Billy La Min Aye ( my, ဘီလီလမင်းအေး, ksw, ဘ့လံၤလၣ်မ့အ့; born 22 March 1995) is a Burmese singer-songwriter of ethnic Pa'O-

Karen Karen may refer to: * Karen (name), a given name and surname * Karen (slang), a term and meme for a demanding woman displaying certain behaviors People * Karen people, an ethnic group in Myanmar and Thailand ** Karen languages or Karenic l ...

descent. She gained recognition from competing in the second season of

Myanmar Idol ''Myanmar Idol'' is a popular Myanmar singing contest television series that is broadcast on MNTV. Its first season, in 2015, was described by ''The Myanmar Times'' as a "wild success". Due to its popularity, it has been extended for a fifth seas ...

and finishing as the runner-up. Billy released her debut album ''Perseverant Soul'' on 3 March 2018.

Early life and education

Billy La Min Aye was born on 22 March 1995 in Taunggyi,

Shan State Shan State ( my, ရှမ်းပြည်နယ်, ; shn, မိူင်းတႆး, italics=no) also known by the Endonym and exonym, endonyms Shanland, Muang Tai, and Tailong, is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. ...

, Myanmar to ethnic Pa'O-

parent Khun Billy Shwe and his wife Thein Thein Aye. Her father is an ethnic Pa'O and her mother is an ethnic

. She is the eldest daughter of two siblings, having a younger sister. She attended high school at Basic Education High School No. 4 Taunggyi and graduated from

Taunggyi University Taunggyi University ( my, တောင်ကြီး တက္ကသိုလ် ), located in Taunggyi, is the main university in Shan State, Myanmar. The university offers bachelor's and master's degree programs in arts and sciences. History ...

with a degree in English. She was interested in singing since childhood, the love of music was seeded in her when her father sent her to a

Sunday school A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West. Su ...

around the age of eight. Billy worked as a former private school teacher and taught four skills in English to young children at a private education center in Taunggyi.

Music career

2017: Competing in Myanmar Idol and rising popularity

Billy started out on her music career as a contestant in Season 2 of

, a televised singing competition. In the

grand final, she competed with

Thar Nge Thar Nge ( my, သားငယ်; born Zaw Win Htun on 23 March 1992) is a Burmese singer of ethnic Rakhine descent. He gained national attention for winning the second season of ''Myanmar Idol''. YouTubMyanmar Idol Season2 Winner = Thar Nge/ ...

. With the voting results of the whole country, Thar Nge became the winner, she was placed in 1st runner-up. Since winning the 1st runner-up in Myanmar Idol, she engaged in shooting commercial advertisements, stage performances, and many concerts at various locations throughout Myanmar.

2018–present: Solo debut and activities

In 2018, Billy started endeavoring to be able to produce and distribute her first solo album. She launched her debut solo album "Perseverant Soul" on 3 March 2018. Billy won the Shwe FM's 2018 "Most Requested Song Award" and

Padamyar FM Padamyar FM (Burmese: ပတ္တမြားအက်ဖ်အမ်) is one of the popular FM station in Myanmar. The station is serving around Myanmar area to provide the audience the best music library, entertainment and edutainment programs ...

's 2018 "Most Requested Song Award" with "Tine Yin Thu Lay Kyun Ma", a song from her solo album. On 1 February 2019, she released a single song called "February" MV on her Facebook page which earned 1 M views within 24 hours. Billy performed in the ceremony of the 2018

Myanmar Academy Award The Myanmar Motion Picture Academy Awards are presented annually to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the Burmese Film Industry of Myanmar. The awards ceremony has been held annually since 1952. Each winner is pr ...

on 23 March 2019 in Yangon. Billy released her second solo album "Special One" on 19 May 2019.

2020 activities

In September 10,2020, she sang a political campaign song named "Aung Hlan Hlwint Myi NLD" with several artists.

2021 activities

In 2021, she did a protest with the artists against military coup.

Ambassadorships

Billy was appointed as an ambassador of Japan Myanmar Culture in 2018.

Personal Life

She previously has a long term relationship for 6 years. She then went on to date a Norwegian ethnic Karen man for a few months and an had unofficial relationship with a Korean businessman.

Discography

Solo albums

* ''Perseverant Soul'' () (2018) * ''Special One'' (2019)

Singles

* ''February'' (2019) * ''Daddy'' (2019) * ''The Joker (ft.Mee No)'' (2019) * ''Nga Chit Thu Yae Mway Nay'' (2019) * ''Yay San Lay San'' (2020) * ''Wait'' (2020) * ''Pyee Sone Mae Yat'' (2020)

References

External links

* {{authority control 1995 births People from Taunggyi People from Shan State Burmese Karen people 21st-century Burmese women singers Participants in Burmese reality television series Living people