thủy: First I notice my mom in the crowd because she’s always trying to be with the people, vibing with them, and I’m always trying to avoid eye contact because she makes me so nervous! [Laughs]. But really, when I see so many people that look like me in the crowd it's a sense of community that I really hold on to. I'm so proud of myself for working so hard and never giving up, and I hope they see a little bit of themselves in me.
I definitely feel like an older sister to them, and there’s a loving sense that I get from them — not as a fan but someone they can look up to and admire. I’m so grateful they show up for me.
Your heritage is a significant part of who you are, but you incorporate your culture in your music through subtler ways. Tell us about that.
thủy: I'm not an artist that talks about being Vietnamese through my music because I think it should just be about the music. I just want to be considered a dope artist that just happens to be Vietnamese American. What I love to do is showcase my parents in my videos, highlight my culture like little Easter eggs. That way I stay true to who I am.
I even changed my name recently to have the accent mark because Vietnamese is such a complex language that we can sound so different depending on what accent you have on your name. It’s important for me to carry on my heritage and my background through my artistry rather than the lyrics themselves.