Thao Nguyen

At 23, Thao Nguyen is poised for her breakout. Her new record, We Brave Bee Stings and All, is getting national attention, but Thao’s heart stays close to home in the Northern Virginia. That’s where she taught herself guitar while working at the coin laundry owned by her mother, an immigrant bringing up Thao on her own. We sent Jesse Dukes to meet up with Thao and her mother Nanh at the laundromat to find out how she grew into a rock star.