Vietnamese singer denies paying Messi $2.5M for music video

A screenshot shows Lionel Messi (L) in Jack's latest music video.

Lawyer Le Tan Sinh, Jack's legal representative, said on Sunday that some organizations and individuals are spreading unverified and false information related to Messi's appearance in Jack’s music video. Sinh said that spreading this rumor is an act of slander, fabrication and defamation of honor and reputation.

Last week, rumors surfaced online that Jack had to spend VND60 billion for 10 seconds of Messi appearing in his latest music video "Tu Noi Toi Sinh Ra" (Where I'm From).

The 26-year-old singer emphasized that all rumors related to the cost of inviting Messi, including giving money to other related parties, are false and absurd.

"The meeting with Lionel Messi was arranged in advance and only people who are involved can verify the information," Sinh said.

After realizing how serious this situation was, Jack asked organizations and individuals to stop posting unreliable information online. At the same time, Jack also apologized to businessman Pham Ngoc Quoc Cuong, one of two acquaintances who helped him connect with Messi, and others affected by the rumors.

In the past, Jack has said that in addition to music, he has also been passionate about football ever since he was a kid, and his first dream was to become a player. Messi has been Jack's idol for a long time, according to the singer. He said that when he became famous, he tried to find ways and use connections to meet the football superstar, but did not expect that his dream would ever come true because it was so difficult.

However, when a contact of Jack’s recently told him that Messi had agreed to meet him in France, he was delighted and immediately spent a few months learning Spanish in order to talk to his idol, according to the artist. He said he even spent a lot of money bringing his whole crew to Europe.

Jack said the meeting with Messi left a strong impression and it was the inspiration for him to compose the song "Tu Noi Toi Sinh Ra."

The singer said that Messi agreed to allow him to use clip of their meeting in the music video for the song, but he was prohibited from including sensitive content related to religion, country, and politics, or to use it for commercial purposes. Jack added that he put the meeting with Messi into the new music video to inspire and encourage people to follow their dreams and achieve the impossible.

Jack’s real name is Trinh Tran Phuong Tuan. Before becoming a singer, his passion was football. He participated in many local tournaments in his hometown Ben Tre in the Mekong Delta. After debuting as a member of the boyband G5R, he formed a duo with producer K-ICM and created many successful hits that accumulated hundreds of millions of views on YouTube, such as "Bac Phan" (Ill-Fated), "Song Gio" (Challenges) and "Em Gi Oi" (Excuse Me Miss).

In 2019, Jack went solo and continued his success with hits like "Fireflies" and "Camellia." He is expected to release a new album at the end of 2023.