Rockin' And Rollin' With The Bots

Greetin’s, Hip Hapa Homeez! Welcome back to Watermelon Sushi World. Your Hip Hapa missed you last week, but she’s making up for it by introducing you to TWO righteously talented guests this week.

The pix above and below are of The Bots, Afro-Caribbean-Asian brothers and Cali cuties with their own band. After you read the Q&A, check out their links below. Aren’t they precious? Thank you, Renee Tecco of Sweet Rice Chronicles for the heads up.

Respect, respect.

Q: What are two nice, mixed-race boys like you doing in a band named The Bots?

A: Well, we thought the name was catchy. It’s not short for robots and is not associated with robots. We used robots on our first album to go with the theme.

Q: How did you get your exotic birth names?

A: Our mother and father are Rastafarians and took our names out of the Holy Bible. Anaiah is 13. His name means ‘Jehovah has answered’. Mikaiah is 16. His name means ‘Who is like unto Jehovah’.

Q: Where and how did your Chinese father and Afro-Caribbean mother meet?

A: Our parents met at The Rastafarian Organization of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. It’s the same religious organization Bob Marley was a member of. Our dad said he made a beeline for our mom when he first laid eyes on her. They exchanged numbers and, you know the rest.

Q: What kind of lifestyle does your family have?

A: We were raised with both cultures. We are not fluent in Chinese, but it’s spoken by our grandparents and we understand most of it. We have not been to Carnival, but we are aware of it. Our mom was raised in the states.

Q: How would you describe your sound?

A: Rock and indie rock.

Q: What! No reggae?

A: It takes a couple of people to play reggae. We do play around with it, though.

Q: How did you choose your instruments?

A: We play multiple instruments, and over seven instruments each. They were the only reasonable things to play in a rock and roll band, so we decided Mikaiah should play guitar and Anaiah drums.

Q: Who writes your songs, and who decides what you’re going to play?

A: We write all of our songs, and Anaiah decides which songs to play when we perform.

Q: Do you two always get along even when you’re not playing music?

A: Yes, we get along because our parents would not have it any other way. We love each other very much. Of course, we sometimes argue like brothers do, but it’s quickly quashed.

Q: Was your album “Self-Titled Album” released on July 25 as planned?

A: Not officially, but it began to stream on the Internet last summer in July.

Q: How often do you rehearse, and when do you get your homework done?

A: We rehearse mostly on the weekends, both days, and when we sometimes squeeze time in on the weekdays after we are done with homework. We are required by our parents to bring home all A's and B's, and we do get good grades. When we are not doing homework, we write as we are working on our next album.

Q: It looks like your schools (Glendale High School and Roosevelt Middle School) have been very supportive of your music education. How important is it to get an early start?

A: Important because you can get better with time.

Q: Who are your favorite musical artists?

A: We like Attic Monkey, Arcade Fire, Bad Brains, A7X, and Yeah Yeah Yeah's just to name a few. There are too many to mention.

*********

Here are The Bots’ upcoming gigs, shows, and tours:

Emergenza Festival at The Joint, Beverly Hills, April 2

The Strange on Melrose, April 7

Glendale (battle of the bands), April 17

Afro Punk Tour, June 25 (three weeks)

Warped Tour, August 11-15

The Bots Official Website:

http://thebotsband.com

The Bots Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Bots/93384124079?ref=mf

The Bots MySpace:

http://www.myspace.com/thebotsband

YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/user/haiakim

Afro Punk:

http://afropunk.ning.com/profile/TheBots

IMRadio:

http://www.imradio.com/?f=artists_view&id=4894

Vans Warped Tour 2010 – THE BOTS Profile:

http://www.vanswarpedtour.com/warpedtour/band.asp?xid=24343

Irie. While you’re checking out The Bots’ links and things, don’t forget to become a Watermelon Sushi film fan on Facebook. As long as you’re cruisin’ there, go to the Hip Hapa Homeez Group page and join to stay updated on the latest news about blendies, hapas, interracial adoptees, and mixies. Buy a Hapa*Teez t-shirt and not only earn a rear crawl credit on the Watermelon Sushi film, but see your photo on the Hip Hapa Homeez Group page in weekly rotation. If you’ve made a purchase, contact us so we can give you your prize.

Until two weeks from now, I promise to always be

Your Hip Hapa,

Yayoi

Multi-Culti Info Goddess

Yo, Hip Hapa Homeez! Wazzup?!

Welcome back to Watermelon Sushi World. As we know, life is all about change; so, after tonight Your Hip Hapa will no longer publish this blog on a weekly basis. Change is on the horizon for our projects--including the Watermelon Sushi film and a book ready for publication--so we’ll only be here every other week from now on. Won’t you join our Facebook Fan page to keep updated about the Watermelon Sushi film? And, while you’re on Facebook, please navigate to the Hip Hapa Homeez group page and sign up to stay in the know with news by and about multiethnic and mixed-race folks, transracial adoptees, and anyone involved in cross-cultural activities. You can also follow Watermelon Sushi on Twitter. And, if you’d like to throw your support behind the film, please purchase a Hapa*Teez t-shirt. Not only will you help move the film production forward, but you’ll also get a rear crawl credit when it’s done and in theaters!

Early Warning: The amazing African American Japanese enka singer, Jero, will be performing on the West Coast next month! Stay tuned for more info.

Speaking of info, Your Hip Hapa can think of few people who are more informative than Frances Kai-Hwa Wang. We originally met many moons ago as Contributing Editors at IMDiversity.com, Asian American Village. These days, Frances is still with the site as an Asian American Village Editor, but she also writes for numerous other publications. Check out the links below that appear in her standard email signature. Above is Frances smiling despite dozens of deadlines piling up on her.

IMDiversity.com Asian American Village Editor

http://www.imdiversity.com/villages/asian

Ann Arbor Chinese Center of Michigan Outreach Coordinator

www.aaccom.org

American Citizens for Justice Advisory Board

www.americancitizensforjustice.blogspot.com

Adventures in Multicultural Living column at

www.annarbor.com

www.ethnoblog.newamericamedia.org

Japanese American Citizens League

www.pacificcitizen.org

www.voicesofadoption.rainbowkids.com

www.annarborchronicle.com

www.incultureparent.com

www.IMDiversity.com, and more!

www.multiculturaltoolbox.com

or www.franceskaihwawang.com

and www.franceskaihwawang.blogspot.com

and www.facebook.com/franceskaihwawang

and twitter.com/fkwang

and so on...

Q: In your standard email signature, you list no less than 15 links to your work, with the addendum “and so on…”

How can you possibly stay on top of everything?

A:I don't sleep. Seriously. My alarm is set for 4:30 every morning, but often I wake up before the alarm, around 3, and try to get some work done before the kids wake up.

Q: How long have you been writing?

A: I've been writing since seventh grade, really, funny little essays, writing contests, newspaper press releases for 4H, literary parodies for a college humor magazine. But officially, I have been writing for 17 years, since I lived in Kathmandu, Nepal, and worked in international development and for local English-language publications. Right before I left graduate school, a professor asked me, "Why are you in academics? You can write! The only reason other people are in academics is because they can't write." When I was recently reconsidering academics, another professor said the same thing again, "You are a writer! Why don't you write instead of going back to school?"

Q: Today, you not only write, but you’re also a popular public speaker. Did you always know what you wanted to do career-wise?

A: I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up!

I do love public speaking, though. I used to compete in public speaking in high school and college, and it is the single best skill that I have. If anyone needs a keynote speaker...

And I love to write, to research, to think about all these issues, and to create a little art with my words. It takes such ego, however, to say the words, "I am a writer." For years, I said, "I write essays." Then, "I am a writer and an editor" (which mitigates it somewhat). But to be "a writer" is really cool. I still can't believe it.

Q: Who are your parents, and how did they meet?

A: My parents were born in China, grew up in Taiwan, met in college, and came to the United States for graduate school, after which they married and stayed. Pretty standard pre-1965 immigration pattern. My dad is a retired electrical engineer (also pretty stereotypical), and my mom is a retired second grade teacher (even stricter than stereotypical Asian moms).

Q: Did growing up in Cali provide you with a culturally rich upbringing or was it because of your parents?

A: I do not think my parents had an intentional plan to give me a culturally rich upbringing, they just were who they were. We spoke Chinese and ate Chinese food. They had Chinese friends. When it came time to lecture me, the reference points were Confucian rather than American. But a lot of things were not explained to me, so I had to figure it out. I often felt like I was not Chinese enough for the Chinese, not American enough for the Americans, but I could never tell what I was doing wrong.

I also went to Catholic Schools, so I grew up with Italians, Irish, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Mexicans, etc. Most of my friends were bilingual and bicultural, although we never talked about it.

As an adult, I have intentionally tried to fill in the gaps and learn more about my culture and other cultures, and I have taught my children the details so they know what they are supposed to do, how to read people/situations, and how to codeswitch cultures and create something new.

Q: Did you ever think you’d end up in an interracial marriage?

A: I did not intentionally seek out an interracial marriage, because I was brainwashed all my life that I should marry a Nice Chinese Boy. Only problem was that I was also brainwashed all my life that no Nice Chinese Boy would ever want me. I was too tall, too outspoken, too smart, spilled tea all over the table. Add on the effects of the mainstream media brainwashing me that the handsome prince is a tall white guy (with a geeky Asian manservant) and the demographic reality that there were not a lot of Asian American guys my age from which to choose, and so I ended up dating who I dated, marrying who I married. In the end, it is just the two of you, not your politics or your parents.

Sometimes I think it would be different if I did it again, that I would definitely marry Asian.(No, I don't have Tiger Woods Identity Issues. Really, I don't. I don't, I don't.) However, I think that the reality is that instead of simply overcoming the brainwashing against Asian male stereotypes, my eyes have opened to the beauty of men of all races and ethnicities--African American, Hispanic American, Native American, Arab American, Southeast Asian, South Asian, Northeast Asian, Pacific Islander, Southern and Eastern European--and most beautiful of all--hapa men.

Excuse me while I faint. There are a lot of beautiful men in this world.

My phone number is...

Q: Your Adventures in Multicultural Living column featured a very touching story about your children teaching your Chinese father about African American history. How do you envision the future for them especially since they’re multiethnic?

A: My kids are so cool, so much cooler than I ever will be. They’re Chinese, Greek, German, Scottish and English.

Because of the work that I do, they are well versed in multicultural issues and Asian American scholarship, and they read multicultural literature and media. When I drag them to seminars and documentaries at the university with me (for the food), they often get involved and answer the speakers' questions better than the graduate students. They understand what it means to be hapa, they have hapa friends, and they have hapa role models both local and famous. They are proud to be hapa.

We joke that they have self-esteem issues, too much self-esteem. They are going to conquer the world.

*********

Wow. Is that just crazy-cool, or what? Thanks for sharing, Frances!

Parting is such sweet sorrow Hip Hapa Homeez, and Your Hip Hapa will miss connecting with you next week. But, just think, we’ll be pimping this blog with more bling for you. Please revisit us the week after next when we turn you on to The Bots, two musical blasian brothers on a mission. Until then, I am…

Your Hip Hapa,

Yayoi

Mixed Chick Lit Prized By Barbara Kingsolver

Hey, you Hip Hapa Homeez! Here’s a BIG UP for joining us on Facebook. Your love has helped move us towards getting our film, Watermelon Sushi, into production. For that, we send you our shout-outs. Remember, Watermelon Sushi is not just a movie—it’s a movement. Every single day, Your Hip Hapa gets messages from folks everywhere reciting stories about their multi-culti lives. Whether they are of mixed heritage, or have crossed cultures in some way, people are tearing down the racial barriers that have kept us from sharing for so long. Please keep on keepin’ on by joining our Hip Hapa Homeez group page on Facebook where we post information affecting us and our agenda; and, the Watermelon Sushi Fan page where we keep you updated about the film. There are also t-shirts available at Hapa*Teez, and with every purchase you earn a rear crawl credit on the film.

As for this Watermelon Sushi World blog, Your Hip Hapa has big plans in the Year of the Metal Tiger. So, for now, we’ll be moving to an every-other-week publishing format. Next week, we’ll post an interview with another Hip Hapa Homee, but the one after that will be published on March 10. If you, or someone you know, would like to be profiled here, please drop a line to hiphapa@comcast.net

Your Hip Hapa first met Heidi W. Durrow (pictured above) along with her partner, Fanshen Cox, in July 2007 as a guest on their half hour podcast called Mixed Chicks Chat. And, last year, Your Hip Hapa facilitated a panel about mixed race relationships at the Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival also hosted by Heidi and Fanshen. Yesterday, Heidi’s highly anticipated book, The Girl Who Fell From the Sky (Algonquin Books), was released. Below, Heidi discusses the process of writing and publishing this important story about being multiracial.

That’s a pix of Heidi's book here. Below, she and Fanshen pose at the Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival. And, below that, her parents exchange vows on their wedding day.

For more information, check out Heidi’s website at: www.heidiwdurrow.com

Q: What's a nice multiethnic girl like you doing writing such an acclaimed work of fiction?

A: I’ve always wanted to write, and for a long time didn’t believe that it was worth writing because no one would be interested in a story about the Mixed experience. But when I gave up thinking about what “they” (agents, editors, literary journal editors) wanted, and decided to write what I wanted to read or wish I could have read; then, the writing started flowing.

The story, though, of The Girl Who Fell From the Sky was inspired by a real event that happened about 15 years ago. A family died in a terrible tragedy, but a miracle happened and the girl survived. I became haunted by what her survival might look like. I didn’t know anything about the girl but the barest facts of her biography. And so, I filled in what I knew--the story of a biracial and bicultural girl who suddenly discovers that her identity isn’t “American”, but a race.

Q: Had you written a novel before, and do you plan to write more?

A: This is my first novel. It took 12 years to write.

I’m working on some other book projects now, and I’m hoping they won’t take so long to complete.

My journey to publication was very long in part, I think, because I didn’t know how to get published. I was a journalist, and then a lawyer, and I thought if I just wrote then I would get published. But there are a lot of things that you need to do as a writer that are not writing. You need to cultivate mentors and advisors who can help you with recommendation letters. And, you need to get to know people (other writers and publishing professionals). Just like in any business, it’s easier to get published if you’ve met the editor. That’s not to say it’s the only way. My first publication, which appeared in Alaska Quarterly Review, was a blind submission. The same story had been rejected by two-dozen other literary journals. I had a rule that I had to send out the story to two more journals for every rejection I received. I’m surprised I didn’t have more rejections in hand by the time I got the acceptance. The rejections were discouraging, but I also needed to keep pushing forward.

I found my agent through a connection with my mentor, writer Michael Pettit. He had judged a contest I won and took an interest in helping me with my career. He’s been a huge support and I’m terribly grateful to him.

I found my publisher, again, just by a blind submission. My book won the Bellwether Prize for Literature of Social Change, an award created and funded by Barbara Kingsolver. Along with the prize came a contract for publication. Voila! You can bet I was excited when I got the call from Barbara Kingsolver that she had chosen my manuscript. It felt like magic--like I was an overnight success. But really, I had put many years of work into the manuscript. I got lucky that I found the one gatekeeper who said ‘yes’!

Q: Do you think that there's such a thing as a mixed-race genre for authors?

A: I think there are stories of the Mixed experience. I don’t know whether there is a mixed-race genre, but maybe there is. If so, I would call it the Creole Aesthetic. I chaired a panel on that at the Loving Conference--looking at the similarities between different types of art dealing with the Mixed experience. I’d love to have that discussion again.

Q: Will your book cross cultures?

A: Yes, I think so. At bottom, the book is about a young girl who’s trying to learn how to be a woman without her mother. She’s looking for role models; trying to figure out what kind of woman she’s going to become. I think a lot of people can relate to that.

Q: Are mixed people hungry for stories about themselves?

A: I can speak for myself and say ‘yes, I definitely am’. It’s one of the reasons, my partner Fanshen and I started the Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival--www.mxroots.org. It’s an opportunity for mixed people, mixed families, and people in mixed relationships of every stripe and sort to see themselves reflected in film and in readings and performance. We’re putting together the 3rd Annual Festival now. It’s set for June 12-13, 2010, at the Japanese American National Museum. And, it’s free! I just want to put in a little plug here: Please donate to help keep the Festival free. It’s a fiscally sponsored project of the New York Foundation for the Arts and, your donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law. Donate on-line now!

Q: How did your parents meet?

A: My parents met in Germany in the 1960s. My father was in the Air Force and my mom (who is from Denmark) was working as an au pair to an American military family. They were married in Denmark because it was illegal for them to marry in South Carolina, where blacks and whites could not marry and, where my father was about to be stationed.

Q: How much are you affected by Danish culture?

A: My Danish family is my heart! I love them so much and they were such a big part of my growing up. My mom—the smart woman that she is—decided to raise us speaking Danish. We only spoke Danish with her and spoke English to our dad. Being Danish is such a huge part of my identity, even though I never went to school in Denmark or lived there for more than a few months. It’s just part of who I am.

Q: How did you become so involved with the mixed-race community?

A: I became involved in the mixed-race community because I felt isolated. It really did just start with my longing and need to talk to my friend Fanshen about these issues. We realized that every time we saw each other (which wasn’t much) we’d talk about these issues. We started the podcast, Mixed Chicks Chat--www.mixedchickschat.com--as a way to connect more often. We didn’t really think that people would start to listen! The Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival was a natural outgrowth of that. We wanted to create a space for artists to share their work. We wanted to offer a forum for their stories.

Q: What has changed for mixed people since you two began your podcast and festival?

A: The fact that people who are not mixed simply say the word biracial--I think just that is a huge step. That is of course because of President Obama. Thank you, Mr. President! Because of the One Drop rule, people hadn’t even been allowed to think about mixed-race identity—the lines had been drawn. I think people are more likely to share information about their blended families or relationships now. And, I think mixed families are starting to look like families to outsiders. People aren’t trying to do the math of how the kids belong with the mom or dad. That’s the best. I think that’s progress.

Congratulations, Heidi! Here’s to good fortune with your book.

Remember, Hip Hapa Homeez, find us on Facebook and Twitter. And, don’t forget to write!

Your Hip Hapa,

Yayoi