Featured Stories

Checking in with Dawen (王大文)

It’s an unbearably hot summer day as I trek through the streets of Taipei, eager to enter an air conditioned building. I search for Eslite Bookstore. That’s where Dawen Wang and I are meeting. The last time we chatted was some five years ago at my alma mater, UIUC. "Back when I had a shaved head and was 20lbs heavier," Dawen would tell me later, as we settled outside a coffee shop. “I was [...] really, really struggling," he reminisced, "Now, I struggle in different ways. But back then, wow…

Priska Working on Debut EP

One of our favorite LA-based Taiwanese American musicians, Priska, is finally working on her debut EP. (What? She didn't have one before?). We introduced Priscilla Liang to our audiences back in 2012 with this personal interview and footage from a performance at the Factory Tea Bar in the heart of San Gabriel Valley: Revisit the 2012 Interview: http://www.taiwaneseamerican.org/2012/05/introducing-singer-songwriter-priska/ We've been a big fan of her since the beginning. She's got a beautiful,…

Through the Glass Ceiling: A Contemporary Ballet Collaboration

As the founder of TaiwaneseAmerican.org, I often meet really talented people in our community doing awesome work in their respective fields and industries. When my friend, ballerina and choreographer Ivy Chow, contacted me one day asking if I knew any composers of Taiwanese heritage that might collaborate with her on a new performance project about "breaking glass ceilings," I immediately thought of another friend, composer George Shaw, known for his many compositions and scores for popular YouTube…

The Lintet: A Taiwanese American Trombonist Shows That Jazz Has No Boundaries

Taiwanese American trombonist Peter Lin talks to us about his jazz band The Lintet, how the Taiwanese community has shaped his life, the importance of connecting to the audience and community and being true to oneself—and why he incorporates Taiwanese folk songs into their repertoire. Talk a little bit about The Lintet. How did you start? The Lintet is a band led by yours truly for the past four years; dedicated towards providing quality jazz and soul music for all communities. I often…

Summer in Taiwan and #blacklivesmatter

The police officer suspected of murdering Philando Castile looks like he could be my father, my uncle, my brother. Asians and Asian Americans do not deserve to be silent. I’m spending the summer in Taiwan, learning and unlearning what it means to occupy a Taiwanese body in an American space; an American body in a Taiwanese space. My thirteen-year-old cousin asks me about my two best friends in college. They are handsome, black, and male. A computer programmer and a gifted medical student. She…

Introducing the TaiwaneseAmerican.org Newsletter!

We are excited to introduce our first ever TaiwaneseAmerican.org newsletter! The Summer 2016 edition will be releasing soon. Sign up and join us every month for fun, interesting & remarkable events, happenings and people from around Taiwanese America! *Email and Location required. All information is kept confidential and used solely to develop newsletter content for readers. #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; } /* Add your own…

The Hsu-Nami Storm Back Again with New Album

The Hsu-Nami, a progressive rock band that features an electric erhu as its melodic focus, was founded by Taiwanese American Jack Hsu. Based in NYC, this band combines the sounds of traditional Chinese folk music with a strong rock component of heavy guitar riffs, melodic bass guitar lines and punctuating drum beats. TaiwaneseAmerican.org has featured Hsu-Nami previously, and since then, they've done some very interesting things including having one of their songs featured in the 2008 Beijing Summer…

2016 Taiwan Gay Pride Parade in NY

HELP Taiwan be represented at the 2016 New York Gay Pride Parade! Did you know that Taiwan is the home of Asia’s largest Gay Pride parade? But the last time there was a float representing Taiwan in the New York Pride Parade was in 2010! There hasn’t been a Taiwan float these past couple of years because registration fees and the cost of a putting together a float are quite high. Now more than ever, in the wake of the June 12th shooting at the Orlando nightclub Pulse, we need to show our support…

Perspective to Empower: Isa Ho’s “Girls Falling” at Taiwan Academy L.A.

Taiwanese artist Isa Ho opened her first photo exhibition “Girls Falling” at Taiwan Academy in Los Angeles from May 18th to June 30th. This photo exhibit goes beyond the usual perspectives and into a fantastical introspection of the self, with the discussion uniquely immersed in contemporary Taiwanese sensibility. The “Girls” series is referred to by many as the “Falling Down” series. The girls in the photographs along with the girls whom have been transformed into animals are all…

Join TaiwaneseAmerican.org!

TaiwaneseAmerican.org is looking for writers, digital media junkies & more to join the global team! TaiwaneseAmerican.org is excited to celebrate its 10th anniversary this year, and as the site and community have grown with such wonderful speed and diversity since then, we are exploring ways to expand our efforts this summer. Do you love Taiwanese food, people, culture and travel? Are you interested in community, digital storytelling and marketing? Do you enjoy Totoro--er, internet…