Often something that is in bad taste or considered to be in bad taste is something that’s just very true but that people are unwilling to discuss or comment on.
I think white people like to tell Asian people how they should feel about race because they’re too scared to tell black people.
It’s always considered bad taste to comment on a tragedy right when it’s happening, but I love when something is considered too soon to talk about because then you can blast past that social censorship to get into something real.
I’m a huge fan of the people and things that are considered the epitomes of tastelessness – things like drag and raunchy comedy.
I am always writing no matter what I am doing and no matter what it is for.
I don’t want to bring myself down to place where there are hard and fast rules. In general I try to be compassionate, but that is dependent on the moment ultimately.
I loved everything. I read everything. Art and poetry and literature and trash and sci fi. I didn’t know what I would become yet and I needed to read to figure it out.
I’m always too fat. And I always look terrible. But I love the theater of the red carpet.
I think political correctness really does help us when it serves us but it doesn’t help us when it silences us.
Political correctness sometimes does great work when it helps equalize the playing field when it comes to language, but it does a great disservice when it tries to silence a person of color.
White fragility! White people are so sensitive about race and racial conversations. I feel like I’m always walking on eggshells when I’m around white people.
That’s the nature of comedy – you always want to be improving and growing and changing with what’s happening in the world. That’s when comedy is most effective.
People are so sensitive about race that they can’t hear someone speaking about their life in a very true way, or doing satire or political parody.
It makes it very hard to say what you believe in and not be attacked for it. And it’s not fair; I’m Korean, but I’m not supposed to talk about my experience and my life? It’s unaccepting.
As a comedian you are making yourself vulnerable in order to make others happy.
Homophobia is a tough one. In some places it’s actually very OK to be homophobic. Comedy clubs in general are very unsafe spaces for LGBT, for women, for Asian people. So my goal in comedy has sort of been to make this a safe space for people who were like me.
Comedy is a noble art. And every comedian who does anything is serving a noble purpose.
I’ve always wanted to have tattoos. I grew up around people who were very tattooed. It’s a self-expression thing; it’s also helped me claim my body as my own. So I think it’s really positive. It’s really joyful.
I’ve always been an ajumma, but when you get older, the culture we were brought up in works in our favor where aging is good, combatting the Hollywood idea that aging is bad. I’m very grateful for that.
Comedy is the only weapon I have to battle totalitarianism.