Awkwafina

Not to be confused with Aquafina.
Actor and rapper from New YorkTemplate:SHORTDESC:Actor and rapper from New York[[Category:**Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Pagetype/config' not found.**s with short description]]

Template:Use mdy dates

* Actress
* comedian
* writer
* producer
* rapper
* Alternative hip hop
* comedy hip hop
* East Coast hip hop

**Nora Lum** (Template:Zh; born June 2, 1988), known professionally as **Awkwafina**, is an American actress, comedian, writer, producer, and rapper. She rose to prominence in 2012 when her rap song "My Vag" went viral on YouTube. She then released her debut album, *Yellow Ranger* (2014), and appeared on the MTV show *Girl Code*. She later co-hosted *Girl Code Live* (2015) and a talk show, *Tawk* (2015 to 2017), and was featured in the documentary *Bad Rap*.

She has played supporting roles in the comedy films *Neighbours 2: Sorority Rising* (2016), *Ocean's 8* (2018), *Crazy Rich Asians* (2018), and *Jumanji: The Next Level* (2019). Her second album, *In Fina We Trust,* was released in 2018. She played a leading role in the comedy-drama *The Farewell* (2019), for which she won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical, becoming the first woman of Asian descent to win a Golden Globe in any lead actress film category. Awkwafina currently stars in Comedy Central's *Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens*, which she writes and executive produces.

## Early life

Lum was born in Stony Brook, New York, on Long Island, to a Chinese American father, Wally, and a Korean American mother, Tia, a painter who immigrated to the United States from South Korea in 1972. Lum grew up in Forest Hills, Queens. Her mother died from pulmonary hypertension when Lum was four, and she was raised by her father and paternal grandparents, becoming especially close to her paternal grandmother. One of her paternal great-grandfathers was a Chinese immigrant in the 1940s who opened the Cantonese restaurant Lum's in Flushing, Queens, one of the neighborhood's first Chinese restaurants.

Lum attended LaGuardia High School, where she played the trumpet and was trained in classical music and jazz. At age 16, she adopted the stage name Awkwafina, "definitely a person I repressed" and an alter ego to her "quiet and more passive" personality during her college years. Lum majored in journalism and women's studies at the University at Albany, State University of New York. From 2006 to 2008, Lum attended Beijing Language and Culture University in China, where she studied Mandarin.

Awkwafina states that Charles Bukowski, Anaïs Nin, Joan Didion, Tom Waits, and Chet Baker were early influences. Prior to her career in entertainment, she was an intern at local New York publications *Gotham Gazette* and the *Times Union* newspaper in Albany, and was a publicity assistant for the publishing house Rodale Books. She later worked at a vegan bodega after being let go from the publishing house when they discovered her music videos.

## Career

### Music

Awkwafina began rapping at age 13. She got her start producing music with GarageBand but eventually learned Logic Pro and Ableton. In 2012 one of her songs, "My Vag", went viral. She originally wrote the song while in college as a response to Mickey Avalon's "My Dick". Due to the nature of the lyrics, she wore glasses to mask her identity, but was still subsequently fired from her job at a publishing house when her employer recognized her voice.

Her solo hip-hop album *Yellow Ranger* was released on February 11, 2014. The album consists of 11 tracks and includes a number of her previous singles released via YouTube, including the title track "Yellow Ranger", "Queef" and "NYC Bitche$". In 2016, she collaborated with comedian Margaret Cho on "Green Tea", a song that pokes fun at Asian stereotypes.

She was part of the lineup at Tenacious D's Festival Supreme on October 25, 2014. Awkwafina was also a disc jockey (DJ) at bars in New York.

Awkwafina is profiled in the 2016 documentary *Bad Rap*, which was an official selection at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival. The film puts the spotlight on her as well as other fellow Asian-American rappers such as Dumbfoundead, Rekstizzy, and Lyricks.

She released an EP called *In Fina We Trust* which consists of 7 tracks on June 8, 2018.

### Acting

 File:Ken Jeong & Awkwafina.png
In 2014, Awkwafina was in the third season of *Girl Code*, appearing in six episodes of the third and fourth seasons. In 2015, she served as co-host for the spin-off titled *Girl Code Live* on MTV. She was the host of the short-form talk show web series *Tawk* for the digital production company Astronauts Wanted from 2015 to 2017. The first season premiered on YouTube and was later picked up for exclusive streaming on Verizon's Go90 platform. The show was an Official Honoree at the 2016 Webby Awards and was nominated for a 2016 Streamy Award in the News and Culture category.

In 2016, Awkwafina played a supporting role as Christine, a member of Kappa Nu in *Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising*, and voiced the role Quail in the animated comedy film *Storks*. In 2018, she starred in the indie comedy *Dude*, playing Rebecca, one of four best friends in the film. She was part of the principal cast in *Ocean's 8,* the all-female spinoff to the *Ocean's Trilogy*. She then co-starred in the film *Crazy Rich Asians*, directed by John M. Chu. She played Goh Peik Lin, a Singaporean college friend of lead character Rachel Chu (Constance Wu).

She has a recurring role in the Hulu original series *Future Man* in 2017. She hosted the 2018 iHeartRadio MMVAs. She hosted the October 6, 2018, episode of *Saturday Night Live*, becoming the second East Asian-American female celebrity (after Lucy Liu, whose episode Awkwafina cites as her inspiration to one day be famous enough to host *SNL*) to host the show. Her celebrity impression for the episode was Sandra Oh (who also became the first East Asian-Canadian female celebrity to host an *SNL* episode within the same season and the third East Asian-American female celebrity to host overall).

 File:Awkwafina - Golden Globes 2020 - 01.png
In 2019, she starred in the film *The Farewell*, directed by Lulu Wang. The film received critical acclaim and she played the lead role of Billi, a writer who visits her ill grandmother in China. It earned her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical. This made her the first person of Asian descent to win a Golden Globe Award in any lead actress film category, after being only the sixth woman of Asian descent to be nominated in the lead actress in a musical or comedy category. In the same year, she starred as avatar Ming Fleetfoot in the film *Jumanji: The Next Level*, which turned to be a commercial success.

In July 2019, Awkwafina was revealed to have been cast in Marvel Studios' *Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings*, alongside actors Simu Liu and Tony Leung Chiu-wai. The film is slated to be released in February 2021.

She stars in the comedy series *Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens*; she is also writer and executive producer of that show. As part of the promotional campaign, she recorded new announcements for the 7 train of the New York City Subway, making jokes, such as "This is Hunters Point Avenue, a friendly reminder that seats are for people, not your bag" and "This is 46th Street, which is a lucky number, I just learned that on the internet. Also learned that pigeons and doves are the same thing, WHAT?!", at every stop. These recordings were used until the series premiered on January 22.

Awkwafina used an "Asian gangster New Yorker persona" in her *Crazy Rich Asians* role and rapped using a "Blaccent" on *My Vag*, which met with criticisms of misappropriating African-American culture.

## In the media

Awkwafina has expressed support for Time's Up, a movement started by Hollywood celebrities against sexual harassment. She has also advocated for the need for more female directors and against the stereotyping of Asians in media.

She was featured in Gap's "Logo Remix" campaign, which featured up-and-coming artists who "are remixing creative culture on their own terms," such as SZA, Sabrina Claudio and Naomi Watanabe.

In 2015, she released the guidebook, *Awkwafina's NYC*.

On May 16, 2019 she headlined The Infatuation's annual food festival, EEEEEATSCON. She spoke about her upbringing in Queens, where her family owned a Cantonese restaurant.

## Discography

### Studio albums

* Label: self-released
 *In Fina We Trust* | * Released: June 8, 2018
* Label: self-released
* Format: Digital download

### Singles

 "NYC Bitche$"
 "Daydreamin'"

## Accolades

*Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Awkwafina*Awkwafina was honored as Kore Asian Media's Female Breakout of the Year in December 2017.
## See also

* Chinese in New York City
* Korean Americans in New York City

## References

1. ↑ Despite some sources that give "Nora Lum Ying", Awkwafina said in 2018 it is simply "Nora Lum". Template:Cite tweet
2. ↑ "2020年金球奖结果出人意料" (in zh). 2020-01-06. https://www.voachinese.com/a/golden-globes-2020-20200106/5233751.html.
3. ↑ "Awkwafina Artist Biography". AllMusic.com. https://www.allmusic.com/artist/awkwafina-mn0003640200/biography. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
4. ↑ Aridi, Sara (2020-01-05). "Golden Globe Winners 2020: The Complete List" (in en-US), *The New York Times*.
5. ↑ Awkwafina in Template:Cite AV media
6. ↑ "Awkwafina is changing hip-hop one vulgar, hilarious lyric at a time", Public Radio International. Retrieved on July 18, 2018.
7. ↑ Template:Cite tweet
8. ↑ "Nora Lum – Immigration Paper". University at Albany, SUNY. http://www.albany.edu/journalism/assets/nlum.pdf. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
9. ↑ "How Nora Lum Became Rapper Awkwafina Instead of A Meat Inspector", NBC News (August 26, 2014). Retrieved on August 26, 2014.
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Template:Cite magazine
11. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Template:Cite magazine
13. ↑ Bertodano, Helena de (2018-06-17). "Awkwafina: 'I was always the crazy one, the funny one. I'd do anything for a laugh'" (in en-GB), *The Guardian* (UK).
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Template:Cite magazine
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 "Awkwafina". New York State Writers Institute, University of Albany, SUNY. https://www.albany.edu/writers-inst/webpages4/archives/awkwafina17.html.
16. ↑ "Awkwafina Won’t Let You Forget Her Name", *The Ringer*.
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Oceans Eight Star Awkwafina On Her Makeup Essentials" (in en-US). IntoTheGloss.com. https://intothegloss.com/2017/04/awkwafina-beauty/.
18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Awkwafina Got Fired From Her Office Job After Writing a Song Called "My Vag"" (in en-US), *Galore* (March 29, 2017).
19. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 Template:Citation
21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Sawa, Dale Berning (2017-12-28). "Awkwafina: ‘I was just rapping about my genitalia – not making a feminist message’" (in en-GB), *The Guardian*.
22. ↑ "Awkwafina" (in en). Discogs. https://www.discogs.com/artist/5535610-Awkwafina.
23. ↑ "Awkwafina x Margaret Cho - GREEN TEA". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7o23w8i0H-w.
24. ↑ Blistein, Jon (May 27, 2014). "Tenacious D Combine Jokes and Jams for 2014 Festival Supreme Lineup". *Rolling Stone*. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/tenacious-d-combine-jokes-and-jams-for-2014-festival-supreme-lineup-20140527. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
25. ↑ "Meet EatGoodNYC, the Cupcake Hustlers at the Intersection of Pastry, Hip-Hop, and Streetwear" (in en). https://firstwefeast.com/eat/2014/11/meet-eatgoodnyc-the-cupcake-hustlers-at-the-intersection-of-pastry-hip-hop-and-streetwear.
26. ↑ "Awkwafina" (in en). https://www.facebook.com/awkwafina/photos/a.513383975403084/671714236236723/?type=3.
27. ↑ Template:Citation
28. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
29. ↑ Template:Cite newspaper
30. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
31. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
32. ↑ "5 Things You Should Know About 'Ocean's 8' Star Awkwafina", *Billboard*.
33. ↑ "Judy McGrath's Astronauts Wanted Strikes Exclusive Content Deal With Go90 (Exclusive)" (in en). https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/judy-mcgraths-astronauts-wanted-strikes-839284.
34. ↑ Spangler, Todd (October 3, 2016). "Go90 Reups Awkwafina’s ‘Tawk’ for Seasons 4 and 5, But Is Verizon’s Service Struggling to Win Fans?" (in en-US), *Variety*.
35. ↑ "Rapper Awkwafina Joins 'Neighbors' Sequel", NBC News.
36. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
37. ↑ "'Crazy Rich Asians' Adds Awkwafina" (in en), *The Hollywood Reporter*.
38. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
39. ↑ "'The summer of Awkwafina’: The Crazy Rich Asians star on hosting the MMVAs", *The Globe and Mail* (August 22, 2018). Retrieved on August 24, 2018.
40. ↑ "SNL Season 44 Episode 02 - Awkwafina". NBC. http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/season-44/episode/2-awkwafina-with-travis-scott-296765.
41. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
42. ↑ "Golden Globes 2020: The Complete Nominations List", *Variety* (9 December 2019). Retrieved on 9 December 2019.
43. ↑ "Awkwafina makes Golden Globes history" (in en), CNN.
44. ↑ Kroll, Justin; Kroll, Justin (2019-01-03). "Awkwafina Joins Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart in ‘Jumanji’ Sequel" (in en). https://variety.com/2019/film/news/awkwafina-jumanji-sequel-1203098802/.
45. ↑ "Jumanji: The Next Level". https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl755467777/.
46. ↑ "Jumanji: The Next Level (2019) - Financial Information". https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Jumanji-The-Next-Level.
47. ↑ "Marvel reveals new details about 'Shang-Chi' movie" (in en). https://ew.com/comic-con/2019/07/20/shang-chi-movie-marvel-comic-con/.
48. ↑ 48.0 48.1 Goldbaum, Christina (2020-01-16). "Awkwafina’s Latest Role: Subway Announcer. New Yorkers Have Thoughts." (in en-US), *The New York Times*.
49. ↑ Makalintal, Bettina (2020-01-24). "Awkwafina's Past Makes Her a Complicated Icon of Asian American Representation" (in en). https://www.vice.com/en\_us/article/pkeg9g/awkwafinas-past-makes-her-a-complicated-icon-of-asian-american-representation.
50. ↑ Jackson, Lauren Michele (2018-08-24). "Who Really Owns the ‘Blaccent’?" (in en-us). https://www.vulture.com/2018/08/awkwafina-blaccent-cultural-appropriation.html.
51. ↑ 51.0 51.1 Bergado, Gabe. "Awkwafina Isn’t Here for Hollywood’s Tired Excuses" (in en). https://www.teenvogue.com/story/awkwafina-young-hollywood-2018.
52. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
53. ↑ "Awkwafina's Guide Book Shows the New York City You've Never Seen", NBC. Retrieved on October 25, 2017.
54. ↑ "Awkwafina, Dan Levy to Keynote Santa Monica Food, Music and Tech Fest" (in en). https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/awkwafina-dan-levy-keynote-santa-monica-food-music-tech-fest-1191452.
55. ↑ "Shows A-Z - Girl Code Live on MTV". TheFutonCritic.com. http://www.thefutoncritic.com/showatch/girl-code-live/listings/.
56. ↑ "Unforgettable Female Breakout of the Year: Awkwafina" (in en-US), *Kore.am*, Kore Asian Media (November 16, 2017).

## External links

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