As a mechanical engineer and co-host of PBS Kids Go!’s series Design Squad Nation, Judy Lee is working hard to debunk notions that engineering is hard, nerdy and only for boys.
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: My Story
STORY: Judy Lee
My parents moved to the U.S. from Taiwan more than 40 years ago. My brother and I were born and raised in North Carolina and grew up in a world with two different cultures. My parents were amazing in that they embraced American culture while remaining rooted in Taiwanese traditions. While American things — eating hamburgers and fries, believing in Santa, and pulling for college sports — were a part of our lives, so were Taiwanese things — like my mom talking too loudly on the phone as if the person on the other line were actually in Taiwan, families fighting over who would be the lucky one to pay the bill, and parents showing off their kids’ SAT scores.
“I don’t see many bands like this. And I get to be a part of it.” — Kaori Tsuchida
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Jimmy Lee
The razor-sharp rhythms — which are undeniable invitations to shake your ass — are just part of the evidence that The Go! Team has impeccable timing. Just when it felt like the band from Brighton, England, had fallen off the pop music radar, they reappear with a new, better-than-ever album. Released in February, their third and latest, Rolling Blackouts, continues to bring the joyful noise — a meticulous mélange of styles, from indie pop and noise to game show themes and hip-hop — found on its predecessor, 2007’s Proof Of Youth, which followed the sample-heavy Thunder, Lightning, Strike of 2004. Continue Reading »
Ten years after they burst into the New York music scene in 1994, the electro-pop duo of Cibo Matto is back. They’re recording a new album, and just embarked on a nationwide tour, which includes a stop at the iconic Hollywood Bowl this Sunday, June 26. Contributor Jimmy Lee takes us behind the Japanese duo.
“What the …?” That was my initial reaction when I first heard Cibo Matto in the mid-1990s. I was thinking, who is this, singing in broken English with what is clearly a heavily accented Asian voice, and reciting silly lines about knowing your chicken and eating birthday cake.
“When I see someone like a Harry [Shum, Jr.], I get excited. I think about me as a kid — like, ‘oh my god, I want to be cool like that.’” — Jon M. Chu on Asian role models.
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Katrina Guevara
Jon M. Chu may be known for directing dance films, namely Step Up 2: The Streets and Step Up 3D, but don’t pigeonhole him just yet. The 31-year-old says he’s just a modern fairytale story- teller, whether it be through dance, superhero stories, or an old fashioned boy-meets-girl romance. He even considers his latest film, the 3D musical documentary, Justin Bieber: Never Say Never, a modern-day fairytale. “[It’s] about a kid from a small town who follows his dream, has Usher as a mentor, finds his way and is anointed by the king,” says Chu.
Continue Reading »
“I don’t know why I feel like I have to have sex with other people than you. … My kisses on your neck may not be exclusive, but they’re not random either.” – Kelly Zen- Yie Tsai
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Anna M. Park
With spoken word poet Kelly Zen- Yie Tsai, what you hear is pretty much what you get.
“If I was the center of everything for a day everything would be aimed towards, dictated by, catered to, tailored for 5-foot-2 tattooed Asian females.”
“I don’t know why I feel like I have to have sex with other people than you. … My kisses on your neck may not be exclusive, but they’re not random either.”
“When it comes down to … whether my heart, my uterus, my tax return and my generation is gonna be governed by your sorry self, I would like to say that I’m real. I’m here. I’m voting. And believe me this girl is yellow.”* Continue Reading »
Throughout the years, Asian Americans have yearned to see faces like theirs on the small screen. With Nickelodeon’s new show Supah Ninjas, the Asian American family is returning for the first time in 16 years as the star of a mainstream television series. While teen-oriented shows are saying they’re committed to diversity, do AA teens today really feel well-represented?
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: Features
STORY: Janice Jann
There’s a new family moving into TV-land this spring. The dad, a bumbling cop. The grandfather, a wise old man. And the son, a doe-eyed high-schooler named Mike who just wants to win over the girl of his dreams.
Teen shows seem to offer richer opportunities for young Asian American actors these days. But what’s it like actually being “that Asian on that show”? We find out from actresses Ashley Argota, Jolene Purdy and Nikki Soohoo.
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: Features
STORY: Janice Jann
PHOTOS: Audrey Cho
Natalie Minh’s Food Failures
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: Mind and Body
STORY: Anna M. Park
Talk about overachiever. Fitness model Natalie Minh is not only a three-time European Physique champion, she’s a photographer and has an MBA and a master’s in finance. So she knows how hard it is to eat right in a hectic, modern lifestyle. “The most challenging part of keeping to a healthy diet is time,” says the 31-year-old Vietnamese American. “The best weapon we have is better organization and planning ahead.” Here, Minh outlines the top three nutrition failures of busy women today, and how to fix them.
Don’t schlep when traveling for business. Three stylish, entrepreneurial Asian American women offer chic carryalls for laptop, iPad and more.
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: DestinAsian
STORY: Anna M. Park
Plaid Doctrine
Suzanne Park appreciates a sturdy travel bag — she’s logged 300,000+ miles herself as a former corporate exec. Thank goodness she founded Plaid Doctrine, a line of cool, eco-friendly laptop bags. They’re made with recycled material from plastic bottles, but you’d never know it from the look and feel of it. The vintage-inspired designs of houndstooth and stripes trimmed with prime-grade, vegetable-tanned leather perfectly complement spring’s preppy-punk vibe. Continue Reading »
“I feel like everything up until this point has prepared me for this and now I’m ready.”
– T.V. Carpio
ISSUE: Spring 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Linda Lam with reporting by Anna M. Park
Of all the roles T.V. Carpio has played, she likes the role of the mythical eight-legged goddess best.
“It’s a side of me most people haven’t seen yet,” says the Chinese-Filipino American actress who was just promoted to female lead villain, Arachne, in the Broadway “mega-musical” Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, directed by Julie Taymor, music by Bono and The Edge.
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