The Vietnamese with Kenneth Nguyen

In this episode, Ken sits down with News & Documentary Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and researcher Doan Huang Curtis. Doan reflects on her recent Emmy win for her work on Netflix’s docuseries Turning Point: The Vietnam War. She breaks down the historical research process—from analyzing secret presidential tape recordings to reviewing government propaganda reels from both North and South Vietna...

In this episode, Ken sits down with Duc Anh Vo (Chú Đa / DA), co-founder of the legendary Hanoi Rock City (HRC). DA reflects on his unique journey from studying financial mathematics in the UK to returning home in 2010 and founding a grassroots venue that transformed Vietnam’s independent music scene. He breaks down the stark cultural contrast between Hanoi’s introspective, music-first audience an...

In this episode, Ken sits down with Phuc Tran—author of the acclaimed memoir Sigh, Gone—for a deeply reflective conversation about returning to Vietnam for the first time since fleeing as a two-year-old refugee in 1975. Fifty years after escaping Saigon, Phuc shares the complex emotional landscape of taking his American-born children back to his birthplace. Together, Kenneth and Phuc explore the p...

In this episode, Ken sits down with Carlos Manzo - Westminster City Council Member (District 2) and candidate for Mayor of Westminster. Recorded live at Little Saigon Official inside the historic Phước Lộc Thọ (Asian Garden Mall), this episode offers a candid, insider-outsider perspective on local governance in the heart of Little Saigon. Carlos shares his background growing up in Orange County in...

In this episode of The Vietnamese Podcast, host Kenneth Nguyen sits down with Ola (Ola Polala)—a former AR/VR tech director, multi-hyphenate content creator, and master systemizer. Ola shares her transition from the high-stress corporate world of immersive technology to becoming a prominent content creator in both English and Vietnamese. She opens up about the weight of immigrant family expectatio...

In this episode, Ken sits down with classical soprano and musical theater performer Evelyn Mê-Linh. Evelyn shares her journey from a painfully shy child in Orange County to landing a role in the iconic national production of The Phantom of the Opera. Evelyn discusses growing up surrounded by her parents' Vietnamese singing parties and scouting camps, how her mother became her "momager"...

In this episode, Ken sits down with multidisciplinary conceptual artist Minh H Phan for an expansive, deeply soulful exploration of world-building, performance intervention, and generational memory. Moving beyond rigid social hierarchies and labels, Minh shares how she uses sculpture, material storytelling, performance, and ritual to illuminate the marginal, unseen stories of the Vietnamese diaspo...

In this episode, Ken catches up with 30-year longtime friend Kiphong Paul Tran, a decorated writer, educator, 2024 Teacher of the Year winner, and deeply rooted Vietnamese American culturalist. Kenneth and Paul trace a three-decade arc from their days in youth camps and UCLA's legendary LCC theater group (the birthplace of Asian American stars like Randall Park and Ali Wong) to the frontlines...

In this episode, Ken sits down with Helen Nha Van, a brilliant PhD researcher examining the political economy, class dynamics, and cultural friction underlying Vietnam's explosive modern fine-dining scene. Nhã pulls back the curtain on the quiet post-1986 Đổi Mới return migration waves, tracking how second-generation Việt Kiều (diaspora) chefs from the West are choosing to return to Vietnam to...

In this episode, Ken sits down for a conversation with a beloved recurring guest: Daniel, the visionary behind Son Cai Distillery. Known globally for putting premium Vietnamese gin on the map, Daniel returns to break down his latest, highly anticipated passion project—the launch of a truly authentic Vietnamese single-grain whiskey made entirely from purple sticky rice. But this isn't just a co...

In this episode, Ken sits down for a conversation with Danny Quach, a 1.5-generation Việt Kiều transplant whose sudden deportation to Vietnam became a massive viral sensation on Instagram. Danny opens up about his family’s structural survival blueprint, fleeing Rạch Giá as an eight-month-old refugee in 1975 on a drifting boat with AK-47 rounds piercing the hull. He takes us inside the violent land...

In this episode, Ken welcomes back a regular favorite and structural pioneer of the Asian-American audio space: Randy Kim, host of the acclaimed Banh Mi Chronicles. In an intensely raw, beautifully unscripted conversation, Randy pulls back the curtain on the crushing psychological trials that forced him to sunset his beloved show in late 2023. He shares the devastating pipeline of multi-generation...

In this episode, Ken sits down for a conversation with Dao, the visionary founder of Third Culture Vietnam. Dao opens up about a massive psychological crossroads: despite achieving every standard marker of the Western dream—building a lucrative career and buying a home in California—he was completely hollow inside. In a desperate bid for a hard reset, Dao left everything behind to move to Saigon i...

In this episode, Ken sits down with Kim Tran, the brilliant bilingual founder of Coral Books (Vietnam) and Major Books (UK). Operating from London, Kim is executing a highly strategic literary mission: while Coral Books translates deep world literature into Vietnamese, Major Books does the opposite—introducing the fierce, complex, and unpolished soul of Vietnamese literature to the English-speakin...

In this episode of The Vietnamese Podcast, host Ken sits down for a conversation with Julian Doan, a high-impact life strategist, influencer, and top-tier business coach whose rapid-fire personal development clips have captured the attention of mainstream creators across Instagram. Julian shares his remarkable story of navigating a high-friction childhood in Riverside, California, where he faced i...

In this episode, Ken sits down with Jason, the creative storyteller and visionary architect behind the rising brand Nguyen Dynasty. Jason pulls back the curtain on the grueling reality of juggling a nine-to-five corporate life while editing modern video content. He shares the staggering narrative behind his recent viral video documenting the Bao Han and Tee wedding event (Saigon Bon Bon), which bl...

In this episode, Ken bridges a massive geopolitical divide to interview Thuy Duong, a 1.5-generation media creator running the highly successful Vietcast out of Prague. For many in the West, discovering the robust, 100,000-strong Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic feels like meeting a long-lost cousin. Thuy breaks down the completely divergent migration patterns of the 1980s: while Vietnam...

In this episode, Ken sits down for an interview with Brian Le, the elite martial artist, actor, and fight choreographer whose work you've seen in Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and the Oscar-winning Everything Everywhere All At Once. Brian pulls back the curtain on his latest tour de force, The Furious (releasing wide in theaters June 12, 2026). He drops a masterclass on th...

In this episode, Ken sits down with artist, filmmaker, and Georgetown University Professor Van Tran Nguyen to talk about her highly anticipated film, The Mother Lode. Van breaks down the profound sense memories that anchor the diaspora—from sitting encapsulated under a poncho on a rainy Saigon scooter during Tết, to watching parents release generational trauma by "wailing" banned, deeply e...

In this episode, Ken attempts his first-ever full episode in Vietnamese with Cam, one of the most respected and introspective voices in the Vietnamese underground rap scene. Cam opens up about his major life transition: leaving his established fanbase in Saigon to relocate to Orange County, California. He discusses his intense struggle with homesickness, moving from a "silent war" of feeli...

In this episode, Ken brings back Columbia University Professor John Phan for a deep-dive AMA responding to your comments on the history of Quốc Ngữ. John blows past standard historical narratives to explore what "literacy" actually meant in the 15th-century Lê Dynasty, revealing that ancient exam data points to an elite, highly widespread network of scholars functioning long before industr...

In this episode, Ken travels to the Arrowhead Country Club to sit down with Helen Tran, the historic Mayor of San Bernardino. In 2022, Helen smashed barriers to become the first Asian American mayor in her city's history, and the first Vietnamese American woman elected mayor of any American city.   Helen shares her jaw-dropping family legacy: her father surviving a blindfolded firing squad in...

In this episode, Ken sits down with the multi-talented Thalia Tran. Since her last appearance, Thalia has transitioned from a teen musician to a "full-blown adult" navigating the high-stakes world of Hollywood. Thalia opens up about her rigorous Muay Thai training, describing combat sports as a rhythmic "dance" that has unlocked a raw, empowered version of herself. We dive deep int...

In this episode, Ken takes a rare detour into the world of politics with Nina Linh, a Vietnamese-American candidate running as an Independent for California’s 40th Congressional District (CA-40). In a world defined by hyper-polarization and "Pavlovian" party loyalty, Nina argues that the true path to progress lies in the "Radical Middle." We discuss her decision to leave the Democr...

This conversation with Trung Bao is a journey from the gritty, rhythmic streets of the global beatbox scene to the high-tech, crystalline world of generative art. Trung represents the "new wave" of Vietnamese creators who see technology not as a replacement for humanity, but as a lens to magnify it.  Trung explains that his beatboxing isn't just about mimicry; it is physically shaped b...