After several serenades and coffee at a small shop called Quán Văn, the legacy of Khánh Ly and Trịnh Công Sơn had begun.

Within the next several decades, Khánh Ly and Trịnh Công Sơn sang together at small coffee shops, clubs, and even on the steps of Văn Khoa University in Saigon (a liberal arts school).

During the escalation of an unwanted and bloody war, his anti-war lyrics in the Yellow-Skin Songs and her luring voice appealed to those who grew weary of the battles and bloodshed; their plea for peace propelled them to the top.

She opened Club Khánh Ly on Tự Do Street in Saigon along with a small shop named Hội Quán Cây Tre, a gathering place for musicians and students alike.

She also performed in the United States, Canada, and Japan at Osaka Fair in response to the invitation from Nippon Columbia Label (a large production company).

Here, she recorded an album, featuring Trịnh Công Sơn's songs Diễm Xưa and Ca Dao Mẹ (sang in both languages), which went gold shortly after its debut.

Within the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, Khanh Ly was invited back to Japan on numerous occasions by Nippon Columbia Label, Toci Film, and Japanese largest television station to record and perform.

In addition, both Toci Film and Japanese largest television station featured her voice in the theme song to several movies and television series regarding Vietnam's culture as well as the "Boat People" phenomenon; her most notable recording was "Lời Ru Cho Đà Nẵng" in 1987, music by Japanese artist Hako Yamasaki and words by former newspaper editor and Khánh Ly's husband, Nguyễn Hoàng Đoan.

Her fame in Japan continued to escalate when she was named one of the top 10 most famous people along the same line as Gandhi, Gucci, Martin Luther King Jr.s wife, among others.

In the later part of the 1980s and early 1990s, Khánh Ly traveled vigorously and performed in Russia, the Czech Republic, Poland, and in a concert in East Germany after the Berlin Wall was taken down in 1989.

Being a devout Catholic, she also sang at many church-sponsored events in which her most memorable performance was at the Canonization of 117 Vietnamese Priests in Vatican City (1988) where she met Pope John Paul II.

In 1996, she, several other renowned singers, and songwriter Trầm Tử Thiêng hosted a Charity Concert in order to raise money to build houses/shelters for 2000 Vietnamese refugees in the Philippines.