Ready to rock: Pham Anh Khoa's album Pha (Offbeat) will kick off his series of musical events in 2015. — Photo Xenofm.com

HCM CITY (VNS) — In his new album Pha (Offbeat), singer Pham Anh Khoa "breaks away" from his catchy pop style to experiment with a rock-influenced approach, aided by producer Huy Tuan.

The seven songs on the album include Ngau Hung Song Hong (Red River Improvisation), Bien Khat (Thirsty Sea) and Cho Nguoi Noi Ay (I'm Waiting for You), hits that were originally performed by popular singers Hong Nhung, Tran Thu Ha and Uyen Linh.

The songs were selected by the duo because they were the most popular songs in the Vietnamese pop genre in recent years.

"We rock these songs because no one thinks that these songs could be sung with rock. It is an interesting experiment," Tuan said.

The album release on January 13 kicked off a series of musical events by Khoa to celebrate his ten-year career, including a live show and a new music video Rain.

Khoa, 30, was born in Khanh Hoa Province and is a student at the HCM City Conservatory. His powerful music, strong voice and good looks helped him win the jury prize in a televised singing contest held by Viet Nam Television in 2006.

His two albums, PAK 01 (a reference to his stage name PAK, derived from his initials) and Lam Sao Noi Het (How Can I Say Everything), were released in 2007 and 2009. — VNS