How Myra Tran’s voice carried from Vietnam’s Mekong Delta to American Idol

Myra Tran was just 16 years old when she became a household name in Vietnam for her voice. Now three years later and thousands of miles away from her home country, she has her sights set on the world’s biggest singing competition: American Idol.

The 19-year-old, who moved to Seattle in October 2017, brought American Idol judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan to their feet on March 3 with her rendition of former competition finalist Jennifer Hudson’s song One Night Only.

“After giving it a lot of thought, I felt ‘One Night Only’ was the only song that could help me express all my emotions, which is why I chose it for the audition,” Tran told This Week in Asia.

“There’s nothing to compare you to … you have stepped into a zone that’s yours,” said judge Richie during the premiere of the singing competition’s 17th season.

But Tran, whose real name is Tran Minh Nhu, is no stranger to the limelight or the brunt of judges’ comments.

Originally from An Giang, in the Mekong Delta region of southern Vietnam, Tran performed in local cafes from as young as 14. In 2016, she quickly shot to fame when she won the X Factor Vietnam talent competition with her mash-up of American pop star Ariana Grande’s hits Focus and Problem.

But that first major win was not all smooth sailing. Two of the four X Factor Vietnam judges criticised her for lacking originality and playing it safe. Tran was then slammed by judge and renowned singer Tung Duong for performing a song called Who cares, which is about being yourself and not worrying about what others say.