon. Every day, he sings at a small tea room. He lives quietly at the age of U80, his private life is a secret that he always refuses to share with the public. Paolo Tuan only hopes that the audience will remember him through his singing and songs on stage.

While his peers choose to enjoy their old age, Paolo Tuan is still passionate about music. He has many projects in mind. The famous singer also plans to cover songs by young people because these songs have very special melodies. "However, I sing them again but still maintain my own musical style," he told Thanh Nien newspaper.

After more than 60 years of living his life to the fullest with his singing career, Paolo Tuan decided to hold a music night to celebrate this brilliant journey in the near future.

"The program includes about 20 songs and combines with other singers. The music show includes many different genres of music such as rock, pop,... and brand new songs that have never been released before," he shared in the Artist's Life program.

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