Coffee vendors on the streets surrounding My Dinh national stadium

Hanoi (VNA) - Coffee vendors on the streets surrounding My Dinh national stadium in
Hanoi often attract young students with their cheap prices and wide open spaces,
but now they are attracting even larger crowds with a new service - street karaoke.


Shops on Le Duc Tho street are packed with people at the weekends. The shops, which
normally only consist of colourful plastic chairs and tables, are now equipped with
modern projectors, huge speakers, wide screens and microphones, all vital
components of a lively karaoke stage.

Customers take turns to use a remote control to select songs or at some venues,
they write the names of the songs that they wish to sing on a list, just like in
any karaoke bar. While one customer sings, the rest of the customers sing along or
clap their hands to the music.

"It felt great because I was like a real singer on a stage," said Tong Thi Tu Ngan,
a senior student from the Labour and Social Affairs University . "Singing in
traditional karaoke bars is nothing new, but this is different and it's cheap too,"
she added.

Customers at these venues only have to pay for their drinks which range from 10,000
to 15,000 VND each (0.5-0.75 USD), but get to sing for free. Sometimes they might
have to pay an extra fee of 10,000 or 20,000 VND (0.5-1 USD) for the night, but
it's still much cheaper than a regular karaoke bar.

The original idea for the service came about two months ago at the end of the World
Cup. "During the World Cup, to attract more customers, I bought a projector and a
screen to show the games. When the competition was over, we thought why not get
loud speakers and turn it into a karaoke service, instead of letting the projectors
sit wastefully in storage," said Nguyen Thi An, a shop owner.

Other owners who can't afford the equipment, rent it for around 400,000-500,000 VND
(20-25 USD) per night to keep up with the competition.

As the craze has grown in popularity, residents in the local area have started to
complain about the noise. "Singers get the most excited from 9-10pm. The music is
so loud that we can't get any sleep," said a resident who wished to remain
anonymous. "We reported it to local authorities but it seems that they haven't got
involved," he said.

Deputy head of the Culture and Tourism Department Nguyen Duc Hoa said his
department plans to inspect the venues. "If they violate regulations, they will be
fined," he said.

Vu Xuan Thanh, chief inspector of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said
however, this is a new kind of business and has not been accounted for in any laws.
"But there is a regulation for karaoke bars that says they have to be sound proof,
include a fire prevention system and be larger than 20 square metres," he said.

Thanh added that any karaoke business has to be approved by authorities under the
regulation.

"Even though many shop owners do not charge customers for the karaoke service, they
still have to follow the regulations, otherwise they will be punished," he said.
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