Episode Details

Mai Khôi & the Dissidents are bringing their album release tour for Five Years in Exile to the Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall! Mai Khôi, her creative partner and husband, Mark Micchelli, and the Carnegie Carnegie's Director of the Music Hall, Heidi Matthews, spoke with QED's Melissa Black about it.

Mai Khôi talks about her career in Vietnam, encountering censorship from the government, and her activism. She nominated herself for the National Assembly with the aim of changing the system from the inside, after which she was blacklisted, banned from performing, isolated, and harassed. In 2019, to avoid imprisonment, she fled Vietnam and came to the United States, where she later had a residency at SHIM:NYC. She came to Pittsburgh through a residency with City of Asylum, where she met Mark.

Mai Khôi and Mark walk Melissa through the album's journey and highlight some of the songs, which examine topics like climate change and unjust imprisonment. Heidi provides the Carnegie Carnegie's perspective as one of the venues on the release tour. All three provide their thoughts on releasing this album in the U.S. at a time like this.

Don't miss Mai Khôi & the Dissidents at the Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall for the release of their new album, Five Years in Exile. The concert takes place on Friday, April 10th at 8:00pm. More information and tickets are available on the Carnegie Carnegie's website.

Thanks for tuning in to WQED's Voice of the Arts, Pittsburgh's trusted source for arts and culture in our region. Whether you're passionate about classical music, film, theater, opera, or local music, we’re here to bring you closer to the heart of Pittsburgh's local arts scene.

Don’t miss our musician interviews, the latest local music news, and performing arts insights from across the Southwestern Pennsylvania region. 

Subscribe and follow to stay connected with the vibrant voices shaping Pittsburgh’s creative community. Visit https://www.wqed.org/ to see what else WQED is doing in our community. Until next time, keep supporting the arts and keep listening to Voice of the Arts.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.