Q&A: Vietnamese-Hungarian Artist Hien invites Listeners into Her Sonic World With New Single “disposable”
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY GIONA CIACCO ☆
Blending soulful vocals with ethereal electronic beats, singer, producer, and sound designer Hien is back with sad girl single “disposable.” The song explores modern dating culture, encourages vulnerability, and marks a new chapter of upbeat music from the artist. Despite its somber lyrics, you can’t help but dance to its addicting trans and eurodance pop-inspired beat. Its night-core music video, shot on film in New York City, features entrancing shots of the Brooklyn club scene, exploring heartbreak and capturing the song’s ethereal feel.
Hien says “disposable” “embodies the feeling of going out to a club by yourself and just crying on the dance floor, dramatically in the dark room.”
The Vietnamese-Hungarian artist was born in Budapest, getting her start on Megasztár: a Hungarian American Idol-esque music talent show. After making it to the finals, she began touring Hungary as a teen pop idol before moving to Boston to attend Berklee College of Music for Electronic Production and Sound Design on a full scholarship. She then moved to New York City where she fell in love with the local culture and music scene. After receiving a grant from the New York Foundation for the Arts, she was able to write, produce, and release her 2021 debut EP Bloom, gaining her attention from Nowness Asia, Earmilk, Ones to Watch, and Billboard Indonesia.
Hien sat down with Luna to talk about her new single “disposable,” her upcoming projects, and how she found her sound.
LUNA: How did you get into music?
HIEN: I got into music at a very young age. I was six when I started to play the piano, and my parents told me that I’ve loved singing ever since I started to speak, basically, so I was a big music fan. My parents also played a lot of music around me, and my grandparents, on my mom's side, were musicians. So, music was always around me.
LUNA: And then you went on Megasztár?
HIEN: Yeah. There was a talent show in Hungary when I was 14, I took part in that. And then my music career started at a young age, but I was just doing completely different music, I was more going on the teen-pop route, and it was just a very different time. But I learned a lot. I think that a lot of my skill set in terms of music business, or just a lot of experiences, [came] from that stage of my life.
LUNA: How did you know that you wanted to further your career by going to Berklee?
HIEN: Actually, I really wanted to study music, because I just realized that I am not really interested in anything else, or I'm not really great at anything else, but my parents really wanted me to have higher education. So, I started to look up some music schools, and Berklee was one of them. I think that Berklee was one of those schools that I heard about before from other musicians, or even just like, from movies. So Berklee was one of the schools I applied to, and was the one that I really wanted to get in the most. And miraculously, I got in with a scholarship, which allowed me to move to the US and start my studies, because without the scholarship my family would have not been able to afford it. So, I was really lucky.
LUNA: So, you learned music production there. How did that change the type of music that you started to make?
HIEN: Learning music production at Berklee really changed the type of music I started to make. Initially, I thought I would focus on being a singer-songwriter, but I realized I wanted to create the sounds in my head myself, rather than relying on other producers. While I worked with amazing producers, I often struggled to articulate my ideas, especially as a young artist working with older male producers. I wanted to learn and be more independent.
As I dove into music production, I gravitated toward electronic music. Attending raves and experiencing local scenes sparked my curiosity, and my sound naturally evolved. I chose Electronic Production and Sound Design at Berklee, which allowed me to explore new sonic realms and opened up a whole new world of creativity. Now, sound design is a big part of my artistry.
LUNA: Were there any specific artists at that time that influenced the music you began to make?
HIEN: Oh, my God…I think that at Berklee, I was just overstimulated with so many things, and I needed some time after that to kind of pick and choose what's mine.
But at Berklee, I was literally influenced by all kinds of music and all artists, and all students in the sound design world. I was really inspired by this sound designer called Suzanne Ciani, who came to Berklee a couple of times. She really left an influence on me, and a great impression on me.
During my Berklee years, I was in a Balkan choir. I was for one semester in the Middle Eastern jazz fusion ensemble. I learned Motown musical theater, R&B, like, really, all kinds of music. And that's why Berklee is a great place that you can just try out a lot of a lot of things. So yeah, I think it's really difficult to pick and choose what were my biggest influences at Berklee, because I was just overstimulated, and every semester I was in a different music world.
LUNA: Why did you choose to move from Boston to New York City after college?
HIEN: Actually, some of my close friends moved to the west coast at that time, and I really considered moving to LA just because they also went there. But I got an internship in New York, a music production and sound design internship, and then when I moved to New York for the internship, I realized that I actually like New York so much more than LA and I just fell in love with the city. And ever since, I'm just here and I don't want to leave.
LUNA: In 2021 you released your debut EP Bloom. What did you learn while making that EP?
HIEN: So, in 2020 I was selected to receive this art grant by the New York Foundation for the Arts—to be exact, the New York City Women's Fund. And 2020 was, you know, quarantine time. So, I think that it was very introspective for all of us, and, you know, a lot of reflections, and alone time. That was actually great to write music and just isolate myself and dive deep into it.
So the timing of the grant was perfect, because I was able to not only make music, but actually produce videos, and make this project. I got the support to make it something a little bit bigger than what I'm able to as an independent artist normally, and that was great. I think that Bloom was my first bigger release ever since I left Berklee. And that year, 2020, and 2019 as well actually, was a time when I think that I intentionally unlearned a lot of things from Berklee that I don't need to apply in my art, and start to find my own voice and figure out what I want to write and sing about, and what's that sonic world that I want to create.
LUNA: Was there anything that you learned making that EP that carried into making your 2025 EP?
HIEN: Yes, definitely. Because, you know, I had a lot of song seeds from those years, that never became songs, but I still use those ideas for something else. I think that my next project and the music that I'm releasing this year and next year, is similar to Bloom in a way that it's also very ethereal and airy, watery. I use a lot of reverb, and I just like washed sounds, so in that sense, there is some similarities. So, it did come out of Bloom, but I think that the mood and the emotions definitely mark a new chapter with this new project.
LUNA: Your new song “disposable,” and 2024 release “Trăng Tàn Trên Hè Phố” are more upbeat than your other work, was that intentional?
HIEN: Yeah, I think that I have more upbeat stuff coming out now. 2020 and 2019 were more introspective and “stay home” vibes. But then after that, when the pandemic ended, or, when things became a little more safe, I went out more. The place I live here in Brooklyn, in Bushwick, it's really close to some cool nightlife scenes. So, I'm heavily influenced by what I hear on the streets and in the clubs and everywhere in New York. I think that the upbeat music comes from the inspiration of the nightlife. And also, besides being inspired by the sounds, I also made really nice memories there.
LUNA: Were you involved in the process of making the “disposable” music video?
HIEN: So actually, I'm pretty involved in the process of creating my videos, both on the logistical production side and on the creative side. With “disposable” I found the director, Aaron Tran, on Instagram, and I just really liked his style. When I saw his Instagram I was like, “This is actually the kind of the mood board that I was going for for this video, so that's perfect.” And then it turned out that he's also Vietnamese, which like a fun fact, I'm also Vietnamese. But a lot of the references he showed are like—I was actually going for those moods and those looks. So, I think that it was a perfect collaboration.
I just knew that I wanted to shoot in Brooklyn, in the area where I live. I shot a music video last year, in Budapest, Hungary. So, I was like, Okay, let's make one there, and let's make one here. In this video I just wanted to visit those locations that actually mean something to me, or places that I'm spending time at.
LUNA: How long did it take you to get this song together?
HIEN: This song was actually really quick. The beginning of last year is when I finished this with my co producer called “bAd entity,” we went to Berklee together, actually. We made this track in Budapest. They flew from London to Budapest, and we had a few weeks of just a songwriting camp type of thing, when we just made music every day.
It was funny because there was this vape, this disposable vape that was lychee flavored, and it was just so good. And I think that I decided to quit the disposable vape that day, because I just realized it’s so bad for me, and it's just too good, it's too addictive. So, I think the disposable vape was also an inspiration for the song “disposable.”
LUNA: How would you describe the message of “disposable?”
HIEN: “disposable” definitely reflects on modern dating culture. How people just come and go in your life so fast. I think that the emotion or the vibe that I wanted to deliver in this song is kind of being really vulnerable and just dramatic openly and not trying to hide, and not trying to play it cool, not trying to numb those feelings. I don't want to say, like, marinate in the sad feelings, but just feeling it and daring to go to the depth of that.
I always felt like this song is kind of like a song that embodies the feeling of going out to a club by yourself and just crying on the dance floor, dramatically in the dark room. But then it also has this like, euphoric feeling. I think that is also something liberating in it, because there's a realization of like, okay, I’m setting free from this, it's a healing thing, being on the dance floor and feeling the music and thinking about your life, or just whatever happened to you, you know, just sinking into it. I think there's something healing in it, and I try to embody that feeling in both in the music video and the song.
But this is definitely an “sad girl song.” Like there was this meme that I love, that I think [represents] this song. It said like, the girlies who love FKA twigs are the girls who like to slide down with their back against the wall while crying. So, it's that character, that feeling of like, just be dramatic and let out all what you have inside.
LUNA: It’s dramatic but cinematic.
HIEN: Yeah, I love that: dramatic but cinematic.
We just got the final color grading done this morning [for the “disposable” music video]. The color grading is also super lo-fi, contrasty, and most of the shots are black-and-, white, and silver. So that also adds to this like raw, dramatic, vulnerable vibe.
LUNA: Speaking of music videos, the 2019 music video for your song “Boy” is about two men falling in love, and I was just so curious why you chose to go with that storyline.
HIEN: The idea to tell a queer love story came from director Humberto Besa, and I loved it. I identify as queer, and at the time, I was in Vietnam. The LGBT community there is becoming more visible and empowered, which makes me happy to see. However, when 'Boy' came out, and even now, I experienced a lot of homophobia, especially towards men. Being an Asian man adds complexity due to stereotypes in the West and traditional expectations in Vietnam. We wanted to challenge the one-dimensional view of Asian men, which is why I wanted to share this story.
LUNA: When did you begin to explore your queerness?
HIEN: I'm still exploring, I think it's a never-ending journey to explore that. When did it start? That's so interesting because I think that the more complexities we learn about our queerness looking back, the more little details you find in the early stages of your life, like, oh, that thing, when I you know, had that friend, or when I played this game,, like those feelings were actually part of the queerness journey, but I just didn't know at that time. So, I don't know what age exactly.
LUNA: What upcoming projects do you have for 2025?
HIEN: I'm not 100% sure what the EP is going to be titled. But yeah, I shot a music video in Hungary that's going to come out in this spring. That music video and song are really exciting, because my very first song when I was 15 was my biggest hit in Hungary. Out of all my songs that was the one that had the most views, and I made it to the radios. In my generation, in the younger generation in Hungary, a lot of people know that song. It was a very cute, cheesy pop song, and there were a lot of memes out of it as well. There was a time when I felt embarrassed about this song, but then I realized that I don't have to be ashamed of it because, I was 15, so I don't know what I expected from myself. Now that I'm like, I guess adult, I'm able to appreciate it and still be proud of it in a way.
When I was 14, a lot of these young teenagers listened to that song, and also a lot of these like nine, ten year olds at that time. And now those nine, ten year olds became college students, and I became an adult. On TikTok, I just saw a lot of these videos where people felt nostalgic about the song, and they kind of, like, brought it back. So I'm like, Oh my God, this song means a lot to these people who, at that time were so young. So I made a remake of this song. I re-recorded the vocals with the original melody and lyrics, but with a completely different instrumentation and production and we shot a music video for that. So this is really going to be a like a shout out, an homage to those people who've been listening to my music ever since I was 15. I changed so much so it's a completely different chapter but it's a little love letter for those people, and we kind of, grew up together, so it's so beautiful. And we can, you know, look back to our teenage years and be nostalgic for a second. So yeah, that's going to be the next project.
I think I want to shoot another video in New York in the summer. Maybe, that's not confirmed yet. But, yeah, I think the EP is going to be out this year, though, and I'm also preparing remixes for this project.
LUNA: Is the next release in Hungarian?
HIEN: Yes, it's Hungarian.
LUNA: Is it the first Hungarian song that you've made since you were a teen idol in Hungary?
HIEN: Yeah, I think so. Because my very first album, when I was 15, was all Hungarian songs, and I switched to English, and then grew up, and all my songs were English. I sang some covers and some Hungarian stuff on my live set, in my live performances, but I didn't release any Hungarian records. So it is also special in that sense.
LUNA: What made you want to switch your music to English?
HIEN: I think I listened to a lot of pop music, American pop music, with English lyrics. And at that time, I thought that a lot of pop music melodies came from the west and came from the States. So, I think I was heavily influenced by that. A lot of pop music just fit better with English words. It flowed better. That's what I felt that time, and it still makes sense. But I think that ever since I started to embrace my Vietnamese side and Hungarian side, I had a desire to sing in more languages but at that time, when I started to sing in English, I just wanted to learn and understand more pop music, and when I had enough of it at Berklee, that's when I started to explore other music genres that are out of the pop Western world.
LUNA: Do you have any dream collaborations?
HIEN: I don't know my dream collaboration.
LUNA: I saw that you follow the new “New Jeans” account, and I feel like that would be a crazy collaboration.
HIEN: Oh my God. I love “New Jeans” so much. I listened to their albums on loop. I think that at that time when the first “New Jeans" album came out, that year for my Spotify wrap they were like, my top two. I mean, I would be so down.
LUNA: You were one of Glamour’s “Women of the Year,” and you were showcased at the SXSW festival. What did that mean to you?
HIEN: So, I'm going to SXSW this year as well. It's going to be my third time, and I'm really excited about that, because I’ve had amazing times in Austin. I made really nice, creative connections, and I love Texas food. I just had a blast in Austin every time I was there, so I'm looking forward for that in March.
The Glamour “Women of the Year” award in Hungary, was definitely for my pop mainstream artist era when I did a lot of television, and I was really just in the mainstream media. It was nice because it was in a year where I did a lot of things; I think that year I did Miss Saigon the musical in Hungary. And it was funny, because that year when I won the Glamour “Woman of the Year” is when I also found out that I got accepted to Berklee and I'm gonna leave Hungary. And a lot of people were like, “Oh my God is it a good idea to leave Hungary?” But actually, it was the best decision of my life that I started Berklee and then I moved to the US, because I needed that chapter to really explore the music that I want to make.
Hien’s new single “disposable” is available now on iTunes and Spotify. Keep an eye out for new upcoming EP and other 2025 projects!
