All posts in: Questions

11 Apr 2021

Blog Roundup

  • In A Role Reversal, Asian Americans Aim to Protect Their Parents From Hate [NY Times]
  • Michelin-Starred Ju-Ni Opens An Outdoor Omakase Counter [SF Eater]
  • 13 Sports Films You’ll Love Even If You Don’t Like Sports [Life Hacker]
  • Where to Stream the 2021 Oscar Films [W Magazine]
  • “We Already Belong”: A Conversation with R.O. Kwon [NPR]
  • America Ruined My Name For Me [The New Yorker]
  • After Working at Google, I’ll Never Let Myself Love A Job Again [NY Times]
  • These Are the 5 Deadliest National Parks [Outside]
  • How Do People Even Find Drug Dealers? [VICE]
  • Why the First Thing You Drink In the Morning Absolutely Shouldn’t Be Coffee [Well + Good]
  • The 10 Most Crowded Cities in America – and the 10 Least Crowded [Mental Floss]
  • The 26 Coolest Airbnbs in California [Green Wedding Shoes]

18 Jan 2021

BTS AMA

Ahead of their album release, I did an AMA with followers on my Instagram about all things BTS. I probably had too much fun answering these. While it was great in this format, I wanted to capture this on Yow Yow! too. Here are some of the questions and answers from this session and with a little more elaboration for some.

Whose fashion style do you like the most?

I can absolutely say for certain that this belongs to Taehyung. In general, he has figured out what styles have worked for him and in what feels like a shorter amount of time. I also joke with a friend that whoever his stylist was during the “Dynamite” era deserves a pay raise. This period of time was made for him. Runner-up after Taehyung would be Jimin.

Favorite Song That’s Not Wildly Popular?

Paradise. Growing up, I heavily leaned towards more of an R&B style and similar songs like this one in their catalog always end up being my favorite. There’s a very sultry feel to the single which can likely be credited to Jungkook and Jimin, but everyone does their part well. I’ve loved this song for a long time, but always thought it never got enough attention. Actually [NME] has a post where they rank every BTS song and this one is ranked 25 and should be higher in my opinion.

Which song has your favorite choreography?

This is easy for me – “ON.” I was introduced to BTS through “Boy With Luv,” but when “ON” premiered, I was watching this music video repeatedly to try and learn this choreography. I don’t feel like there’s anything that even compares to this level of technicality in choreography pieces. This is not only my favorite piece from them, but likely my favorite of all time from any artist or musician.

Read more “BTS AMA”
05 Dec 2020

Some Thoughts About Spotify Wrapped

I didn’t feel the need to share my Spotify 2020 Wrapped with people this year like I had in previous years. People that follow me know that my likely #1 was BTS. Sure enough, my 2020 wrapped confirmed this. What I have always known about this release is that it has been a great marketing tool for Spotify. Users love it and look forward to it. This year, along with visuals and the music, there was even an interactive component where you could predict who your top artist/band was before it was revealed to you.

As consumers, we love yearly recaps. In a year as challenging as 2020, people needed to know what music got them through this difficult time. However, one thing we’re not prepared for is how embarrassing our music choices are. That data, alone, could impact your decision to share. From my 2020 Wrapped, I learned that Justin Bieber came sliding into 3rd place. I’d be lying to you if I said that didn’t slight me even though admittedly, I really loved “Changes.” What did I have to be embarrassed about here? I also listened to 54,568 minutes of music which in comparison to my friends who shared their own Wrapped is higher than theirs. Is that too much time to be listening to music?

While Spotify’s Wrapped is all fun and shareable, what about the artists? An Instagram story from Hollis Wong-Wear (someone we previously interviewed on Yow Yow) showed me another side to consider. Unless you’re a mainstream artist, you’re not making much off every stream. Artists themselves also receive stats. The embarrassment I feel from having Bieber as a third top artist doesn’t compare when you’re an aspiring artist seeing that your own stats don’t measure up to your expectations or peers.

Spotify Wrapped in 2020 showed me two things. You are not defined by the music you listen to. I love using the playlist of my top songs as a guide for the post that I write on Yow Yow! every year, but I don’t rely on it 100%. And lastly, as consumers of music, we need to find a way to bridge this gap. Not everyone can be a mainstream artist, but can we do a better job of showing our support? In challenging times of COVID where shows cannot exist, how can we do more instead of only reaping the benefits of getting music from our favorite artists and musicians?

23 Nov 2020

Should I Travel For the Holidays?

In case you’re still on the fence about what you should be doing this holiday season, a friend of mine created this very helpful and informative [website]. Hopefully you’re also aware that 3 million people went through TSA this weekend before Thanksgiving. Not surprisingly, this was the biggest travel period that we’ve seen since before March. Unfortunately for that, a lot more loss and disappointment is on the way.

04 Aug 2020

Blog Roundup

  • Michelle Obama Is Hosting A Brand-New Relationship Podcast [Vogue]
  • A Typing Test For You Because… Why Not? [Source] I’m at 94 WPM!
  • Mask Wars? New Yorkers Will Sit This One Out. We’ve Already Seen Enough Death. [Vogue]
  • The Definite 50 Worst Teen Drama Couples of All Time [Buzzfeed]
  • Actually, Mark Zuckerberg Is Wearing the Correct Amount of Sunscreen [Mel Magazine]
  • People Share 30 Reasons Why Group Projects Are the Worst [deMilked]
  • How NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert Became The Unexpected Launchpad for Musicans of Color [Hypebeast]
  • Can’t Fall Asleep? 17 Ways to Make You Feel Tired AF [Greatist]
  • How Dating My Reality Show Director Opened Me Up to a Real Relationship [Refinery29]
  • Who Influences the Influencers? [High Snobiety]
  • Every Decision is a Risk. Every Risk is a Decision. [FiveThirtyEight]
  • Nirvana Performing “Smells Like Teen Spirit” In A Music Store A Week Before Its Release [Kottke]
  • How Black & White Photography Became A Complicated Symbol of Female Empowerment [Refinery29]
  • The 20 Best Reality Show of All Time [Esquire]
  • The Best Instant Noodles [Wire Cutter | New York Times]
  • Padma Lakshmi Wants Us to Eat More Adventurously [New York Times]
  • Designer Creates $3,900 Wetsuit That Looks Like A Real Suit [deMilked]
  • Take A Look Inside Numbering’s Safe Deposit-Themed Flagship Store in Seoul [Hypebae]
  • J. Cole Is Training to Be in the NBA – Can He Actually Do It? [High Snobiety]
  • Soup Base Ramen Noodle Wrapper [Cool Material]

19 Apr 2020

Blog Roundup

  • Think You Know What That Small Pocket on Your Jeans Is For? [Gear Patrol]
  • Our Pandemic Summer [The Atlantic]
  • How Long It Takes to Binge Watch More Than 50 Popular TV Shows [Mental Floss]
  • Nordstrom to delay Anniversary Sale [WWD]
  • Why Kids Write Letters Backward [Vox]
  • Netflix Adds Some of its Shows to YouTube For Free [Hypebeast]
  • Instagram Founders Launch a Covid-19 Tracker [Gizmodo]
  • 15 Tips For Living in a Small Space [A Cup of Jo]
28 Mar 2020

#OscarsSoWhite: Asian Leads

During the award show circuit this year, there were constant conversations about how the Oscars continue to be so white. Two pieces of criticism involved both “The Farewell” and “Parasite.” Awkwafina and Lulu Wang didn’t deserve to be snubbed for their work in “The Farewell.” For Parasite, why could they only be recognized for Best Picture, Director or Ensemble and not for the work that the individual actors and actresses did in this film? It was a mystery.

Be Kind Rewind is a YouTube channel that focuses on Hollywood history. In this particular episode, they explore why Asian actors and actresses continue to struggle in 2020 with recognition, but that there has been a long history of it prior. In order for us to change and move forward, we have to understand how it started.

27 Mar 2020

Blog Roundup

  • The Women of Instagram [The Everygirl]
  • Scotland is the first country to make pads and tampons free [Today]
  • Netflix Introduces Daily Top 10 Lists [High Snobiety]
  • Here’s What Happens When Guy Fieri Visits A Restaurant [Thrillist]
  • Kanye, Out West [New York Times]
  • Sound and Vision: Paid Family Rocking [KEXP]
  • McDonald’s Introduces New Big Macs [Cool Material]
  • I Think About This A Lot: Jack and Meg White Pretending to be Brother and Sister [The Cut]
  • 7 Delicious, Creative Ways to Eat Eggs That Don’t Involve Scrambles [Well + Good]
  • How Coronavirus is Destroying the Livelihood of Music’s Behind-the-Scenes Workforce [Rolling Stone]
  • The 11 Rules Every Man Should Heed to Tidy Up His Closet [Inside Hook]
  • Why We Can’t Stop Looking at Photos of Empty Cities [Fast Company]
  • The No Equipment Home Workout [Valet Mag]
  • You Can Now Download Free Coloring Pages From Over 100 Museums and Libraries [Hypebeast]
  • These Famous Logos Have Been Remade for the Coronavirus Age [Ad Age]
  • What It’s Like to Self-Quarantine With a Michelin-Starred Chef [Grub Street]
16 Feb 2020

Blog Roundup

  • Airbnb Renovates Its 650 Townsend Office with Functionality and Fun in Mind [Architectural Digest]
  • The Theme Song to “Succession” in Mario Paint [Twitter]
  • Closeness in the Age of Coronavirus [Refinery29]
  • Investigating Heterosexuality: Why Do Women Love Adam Driver? [Elle]
  • Can Weed Cure a Hangover? [VICE]
  • Why Are Roses So Fucking Expensive? [Mel Magazine]
  • Hayley Williams Performed at the Collina Strada Runway Show [Vogue]
  • Instagram Made It Easier to Delete Accounts You Follow [Refinery29]
  • Here’s Why You’re Drawn to Certain Beauty Product Packaging [Byrdie]
  • HQ Trivia is Shutting Down [Hypebeast]
photo | Emily Soto
  • To All The Girls He’s Loved Before – Welcome to Jordan Fisher’s Real-Life Rom-Com [The Cut]
  • The Talks: Bong Joon-Ho [The Talks] – this is one of my favorite websites
  • Lakeith Stanfield is Letting His Imagination Run Wild [Hypebeast]
  • Lara Jean Covey’s Fashion in P.S. I Still Love You as told by [Fashionista]
  • The Visualization of How Fast You Earn A Dollar [Digg]
  • 25 Things You Missed in Parasite
22 Nov 2019

Is It A Meal Or A Snack

I’ve only been watching this video for a minute, but already I’m questioning my entire life’s food choices. First up – nachos are definitely a snack, but a poorer me has had it for a meal ie) a college student. As this debate continues, maybe I’m not so sure if I’m so confident in my choice of calling it a snack.

Readers – what are your guesses for all of these? Are you as confused as I am?