SonaOne and tlinh Tap Into Unspoken Feelings on ‘Polite’

By Danial Martinus • 10 Nov 2025 in Music

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Malaysian rapper-producer SonaOne is back with ‘Polite’, a slow-burn single that pairs his atmospheric production with the vocals of rising Vietnamese pop-rap sensation, tlinh.

It’s a cross-border collab that sounds like a natural pairing, but it actually took half a decade to come to life.

Diving deep into unspoken words

Written by SonaOne, tlinh, and SYA (and produced by SonaOne), ‘Polite’ explores that emotional purgatory we’ve all probably been through at some point in our lives. It’s when everything feels heavy, but nobody’s brave enough to say anything out loud.

Its sound features sparse beats, thriving on tension and hushed intimacy. “I wanted ‘Polite’ to feel like a quiet storm. Minimal, close, driven by that heartbeat-like 808, holding back everything you want to say,” SonaOne says.

But what’s interesting is the fact that the song has actually been knocking around since 2020.

“I actually had the original ‘Polite’ since 2020 and did the first demo with Malaysian singer-songwriter SYA during the lockdowns,” he explains. “I loved the record but couldn’t find the right home for it yet until my A&R Team at Def Jam Malaysia suggested tlinh. A few trips to Ho Chi Minh City later, it finally clicked.”

On tlinh, she’s one of Vietnam’s most influential young artists, breaking out on Rap Việt as the only woman in the Top 8. She became Spotify’s #1 Vietnamese female artist, and even dropped an album (ái) that landed on NME’s Best Asian Albums of 2023 list.

“When I first heard ‘Polite’, I thought it had a really cool beat and a catchy hook. I just followed my instincts and created based on what felt right,” she says. “Working with SonaOne was so easy. He’s really supportive and encouraging. I hope listeners feel good when they hear it too.”

With SonaOne’s restrained, velvety production wrapping around tlinh’s melodic flair and sharp emotional clarity, you’ve got a single that’s soft without being fragile and romantic without being excessively sweet.

And you can see this chemistry come to life in the ‘Polite’ music video, shot on location in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.