Hawaii is a special place for Golden Hour. Charlene was born and grew up there, returning often. Dave visited for the first time a few years ago and fell in love. Not the mention the Pacific island has the highest percentage of Asians and mixed race people of any state in the US, and of course it has a rich musical legacy.

And so today on the pod, Charlene brings you the next big thing out of Hawaii: Crossing Rain. The five members of the K-pop-inspired boy band are Monarch, Devin, Jorden, Asher and Shotaro, and their heritages range from Japanese, Filipino, and Native Hawaiian. The members ages range from 15 to 23 years old, and they talk about their K-pop inspirations, what they want people to know about Hawaii, and the time they convinced all their families to be in a music video.

This month on the pod! Charlene has been taking inspiration from Jimmy O. Yang’s comedy special. Dave is celebrating BEEF’s awards wins and has been binging season 3 of Single’s Inferno.

Then! We are joined by the incredible indie pop artist FIG, whose latest single Solo Dates is all about self-love. We talk about her growing up all over Asia, the meticulous recording process she learned from MICHELLE (friends of the pod), and what’s with all the corn on her social media.

And! If you’re in Brooklyn, NY on February 11, come to Golden Hour’s Lunar Lovefest, a Lunar New Year and Valentine’s Day singles mixer and variety show, sponsored by our friends at Lunar Seltzer. Tickets available here.

On this episode of Golden Hour: Char moved to Brooklyn, Dave finished The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and we give a Golden Goose Award to our favorite hip-hop/punk collective out of South Korea. Then, Char and Dave interview NoSo, aka Baek Hwong, an LA-based indie singer-songwriter. They talk about the making of their latest album Stay Proud of Me, their latest single Kaitlin, the grind of touring, and cosplaying as your ancestors when you make kimchi.

Char and Dave are back with Season 3 of Golden Hour! They talk about joining the Potluck Podcast Collective, highlights from the 3rd Golden Hour Fest in Brooklyn, and Charlene showers Olivia Rodrigo with praise for her new album GUTS.

Then, Charlene is joined by the incredible indie artist Miss Grit, aka Margaret Sohn. Catching her on tour in UK back in the spring, Charlene and Margaret share their mutual adoration of St. Vincent, dig into Margaret’s creative process in writing her latest album Follow the Cyborg, and ponder the impacts of AI on making music.

Find Miss Grit on Instagram @miss_grit. Stream their album Follow the Cyborg on Spotify and purchase it on Bandcamp.

Today on the pod, host Charlene Kaye talks with with the charming and brilliant songwriter Julian Saporiti, aka No-No Boy. Right from the artist's name, there is hidden history baked in, as the "no-no boys" were Japanese Americans who were questioned during World War 2 about their allegiance to the United States. No-No Boy's most recent album, 1975 (another reference to the year the Vietnam War ended), is chock full of rich historical storytelling subject matter: Japanese internment, Vietnamese refugees, Saigon rock music lovers, and violence committed against Indigenous people. This conversation left us inspired and wanting to continue digging into so many more untold stories of Asian American history.

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In other news, the Golden Hour team will be taking a short, mid-season break before releasing another batch of episodes. And, we have some exciting announcements coming in the next few months. Make sure to follow us on your podcast platform of choice, and we'll see you soon.

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Listen to 1975 on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/33pWLN5PV3dsWS11LxmJsR?si=u4aDLUx7TDeFJr8nqPuQYQ