On April 9, 2021, Senior Yon Bui released his first song to Spotify called Wallowing. The song had approximately 1.2k streams after less than a week of its release. It flooded the Instagram and Snapchat feeds of Manheim Township students following the release. Now, Bui has listeners from around the world, including Turkey, Sweden, and Canada.

Bui has had a passion for music since as early as he can remember, and has played the flute and piccolo as a member of Marching Band, Jazz Band, Symphonic Band, Orchestra, and Wind Ensemble at the high school. Bui said he took quarantine as an opportunity to seriously learn how to play the guitar. 

 “It [Wallowing] was about a tough relationship that I had around a year or two ago and I wasn’t in the right place mentally and I decided I wanted to write about it,” said Bui.

He said writing the song and all of the support he received from everyone after he released it made him feel great and provided a sense of closure from the relationship.

“I didn’t expect so many people to reach out and say how much they liked it. It really made me feel good,” Bui said. 

Junior Nyah Khan said she discovered the song through social media posts from other students. “My first thought was that the singer Joji’s music gave me a similar vibe to Yon’s. I would maybe even say some Troye Sivan after I listened more. It has their dreamy but alternative-like pop sound,” Khan said. 

Junior AZ Faiz echoed Khan’s opinion. “It reminds me of a singer called Joji who makes R&B/ pop music. Joji usually makes songs with heart-wrenching lyrics and Wallowing, as its title suggests, is a sad song,” Faiz said. 

Bui credits Joji as one of his biggest musical influences, and it is clear that some of his listeners are able to make that connection. 

He also described singer, Keshi, as another big influence on his music:, “Keshi is just an inspiration for me in general because he’s a Vietnamese-American like me, and he made it big by working hard on his dream despite being an overworked nurse,” Bui said. Bui also looks up to artists like Bruno Mars, Ariana Grande, and Adele. 

The production of the song was through an independent record label run by his friends Lou Lindsley and Spencer Browne. Their label is called Extraordinary Records Lancaster.  Bui said that his song would not have been possible without the help and support of Lindsley and Browne.

The song has a mix of pop and hip hop, and Bui hopes to continue writing songs of this style. He hopes to have an album out by the end of the school year. 

Like many students, Faiz eagerly anticipates Yon’s upcoming music. “I think Yon is a great artist and I’m really excited to see how his music career progresses,” Faiz said.