Immigrantly

I'm particularly excited to have Shin Yu Pai with me today. I've been a fan of her poetry for a while now, and it's truly an honor to have her on the show. Shin Yu recently started producing and hosting her own podcast, and we chatted about how she got started and what inspired her to take on this new endeavor.  What I loved most about our conversation was getting to know the person behind the poe...

I'm particularly excited to have Shin Yu Pai with me today. I've been a fan of her poetry for a while now, and it's truly an honor to have her on the show. Shin Yu recently started producing and hosting her own podcast, and we chatted about how she got started and what inspired her to take on this new endeavor.  What I loved most about our conversation was getting to know the person behind the poe...

I'm thrilled to have Asad Butt, my friend, and co-host of our other podcast Invisible Hate, on the show today. Asad has been in the business, entrepreneurial, and media world for a while now, and like me, his personal and career goals have been primarily shaped by a post-9/11 America.  Asad started Rifelion in 2020 to promote diverse voices in podcasting, and we talked about his award-winning docu...

I'm thrilled to have Asad Butt, my friend, and co-host of our other podcast Invisible Hate, on the show today. Asad has been in the business, entrepreneurial, and media world for a while now, and like me, his personal and career goals have been primarily shaped by a post-9/11 America.  Asad started Rifelion in 2020 to promote diverse voices in podcasting, and we talked about his award-winning docu...

My guest today is Meklit Hadero, the Ethiopian-born, San Francisco-based artist. She is best known for her innovative Ethio-Jazz vocals and electric performance style. Even if you were to listen for a few minutes, you’d notice a genre-bending nature to her songs. Her songs weave together jazz, folk, Eastern African influences, and what Meklit calls everyday sounds.  She has performed worldwide, fr...

My guest today is Meklit Hadero, the Ethiopian-born, San Francisco-based artist. She is best known for her innovative Ethio-Jazz vocals and electric performance style. Even if you were to listen for a few minutes, you’d notice a genre-bending nature to her songs. Her songs weave together jazz, folk, Eastern African influences, and what Meklit calls everyday sounds.  She has performed worldwide, fr...

In this episode, I sit down with Kareem Rahma, the creator of the popular series "Keep the Meter Running" on TikTok and YouTube. In each episode, Kareem catches a taxi in New York City and tells the driver to take him to their favorite place while keeping the meter running. From visiting new restaurants to flying in a helicopter, Kareem's conversations with his cab drivers are entertaining and ins...

In this episode, I sit down with Kareem Rahma, the creator of the popular series "Keep the Meter Running" on TikTok and YouTube. In each episode, Kareem catches a taxi in New York City and tells the driver to take him to their favorite place while keeping the meter running. From visiting new restaurants to flying in a helicopter, Kareem's conversations with his cab drivers are entertaining and ins...

As Ramadan, the month of fasting, is underway, I find myself drawn to the deeper meaning of fasting and how it can fuel my spiritual connection. This led me to revisit one of my favorite podcast episodes from the Immigrantly vault, which explores the intersection of Islam and mental health. The episode, released in June 2021, features my thoughtful conversation with one of our previous writers, Sa...

Welcome to Immigrantly, the podcast that shares immigrant stories and experiences through a nuanced lens. In this episode, I am joined by Lionel Nicolau and Ilana Weitz, co-producers of the hilarious and insightful podcast Culture Jumpers. Together, we'll explore their personal experiences with cross-cultural relationships and how they navigate the challenges and joys of blending their diverse bac...

Get ready to be inspired and informed in this podcast episode as I sit down with Saket Soni, a labor organizer and human rights activist making a significant impact in the fight for workers' rights. Originally from Delhi, India, Saket is the author of a new book called “The Great Escape: A True Story of Forced Labor and Immigrant Dreams in America,” a gripping true story that shines a light on the...

I am thrilled to present an exciting bonus episode to you. Recently, I had the pleasure of attending a live podcast event on February 19th, celebrating South Asian culture at the NHL New Jersey Devils game in New Jersey. It was a fantastic experience, and I had the opportunity to interview the incredibly talented Sway Bhatia. For those who may not be familiar with Sway, she is a young actress who...

 Here at Immigrantly, I believe in creating a safe space for authentic storytelling. Most stories are built on our platform but sometimes from other sources. And today, we are doing just that. We will share an episode called Coming Home from a podcast we love from the UCLA Labor Center called Re: Work. A group of undocumented youth cross the border from the US into Mexico to cross back and turn th...

My today's guests are a fantastic duo. Lilliana Vazquez is a Puerto Rican and Mexican TV personality, style expert, and interviewer. You may recognize her as a former contributor on the Today show, the former host of E! news, or as a correspondent for Access Daily and Access Hollywood. She is outspoken about the stakes of being a Latina in a field where she is often in the minority.  Her co-host i...

Today, In honor of Black History month and to pay homage to the African contribution to American food, I am re-releasing another gem from the immigrantly vault. It’s my interview with Stephen Satterfield. This conversation profoundly impacted how I view African cuisine in America. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did when it happened and even now as I revisit it with all of you.    Stephen Satterf...

My guest is Micha Cooper Edwards. She is the founder and CEO of Soleil Space and Soleil Entertainment. At her core, Micha is a visionary media entrepreneur—her expertise span over 15 years in media and across many markets. Micha has led international campaigns for iconic brands like NIKE, Jordan, and PepsiCo, as well as social impact efforts and corporate partnerships for Netflix and HBO documenta...

Between “ghosting,” “Icks,” and the question of whether or not to swipe right, the dating world isn’t the same as it used to be. Forty-eight percent of adults aged 18 to 29 have used a dating app before, hoping to find that special thing called love — or maybe just something casual. But how do we feel about swiping left on someone so quickly? And have dating apps actually made it harder to find me...

Immigrantly family, today I’ll be chatting with Mari Uchida. She is a photographer, director, a fiercely creative artist whose work has been seen in the New York Times, Time Out New York, The Lincoln Center of Performing Arts, Broadway World, and other platforms. Her subjects are photographed against varied backdrops, from city streets to the performing stage.  She uses photography to highlight pe...

Today's guest, Dr. Mimi Khuc, is a writer, teacher, and scholar of things unwell, a pedagogy that examines humans' relationship to the world and themselves as one with differential unwellness because of the structures around them. Mimi is a Professor of Asian American studies and disability studies. Presently, she lectures at Georgetown University and is the 2023 Activist in Residence at FLOURISH...

Today's guest is Mangesh Hattikudur. He is a podcaster and co-founder of Kaleidoscope, a podcast production company. He’s also the co-host of the podcast Part-Time Genius, the former senior vice president of iHeartRadio, and the co-founder of the magazine Mental Floss. But it is his more recent podcast that we’ll be talking about today. Toward the end of 2022, Mangesh released Skyline Drive, a pod...

Carmen Rita Wong is a journalist, entrepreneur, and personal finance expert. Once the host of a TV program called On The Money, Carmen has worked with CNN, CBS, and NBC, and she was a financial advice columnist for four different magazines, including Glamour and Good Housekeeping. She is also the author of five books, including the most recent memoir, "Why Didn't You Tell Me"? Carmen's mother was...

Today I’m joined by Amy S Choi and Rebecca Lehrer, co-founders and co-hosts of The Mash-Up American podcast, which features stories and interviews on the things that make us who we are: culture, relationships, and identity. I feel a kindred spirit for these two since Immigrantly bears many similarities. Starting in 2013, The Mash-Up American has been telling stories, from zany ones on ginger being...

Welcome listeners. As some of you may know, our team is taking a much-needed break to rest and recuperate so that we can come back on January 10th, reinvigorated to share some awesome Immigrantly content with all of you. In the meantime, I am sharing a special episode from “Before me”. It is a five-part documentary produced by Self-Evident about journalist Lisa Phu chronicling her mother’s journey...

There is nothing Immigrantly loves more than switching up the narrative--and that's why today, we're sharing some controversial opinions, or "hot-takes," about the holiday season. Before we begin 2023, I wanted to get together with Yudi and Michaela from the Immigrantly team to talk about everything from pumpkin spice flavors to Love Actually. And the best part is, we have some hot takes from you...

What does following your passion look like? How many aspiring actresses, dancers, writers, podcasters and artists have been told that their powers won’t make them any money? How many of them stop chasing their creative dreams altogether? Well, my next guest did the very thing that many people would be terrified of doing. Today, I'm interviewing Maya Fuji, a Japanese American artist who dropped out...