Shuffled! Katie Vang
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Today’s Shuffler: Katie Vang
Katie Ka Vang is a Hmong American interdisciplinary artist who has been a performer, actor, poet, playwright, director and activist. She has performed for different theaters around the twin cities, is part of the Pangea World Theater ensemble and co-wrote & directed the youth play Myth of Xee. She performed with Pangea World Theater in From The Ashes in New York City at the National Asian American Theater Festival and was also a recipient of a Jerome grant through Naked Stages where she created her first solo performance art piece 5:1 Meaning of Freedom; 6:2 Use of Sharpening, produced by Intermediate Arts. She’s currently working on a few performance collaborations and has been awarded an Artist Initiative grant through the Minnesota State Arts Board where she will produce her first chapbook.
She also teaches creative drama to Hmong youth through Center for Hmong Arts and Talent’s ART SAVES US program, assisted with the production of The H Project, a compilation CD raising awareness about the Hmong genocide in Laos, is an organizer of I.C.E. Open Mic, and has read her work at The Loft Literary Center, in Twin Cities’ school system, and various open mics.
“Katie Vang is a dynamic performer and relentless writer of truth. She makes senses jitter like raw caffiene with her high energy and causes half smiles and shivering giggles with her silliness. Her performances are so wild, dark, serious and wickedly hilarious. Her emotional words from profound subject matter and unpredictable wide movements really give audiences a loco coaster ride.”
- Tou SaiKo Lee Spoken Word Poet, Hip Hop Artist, and Community Activist.
Visit www.myspace.com/emptyyks for more info OR email at katievang6 (AT) yahoo.com.
Now to the shuffle…
The Cause Of Death
Immortal Technique
This man makes me shit in my pants! His no holds bar, raw, I’ll-send-a-bullet-up-your-ass-if-you-conspire, lyrics, gives me chills. Every time I hear him I start doing my tough girl bounce— his lyrics can slap you awake. “I see the world for what it is, beyond the white and black, the way the government downplays historical facts, coz the United States sponsored the rise of the 3rd Reich just like the CIA trained terrorists to the fight, build bombs and sneak box cutters onto a flight” I consider this man the raw truth giver.
Sagaba
Blue Scholars
Blue Scholars is one of my favorite groups. I love how the music in this song actually has this wind riff that complements the lyrics. And the lyrics- Geo is a dope storyteller. I feel like I’ve been the person who was hopeless, and the person who’s had conversations with the hopeless, Geo has a way of telling stories where everyone can see themselves in the stories. One of my favorite lines in this song: “We hardly know ourselves if we know nobody else and only in our loneliness can home become a hell.”
Devotion
Earth, Wind and Fire
What can I say? This song is uplifting and it does brighten up my day, exactly what it says. I start prancing around and conducting an imaginary choir every time I hear it. It also gives me a sense of unity.
Har Taraf
Shreya Ghoshal
Okay, I’m about to out myself; I’m a huge fan of Bollywood and I first heard Shreya on the movie soundtrack Devdas. She was 16 when she sang for Devdas as the playback singer for the character Paro. Ever since, I’ve been hooked on her voice. Her voice has this sad innocence and is a character of its own, reminds me of my mother’s voice when she is singing kwv txhiaj (Hmong folk songs). This song in particular is meditative. You can find it in the movie called Saaya, a Bollywood remake of the movie Dragonfly, except its better, it has Asian people, GYEA!!
Wake Up
illego aliens
These Hmong emcees from Milwaukee, Wisconsin dropped their first album Blank Canvas in 2007. I love their sound. They have an old-school, funky- psychedelic sound. And FrescoT is crazy with his metaphors. This song in particular, I used in a show and talked about what it meant to me- it reminds me when I use to sit around and do nothing but complain about life. This song reminds me to get off my ass, move and wake up; the chorus:
Wake up there’s more to see when you’re moving
wake-up theres more to breathe than the cool wind
wake-up there’s more than game we’re pursuing,
wake-up there’s more to be,
everyday you find a piece of your conclusion, I said no time to sleep.
Last 5 posts by shuffled
- Shuffled! Adrian Tomine - May 15th, 2008
- Shuffled! Ed Lin - May 8th, 2008
- Shuffled! Catzie Vilayphonh - May 1st, 2008
- Shuffled! Danny "Dandiggity" Le - April 24th, 2008
- Shuffled! Goh Nakamura - April 17th, 2008
Tags: Shuffled!.
The Cause of Death song is quite angry, and also illuminating. Nice lyrics.
I can’t for the life of me find the track from the illego aliens. They have no myspace page. I’ll just have to imagine how awesome it is.
illego’s myspace is myspace.com/illegoaliens,
should be able to access it, i just tried it; “wake up” is up for purchase for .99. check em’ out.
Dope! Katie Vang is my hero. I wish she was nicer to me at hip hop shows though - sometimes she gets in the zone and pushes me to the crowd and starts rappin’. It’s all good though - she wrote her name on my neon green fat laces so now I’m the coolest on the block.
[...] this is anti-nostalgia then, as I am also thinking of Katie Vang, who is a Hmong performance artist, who performed at Bryan’s book release party at The Loft [...]