"As a young composer in Singapore, there were no expectations to sound Asian." We take a deep dive into Emily Koh's composition "unheard" for bass clarinet and baritone saxophone, what it means to be Asian in America, and the importance of cultural heterogeneity in artistic expression. Hear the piece at the Dino Annex Dec. 10 2023 concert at the Pao Arts Center and find tickets here: https://www.dinosaurannex.org/event-details/the-asian-american-avant-garde

"There were no expectations to sound Asian": Emily Koh on 'unheard' for bari sax and bass clarinet

Pain asserts that being hurt doesn’t just mean being harmed. Sometimes pain will help you understand the relationship between where you are and where you need to be. The song is a celebration of endurance masquerading as a homage to the pain that made it possible. It’s a message that Steven will be looking to share through performances at local open mics and showcases in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Pain

In December 2023, we spoke with Eun Young Lee about her piece EunHaeng for solo clarinet. We're honored to present this piece again on March 30, 2024, in Quincy MA! See here for details and ticketing: https://www.dinosaurannex.org/event-details/new-asian-american-voices

Eun Young Lee discusses EunHaeng for solo clarinet

Composer Jean Ahn reflects upon compositional life after having lived in the United States for 2 decades. Listen to our conversation about her piece Froggy Froggy based on a Korean folk tune. This version of Froggy Froggy for solo viola gets its premiere on March 30, 2024!!! And you get to hear her singing it during our chat! Tickets for the Season 49 Concert 2 here: https://www.dinosaurannex.org/event-details/new-asian-american-voices

Jean Ahn on Froggy Froggy: "I was free from judgment … I was able to explore.”

Podcast about the first refugee camps in the U.S. for Southeast Asians in 1975. We hear from Vietnamese refugees who came through the camps, and then went to live with sponsors across the U.S. What happens when more than 120,000 Southeast Asian refugees show up in the middle of America?

The First Wave: Stories from the Camps podcast

In this episode we chat with Sandy Namgung! She's a mother, runner, and advocate from Seattle, WA; part of the Brooks Running Collective; and a captain for @run_csrd – amongst so many other wonderful things!

E73: Sandy Namgung

In this episode, Dr. OiYan Poon joins #RaceClass to discuss her new book “Asian American is Not a Color: Conversations on Race, Affirmative Action and Family.” Dr. Poon is a distinguished social scientist and race scholar. In a wide ranging conversation, Dr. Poon explores her own racial education as child in western, MA; how the term “Asian American” originated within the broader Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s; what it means to be "Asian American"; and why affirmative action is often necessary to combat anti-Asian racism.  

Ep. 30 | "Asian American is Not a Color," a Conversation with Dr. OiYan Poon

The Asian American community is the fastest growing voter group in America. Since the last presidential election, 2 million more Asian Americans have become eligible to vote. There are now 15 million potential Asian American voters.

When you look at swing states, like Georgia, there are 328,000 Asian Americans eligible to vote in Georgia. That's the state that Biden won by less than 12,000 votes. And there’s almost 1.1 million Asian Americans in Texas.  If they are allowed to vote, Texas turns blue. 

It's also a young demographic, and Asian Americans tend to vote three quarters Democratic. So, the GOP's doing everything that they can to crush the Asian American vote. It is racism by statistics.

▶️ Get the full story: https://www.gregpalast.com/whos-sari-now-trump-disses-asian-american-voters/

Asian Americans are the fastest growing voter group in America — and Trump just dissed them

CELLULOID DREAMS THE MOVIE SHOW -- 8/15/24

THIS WEEK'S SHOW:  Welcome to the mid-2000s! 

Set in 2008 during the last month of summer before high school begins, DIDI shows us an impressionable 13-year-old Taiwanese-American boy navigating the awkward, unknown landscape of teenhood, with the added toxic axpects of male peers and racism. Writer/director Sean Wang and Oscar-nominee Joan Chen discuss the drama and cringe comedy of teenage life in the semi-autobiographical DIDI.

SEAN WANG & JOAN CHEN talk DIDI with TIM SIKA on CELLULOID DREAMS THE MOVIE SHOW (8-15-24)

The original soundtrack to "Someone Sober Drive My Car," an Asian American coming-of-age road trip visual novel.
You can download the game HERE: https://trogenhearse.itch.io/someonesoberdrivemycar

Are All Men Brothers

The original soundtrack to "Someone Sober Drive My Car," an Asian American coming-of-age road trip visual novel.
You can download the game HERE: https://trogenhearse.itch.io/someonesoberdrivemycar

Lyrics:
OOOOOHHH
I've just hit the point of the bottle
Where the misery sets in
and OOOOOOOOHHH
It's starting to get hard to swallow
Suffocated by my sin

OOOOOOOHH
Steel needles of blood pierce my chest 
I've lost feeling in my face
'cuz OOOOOOOHH
My brain's saying give it a rest,
and my heart can't disobey

OOOOOOOHH
I've just hit the threshold of coffee
where my heart begins to hurt
but OOOOOOOHH
There won't be a reason for stopping
'till I'm six feet in the dirt

OOOOOOOHH
When I wash my face free from grime
I can see them crystal clear
OOOOOOOOHH
The dark circles under my eyes
They're wide open filled with fear

I can't stop thinking about
the times we had lovely and sad
All of the laughter and wrath
emotion that tore us in half
now I can't stop drinking and drow-
ning in self doubt I'm burning out
I'm never feeling alive
To hell I drive down I-75

Better Luck Tomorrow

The original soundtrack to "Someone Sober Drive My Car," an Asian American coming-of-age road trip visual novel.
You can download the game HERE: https://trogenhearse.itch.io/someonesoberdrivemycar

Lyrics:
Cut off all the
parts that make me weak
Go ahead and
cut off all of me
Even if you
leave me as a
single cell
I'm used to being
nothing
Nobody with no body's
just right
No more wasted energy

There's no more conversation
Breath wasted on a ghost
No niceties obscuring
what we're afraid to show
I've never been a stranger
to being strangers with
masks that I've worn to hide that
I am still just a kid
  
Cut off all the
parts that make me weak
Go ahead and
cut off all of me
Even if you
leave me as a
single cell
I'm used to being
nothing
Nobody with no body's
just right
No more wasted energy

Ee Ee Ay Ay Oh

The original soundtrack to "Someone Sober Drive My Car," an Asian American coming-of-age road trip visual novel.
You can download the game HERE: https://trogenhearse.itch.io/someonesoberdrivemycar

Lyrics:

煮豆燃豆萁，
豆在釜中泣。
本是同根生，
相煎何太急！

zhǔ dòu rán dòu qí
dòu zài fǔ zhōng qì
běn shì tóng gēn shēng
xiāng jiān hé tài jí

Beans, in flame that beanstalks feed,
 Out from the pan cry,
“Sprung from the same stalk,
 What need each the other fry?” 

Adapted from Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong

Cow Pee (Like my Father Cow Cow Before Me)

On sale January 28th, 2025

In this charming rom-com filled with Chinese traditions and a family curse, an herbalist fake dates a star musician–perfect for fans of Helen Hoang and Jasmine Guillory.

Chinese herbalist Chryssy Hua Williams never actually believed in the Hua family curse. But after Break-Up #9, Chryssy stopped laughing. Now she and her aunties run a special healing retreat center for the broken-hearted. After all, there’s nothing a proper cup of herbal tea can’t fix...but Chryssy’s innocent run-in with celebrity cellist and bad boy Vin Chao has everyone brewing about a different kind of tea. So he offers her a deal: they’ll fake-date, he’ll “break” her heart (and increase ticket sales), and in return, he’ll promote her business.

It’s like Chryssy’s whole cursed love life has been leading up to this moment. But all it takes is one kiss—and a whole lot of unexpected chemistry—to land both of them in hot water . . .  

Yin Yang Love Song By Lauren Kung Jessen, Read By Eunice Wong and Erik Yang (Audiobook Excerpt)

On sale March 4th, 2025

In this "riveting [and] unforgettable" novel, a forty-year-old woman journeys to her cultural homeland—and uncovers a harrowing secret that makes her rethink everything she thought she knew about her mother (Jimin Han, author of The Apology). 

Angelina Lee feels like she doesn’t belong. Newly divorced, and completely unmoored by the sudden and tragic death of her mother, she hopes studying Korean will reconnect her to her roots, but nothing about Seoul feels familiar. Further complicating matters is the resurgence of an alluring man from Angelina’s past, and fellow classmate Keisuke Ono, an irritatingly good looking Japanese American journalist who refuses to leave her alone. What she’ll barely admit, however, is the true reason behind her trip. She’s convinced the key to understanding her mother’s suicide lies in Korea.

A shocking conversation with an estranged relative proves her right. Her mother had an older sister, Sunyuh, who disappeared under the Japanese occupation of Korea during WWII—a secret the family buried for over sixty years. Horrified, Angelina can’t fathom why her mother never mentioned her, but knows, deep down, her mother’s fateful decision must be linked to Sunyuh. To find answers, Angelina embarks on a journey that takes her across oceans and continents, and challenges everything she believed about her heritage and herself.

Told through the bold, determined voices of three women, this poignant family drama explores love and loss, grief and healing, and the sometimes-difficult love that exists between mothers and daughters. It’s about the questions we wish we had asked lost relatives, the lives we could have lived had we made different choices, and, above all, second chances—to reinvent ourselves, to confront the sins of the past, and to find lasting love.

Stone Angels By Helena Rho, Read By Greta Jung and Helena Rho (Audiobook Excerpt)

Outsider Kids
Written by Betty C. Tang
Narrated by Jenny Chen, Ell, Kenton Chen, Sue Ann Pien, Todd Haberkorn, and a full cast


WITH FAMILY LIKE THIS, WHO NEEDS ENEMIES?

After seven months on their own as undocumented immigrants, the Lin siblings have settled into their new lives in California. Jia-Xi (Jesse) has a new job, Ke-Gang (Jason) has a new crush, and Feng-Li (Ann) is excited to celebrate her eleventh birthday with her new friends. Their parents still await visa approval in Taiwan, so the trio is trying to take better care of one another and stay under the radar of immigration authorities. But when their stuck-up cousin Josephine-a violin prodigy-arrives with her privilege and demands, suddenly their world is in turnaround. Will they have to give up the life they worked so hard to achieve?


Print Edition published by Scholastic Inc. Text Copyright 2025 by Betty C. Tang. Production Copyright 2025 by Scholastic Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Formats Available:
Digital Trade		978-1-5461-5111-1		$24.99
Digital Library		978-1-5461-5112-8	$74.99


Outsider Kids - Audiobook Clip

This is a song about Chinese American and Taiwanese American history.

Vocals: Alfred Twu    Background music: Digital, made with MuseScore
--------------------
Sheet music
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GzQNbAHe845HeI-S8CrXcK5vkpI8lvBh/view?usp=sharing
--------------------
The story behind the song
https://alfredtwu.medium.com/music-gold-mountain-silicon-valley-%E9%87%91%E5%B1%B1%E7%9F%BD%E8%B0%B7-917734b60f3d
--------------------
Instrumental version https://soundcloud.com/user-359188368/gold-mountain-silicon-valley-instrumental
--------------------
Lyrics
--------------------
Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Blood sweat and tears
Milk and honey

金山矽谷,美國華裔
Gam1 saan1 xì gǔ mei5 gwok3 huá yi
血汗淚水
Xiě hàn lèi shuǐ
快樂甜蜜
Kuài lè tián mì

On a weekday late night train,
Boards an auntie dressed in white
Rolling past Santa Clara,
I'm you from a past life.

Bamboo ceiling in valley
It can grind your spirit down
Come join me for a milk tea
Back home here in Chinatown.

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Blood sweat and tears
Milk and honey

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Pork chive dumplings
Red bean congee

Here I built a new railroad
Since we chased off from the mines
Ran restaurants and laundry
And ate bitter all the time.

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Start new life as
An old lady

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Raised paper son
He serve our country

Stuck gold with a gambling house
Washed it through a grocery store
Fought the law and found loopholes
To give kids a chance at more

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Blood sweat and tears
Milk and honey

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
In our hometown
Building history

After long fights we won rights
To buy land and to stay
They could not burn us no more
So they built a new freeway

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Railroad tunnels
Dam and levees

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Built by migrants
For those with money

Uncle ran to be mayor
Didn't win but paved the way
Today's political power
Grows from seeds of yesterday.

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Serve the people
In the Assembly

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
No one is free
Till we are all free

Civil rights got a big win
In year nineteen sixty-five
Country's gate slightly open
Lucky few could build new life

But the wealth still uneven
Some are rich but many poor
Behind the office buildings
Live five families to a door.

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Freeway traffic
On 680

Monterey Park, the S.G.V.
Fremont, Irvine, and Convoy Street

Outside California
New land laws in many states
We must all work together
To stop anti-Asian hate

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Blood sweat and tears
Milk and honey

金山矽谷,美國華裔
Gam1 saan1 xì gǔ mei5 gwok3 huá yi
血汗淚水
Xiě hàn lèi shuǐ
快樂甜蜜
Kuài lè tián mì

金山矽谷,春回大地
Gam1 saan1 xì gǔ Chūn huí dà dì
社會進步
shè huì jìnbù
要靠一起
yào kào yī qǐ

Gold Mountain Silicon Valley 金山矽谷



A song about Chinese American and Taiwanese American history.  This version has just the instrumental music so you can sing along!

Music: Digital, made with MuseScore

--------------------
For the version with vocals: https://soundcloud.com/user-359188368/gold-mountain-silicon-valley
--------------------
Sheet music
drive.google.com/file/d/1GzQNbAHe…view?usp=sharing
--------------------
The story behind the song
alfredtwu.medium.com/music-gold-mou…7-917734b60f3d
--------------------
Lyrics
--------------------
Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Blood sweat and tears
Milk and honey

fo,美國華裔
Gam1 saan1 xì gǔ mei5 gwok3 huá yi
血汗淚水
Xiě hàn lèi shuǐ
快樂甜蜜
Kuài lè tián mì

On a weekday late night train,
Boards an auntie dressed in white
Rolling past Santa Clara,
I'm you from a past life.

Bamboo ceiling in valley
It can grind your spirit down
Come join me for a milk tea
Back home here in Chinatown.

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Blood sweat and tears
Milk and honey

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Pork chive dumplings
Red bean congee

Here I built a new railroad
Since we chased off from the mines
Ran restaurants and laundry
And ate bitter all the time.

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Start new life as
An old lady

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Raised paper son
He serve our country

Stuck gold with a gambling house
Washed it through a grocery store
Fought the law and found loopholes
To give kids a chance at more

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Blood sweat and tears
Milk and honey

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
In our hometown
Building history

After long fights we won rights
To buy land and to stay
They could not burn us no more
So they built a new freeway

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Railroad tunnels
Dam and levees

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Built by migrants
For those with money

Uncle ran to be mayor
Didn't win but paved the way
Today's political power
Grows from seeds of yesterday.

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Serve the people
In the Assembly

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
No one is free
Till we are all free

Civil rights got a big win
In year nineteen sixty-five
Country's gate slightly open
Lucky few could build new life

But the wealth still uneven
Some are rich but many poor
Behind the office buildings
Live five families to a door.

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Freeway traffic
On 680

Monterey Park, the S.G.V.
Fremont, Irvine, and Convoy Street

Outside California
New land laws in many states
We must all work together
To stop anti-Asian hate

Old gold mountain, silicon valley
Blood sweat and tears
Milk and honey

金山矽谷,美國華裔
Gam1 saan1 xì gǔ mei5 gwok3 huá yi
血汗淚水
Xiě hàn lèi shuǐ
快樂甜蜜
Kuài lè tián mì

金山矽谷,春回大地
Gam1 saan1 xì gǔ Chūn huí dà dì
社會進步
shè huì jìnbù
要靠一起
yào kào yī qǐ


Gold Mountain Silicon Valley 金山矽谷 (instrumental)

A monthly conversation with BU Law Prof. Jonathan Feingold & WNHN host Arnie Arnesen about race and racism from a place of humility, commitment and curiosity.

Special thanks to WNHN and producers Stephanie Collins and Dave Scott.

I'm a multimedia journalist who has covered health, the environment and Asian American issues for 20 years.

Grammy-winning audiobook publisher. Authors include James Patterson, David Baldacci, and Michael Connelly. Earbuds encouraged. Follow us on Twitter at @HachetteAudio.

Greg Palast is an investigative reporter, whose stories appear on BBC Television, The Guardian, Al Jazeera and Rolling Stone. You can read/watch his reports at GregPalast.com. He is the author of the NY Times bestsellers The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, Billionaires &amp; Ballot Bandits, Armed Madhouse, and the highly acclaimed Vultures' Picnic. His full-length feature, The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, was released in 2016. His new film, Vigilantes: Georgia’s Vote Suppression Hitmen—from Academy Award winning producer Maria Florio and executive producer Martin Sheen—will be released Fall 2022.

Video Game Music composer specializing in retro/chiptune music and action/adventure music. You might have heard my work on "Relationships Don't Burn," "SCP Cross Containment," and "Double Dragon Gaiden."

SUPPORT • PROPEL • ACHIEVE • RUN • CLUB
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New tracks tagged #Asian American