Sao Lao

When I first came to Lao online community in 2003, there was not much information about Lao music in general. Lao Waves was already shut down and I never knew about it and only heard about the site from Sam_Vong. Being the only Lao person in this town I was happy to be able to find good Thai sites so I can find some music to listen to. When I went to Paris in 2004 I went looking for Lao and Thai music but was met with disappointments. The store owner wanted too much for a CD seeing how eager I was to have found an old stash of Thai music in a bin. I later called a Lao music recording studio in Paris and then called Chidharani so I could buy some CDs and DVDs.

I decided to order CD and VCD from Thailand. The first time was through E Thai CD store. I was very happy to have the package delivered to me but was in a state of shock when I had to pay tax for the music which was double the price of all the CDs I ordered. In the end I told the post man to come back the next day so I can get some cash to pay for the “imported tax” and was so happy to listen to Thai music, next to my tiny collection of Lao music.

Marsha’s album of “Fine Days” was one of the CDs I ordered. I had no idea who she was or anything about the other artists. I ordered the music based on one or two MP3s I’ve heard on the net. I thought she has a really good voice. When I told my aunt Vieng about ordering some Thai music and about Marsha, she told me that Marsha was on a “hate list” in Laos. Apparently there was a rumor about her having said something bad about Lao women. I don’t know the details of the rumor and didn’t ask my aunt for more information.

To me music is music. I never pay much attention to tabloid or to entertainment magazines. I don’t read those things. Most of the time I can’t even remember the faces of those singers I listen to. I only care for the music. I don’t have to like them or know what kind of person they are and whether or not they are “perfect beings” because all I need from them is to produce good music for me to listen to.

I like this song by Marsha. It’s on the CD that I bought.