The Bánh Mì Chronicles

(S2, Ep 11)  For this week's episode of the podcast, Cambodian-American author Sambath Meas joins in as my guest.  She's 1.5 generation Cambodian-American who grew up in the Chicago Uptown neighborhood.  She is the author of two books, "The Governor's Daughter" and "The Immortal Seeds".  We chatted about her upbringing in Uptown and delved deep into her complicated relationship...

(S2, EP 10)  In continuing the 2nd season “1975" theme, I interviewed Kevin Yang, a 2nd generation Hmong American from the Twin Cities in Minnesota.  Kevin is a multi-discipline artist which includes being a spoken word artist and filmmaker. In this interview, Kevin shares his family’s migration journey from Laos to Minnesota.  He talks about his upbringing in Minnesota, and his rel...

(S2, Ep 9) In this week's episode, Cambodian Artist and Musician, Punisa Pov joins me as my guest for the podcast. Punisa was born and raised in Cambodia.  She has been living in the US, first as a college student in Iowa, and currently working as a resident musician and artist for the National Cambodian Heritage Museum the past few years.  Punisa has been singing and playing music nearl...

(S2 Ep 8) In continuing the theme, “1975” for this 2nd season,  Khemarey Khoeun joins me as my guest for this week's episode. Khemarey is a 1.5 generation Cambodian American from the Chicagoland area.  Back in 2017, she became the first Cambodian American woman elected into public office for the Skokie Park District.  Khem also serves as the board president for the National Cambodia...

(S2, EP 7) For this week's episode for the podcast's Season 2 theme, "1975", Tony Ho Tran, 2nd generation mixed Viet American writer / storyteller and genealogist, spoke about his journey to learn who his grandfather was through a DNA test he took through 23nme. Along the journey, he learned more about his mother and grandmother's difficult past during the time of the Vietnam War and their resettl...

(S2, EP 6) Simone Cottrell, an independent multi disciplinarian theatre maker, shares her experience growing up as a mixed Khmer American in Bayou La Batre, Alabama and Mississippi before moving to Fayetteville, Arkansas.  She reflects deeply on how art & theater can be important agencies that empower marginalized communities, specifically in rural communities, and how this has been put i...

(S2, EP 5) It has been an emotionally difficult ordeal for all of us as we are grappling with the severity of the coronavirus pandemic.  It has been a challenge to continue the 2nd season of the podcast, but I also realize how important it is to spend time shifting part of my focus away from the ongoing bad news that's happening now as part of my way of coping, and to also have an outlet...

(S2, EP 4) Tung Nguyen joined me as a guest for this episode.  Tung and I connected on Instagram when we discovered each other's podcast. Tung is a Vietnamese-American podcaster, engineer, and musician.  He currently runs a podcast called Worksleeve which can be found on streaming services. In our conversation, Tung talked about the complexities of his own upbringing in rural South Dakot...

I decided to do an impromptu episode, breaking away from my normal podcast routine, and spend some time talking about my own feelings in regards to the Coronavirus scare that has affected many folks across the globe, but more specifically, the dangers that Asian folks in non Asian countries face with racism and xenophobia. Episode aired live from Chicago O'Hare airport as I'm preparing to leave fo...

(S2, EP 3) I chatted with Vân Huynh , a queer Viet-American immigration attorney who splits her time between Atlanta and Chicago.  In this conversation, Vân shared her struggles with assimilation and expectations that are set for 2nd generation Asian-Americans. She talked about her experience in the immigration movements, and her work with her clients who are facing deportation. She shared in...

(S2, EP 2) Meet Phanit Duong aka Hella Chluy for this week's episode.  In his first-ever interview, Phanit chatted about his early upbringing in Washington state after his parents arrived there after surviving the Khmer Rouge.  He reflected on his family's struggle in adapting to their new community, and learning to channel his own struggles through comedy, music, and martial arts. &nbsp...

(S2, EP 1) For the 1st episode for Season 2's "1975" theme, Viet-American bestselling author Thanhha Lai joined me as a guest for this episode.  Thanhha recently released her critically-acclaimed fiction book, Butterfly Yellow . In our discussion, she shares her experience writing her latest book, as well as her upbringing growing up in Vietnam during the time of war before resettling wi...

Welcome back everyone! To kick things off in the 2020 year, I decided to devote this second season revolving around the theme, "1975".  It marks the 45 year anniversary of the end of the Vietnam and Laos Civil War, and the end of the US intervention in both countries.  For Cambodia, it marked the beginning of the Khmer Rouge's ascension into power which led to the brutal terror in which...

Season 1 of The Banh Mi Chronicles podcast has finally concluded!  Thank you to everyone who has followed and listened to the podcast.  In the past 3 months (October '19), I am thankful to have the opportunity to interview my incredible guests for these 12 episodes.  Back in early summer when I was planning for the podcast, I wanted to focus on uplifting API (Asian Pacific-Islander)...

For the season 1 finale of the podcast, Dr. Ada Cheng joins me as a guest on the podcast.  I met Ada back in June 2016 at a queer storytelling show, a week after the Pulse Night Club shooting in Orlando.  At the time, she had resigned from her position as a tenured professor at DePaul University to pursue theatre and storytelling, and became a naturalized US citizen.  In this interv...

For this week's season 1, episode 11, singer / musician SuperKnova chats with me and shares her journey as a Korean-American transgender musician.  She recently released her 2nd EP called "American Queers" which can be found on all streaming services (Spotify, Apple Music, Google). We talk about her process in making her latest album, her visibility as a trans artist in the Chicago music scene, an...

For this week's Season 1, Episode 10,  Brandon Lee, Japanese-American and community activist from the Chicago Uptown neighborhood, joined me for "The Banh Mi Chronicles" podcast back in late October to discuss his experience over the years with Asians American Advancing Justice (AAAJC) in Chicago.  Brandon recently left AAAJC for a brief hiatus at that time. He looks back on the challeng...

For this week's Season 1, Episode 9, Huy Nguyen and Mickael Van Pham sit down and chat about their different paths going into comedy and theater.  They perform together as a comedy improv duo called "Fish Sauce." As 2nd generation Viet-Americans, they navigated through the assimilation process growing up in communities unfamiliar to their family. They share their family's reaction when they decide...

For this week's Season 1, Episode 8,  Joy Messinger sits down "The Banh Mi Chronicles" podcast and takes us on a journey as a queer Korean adoptee in Western NY.  She talks about her experiences in the racial, social, gender, LGBTQ, disability and reproductive justice movements, and the importance of understanding self-care and boundaries in this work.  Joy has been living in CHicag...

For this week's S1, Ep 7, Jenn Ho, the creator of Lawrence & Argyle sits down with The Banh Mi Chronicles podcast as she reflects on her experience growing up as an American-born Viet-American and witnesses the challenges that her parents as refugees from the Vietnam War faced during the US refugee resettlement.  Originally born in Chicago, and spent her childhood to adulthood in San Dieg...

For S1 Episode 6, Loreen Targos shares her experience in the political activism / advocacy sphere.  She talks about mixed Asian identity experience and the environment she grew up in that helped to shape her political views, and her desire to get involved in civic engagement through theatre, grassroots organizing, and more recently, her husband Byron Sigcho Lopez's successful election as an a...

Welcome to S1 Ep5 of "The Banh Mi Chronicles" podcast.  I bring to you Hac Tran, a 2nd generation Viet-American who speaks about his experience being involved in the Chicago Uptown community, specifically in the "Asia on Argyle" street neighborhood (also nicknamed as "Little VIetnam" or "New Chinatown").  In our conversation, he speaks about the Vietnamese diaspora, the gentrification is...

For this Season 1, Episode 4, I spoke with both Sok Theary Nak and Leakhena (Lyk) Yoeun.  We serve together as board members with The National Cambodian Heritage Museum (NCHM), currently the only museum outside of Cambodia that centers on the history of the Khmer Rouge Killing Fields era, and serves as a memorial space for survivors and the 2+ million lives that were lost during that 4 year period...

For this season 1, episode 3, I welcome Anu Bhatt as our guest for this episode.  Anu is an actor, dancer, and playwright. She was originally raised in San Diego, CA before moving to Chicago to pursue theater.  She recently moved back to San Diego, and is currently promoting her solo show, "Hollow / Wave" in other cities. While speaking with her, she was in the midst of preparing for that show in...

Trigger warning:  Topic of suicide and mental health For Season 1, Episode 2, I chatted with Joanna Leynes who shares her personal experience with mental health as a suicide survivor, and has since been on a mission to advocate for suicide awareness and prevention.  We connected through the loss of our mutual friend Allen Lau who passed away on 8/16/2019.  We shared fond memories of...