Nguyen Dau Tuan (41, from Nghe An) walked into his family’s small room recently, and turning on electronic devices, he sat at a desk to prepare for a livestream singing session lasting more than four hours on TikTok.

Tuan is affectionately known as the “armless singer” on social media. He is loved not only for his pleasant appearance and warm, sweet voice, but also for his optimism, faith and strong will to live.

Born into a family where his father was a soldier who participated in military musical performances, Tuan showed musical talent from a young age and dreamed of becoming an artist. At 18, he auditioned for the conservatory but was unsuccessful.

Later, he studied Information Technology at a university in HCMC. Then, an accident happened that turned his life in a different direction.

During his third year at university, he often followed a fellow townsman to work part-time at construction sites. Once, while lifting a long iron bar to the upper floor, he was electrocuted.

The accident caused severe injuries, and he had to be hospitalized. After two weeks, the doctor informed him that his arms had become necrotic and had to be amputated.

Grieved by his son's condition, Tuan's father asked the doctor to transplant his own arms to his son. However, for various objective reasons, his wish could not be fulfilled.

Tuan recalled: “In the days after the surgery, I didn't know I had lost my arms. Because they were still in casts, I only felt like my arms had become shorter. I asked my mother why they felt so short, and she didn't answer, she just cried. At that moment, I sensed something was wrong. But when the nurse removed the bandages and I saw my arms were gone, I was in total shock.”

The shock was so great that he fell into despair. He felt ashamed and insecure, seeing a bleak future because he didn't know what he could do or how he could live without his hands.

During his treatment, Tuan's story received attention and visits from many individuals and organizations. Among them, a nun who was the head of a temple in HCMC helped him immensely.

“I thought, if I could not die, then I had to live. I accepted my fate, determined to stand up again. I returned to my hometown and started relearning everything like a child,” he said.

Back in his hometown, despite his efforts, Tuan still felt self-conscious about having no arms. To hide that insecurity, he wore prosthetic arms everywhere he went.

In 2008, during an outing with friends, a show organizer discovered his musical ability and invited him to sing at weddings and events. After a few years in the profession, he and a friend opened a wedding tent rental and decoration service.

Around that time, he met Nguyen Thi Thuy (now 36). From their first meeting, he felt affection for the beautiful, gentle woman.

At first, Thuy only loved the voice of the amateur singer. She did not develop feelings for him, seeing him as cold and hard to approach.

Even so, Tuan confidently pursued her. In the early days, he hid the fact that he had lost both arms, so Thuy did not realize it, even though his arms were unusually pale and did not move naturally.

Only when their feelings grew strong did he reveal the truth. Upon learning it, Thuy was not shocked. Instead, she loved him more and admired his strong will to live.

After six months of love, Tuan and Thuy married. They now have three children, one daughter and two sons, all well-behaved and doing well at school.

In 2023, Tuan met Nguyen Van Vui, another man who also lost both arms in an electrocution accident and is well-known on social media for his resilience. Through the “Chim canh cut” group, which has about 50 members nationwide who have no arms, Tuan learned how to generate income from digital platforms.

He began creating a channel, livestreaming his singing combined with online sales. Over the past two years, his livestreams have gradually been embraced by audiences and started generating income. He now runs a TikTok channel with nearly 300,000 followers and almost 900,000 likes.

Ha Nguyen