Hairy Butthole

This week, Youngmi chats with Royce Akifumi Wilmot (TikTok content creator, @shoshinboy) about their weird theories on content creation, authenticity, why people just watch other people talk while sitting in their cars, and music. Royce creates content on "classic rock" (music that was popular when Youngmi was in high school) and they discuss how he fell into this niche. He also discusses a sad story centered on his family's personal experience with Japanese internment, and touches on how strange it feels to live in California, among forgotten historical landmarks of that era.

This week, Youngmi talks to Lana Siebel (standup comedian). Lana discusses her childhood as a Ukrainian Jewish refugee. She talks about how her past shaped her into someone who has an immense desire for peace but at the same time someone who is riddled with unrelenting fear. Lana and Youngmi also discuss how strange it is for large groups of people to be grouped together in abstract "teams" based on their religion or race, when other factors of relating to each other seem way more important. 

This week, Youngmi talks to Jes Tom (comedian, writer for Our Flag Means Death on Max) about a seemingly small issue he had in his last relationship, not being posted on main. Jes and Youngmi talk about how small problems in romantic relationships result in us feeling large emotions and how maybe our emotional reactions are indicative of larger important issues. Jes also discusses how it feels as a fifth-generation Japanese American and third-generation Chinese American in reference to his identity as an American and an Asian person. 

This week, Youngmi talks to Mic Nguyen (comedian, host of Asian, Not Asian podcast) about navigating recent events as standup comedians. Youngmi talks about her theory on why Koreans took to Christianity so well and compares Jesus's behavior to all the Korean guys she knows. Mic talks about being a new dad and the fascinating, much neglected topic of Asian son-dad relationships. Youngmi and Mic also touch on the fact that they both come from cultures deeply damaged by war, genocide and trauma and how those wounds that happened before they were even born show up in their behavior to this day.

This week, Youngmi discusses her political beliefs and worldview. She talks about the dangerous idea that public-facing people's opinions matter more than other people. She also touches on why her identity as a biracial person has affected how she views "Us. Vs. Them" narratives that are used by governments worldwide to divide and alienate different groups of people.

This week, Youngmi talks about the momentous occasion of her manuscript being turned in, and as a surprise to no one, it made her depressed. She also discusses the negative impact her busy schedule this past year had on her relationship with her son and the process of mending a hard phase between parent and child. 

This week, Youngmi speaks with Atheer Yacoub (comedian/writer of Denied Entry). Atheer discusses her perspective as a Palestinian on the recent events in Israel and Palestine. She also touches on how her childhood growing up in the West Bank and Alabama shaped her work as a comedian.

This week, Youngmi talks to Joanne Molinaro (cookbook author of The Korean Vegan, TikTok star). Joanne discusses how she got into veganism, the history of veganism in Korea and all the psychology involved with having a restricted diet. She discusses why she believes a lot of people have a negative knee-jerk reaction when hearing about vegans, and reveals she used to feel the same way before becoming one at the age of 35. She also shares a sad story of a time in childhood when she stood up to her parents, which ultimately led to her having a healthier relationship with them as an adult.

This week, Youngmi talks to Kimmy Yam (journalist at NBC News). Kimmy shares a relatable story about a time when she was a child that her parents forgot to pick her up from school. Although this is a common experience among children, she discusses the added stress of being the only Asian family in a small town, and how that dynamic played into every event in her childhood. She also discusses her how her parents coped with trauma in two extreme ways: her mother by developing severe depression and her dad adapting a veneer of unbreakable positivity. Also she gives us her professional journalistic take on the Maui wildfires, with nuance difficult to hear elsewhere.

This week, Youngmi brings on her chaotic daily group chat members: Alex Pemoulie and John deBary. They discuss the modern phenomenon of the group chat and why they think it plays such a huge role in the daily lives of everyone today. They talk about the origins of the rise of the popularity of the medium stemming from older forms of communication from Y2K chat interfaces like AIM, to ancient rituals of tribal gossip. John also talks about the sadness of turning 40 and Alex talks about talking shit!