Lilian (1965- ) whose full name is
Lilian Christensen, is a popular overseas Vietnamese singer and pioneer of dance, hip hop, new wave and techno music genres within the Vietnamese-American community. She is of Anglo-American and Vietnamese descent.
Lilian was born as
Nguyen Dieu Hoa on February 25, 1965 in Da Nang, Central Vietnam to an Anglo-American father and a Vietnamese mother and was affectionately nicknamed as Ly Ly. At the age of 5, Lilian and her family relocated to Saigon where she would be enrolled at a private international school reserved for children of foreign correspondents and US military personnel. Two years later, her father would return to the United States taking along her younger brother leaving Lilian and her mother behind in Vietnam. Upon the Fall of Saigon, Lilian and her mother moved to Can Tho where they would remain for the next five years. In 1980, she and her mother left Vietnam to be reunited with her father in the United States.
After graduating from Garden Grove High School, Lilian began singing professionally in 1985 with a local Vietnamese band called
The Fantasy for weddings and parties. The following year, while performing at
Dem Mau Hong nightclub in Santa Ana, California, she was spotted by singer
Son Ca who was so impressed with Lilian's powerful singing voice and was asked to record for her label,
Son Ca Productions. In 1987, she became a regular performer at
Club Rex as one of three primary vocalists for
Trung Nghia's band alongside
Thai Thao and
Tuyet Huong. That same year, Lilian went on a successful concert tour of Australia together with
Tuan Anh,
Ngoc Lan and Son Ca. After Club Rex closed down, she was recruited by the legendary musician/promoter
Ngoc Chanh to join the lineup of regular performers at the
Ritz Nightclub in Anaheim, California. For almost 15 years, starting from 1989 until the closing of its doors which took place in the early 2000s, Lilian held the second longest tenure as a regular performer at Ritz Nightclub behind singer
Carol Kim who had been performing there since its inception back in the mid 1980s.
During the 1980s when Euro New Wave and Italo Disco had made a tremendous impact with Vietnamese audiences, Lilian was one of the pioneer overseas Vietnamese singers to capitalize on the immense popularity of this particular genre of dance music with her live performances covering such songs like
You're My Love, You're My Life, Heartflash Tonight, Love Is the Name of the Game and
Heaven and Hell. With a non-stop performing schedule, she has toured all over the United States and Canada. On any live concert show with Lilian as a featured headliner, one can rest assure that she would have the entire audience on their feet out on the dance floor with her explosive performance. Lilian has recorded for many major overseas production labels including
Doi Magazine,
Nguoi Dep Binh Duong,
Giang Ngoc and
Hai Au. In 1993, Lilian made her debut appearance on the
Paris By Night live show music video series produced by
Thuy Nga on a couple of medleys alongside
Don Ho,
Lynda Trang Dai,
Ngoc Hue,
Dalena,
Thai Tai and
Y Nhi. Two years later, she would be invited back on the
Paris By Night stage on volume 32 in a duet performance of
Stay With Me with
Henry Chuc. Lilian has also appeared on music videos for many other production labels such as
Thuy Anh,
Shotguns,
Truong Thanh,
May Productions,
Lang Van,
Van Son Entertainment and
Blue Ocean Music in a duet performance with singer
Dai Trang of
Lien Khuc Chia Tay Trong Mua (I Saw You Walking in the Rain). Throughout the 1990s, Lilian was signed as an exclusive recording artist with
Sao Dem Productions which had released a series of her solo studio albums. Her most recent album,
Lilian Album Remix, was released this past January 24, 2015 at a sold out event held at
Bleu Nightclub in Orange County, California.
Since November 11, 2011, Lilian has been married to Minh Nguyen. She is a mother to two children, a grown son and a young daughter.
Link(s):
10 Viet Celebs Who Don't Look Vietnamese
Born on October 8, 1985 in the Nam Dinh province of Northern Vietnam, Vu Thu Phuong and her family relocated to Ho Chi Minh City when she was 12 years old. During her junior year in high school, she was signed to a local modeling agency after an open casting call. The following year, she was selected as one of the nine models for the nationally televised show about fashion, Thoi Trang va Cuoc Song, in Vietnam. Vu Thu Phuong's career as a supermodel led her to the fashion show runways, print modeling and television commercials endorsing various major international brand name companies. 
