Dear loved ones,
I can’t believe the Show Yourself Residency is almost upon us! Have you gotten your tickets yet???
I wanted to share some #realtalk about why I wanted to create the Show Yourself Residency. I almost never saw examples of Asian musicians as a kid, and grew up thinking that a career as a musician just wasn’t a path open to Asian kids. So, just as many AAPI folx have memories of downplaying their food, physical features, customs, and language in the hopes of being accepted by the dominant culture (or at least not singled out for abuse) I downplayed my ethnicity in my professional life, and would even take it as a compliment when white peers would say “I don’t even think of you as Asian!”
I used to have an aversion to “Asian artist” events and groups. I convinced myself I needed to prove myself as a “real” musician, not just an “Asian” musician (not defending this belief, just being real). I found myself approaching the industry with a mentality of scarcity, buying into the myth that there was only one spot at the table for an Asian (or black, or female, or LGBTQ etc) musician, and to view other Asians as competition. It took me a long time to understand that this “table” was itself a product of white supremacy culture.
I realized my biases were more about my own insecurities and conflicted emotions around my identity and I’m grateful to have come back around to a point where I can be excited to help create a platform for AAPI artists to show themselves to the world, free from the identity shame that I experienced. I hope it is a step toward a day when seeing Asian stories in music and art is so normalized we won’t need events like these to shine a light on them and Asian artists have #permission to choose when to focus on their identity in their work, or on their many other parts that make them human
In-person tickets are $35 and online tickets are $20. VIP add-on options are available for both which include access to a post-show meet-and-greet, mixed/edited video recordings of the show, and more. 100% of ticket sales will benefit The Quiet Voice Fund, again supporting organizations fighting anti-Asian hate and advocating for the AAPI community. If you’re planning to be in NYC area, I highly recommend grabbing live tickets right away… one of the shows has already sold out!
AS ALWAYS, ALL PATREON MEMBERS GET ACCESS TO ALL STREAMING SHOWS FOR FREE.
Patrons can also get a special VIP package which will include access to the post-show meet and greet live from the Rockwood stage, an official poster signed by all the artists, access to mixed and edited audio/video recordings of each show, a special set of all 4 prints of Ping’s artwork, and handwritten lyrics to my newest single, to be released during the residency!