ASIAN AMERICA: THE KEN FONG PODCAST

What happens when you mix world-class performance art, comedic genius, academic rigor, and fierce community organizing? You get a beautiful, hilarious ruckus—and a brand-new playbook for social change. In this episode, host Ken Fong sits down with Pulitzer Prize finalist Kristina Wong and equity-driven professor Dr. Theodore "Teddy" Chao . Together with two co-authors, they have just released the...

In this episode, host Ken Fong sits down with Dr. Jonar de Guzman, a board-certified Internal Medicine and Lifestyle Medicine physician and founder of 4 Truth Health. Dr. de Guzman shares his journey from witnessing the devastating, end-stage complications of chronic disease as a Southern California hospitalist to shifting his focus toward prevention and reversal. We dive deep into why type 2 diab...

In this latest installment of their collaborative podcast series, Ken Fong and Ken Kemp discuss what's going on with the growing rise of anxiety among white American identitarian groups who believe that their identity and culture are in danger of being erased by Americans and immigrants of color.

In this episode, host Ken Fong sits down with Gloria Kim to discuss a deeply unsettling and pressing issue facing the Asian American community: the targeted, syndicated burglaries of homes belonging to older, working Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) immigrants . Gloria sheds light on how these sophisticated crime rings track their victims, the profound psychological and...

This week on Asian America: The Ken Fong Podcast , host Ken Fong welcomes legendary media mogul, entrepreneur, and humanitarian Yue-Sai Kan . Dubbed by People magazine as "the most famous woman in China" and Time as "the Queen of the Middle Kingdom," Yue-Sai has spent over four decades serving as a definitive cultural bridge between the East and the West. In this episode, Yue-Sai opens up about he...

In this episode of Asian America: The Ken Fong Podcast , host Ken Fong sits down with multi-talented storyteller, speaker, and former journalist Sneha Villalva to celebrate the release of her debut book, Cut to the Essence: Subtract Overload, Add Clarity, Live Renewed . Modern life systematically bombards us with excess—from overloaded schedules and information fatigue to emotional baggage—ultimat...

In this episode, we sit down with writer and director Jing Ai Ng to discuss her feature directorial debut, Forge . Fresh off its world premiere at SXSW , this stylish crime dramedy dives into the neon-lit underworld of Miami's art scene, exploring the thin line between authenticity and ambition.

On May 22-24, solo artist Alex Xander Luu will be performing his critically-acclaimed autobiographical solo performance Three Lives @SierraMadrePlayhouse in Southern California. Written, directed, and performed by Luu,  Three Lives is a raw, funny, and deeply moving one-man show that blends spoken word, physicality, and sharp observation to explore the immigrant experience. First performed in 1989...

A new play based on the true story of Qian Xuesen, the brilliant aerospace engineer from China who helped launch America's space age—until Cold War paranoia forever changed the course of his life...and ours. Qian Xuesen, a promising young engineer from China, travels to America in 1935 on a Boxer Indemnity Scholarship. Advancing quickly through the ranks at MIT and Caltech, he becomes a pioneer of...

Americans have had to remove the late Cesar Chavez from the pedestals we've put him on amidst a recent torrent of credible allegations aimed at him of sexual abuse, rape and pedophilia. This has resulted in a newfound interest in Larry Itliong, a Filipino American labor organizer who's often called the "Father of the West Coast Labor Movement." Until now, he's been unfairly overshadowed by the ico...

In this episode, we sit down with Nicole Dowd, the Head of Public Programs at the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art to discuss the upcoming 2026 IlluminAsia Arts and Culture Festival . Celebrating AANHPI Heritage Month and the U.S. 250th anniversary, this year's festival spotlights the power of Asian American storytelling through literature, film, and community connection. #IlluminAsiaFesti...

Fiona Ma is currently terming out as California's Treasurer, but after more than two decades of public service, she's now running to be the state's Lieutenant Governor. While most of the media's attention has been focused on the still unpredictable gubernatorial race, there are sixteen in the race for California's No. 2 seat of power, and Fiona has the clearest institutional resume, giving her an...

In this episode, we sit down with  Rev. Rae Huang , a candidate for Mayor of Los Angeles who is looking to bridge the gap between grassroots activism and City Hall. As a Presbyterian minister and a seasoned organizer with Housing Now! CA , Rae brings a unique perspective to the race—one rooted in "the theology of the neighborhood." We dive deep into her personal journey as a daughter of Taiwanese...

Sacramento County's District Attorney Thien Ho's book,  The People vs. the Golden State Killer , is highly recommended for readers interested in true crime, legal history, and stories of human resilience. As the lead prosecutor in the case, Ho provides an "insider" account that differs significantly from previous narratives about Joseph DeAngelo. This is the first official record of the investigat...

David Henry Hwang is a Tony Award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and the most-produced living opera librettist in America . A three-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and member of the Theater Hall of Fame, Hwang is best known for his masterpiece M. Butterfly and the critically acclaimed Yellow Face . In 2026, Hwang returns to Rodgers & Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song for a landmark production at East...

We're going behind the curtain at East West Players for a two-episode event! Today, in Part 1, we're sitting down with Lily Tung Crystal . Not only is she the Artistic Director guiding EWP into its 60th anniversary season, she is also personally directing their massive upcoming revival of Flower Drum Song . We're diving into her creative process and why this story matters in 2026—all to get you re...

In this latest in the collaborative The Two Kens podcast series, Fong and Kemp focus on the now month-old war with Iran, wondering whether President Trump has a deterioriating form of dementia, and how that might have played a part in his leading us into this unwarrented war in the Middle East. 

In Carol Lin's memoir,  When News Breaks: A Memoir of Love and War , the jade bracelet on the cover is a powerful symbol of her cultural identity, her relationship with her mother, and the "breaking" of her own life. While the book primarily chronicles her career as a CNN anchor (including being the first to break the news of 9/11), the bracelet represents the personal narrative beneath the headli...

World-renowned social entrepreneur Jane Marie Chen is also an author, speaker, and leadership coach. Her best-selling memoir Like a Wave We Break is a frank and moving account of growing up as a success-driven child of immigrant parents , but how that eventually broke her in every possible way. #domesticviolence #aanhpi #socialentrepreneur #cleansing #healing www.janemariechen.com

Ted Taekeun Kim is a Korean American filmmaker and a director/producer . He is currently a graduate student at the USC School of Cinematic Arts in the Peter Stark Producing Program . He is a rising filmmaker who explores narratives that resonate with the Asian American experience . His short films have screened at the Cannes Film Festival and Vancouver International Film Festival, and have won awa...

Julie Thomas Achettu, already a well-respected Asian American literature educator in Chicago, recently co-founded "House of Jaya," a women's apparel line that blends traditional South Asian fabrics with the fashion sense of today's South Asian American women.  www.houseofjaya.com

My guest today describes herself as a 'city girl at heart' who traded her corporate business suits for Steve Madden platforms and a life of authentic passion. Lori 'Sas' Sase is a graduate of Coach U and the voice behind The Imaginal Podcast . From her Japanese-American heritage to her love of live music and her deep reverence for the loyalty of dogs, Sas brings a refreshing, honest, and messy hum...

Dr. Stan  Lai is the author of the influential book CreativitRy: Asia's Iconic Playwright Reveals the Art of Creativity (originally published in Chinese in 2006 as Stan Lai on Creativity ). His work is significant because it shifts the conversation from creativity as a "mysterious gift" to a trainable skill . Dr. Lai argues that creativity consists of two parts: Method (the craft or technique of o...

He's a violinist, he's a cellist, and together, they are ARKAI —the Grammy-winning duo pushing the absolute limits of their instruments. Fusing classical roots with live electronic processing and pop-star energy, Jonathan Miron and Philip Sheegog create soundscapes that feel more like an IMAX experience than a recital. They're the masterminds behind the hit album Brightside , and they're my guests...

Podcasters Fong and Kemp are back to tackle the Melania film, the Super Bowl halftime show alternative, the Epstein files, and the evil of ICE in Minneapolis. And more!