Modern Minorities

Latest Episodes:

Phil Yu (isn’t always) the Angry Asian Man Oct 18, 2021

Show notes

“You have to choose to become Asian American. I went from just being a Korean kid in Silicon Valley to belonging to this community. I want that to mean something.”

Phil Yu is best known for AngryAsianMan.com - THE website about Asian American perspectives. But he’s really not as angry as people think? Phil’s a writer, speaker, and host. AngryAsianMan.com is one of the most widely read / longest-running sites covering news, culture, and perspectives from the Asian American community. Phil ALSO hosts the podcasts “They Call Us Bruce” and “All The Asians On Star Trek” (a new personal favorite). And in January 2022, Phil’s book “RISE: A Pop History of Asian American from the Nineties to Now” comes out. Phil’s been featured in The NY Times, NPR, the LA Time, CNN, WaPo, Gawker, and more. He’s won awards for his work AND worked in documentaries, film commentaries, and web series. Honestly, Phil’s been the guest we’ve wanted since we started our podcast, as he is one of the reasons why we do what we do. Phil was doing this before most of us, and continues to trailblaze for the rest of us. AND he’s a total nerd that wants to change the world, one angry word at a time...

LEARN ABOUT PHIL

AngryAsianMan.com
instagram.com/angryasianman
twitter.com/angryasianman
Podcast: theycallusbruce.libsyn.com
Podcast: alltheasiansonstartrek.com
Forbes: The Future Of Telling Asian American Stories: An Interview With Angry Asian Man

MENTIONS

FILM: Who Killed Vincent Chin? (1987): imdb.com/title/tt0096440
A&F Wong Bros racist t-shirt: news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/1938914.stm

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Holy (Bi)Robin! Tim Drake Comes Out Oct 14, 2021

Show notes

“Why change Robin? It was a no brainer. It happens to a lot of bisexual people, it seemed like natural character development.”

Lately all the news has been about Superman’s son Jonathan Kent coming out recently as bi-sexual in the comics - and the not so-nice reception it’s has gotten in the real world (WTF...Louis Lane?!?). But just weeks before that, ROBIN - one of the most recognizable (Queer?) icons ALSO came out as Bi-sexual. This matters. It represents as big a pop culture moment as when Miles Morales & Kamala Khan were introduced to the world. And while Robin (aka Tim Drake) is not the FIRST comic book hero to come out as Queer, he represents the most important hero to do so. Because Robin has been all of us all along. From kids envisioning themselves as him, to Queer’s taking ownership (#representation), to the “Seduction of the Innocent” (+those other 1950s fear-mongering hearings) — Robin has always had us envisioning, and questioning things. There has been celebration and pushback, and we wanted to talk about what it all means. So we brought together past guests Karl Preissner (Equity / Inclusion Ally & Advocate) and Steven Wakabayashi (Yellow Glitter Podcast host ), along with Ainsley Waller (Bisexual designer AND fellow comics geek) to unpack this moment and challenge our assumptions about the evolution of some of our most beloved characters...

LEARN ABOUT

Tim Drake’s big news: https://n.pr/3DCFzAh
Ainsley Waller: @AinsleyRWaller, twitch.tv/dratsum_x__x
Steven Wakabayashi: stevenwakabayashi.com
Karl Preissner: modmypod.com/episodes/11-karl-preissner-on-pampgs-insider-diversity-1

MENTIONS

COMIC: Batman Urban Legends #6: dccomics.com/comics/batman-urban-legends-2021/batman-urban-legends-6
NEWS: Robin Writer Chuck Dixon’s problematic take: https://bit.ly/2YKbIr7
BOOK: Seduction of the Innocent (1954): wikipedia.org/wiki/Seduction_of_the_Innocent
PERSON: Ziggy Stardust (David Bowie): wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rise_and_Fall_of_Ziggy_Stardust_and_the_Spiders_from_Mars
TV: Queer as Folk (1999): imdb.com/title/tt0262985/
FILM: Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994): imdb.com/title/tt0109045/
TV: Xena Warrior Princess: imdb.com/title/tt0112230/
BOOK: On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous (Ocean Vuong): goodreads.com/book/show/41880609-on-earth-we-re-briefly-gorgeous
COMIC: Flamer (Mike Curato): goodreads.com/book/show/52751434-flamer
COMIC: Displacement (Kiku Hughes): goodreads.com/book/show/46223303-displacement
FILM: Moonlight (2016): imdb.com/title/tt4975722/
CHARACTER: Elizabeth Bennet (Pride & Prejudice): wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Bennet
CHARACTER: Master Splinter (TMNT): wikipedia.org/wiki/Splinter_(Teenage_Mutant_Ninja_Turtles)
CHARACTER: Dumbledore (Harry Potter): wikipedia.org/wiki/Albus_Dumbledore

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Remi Adekoya’s (unpacking) Biracial Britain Oct 11, 2021

Show notes

“Mixed-race identity presents opportunities and challenges. There's some bad, but there's also some good. So I have to take both.”

Remi Adekoya is a Polish-Nigerian living in the UK, and the author of “Biracial Britain: A Different Way of Looking at Race” - and we had a great conversation on biracial identity — growing up, fitting in, standing out...and kids. Born the son of a Nigerian father and a Polish mother, Remi’s a lecturer of politics a the University of York, the former political editor of the Warsaw Business Journal, and he’s written for Foreign Affairs, Politico, and several well known Polish newspapers. Remi’s currently conducting PhD research on identity politics, having provided socio-political commentary and analysis for the BBC, Foreign Policy, Stratfor, and Radio France International, among others. But as a bi-racial man, researcher, author, journalist, and father - Remi engages in conversation with a unique lens to uncover common - and uncommon - truths. Basically, Remi’s the perfect podcast guest for us, and for anyone who wants to understand the inevitable makeup of the biracial world we are living in =)

LEARN ABOUT REMI

TW: @RemiAdekoya1
WORK: york.ac.uk/politics/people/academicstaff/adekoyaremi
BOOK: Biracial Britain: goodreads.com/book/show/50412190-biracial-britain

MENTIONS

TV: Game of Thrones (as a study on power dynamics): imdb.com/title/tt0944947/
PERSON: Barack Obama: wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama

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Geraldine Moriba gets the story (right) Oct 04, 2021

Show notes

“I was speaking up to respected people in the industry and telling them they were wrong. But we were getting the story right.”

Geraldine Moriba’s a 5-time Emmy Award-winning journalist, filmmaker, and advocate — the host and executive producer of “Sounds Like Hate,” a podcast by the Southern Poverty Law Center - documenting how American extremists become radicalized and how some of them change. Geraldine’s also SVP of of news and entertainment at The Grio - a black-owned media platform owned by businessman and philanthropist Byron Allen. A media and journalism veteran, Geraldine’s held senior roles at CNN, NBC, PBS, ABC, and CBC - including being vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion for CNN Worldwide. A Canadian-Jamaican living in New York, Geraldine’s never accepted setbacks on her journey - they were just challenges to overcome. From confronting racist administrators in college, to accepting a fax-machine invitation, Geraldine built a career that would always challenge for the right story to be told.

LEARN ABOUT GERALDINE

soundslikehate.org
instagram.com/geraldinemoriba1 / twitter.com/geraldinemoriba

MENTIONS

Southern Poverty Law Center: splcenter.org
TheGrio: thegrio.com
SHOW: I Will Destroy You (HBO): imdb.com/title/tt11204260/
PERSON: Marie-Joseph Angélique: wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie-Joseph_Ang%C3%A9lique

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3 MMen & 3 Babies (with Drew & Rajiv) Sep 27, 2021

Show notes

“It's an evolutionary advantage that babies are cute because. if any other person would wake you up that often in the night you'd be upset, but you can do it when it's your kid. I did not know that you could love someone this fully.”

The secret is out, Raman’s a new dad (again). But he’s not alone in his new Fatherhood. So are TWO of his oldest friends and collaborators, Andrew Tarvin (Humor Engineer) and frieMMd of the Pod Rajiv Satyal (THE Funny Indian) - who both happen to co-host ANOTHER podcast with Raman (“Learnings from Leaders”). When we caught up - Raman’s new son was 3 months old, Drew’s new daughter was 2 months old, and Rajiv’s new son was 2 WEEKS old. So we had a chat and an honest reflection to capture this unique moment: What we’re experiencing, what’s different (from what we expected), how we’re sleeping, how our kids are sleeping, how our partners are doing, what’s the new routine, and how we’re thinking about this strange new world that our kids are being born into. Lots of our listeners have had kids - but we’ve all forgotten those first few weeks - so this is a minority conversation you won’t want to miss...

LEARN ABOUT...

DrewTarvin.com: “the Skill of Humor” - youtu.be/MdZAMSyn_As
RajivSatyal.com: "I am Indian” - youtu.be/sPxsf_Ib7gs
Our OTHER Pod: “Learnings from Leaders” - pgalums.com/podcast

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Navin Gupta (always) takes the first step Sep 13, 2021

Show notes

“Entrepreneurship is messier than people believe. I'm comfortable that I don't know it all, but I can figure it out.”

Navin Gupta has an entrepreneurial spirit. Innately curious and motivated to solve problems, he’s founded 3 successful companies in health and wellness - all on the side while making a big (business) impact at big companies. You’ll hear our conversation about a youth spent lost in nature, studying science, and making cold calls. For Navin, entrepreneurship isn’t about knowing the answer, it’s about taking that first step, and every step after, to find AN answer, and not being afraid to change course for whatever the next journey may be...

LEARN ABOUT NAVIN:

MENTIONS

BOOK: The Difficulty of Being Good: (Gurcharan Das): goodreads.com/book/show/6971900-the-difficulty-of-being-good
TV SHOW: Snowpiercer - imdb.com/title/tt6156584
PERSON: Matthew Weiner - imdb.com/name/nm1980806

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Sara Baiyu Porritt (can) Hear Us Roar Sep 06, 2021

Show notes

“Listen to my voice, don’t look at me. It’s what got me in the door, but also what never sealed the deal.”

Sara Baiyu Porritt is a multi-hyphenate. She’s the Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer at Omnicom Media Group - but she’s also a recovering pop star - a former R&B songstress-turned-Yogi who may or may not be becoming a podcasting mogul. Born in the rural tropics of China (Xiamen), Sara came to America a little girl and fell in love with the soul of 90s R&B: Mariah, Whitney, Joel Scott, Floetry, and more - so much so that she started singing, answered a Craigslist ad, dropped outta high school (twice!), and formed an (Asian) girl group. Several hairdos (and don’ts) later, Sara was recording with some of the biggest names, releasing albums, starring on the CW, onstage with Wyclef, and VJ’ing on MTVu. But as the music and media landscape was changing - Sara also found herself on the inside helping make waves for brands and artists alike. Beyond her DEI day job, Sara now hosts the podcast “Hear Us Roar” - sharing stories of fearless Asian women traversing the road not taken, showing us all how ideas and passions can ignite transformative journeys. But she’s somehow still afraid of butterflies...

LEARN ABOUT SARA

Website

Social Media: Instagram / Twitter / LinkedIn

Podcast: “Hear Us Roar” Podcast: Apple / Spotify / Instagram / Twitter

IMDB

Adweek Article

MENTIONS

PERSON: Anthony Bourdain

BOOK: The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)

BOOK: The Four Agreements (Miguel Ruiz)

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Brian Yang doesn’t (want to) know martial arts Aug 30, 2021

Show notes

“Waiter, servant, martial artist. Why aren't more Asian-Americans in Hollywood fully-realized characters - just part of the fabric of America?”

Brian Yang is an actor and producer committed to telling stories that reflect the underrepresented. But Brian’s path to Hollywood wasn’t the usual one. A west coast kid, he found himself on the east coast working on startups with a young entrepreneur named Andrew Yang (no relation), whose presidential campaign he would later work on. In the mid 2000s, Brian helped launch an urban basketball league, and soon began to document the rise of a young basketball player named Jeremy Lin - producing the documentary LINSANITY, which premiered at Sundance. Brian’s also produced films like Late Life, Another Shot, I Can I Will I Did, and Snakehead (starring Sung Kang, premiering in October). Brian’s film-acting credits include Saving Face, The Jade Pendant, and the recent Disney+ short film The Little Prince(ss). His TV-acting credits include The Path, Westworld, Blacklist, Shanghai Rush, and Hawaii 5-0. And along the way Brian co-founded Giant Leap Media - a TV & Film development accelerator with a focus on Asian/Pacific American writers & stories. But most importantly? Brian may just be the world’s #1 (Asian) Hall & Oates fan, which Sharon knew about before Raman did...

LEARN ABOUT BRIAN

imdb.com/name/nm0990657
@briflys - Twitter / Instagram
giantleapaccelerator.com

MENTIONS

BAND: Hall & Oates - allmusic.com/artist/daryl-hall-john-oates-mn0000674887
BOOK: Interior Chinatown: goodreads.com/book/show/44436221-interior-chinatown
PERSON: Lizette A. (from highschool)

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100 (or so) episodes later... Aug 23, 2021

Show notes

has it (really) been 100 episodes?

We sit down to reflect on what (TF) we have been doing this whole time. what did we like (or hate)? Did we learn anything? What's next...stickers? FrieMMd-of-the-Pod Brandon Dawson (host of the most-excellent Distiller Podcast) turns the mic on US to get in our heads. I mean, someone's gotta tell Raman to stop asking so many questions...

LEARN ABOUT SHARON & RAMAN

Seriously? Don't you already know enough about us? Why not instead...
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LEAVE US A REVIEW - apple.co/2Le6lpM
Email us a screenshot of ^^any of those (himom@modmypod.com) along with an address, and you may get a surprise in the mail =)

MENTIONS

BRANDON: brandondawson.net
HIS POD: http://thedistillerpodcast.com
TV (Raman): Never Have I Ever (Netflix) - imdb.com/title/tt10062292
TV (Sharon): The Bold Type (Hulu) - imdb.com/title/tt6116060

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Gina Brillon’s (Mess) in Progress Aug 16, 2021

Show notes

“As people of color in entertainment, the game is just kinda different.

Whether you're an architect or a comedian, it doesn't matter.”

Gina Brillon is a Puerto Rican actress, comedian, writer, and mom from the Bronx - who’s been performing standup comedy since she was 17 years old. Her comedy special “The Floor is Lava” is available on Amazon Prime Video, and co-hosts a weekly podcast “Mess in Progress: The Homegirls Guide to Self-Help” (as it’s clear no one has any idea what they're doing in life). Gina’s been featured on HBO Max, Comedy Central, E!, the View, Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel, the Montreal Just For Laughs Festival, ‘Kevin Can Wait’ (CBS), and ‘the Conners’ (ABC). And in 2012, she became the first (and only) Latina winner of NBC’s Stand up for Diversity Showcase. Gina’s ALSO a singer, published writer, and poet - whose work has appeared in the New York Post and Daily News, among others. But we also talked (and laughed) about being parents and what we can’t get away with because of the color of our skin...

LEARN ABOUT GINA

Website

Podcast: ‘Mess in Progress’

Social Media: Instagram / Twitter / TikTok

MENTIONS

AUTHOR: Nicholson Baker

AUTHOR: Mark Manson

PERSON: Keanu Reeves

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