Singing all the way to the bank: Vietnam’s pop culture is big business

[HO CHI MINH CITY] Vietnam’s pop culture is sizzling, with media giants cranking out hit after hit – and Vingroup also wants in.

The country’s largest private conglomerate has made “culture” its latest business pillar, and set up new units in television programming, music publishing and event planning, among others.

In the past year, dozens of V-pop concerts have sold out, drawing crowds in the tens of thousands; local music videos and online reality shows rack up millions of views daily. The influx of international artists performing and appearing at local festivals has only made Vietnam’s entertainment scene hotter.

Industry observers say Vietnam’s entertainment boom stems from local fans spending more freely, developing sharper tastes, and home-grown creators raising their game.

The domestic pop fever and idol culture was ignited, specifically, by two local music variety hit shows that were rolled out in the summer of 2024, setting new benchmarks and raising the bar for the industry, which has long been dominated by foreign pop cultures.

Tran Thang Long, former head of domestic artists and repertoire, and for marketing for the Vietnamese branch of Universal Music Group, said: “Vietnamese audiences are deeply engaged with local music and artists, to the point where they’re willing to spend their money and time for related concerts and content.”

Pop culture is not just entertainment now; it is also inspiring how people travel in Vietnam.

A survey in Booking.com’s Travel Trends 2025 found that 62 per cent of Vietnamese travellers said they travelled in 2024 to attend events like concerts; 38 per cent cited live music and festivals as key factors that decided their travel destinations for them.

Long, who has decades of experience in Vietnam’s entertainment industry, said: “Once people experience that level of quality, they will crave more – more concerts, more music, more artists – fuelling the industry’s sustainable growth.”

SEE ALSO

Mad about K-pop, Vietnam courts top global acts to boost tourism appeal

Are Malaysia’s big concert dreams stuck in yellow?

For YeaH1, the first media startup to list on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange in 2018, the rebound has been sharp – marked by broader revenue streams from brand sponsorships, concert ticket sales and show merchandising.

In 2024, the company’s revenue jumped 2.5 times to 1 trillion dong (S$49 million). Its after-tax profit surged nearly five-fold to a multi-year high of 122.6 billion dong.

Not wanting to be left behind, Finnish investment fund PYN Elite began acquiring YeaH1 stocks in late 2024. It raised its stake to 8.35 per cent in September this year.

PYN Elite’s portfolio manager Petri Deryng said: “Vietnamese audiences are increasingly willing to pay more for quality content and experiences.

“Any company serving entertainment products to over 100 million people in a fast-growing country like Vietnam has strong long-term potential.”

The wave of “Brothers”

Two multi-episode, male-celebrity-driven music variety shows have taken Vietnam by storm – Anh Trai Vuot Ngan Chong Gai (Brother Who Overcomes Thousands of Obstacles), and Anh Trai Say Hi (The Brother Who Says Hi) – produced by rival media houses YeaH1 and DatVietVAC, respectively.

Vietnam’s entertainment scene was already heating up with Vietnam Idol, Rap Viet and The Voice, all of which built strong followings. But none matched the large-scale production value and cultural impact of these two shows, said Long, formerly of the Vietnamese branch of Universal Music Group.

“The investment (in these two shows) was almost unimaginable in Vietnam before. The level of complexity also made sustaining such a project incredibly difficult,” he said, referring to the extensive cameras, studio set-ups, and the involvement of as many as 30 high-profile artistes and crew.

The shows had 16 follow-up large-scale concerts in the past year – most of which were sold out, some within minutes. They drew up to 50,000 fans nightly, and this was a year after the shows debuted.

Ample room to grow

These hit shows, streamed on television and online platforms like YouTube, have also fuelled spending among producers for more high-budget reality shows and brands competing for advertisement slots.

The boom has also spurred a wave of music events to the sheer delight of fans eager to snap up tickets and merchandise.

8Wonder, the mega music festival brand under Vingroup, has acknowledged the “unprecedented purchasing power and enthusiasm” of local audiences over the past year.

“Ticket sales and brand sponsorships remain our two largest revenue sources,” a group spokesperson said, noting the multiple music festivals over the past year.

“The indirect value chain has also expanded significantly – encompassing venue rentals, accommodation, dining, transportation, and tourism – all contributing to a multi-sector revenue stream tied to each event,” the spokesperson added.

Early this month, Vingroup said it has set up several new units – V-Culture Talents for cultural and artistic education, V-Film for film production and music publishing, and V-Spirit for event management – to expand into this burgeoning space.

Analysts at VietCap Securities pointed out that media companies in Vietnam are well-positioned to capitalise on the growth potential of the Vietnamese advertising market, which includes television and digital advertising, as well as social commerce.

They noted that the entire market value of US$2.9 billion in 2024 has considerable room to expand, especially when compared to regional markets like Indonesia (US$11 billion) and Thailand (US$4.1 billion).

Chinese, South Korean inspirations

Vietnam’s thriving pop culture owes much to the insights and experiences gained from other Asian powerhouses.

DatVietVAC’s Vietnamese adaptations of South Korean shows, including The Masked Singer, 2 Days & 1 Night, and Running Man, along with its original formats like Anh Trai Say Hi, were inspired by similar concepts in China and South Korea, and have made a splash in the local market in recent years, reflecting shared content consumption preferences.

Several live-stage performances from Season 1 of Anh Trai Say Hi garnered tens of millions of views on YouTube within a year of its 2024 release. Views for the one below, for example, shot past 40 million.

YeaH1’s bet on “premium content” production also began with local adaptations of some Chinese reality shows – first with Sisters who Make Waves in 2023, then Call Me by Fire (which was adapted into Anh Trai Vuot Ngan Chong Gai) the following year; in 2025, Show It All and Haha Farmers debuted. 

“There are cultural similarities between China and Vietnam. If something succeeds in China, there’s a high chance it will also succeed in Vietnam,” said Ngo Thi Van Hanh, chief executive at YeaH1.

“We just buy the core concept of those foreign shows, and then customise and localise about 70 per cent of it,” she added, noting that the Chinese shows also entailed massive production scales and costs.

International ambitions

The vibrant market has lured global artists like K-pop legend G-Dragon, who brought his 2025 World Tour to Hanoi in early November. With up to 50,000 attendees a night, it was the second large-scale event held by an international superstar in Vietnam, following Blackpink’s Born Pink concert in Hanoi in 2023.

8Wonder, a partner in G-Dragon’s latest concert, launched the 8Wonder World Tour in September, aiming to make Vietnam a new stop on the global touring circuit of international artists.

An 8Wonder spokesperson said: “Vietnam has demonstrated that both ticketing and sponsorship revenues can effectively support large-scale world tours, while the younger generation of audiences is increasingly willing to pay for premium international experiences.”

Local media and entertainment companies are now seeking to expand the reach of Vietnamese artists overseas.

DatVietVAC brought the two-night Anh Trai Say Hi concert to Las Vegas in July, targeting primarily overseas Vietnamese.

Meanwhile, YeaH1 is investing in exclusively managed idols, honing them in-house with the expertise of South Korean specialists and multi-year promotion plans. The media firm aims to launch these rookie artistes into stardom beyond Vietnam – in Thailand, South Korea and China, which are international markets with cultural aesthetics closely aligned with Vietnam.

Long said: “I believe big local players are all working to tackle the challenge of how to sustain the current momentum. If there are foreign investments and partnerships, it could really accelerate the market’s growth.”