Singer Bang Chau's real name is Nguyen Thi Xuan Mai, born in 1950 in Ba Ria and grew up in Tra On, Can Tho. Due to her love of literature, she wanted to have a meaningful real name, and thus the name "Bang Chau" meaning "cold gemstone" was born.

Since she was young, she had a passion for singing and joined music and singing classes from her childhood. Later, she began singing for soldiers and then became acquainted with famous singers. In 1969, Bang Chau went to Saigon and met many musicians such as Duy Khanh, Khanh Bang, Bao Thu, and received support from musician Duy Khanh for a long time.

The song "Qua Con Me" by Trinh Lam Ngan made Bang Chau famous in the Southern Vietnamese music scene and helped to associate her name with the song.