Would you like to play a game....about Asian TV and cinema? This week we're bringing you a fun new game show format co-hosted by Raymond Luu and Renee Ya from Reel Asian Podcast! We compete in a semi-free-for-all, semi-team-based game where we answer questions regarding all things Asian-American pop culture as it relates to celebrities, fun facts behind popular films, and plots from Asian TV/film. Along with shenanigan trivia, we share some must-watch Asian media and talk about how Asian represe...
Jul 09, 2021•34 min•Season 1Ep. 56
In honor of 4th of July, we wanted to examine where we are as a nation and if there's still hope for all of us to come back together after a very divisive past 4+ years... We discuss an often underrepresented (up to half) of the country that self-identify as independents, moderates, and/or centrists, and how a lack of strong identification with either extreme of the political spectrum has left many of them feeling underrepresented by the two-party system. We also discuss some hot button current ...
Jul 02, 2021•37 min•Season 1Ep. 55
Arranged marriages are often thought of as an archaic relic of the past. But what impact does the cultural and historical relevance of this practice have on the marriages of today? This week, we'll attempt to answer this question with our special guest, Shibani Joshi. Shibani is an accomplished business and technology journalist, lecturer, and professional speaker, and is an Indian-American who has had first hand experience with trying to reconcile with checking off all the "Indian-approved" box...
Jun 25, 2021•35 min•Season 1Ep. 54
Frank Striegl is Founder of 5AM Ramen and Tokyo Ramen Tours. We discuss what it was like growing up as a bi-racial Filipino-American in Japan, how he found his place within Japanese society, why he is obsessed with ramen and built a business centered around it, and how the pandemic has given him a unique opportunity to think creatively about his business and other ways he can share the joy of ramen with people around the world.
Jun 18, 2021•36 min•Season 1Ep. 53
We are now entering the third decade of our lives - that's right, yours truly(s) are both in their thirties now. But what's the big deal about the big three-oh anyways? In our opener to season 4 (!), we take a look at what it means to be in our thirties. We discuss some of the most anxiety-inducing topics associated with this decade, from job choices to personal life decisions. Listen to the expectations we set for ourselves as we compare where we are today to where we thought we would be. And f...
Jun 11, 2021•35 min•Season 1Ep. 52
While we recharge and plan out new content for upcoming episodes, we wanted to take this opportunity to introduce you to other awesome voices from the AAPI community. This week, we're featuring Reel Asian Podcast, a podcast dedicated to exploring the stories and themes of Asian and Asian-American film. In this episode, the Reel Asian Podcast crew took a look at the timeless anime epic, Princess Mononoke (1997). Directed by the legendary Hayao Miyazaki, this instant classic touches upon themes th...
May 14, 2021•56 min•Season 1Ep. 51
Warning: NSFW topic ahead! We are putting it all out there this week and talking sex and intimacy. What did we learn (or not learn) about sex growing up in our Asian households? How it works, who is "allowed" to have it, and under what circumstances it's "ok" to have it. And how did the taboo around talking about or having sex affect us in terms of our personal understandings of what sex is actually like, what we enjoy, and what will work well in a relationship? Spoiler alert: it absolutely stun...
Apr 30, 2021•31 min•Season 1Ep. 50
Drag queens and kings have become one of the more public representations of the LGBTQ community. But beyond the polished acts seen through mass media, drag can be something deeply personal and raw. This week, we're joined by Untitled Queen, a drag artist based in Brooklyn, New York. Untitled's work uses drag as performance art to both construct and deconstruct different facets of his identity. Untitled shares with us all the behind-the-scenes of his journey with drag. We talk about his childhood...
Apr 23, 2021•35 min•Season 1Ep. 49
On our never ending quest to meet all the Asians doing cool sh*t, we met "more than just a rapper" Lil Waterboi. He's a Montreal-based Vietnamese Canadian artist who's seeking to normalize and shine a spotlight on Asian Canadian artists through his own work and through Bahay Collective, his company dedicated to helping to support and promote Asian artists. We talk about what it was like growing up Asian in a French Canadian environment (he's trilingual in English, French, and Vietnamese!), the i...
Apr 16, 2021•31 min•Season 1Ep. 48
Do you want to play a game? To take your (and our) minds off the news of the past few weeks, we're going to be drinking this episode. And not only will we be drinking, but we will also be attempting to trick each other with fake COVID-story headlines. So strap your headphones on for some fake news debunking, high-larious failures in pronunciation and enunciation, and some hot tips to avoid a drinking hangover. Who's keeping score? Who cares, we're drunk!
Apr 09, 2021•34 min•Season 1Ep. 47
Sophia Bailey is the founder of the More Than Yellow Blog - a community dedicated to amplifying the voices and stories of the Asian-American community. We discuss how she was inspired to start More Than Yellow by the challenges she experienced herself growing up as one of the few Asians in her small midwest town, fueled further by the recent wave of anti-Asian racism growing out of the pandemic. We discuss what we as a community (both Asian-American and the broader minority communities) can do t...
Apr 02, 2021•36 min•Season 1Ep. 46
Loneliness is a universal experience that we've all had at one point or another. What's so interesting about loneliness is how we react to it and how the cultures we grew up with direct that reaction. This week we're talking about loneliness culture - the places, services, practices, and traditions that govern how we deal with loneliness, as well as the cultural norms that often signal to us what contexts it's "acceptable" to be alone in or not. We take a look at how the Eastern world has approa...
Mar 26, 2021•32 min•Season 1Ep. 45
The armed forces is such an important and foundational group keeping our country (and our friends around the world) safe, but is often under-appreciated or not thought of, especially in the realm of jobs our immigrant parents dream for us to pursue. This week we speak with Major David Phetmixay from the US Air Force about his experience serving as one of the few Asian-Americans in this branch of the military. We also discuss how serving in the forces has unexpectedly allowed him to reconnect wit...
Mar 19, 2021•26 min•Season 1Ep. 44
As Taiwanese-Americans, we have a complex relationship with China. We are ethnically Chinese and deeply value connecting with the history, culture, and traditions that stemmed from our longstanding Chinese heritage, but at the same time, our families grew up in Taiwan - a place that has developed its own identity, and is certainly run by a very different type of government. In this episode, we discuss the meteoric rise of China from the original Mao-era Cultural Revolution days to becoming a com...
Mar 12, 2021•37 min•Season 1Ep. 43
Wait, did you know that your hosts are not related!?! Yes, lifelong friends Jesse and Angela Lin belong to different Lin families! Jesse is an only child, and Angela has an actual brother - Johnny. He's our special guest this week where we talk about the sibling experience. Growing up in an Asian family can be complicated, but the dynamics of family size can make it downright dizzying. From the pressures of being the "eldest male heir" to the loneliness of being an only child, we leave the sibli...
Mar 05, 2021•34 min•Season 1Ep. 42
Do you remember your first time stepping into Chinatown? It's an otherworldly experience being surrounded by throngs of people and cornered in by restaurants and shops that beckon with mysterious foods and wares. Due to the global pandemic, these amazing neighborhoods are slowly dwindling. This week, we're joined by Jackie Wang and Harry Trinh, two volunteers with the organization, "Welcome to Chinatown." We talk with them about what their organization is doing to help NYC Chinatown businesses d...
Feb 26, 2021•36 min•Season 1Ep. 41
For Asian-Americans, it's hard enough to reconcile if you're more Asian or more American... now imagine adding on the additional complexity of figuring out if you're more Asian or more Black. Thus far we haven't delved deeply into the impact that being bi-racial can have on one's sense of self. We are joined in this discussion by content creator/actor Ryan Alexander Holmes, who is half African-American, half Chinese. We discuss what his journey has been like being outwardly categorized by societ...
Feb 19, 2021•37 min•Season 1Ep. 40
Happy Year of the Ox! This week we're celebrating the Lunar New Year - and we're taking you all along for the ride. Our families didn't always follow all of the traditions, but we're sharing with you everything we know about the lore and traditions of the holiday. From the story of surviving the new year, to the arrangement of dishes at the meal table, join us as we dive into everything Lunar New Year.
Feb 12, 2021•30 min•Season 1Ep. 39
We had such a pleasure speaking with the ~positive vibes only~ singer/songwriter AZRA on another segment of Asians Doing Cool Sh*t. We discuss what it's like to be one of the only Asian-Americans in the music industry, the challenge of fighting the cultural pressure to "not stick out" contrasted against what it takes to succeed in the U.S., how she's had to adapt in channeling her creativity and how she connects with her fans during the COVID-19 shutdown, and even how spirituality plays into her...
Feb 05, 2021•34 min•Season 1Ep. 38
In the age of coronavirus, is it still worth it to live in a large city? As young adults, cities provided us foundational adult experiences that we cut our teeth on - opportunities for career development, indulgence, relationships, and more. But with the closure of museums, restaurants, bars, etc, these dense urban jungles seem less attractive to those who call them home. If you haven't yet guessed it, this week's episode is about the decline of the American city. We discuss all the pros and con...
Jan 29, 2021•35 min•Season 1Ep. 37
So long, 2020! To say goodbye to a year that was so off-the-charts extra, we wanted to talk about what it means to do the most. For many of us, this year was a mental and physical struggle. For others of us, this year granted much needed time to dive into new projects or pursuits. But for all of us, there was the question of what should we be doing? Our last episode of the season dives headfirst into this question - along the way, we also discuss balancing motivation in this challenging time, ho...
Dec 18, 2020•33 min•Season 1Ep. 36
Season's greetings! Let us bring some cheer to you by reminiscing on our favorite holiday traditions. Fall and winter really bring a different perspective to (our respective) cities, where the air feels a little crisper and everything has a little rose-colored tint to it. Of course, the holidays are also about friends, and we recount some of our favorite traditions, shenanigans, and stories. And finally, we talk about our memories of Chinese New Year and the spark of desire to be celebrating ano...
Dec 11, 2020•31 min•Season 1Ep. 35
In another segment of "Asians Doing Cool Sh*t," we talk to Amy Tsang, an actor and filmmaker based in LA. Knowing how stereotypical Asian parents feel about pursuing a career in the arts, Amy defied those norms and made her way into the film and TV industry. We discuss what it was like starting her acting career in Hong Kong and transitioning to the U.S. where suddenly her Asian-ness was something she had to consider in its effect on what opportunities were available to her. We also discuss the ...
Dec 04, 2020•32 min•Season 1Ep. 34
Even with everything that has happened in 2020, there's still room to find things that we're thankful for - but only after b*tchin about the things that we're not. Join us this week in celebrating Thanksgiving by trashing the year of 2020. Of course, there are plenty of silver linings that this year has brought as well. The extra time has allowed us to start this podcast (!), invest in our physical and mental health, and also pursue other interests outside of our normal routines. We'll also disc...
Nov 27, 2020•30 min•Season 1Ep. 33
We're bringing you another "Reflections" episode where we highlight listeners' stories about their experiences. We hear what it was like growing up in a divorced household and the emotional consequences of trying to "save face," the hardship that immigrant parents had to face to learn a whole new language and re-learn their skill sets to "make it" in America, and how conflicting it feels to see more ethnic food growing in popularity but oftentimes commercialized by non-POC individuals. Join us f...
Nov 20, 2020•32 min•Season 1Ep. 32
While it's easy to assume that the Asian-American experience is similar to that of the broader Asian diaspora around the world, this definitely isn't necessarily the case! That's why this week we welcomed special guest Natalie Cheung from Yellow Bee Pod to compare and contrast the experience of being Asian in the U.S. vs in the UK, as someone who is British-born Chinese. We learned a lot from this conversation, including the fact that the word "Asian" doesn't even refer to the same ethnic groups...
Nov 13, 2020•36 min•Season 1Ep. 31
We're kicking off a segment called "Asians Doing Cool Sh*t" where we celebrate Asian-Americans (or other Asian-____!) pursuing unconventional career paths... at least according to what our immigrant parents would have expected from us (aka not a doctor, engineer, accountant, etc.). We're here to break down that rigid definition of "success" and show all different ways that our community finds success and fulfillment. In honor of Election Day, we interviewed Anna who works in the local Democratic...
Nov 03, 2020•34 min•Season 1Ep. 30
It's the spookiest season of the year (and one of our favorites)! We gush over what we love about Halloween and share ghost stories and folklore that we convinced our parents to share with us from the motherland. In addition to some spooky tales, we also discuss the traditions practiced around "ghost month" (July in the lunar calendar), and the difference between the concepts of Heaven and Hell in eastern vs. western contexts. Join us for this ghoulish ride!
Oct 30, 2020•36 min•Season 1Ep. 29
It's Election season, and we want you to get out and vote! Voting is an important civic duty, and helps steer the direction of our country for the next 4 years! It's also really important to remember to vote in all your local elections, which can really help determine what happens in your immediate community. To stir up some civic pride and learn about the importance of voting in other countries, we've brought on a special guest - Savannah! Hailing from Taiwan, Savannah is going to give us insig...
Oct 23, 2020•29 min•Season 1Ep. 28
Love is in the...wait, no. Actually, we didn't learn much about love and relationships at all growing up. While our parents loved us in their own ways, they didn't impart the communication and analysis skills necessary to survive a modern relationship. And since we both entered the dating game late, we've had to develop these skills "on the job." Love languages are the name of this game, and this week we'll be opening up about the impacts of growing up Asian on romantic relationships. We'll also...
Oct 16, 2020•31 min•Season 1Ep. 27
