In a conversation with VietNamNet reporter, People's Artist Thai Bao said he was a child given by God because his mother always said so since he was little: "My mother went to the hospital three times to abandon me but then returned because she thought she could not do something immoral. She said if she did that, it would haunt her for the rest of her life. No matter how difficult it was, she would not abandon me."

People's Artist Thai Bao's childhood was not enough to eat or wear, but full of memories.

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People's Artist Thai Bao.

"A few months after I was born, the war expanded in the North, so my family had to evacuate to the countryside. My mother worked as a librarian, so when she evacuated, the two most precious things she brought with her were me and books. I was able to stay close to my father, who was then the Director of the Kim Lien Museum. Every day before going to bed, my father told me stories about Uncle Ho. Therefore, his image was always in my mind. Later, when I sang songs about Uncle Ho, my heart was filled with emotion," People's Artist Thai Bao said.

At the age of 10, Thai Bao was admitted to the Vietnam Music School (now the Vietnam National Academy of Music), but his mother objected because she did not want to leave him at such a young age. Thai Bao's older brother, who was studying at the University of Mining and Geology, took the train to pick up his sister to study in Hanoi, promising to take good care of her.

The whole family saw Thai Bao off to school with a "hearty" meal, consisting of a bowl of vegetable soup, some pickled eggplants and a plate of fried eggs. Little Thai Bao was happy because she was going to the capital to study, but her mother was in tears.

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Loving the teaching profession, People's Artist Thai Bao chose to become an artist.

Thai Bao's luggage for the trip consisted of 2 sets of clothes and 4 boiled eggs. Halfway to the train station, Thai Bao ran home, looked through the crack in the door and saw his mother sitting by the flickering oil lamp, tears streaming down her face. That image Thai Bao would never forget. Thai Bao went to school with a heavy heart because he missed his mother.

"That is a part of my life, the deepest memory of the day I was away from my family and homeland that I will never forget," People's Artist Thai Bao said.

People's Artist Thanh Tam recruited Thai Bao and was the first teacher to introduce her to music. Teacher Quoc Loc taught Thai Bao her first notes. With 14 years of basic training in traditional musical instruments, when switching to vocal music, Thai Bao had the advantage to firmly pursue her singing career.

Since childhood, he dreamed of becoming a teacher, but fate pushed Thai Bao to choose to become an artist. "The person who discovered and decided my career path was Professor - People's Artist Nguyen Van Thuong. After a trip to the festival in the capitals of 3 Indochinese countries, he came to my house. Hearing me play the song " Dem Dong" on the guitar, he said I should switch to singing, I would be very famous, not playing traditional musical instruments but definitely not giving up the monochord".

Starting to sing on the battlefields, on simple stages with no lights or microphones, People's Artist Thai Bao said that no matter how much he sang, it was never enough to warm the hearts of the soldiers. Sometimes both the artists and the audience cried.

"They cried because they missed home, I cried because I loved them. Each trip is a beautiful memory that I will carry with me for the rest of my life... I will always remember the time I performed at the checkpoint, it was pouring rain, the actors and the audience were all wet. After singing dozens of songs, the audience still asked to sing more. After the performance, the troupe returned to the camp to sleep and heard a knock on the door. In the dark night, I saw a group of people wearing raincoats, they said they had walked more than ten kilometers to hear me continue singing the song "Round Footprints on the Sand". After listening, they left and that image could never fade in me, making me love the soldiers endlessly", People's Artist Thai Bao said.

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People's Artist Thai Bao always cherishes memories because the value of memories is priceless.

In addition to his successful career, People's Artist Thai Bao has had a strong marriage of nearly 40 years with Meritorious Artist Anh Tuan.

People's Artist Thai Bao and Meritorious Artist Anh Tuan got married in 1989. Their early married life was really difficult. People's Artist Thai Bao said that after the wedding, their only assets were a bed and a wardrobe given by People's Artist Quang Vinh, but the wardrobe door was broken, so every time they put away or take out clothes, the couple struggled.

People's Artist Thai Bao confided: "I always feel happy because my husband and son understand me. Since becoming famous, I have had to face many things. Real and fake, happy and sad... the most important thing is that I have to know how to balance and have courage and rely on my husband's sympathy and understanding."

People's Artist Thai Bao performs "Visiting Nha Rong Wharf":

People's Artist Thai Bao hugged his only son and cried on stage. People's Artist Thai Bao could not hold back his tears and sobbed the first time he officially "showed off" his talented son on stage.