Dean Van Nguyen

Freelance Writer at Freelance

Writer. Irish-Vietnamese. Author of Iron Age: The Art of Ghostface Killah (2019) and Words For My Comrades (May 2025). Agent: Chris Clemans at @JanklowNesbit

Featured in: Favicon

theguardian.com Favicon

independent.co.uk Favicon

bandcamp.com Favicon

vice.com

redbull.com Favicon

irishtimes.com Favicon

miamiherald.com Favicon

pitchfork.com Favicon

uproxx.com Favicon

nme.com + 43 more

Articles

Maria Somerville’s 'Luster' is a love letter to people and place

1 month ago | crackmagazine.net | Dean Van Nguyen

01.04.25 Words by: Dean Van Nguyen Photography: Louis O’Sullivan Makeup: Maggie O’Shea Photography Assistant: Cameron Crossen Inspired by her return to Connemara, a region rich in Irish history and myth, Maria Somerville’s second album is shaped its spirit, spacious landscape and seasonal pace. The weather in Dublin this late January is mild, nothing like the images of Storm Éowyn being beamed from the rest of Ireland.
Dean: Jehnova is getting even better

1 month ago | dublininquirer.com | Dean Van Nguyen

Jehnova should be international by now. But the world doesn’t always appreciate the gifted, especially those who break the rules and defy all logic. Take the rapper’s decision to drop IOU 3 five days before Christmas. It was a piece of scheduling that risked the album getting lost amid the rush of end-of-year lists and general lack of appetite for new music during the holidays.
Bob Marley and The Wailers, “Soul Rebels”

2 months ago | daily.bandcamp.com | Dean Van Nguyen

ALBUM OF THE DAY Bob Marley and The Wailers, “Soul Rebels” By Dean Van Nguyen · February 06, 2025 Charly Records London, UK follow &check; following unfollow ... Soul Rebels Charly Records . / pre-order buy pre-order buy you own this wishlist in wishlist go to album go to track go to album go to track .
Ebo Taylor / Adrian Younge / Ali Shaheed Muhammad: Ebo Taylor JID022

2 months ago | pitchfork.com | Dean Van Nguyen

On a recent call with The New York Times, from his home in Saltpond, Ghana, Ebo Taylor, 90 years old next year, struggled to answer questions put to him, relying on his son Henry to do the talking. Taylor suffered a stroke in 2018 that stole much of his ability to communicate in English, and he no longer plays the guitar.
Dean: Brigid Mae Power’s covers album is a classic of the form

2 months ago | dublininquirer.com | Dean Van Nguyen

Brigid Mae Power’s new project Songs for You revitalizes an antiquated concept: the covers album. It happened so imperceptibly that nobody noticed such LPs come to be primarily associated with Great American Songbook cash-ins, reliable Mother’s and Father’s Day gifts, the realm of swing singers whose audiences are not always fired up by the prospect of new compositions.
Dean: Rapper Kendino leads a triumphant night of Asian-Irish ingenuity

Dec 3, 2024 | dublininquirer.com | Dean Van Nguyen

The Workman’s Cellar in Temple Bar is the latest space to be torn apart and rebranded as a gritty venue. It was previously known as The Liquor Rooms, a lush, gaudy, underground cocktail bar that I liked a lot. Now, the space exudes a dilapidated-chic vibe. It’s hard work to make a building look genuinely shoddy, but walking down its steps does actually feel like stepping back into the old scene after years of abandonment. Credit to the person with the crowbar.
Dean: F3miii’s electro-R&B glitter-bomb is smooth and delectable

Oct 29, 2024 | dublininquirer.com | Dean Van Nguyen

To be certain, F3miii is one of the most singular artists to come out of Dublin in recent memory. Being a man apart is not automatically a good thing, of course, but in this particular case, the originality is matched by the delectability. There’s a sense of modernity to F3miii’s distinctive style of self-produced electro-R&B. It’s slick and coherent but, crucially, never soulless, mostly because the singer’s easy melisma always manages to convey the right emotions.
Dean: Maria Kelly and Crispy Jason soothe the soul - Dublin Inquirer

Sep 24, 2024 | dublininquirer.com | Dean Van Nguyen

Witnessing alt-folk artist Maria Kelly open for Ailbhe Reddy at The Button Factory in February 2022 made me a fan – something, I imagine, all support acts want to hear from members of the crowd who are present to see the headline act. A live artist who makes it impossible to exchange small talk, you could almost hear the creak of the Temple Bar building during her wispish, ethereal solo set. Softer than a murmur, as quiet as Pluto’s moons.
Manu Chao, “Viva Tu”

Sep 19, 2024 | daily.bandcamp.com | Dean Van Nguyen

ALBUM OF THE DAY Manu Chao, “Viva Tu” By Dean Van Nguyen · September 19, 2024 Manu Chao France follow &check; following unfollow ... Viva Tu Manu Chao . / pre-order buy pre-order buy you own this wishlist in wishlist go to album go to track go to album go to track .
Various Artists, “Synthesizing the Silk Roads: Uzbek Disco, Tajik Folktronica, Uyghur Rock & Tatar Jazz from 1980s Soviet Central Asia”

Aug 30, 2024 | daily.bandcamp.com | Dean Van Nguyen

ALBUM OF THE DAY Various Artists, “Synthesizing the Silk Roads: Uzbek Disco, Tajik Folktronica, Uyghur Rock & Tatar Jazz from 1980s Soviet Central Asia” By Dean Van Nguyen · August 30, 2024 Ostinato Records New York, New York follow &check; following unfollow ... Synthesizing the Silk Roads: Uzbek Disco, Tajik Folktronica, Uyghur Rock & Tatar Jazz from 1980s Soviet Central Asia Ostinato Records .

Contact details

Emails

[email protected]

Socials & Sites

Try JournoFinder For Free

Search and contact over 1M+ journalist profiles, browse 100M+ articles, and unlock powerful PR tools.

Start Your 7-Day Free Trial →

Coverage map

X (formerly Twitter)

Followers: 10K
Tweets: 60K
DMs Open: Yes

Dean Van Nguyen @deanvannguyen

11 Apr 25

RT @JohnMcMah0n: Must’ve missed that https://t.co/FFAPPz2Lgs

Dean Van Nguyen @deanvannguyen

4 Apr 25

Introducing the narrator of the Words for My Comrades audiobook, Landon G. Woodson! Honored to be collaborating with Landon and @PRHAudio https://t.co/cGeiZ4w5W8

Dean Van Nguyen @deanvannguyen

2 Apr 25

RT @el_fodongo: 'you there boy, what day is this' 'why cowabunga sir, its Derby Day'