Htoo Eain Thin was born on 1 July 1963 in Pathein in the Irrawaddy Division to a Burman father (Tun Myint) and a Mon mother (Mya Yin).

In 1981, his entire family moved to Mawlamyaing, and he enrolled in a correspondence course at the University of Mawlamyine, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in physics in 1984.

Htoo Eain Thin is widely remembered for his heart-felt songs with his own original music and lyrics.

When he released his first album Naryi Baw Mha Myet-Yay Zet Mya (Tear Drops on the Clock) in 1986,[3] the Burmese pop music scene was (and still to a lesser extent is) dominated by Burmese covers of Western pop and country music—known locally as "copies".

Some critics complained that his sound was still too "derivative" or "emulative", comparing his compositions and arrangements to those of the Bee Gees or the Beatles.

[1] But it was his ability to bring Burmese soulfulness (some would say wailing quality) to his lyrics and combine it with Western-fused arrangements that proved ever so popular with generations of Burmese—male and female alike.

Although the song ostensibly is about Myanmar's main artery Irrawaddy river, many took it to be as an implicit reference to Aung San Suu Kyi.