A Quote by Bowen Yang

There's some humility that has to be constant. And if I ever put pressure on myself to represent in any meaningful way for Asian people, then that would just get in my way in terms of thinking that I am destined to speak on behalf of multiple people.
I'm not playing for other people; if I start thinking in those terms I would put too much pressure on myself. I play basketball because that is what I love to do.
Thinking back on it, I just really didn't have very many role models to look up to when it came to Asian actresses. And in that way, when I would see an Asian onscreen, it would be a secondary-type thing, and that's kind of how I ended up viewing myself in the world: as secondary.
In terms of work, I would like to work on a biopic and some people that I have met have mentioned that my life, in some way, is similar to Mumtazji. She was also a dancer and then became an actress so in that way, I relate with her. So I think if I get the chance, I would like to work in a biopic on Mumtaz.
I don't think talent has anything to do with inspiration. Inspiration creates talent. People prioritize innate talent too much. It gives them license to walk around and act like assholes. I think I straddle a line between being innately talented and having had to put in some work. You ever go to a party where there are a lot of creative people and they feel like they have license to just act any kind of way? I'm not really a moral person myself, but they just tend to never ever be sincere because they believe their art or the fact that they are artists makes them holy in some way.
When I speak, I don't speak for myself; I don't have the luxury of a Caucasian to be able to speak for myself. I speak for a whole community, and I represent so many different communities that that felt like a lot of pressure.
I wrote "Bootylicious" because, at the time, I’d gained some weight and the pressure that people put you under, the pressure to be thin, is unbelievable. I was just 18 and you shouldn’t be thinking about that. You should be thinking about building up your character and having fun and the song was just telling everyone just forget what people are saying. You’re bootylicious. That’s all. It’s a celebration of curves and a celebration of women’s bodies.
In terms of leadership, you've got to allow for people to be amazing and to contribute in a way that's meaningful. You can't hold on so tight that people don't get a chance to do what they do best.
I think before Twitter people didn't think that way, not in any sort of meaningful or specific way, so what I'm trying to say, if we're trying a bunch of stuff, a lot of cool and great social stuff, a lot of platform stuff, then some of it will stick, and some of it will be junked over. Some of it will be just like the cell phone, you can't imagine not having it.
I don't know why people feel that I am snooty. I am not a person who has ever given an interview on image building. I have never been that person, as I am very confident of what I do. People do PR, but I get completely foxed. I don't know how to do it. I stay away from the limelight, as I think my work should speak on my behalf.
When you're 1 out of 5 Asian people on TV, all the pressure is on you and you have to represent.
I don't know if people come to the shows of the Raveonetteswith any certain expectations. I think that we have fans who know that we're not... hugely entertaining in any way. We don't put on a show, so to speak. We basically just play the music the way it's supposed to be heard - very loud, in a packed club, and in a good setting. People can stand still with their eyes closed, or they can dance. They can do whatever they want. We don't care.
All television is an advertisement - that's why it exists. It wasn't the art-form first and then the commerce - it was that they could put on entertainment long enough to distract people into looking at products. It's for focusing people on advertising and separating you from money in some way. Some people forget that. The side product is that we get some great eye candy. TV is the best it has ever been right now. I don't have a problem with that since it's what keep us employed.
Social media is a way to make communication easier. Obviously some people misunderstand it, some people take it personally, and some people are in a constant fight to grow their engagement. They even become obsessed. They feel like they need to be popular on social media. The most important thing is: You've got to be secure in yourself. In order to have influence on other people, you've got to know who you are, first of all. The reason I get happy when I get more engagement is because that means I did something right in terms of my audience enjoying my content.
Maybe it's naïve, but I would love to believe that once you grow to love some aspect of a culture-its music, for instance -you can never again think of the people of that culture as less than yourself. I would like to believe that if I am deeply moved by a song originating from some place other than my own homeland, then I have in some way shared an experience with the people of that culture. I have been pleasantly contaminated. I can identify in some small way with it and its people.
If I conduct myself publicly and privately in a way that is honorable, not just to the people of the district that I represent but to God, then I will feel like I have been successful.
Everybody knows how awful the world is and what a terrible situation it is and each person distorts it in a certain way that enables him to get through. Some people distort it with religious things. Some people distort it with sports, with money, with love, with art, and they all have their own nonsense about what makes it meaningful, and all but nothing makes it meaningful. These things definitely serve a certain function, but in the end they all fail to give life meaning and everyone goes to his grave in a meaningless way.
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