Vietnam Censors Give Songwriter Ngoc Dai “Free Advertising”

Ngoc Dai

By  Marianne Brown
The Diplomat | 7 July 2013 |

Arguably Vietnam’s most controversial songwriter, Ngoc Dai, has been featured regularly in the Vietnamese press over the last few weeks after releasing a new album without official permission.

Thang Mo 1, which translates as Village Herald 1, features lyrics like: “have sex, compatriots” and “oh groin, oh buttocks,” causing quite a stir in the traditionally prudish country. Instead of going through official channels and having the contents screened by the censorship board at the Department of Performing Arts, Dai started “knocking on people’s doors” selling copies on his own. Continue reading…