Vietnam’s renowned rocker Tran Lap, who died of cancer on Thursday, will be honored with a posthumous medal for his contribution to the country’s music industry, the Vietnam Musicians Association (VMA) said.

VMA and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism have reached an agreement to posthumously honor Tran Lap for what he had done to the music industry, musician Duc Trinh, deputy of the association, confirmed on Friday.

“Rocker and composer Tran Lap is a special case, as he had been actively engaging in the music industry and had great contributions, despite being a non-member of the association,” Trinh said.

“The rock songs of Tran Lap and his band Buc Tuong [The Wall] win both approvals from industry insiders and love from young audiences.”

The VMA is poised to work with the family of the deceased rocker in the next few days to determine the ceremony to give him the posthumous medal, Trinh added.

Tran Lap died after a four-month battle with rectal cancer at the age of 42 at home on Thursday, in the shock and grief of his family, friends and fans.

Tran Lap founded Buc Tuong in 1995 and eventually turned it from a student rock group into Vietnam’s most successful band.

As the band’s leader, vocalist and songwriter, Tran Lap won the heart of generations of students in the last 20 years with numerous ballad rock songs with meaningful and inspiring lyrics.

Tran Lap’s funeral will be held in Hanoi on March 23, but he will be laid to rest at his hometown in Nam Dinh.

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