Showing her prize: Singer My Tam will represent Viet Nam to compete for the MTV Europe Music Awards Best Worldwide Act in Amsterdam in November. — File Photo

HA NOI — Pop singer My Tam will be the first Vietnamese to vie for the MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) Best Worldwide Act in Amsterdam in November.

The awards are one of the biggest music events in the world.

My Tam defeated singers Dong Nhi and Thu Minh with an overwhelming win of nearly 34,000 votes.

The vote was held by MTV Viet Nam on www.facebook.com/mtvvietnam.com.vn for 10 shortlisted Vietnamese artists.

The nominees were judged on their professional activities, including record sales, frequency of appearance on the radio and television, online watching and listening, and popularity on social networks and ticket sales.

The vote for the Best Worldwide Act award will be implemented through networks of MTV EMA, including websites, mobile web, Facebook and mobile applications.

The Vietnamese singer will compete with five others from Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines to become the regional representative at the world music awards. The selection will be held from September 6 to November 8.

Tam was the first Vietnamese singer to become YouTube's official partner with the song Chuyen Nhu Chua Bat Dau (Like No Beginning). The song became a runway hit with more than 8 million hits on YouTube.

She also became the first Vietnamese pop singer to grab the Best Asian Artist award at the 2012 Asian Music Awards held in Hong Kong.

Born in 1981, in central Da Nang City, Tam's first major hit was Toc Nau, Moi Tram (Brown Hair, Dark Lip) launched in 2001. Her first audio single, Cay Dan Sinh Vien (The Student's Guitar) became an iconic song of the early 2000s among university students. It was the basis for her 2004 tour around various universities across the country.

In 2002, she released her first video single Hat Voi Dong Song (Singing with the River). The title song was successful despite being criticised for having lazy and incomprehensible lyrics.

Tam has been awarded many international and domestic prizes such as Bronze Award at the Asia New Singer Competition in Shanghai.

Last year, Tam was named Singer of the Year in the Devotion Music Awards by the Vietnam News Agency's daily The Thao&Van Hoa (Sports&Culture) for the second time.

She served as judge at the domestic television singing contest Sao Mai Diem Hen (Morning Star – A Rendevouz) and Viet Nam Idol.

Tam broke her own record when the latest music video Nhu Mot Giac Mo (Like A Dream) was viewed by 2 million people in a week.

Established in 1994, originally an alternative to the American MTV Video Music Awards, the MTV EMA is a popular celebration of what MTV viewers consider the best in music.

The Best Worldwide Act category debuted in 2011. The five-member band Big Bang from South Korea was the first winner in the region. — VNS