David Ngo

Jackie Bong Wright entered a beauty contest and won. She was 64 years old at the time. Her story is more than just about a beauty pageant for seniors--it's about a woman who was displaced by war and started up a new life in a new land. At its heart, her story represents the Vietnamese community and the realization of the American dream.

David Ngo grabbed a video camera and documented her story. The documentary, "The Queen from Virginia: The Jackie Bong Wright Story" screened at a few film festivals including the VC Film Festival where it won the Best Documentary Feature in 2006. The doc is now available on DVD at www.doubleohthree.com.

David talks about "The Queen from Virginia"


David talks about the Second Wave of Vietnamese American filmmakers

Allan Axibal

I first met Allan as a reporter for a website at UCLA called Asia Pacific Arts. This was before he co-wrote a theatrical show, performed in front of packed houses, and has been non-stop touring for the past four years. I can say I knew him when.

His show has a controversial name -- "N*gger Wetb*ck Ch*nk". These words might never go away, but we can try and take the hate out of them by challenging the way people think about racial stereotypes. Listen to what Allan has to say about it:





N*W*C Promo

The Slants

I was checking out some of the booths at the Pacific Media Expo a week ago and saw some guys sitting at a table pimping their CDs. Their band is called The Slants -- a name that raised my eyebrows above my slanted eyes. They drove all the way down from Portland to perform in LA. So I was like, "Hey, how long are you going to be in town? I want to interview you guys." And they were cool with it. I drove home and got my video camera and a microphone and set up in one of the hotel bedrooms. Check out the interview:



The Slants are a fairly new group. Their latest CD is called "Slanted Eyes, Slanted Hearts". Look for a tour next spring. For more info, check out www.theslants.com.

Eddie Kim

First off, you'll notice something new on this video. Yes, we have a new background! Ok, seriously, Renee has moved on to bigger and brighter challenges and so that leaves me to handle the task of interviewing our guests. You can tell I'm thinking and talking at the same time and I don't look comfortable up there, but give me a few interviews to get used to sitting in the chair, I promise I'll get better!

I started the Eddie Kim interview by asking him about NewSpeak TV, only to find out that it's part of something bigger called Projekt NewSpeak. You can see Eddie's videos on his YouTube page. Better yet, catch him live in "The Sketch Comedy Show" on Dec. 1 at the El Portal Theater in North Hollywood.

Part 1: NewSpeak TV and Projekt NewSpeak


Part 2: Eddie explains why he got into acting

miwaLyric

miwaLyric got her moniker when she was a little girl because she used to always write lyrics in class. Now she's all grown up, but she still continues to write as well as perform as both a solo act and with a new band, bleumseed. miwaLyric uses her music to raise awareness to issues close to her heart, like promoting peace and protecting the environment. Find out more about this artist in her interview...

Angry Asian Man

Who is the Angry Asian Man and why is he so angry? We were able to pull Phil Yu away from his blog to sit down and rap with Renee for this exclusive interview. Phil, as it turns out, is a pretty normal and likeable guy. He shares with us the story of the Angry Asian Man website and how it's morphed to become a voice for the community and a supporter of APA media. Check it out at www.angryasianman.com.

Why so angry?


On supporting APA media.

Kristina Wong

Kristina Wong left us speechless, literally! But what else would you expect from someone with the creative passion to put on her own one-woman show? Kristina's latest project is called "Wong Flew Off the Cuckoo's Nest" -- a show that deals with the high suicide rate among Asian American women. But even though she tackles such a heavy topic, Kristina is really an artist full of life and energy. The Wongster also travels around the country participating in women's writing workshops and is a contributor to "Playgirl" magazine. You can find out more about her at www.kristinawong.com.

Kristina talks about her solo performance piece.


In part 2, Kristina tells us about her other projects.

Jeannie Mai

I first saw Jeannie Mai on "Stir TV" a Bay Area-based Asian American magazine style tv show. Unfortunately "Stir TV" didn't last, but for Jeannie it was just another stepping stone in her career as a television host. You can now see her giving makeovers on the USA Network. Jeannie is also a celebrity makeup artist and started a styling company called The Doll Service.

Jeannie tells us about "Character Fantasy"



Where are all the fashionable Asians at?

Ryan Suda

Ryan is the man behind Blacklava, a t-shirt company that challenges negative views of Asian Americans with slogans such as "I will not love you long time" and "I suck at math." He also supports APA artists on his website by promoting their music and artwork, so make sure to check out www.blacklava.net often!

"Asian is not Oriental"


Ryan talks about Tuesday Night Cafe


Renee asks if Ryan is an activist.

Natalise

In today's digital age, you can write and record your own music, make music videos and market yourself on the Web. That's just what our next guest Natalise did. Originally from the Bay Area, Natalise is pursuing her dreams as a singer/songwriter here in LA. She took some time away from finishing her third album to sit down with Renee in our "studio."



"Get Me Off" - Natalise


To check out more of Natalise's music, visit her MySpace page.

Randall Park

Randall Park is an actor and stand-up comic. You may have seen him on MTV's "Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'N Out" or spotted him on a TV commercial. Randall isn't just a creative person, he's a creator -- he's one of the founding members of LCC, an Asian American theater group at UCLA and has produced a series of comedy shorts called "Dr. Miracles."

Part 1: Randall talks about putting on shows in his mom's backyard.



Part 2: Renee asks Randall where he gets his jokes from.



For Randall's stand up schedule or to watch "Dr. Miracles," check out his MySpace page. You can also see him performing live with the Old Dirty Conservatory Comedy Hour at the Westside Eclectic in Santa Monica, CA.

Carl Choi

Yeah! Our very first interview! We sat down with Carl Choi at his office in Los Angeles. Carl started out as a party promoter then turned that into an entertainment marketing business for the Asian American community. Among his many hats, he is the CEO of Plan C Group and manager for the hip hop group Far East Movement.

Part 1: Carl shares how he found his calling.



Part 2: Carl talks about how he got into the music biz and working with Far East Movement.

Are you fresh?

When it comes to Asian Americans in the media, one of the things I commonly hear is that we need more representation. I'm gonna go against conventional wisdom and say that APAs are everywhere. I see Cambodian rappers, reality tv stars, radio personalities, a magazine for Asian women, a time-shifting "hero," feature film directors, professional athletes, stand up comics and even a conservative political pundit. I see APAs everywhere.

Fresh Off the Box

Here at Fresh Off the Box, we talk with Asian Americans in the arts, entertainment, community service and other walks of life. We want to bring these people to you and let you hear where they find inspiration, how they overcame obstacles and what dreams they are working to achieve.

Our mission is to support Asian Americans in the media by promoting their creative work. We also want to shine a light on the people who work to build up the community or found success in their chosen path. Along the way, I hope we will discover what it means to be Asian in America today.

We are in the process of shooting our video interviews and the first one will be posted shortly. So please bookmark Fresh Off the Box and don't forget to support Asian Americans in the media!