In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) History Month, members of AARI and the UGA community collaborated to create a playlist of music about the AAPI experience, music by AAPI artists, and music that empowers and celebrates people who identify as AAPI. Some of the contributors have chosen to share about what this music means to them. We hope you enjoy listening to our AAPI History Month Playlist!
"There are a lot of stereotypes about what music by Asian people may sound like, but listening to this playlist shatters all of these! There is such a wide variety of music in here that I truly believe there is something for everyone to enjoy." - Ayako Pederson-Takeda, AARI Member
"I shared a few songs such as "Nobody" by Mitski, "unspoken words" by mxmtoon, "Dynasty" by Rina Sawayama, and two songs from Kishi Bashi! These are written by Asian-American and Asian artists. Some write songs that allude to the Asian-American or Asian experience, and I enjoy listening to their music!" - Joyce Yun, AARI Member
"I chose these songs as these are my personal comfort songs to listen to when I need something after a long day. "Märchen 동화" by Hoppipolla is completely instrumental, but somehow it feels deeper and holds more meaning without any lyrics to me. The artists who performed this piece drew from two completely different experiences when composing this piece but yet managed to make it sound like one cohesive thought. One is a cello player who has traveled and studied music around the world who wrote this in thoughts of his days studying music in Germany while the other is an 18 yr old guitar player who has just recently graduated high school and has not seen the world. The fact that they were able to make this piece is quite incredible to me." - HK, UGA Student
"I've been getting into recently, the R&B style, and I think it's super cool that there are so many Asian artists out there starting to explore this style. I really like Tough Pill because of its meaning (that life is hard and sometimes it's hard to accept) and the Chinese lyrics hit deeper because they connect me to my roots." - Emily W., UGA Student
"Yellow by Rich Brian talks about his experiences breaking into the US as an Asian artist it is quite inspiring." - Nicole B., UGA Student
"Anything of Joe Hisaishi is amazing and I love them all; however, I chose those few because they are accompanied with a movie. I think its quite incredible when a composer can, not only make a beautiful piece of music, but turn a story into a song. Without his pieces, my childhood movies would not carry the same weight in my heart as its the music that elevates the emotion I feel while watching! I know this because even when I listen to his pieces alone, without the visual accompaniment of the movie, I still hear and feel the emotions of a story. That is something I am eternally grateful, especially now, because as an adult, I can not immerse myself so much into the whimsical stories presented in the movies but by listening to his pieces, I can at least FEEL as if i'm living one momentarily." - Donna C., UGA Student
"Tiếng Chim Đa Đa - Quang Linh, I chose his piece because it is a song well known and commonly sung in my community back in Vietnam. Even after we traveled to the US, my dad still sings it often, reminding us where we came from. This song for me, shows how music can be with you always, reminding you of memories that are now gone." - Brian N., UGA Student
"These are some pieces that I enjoy and want to share. I especially love the kecak pieces (from Bali) because it is so different from anything else I have listened to before then, and was what drew me into Balinese culture, customs, music, dance and art. I also love Yumeji's Theme from the movie In The Mood For Love; that movie has some of the best costuming of the cheongsam that I've ever seen. And, I've been listening to a lot of KPop as of late!"- Dr. Emily Koh, Assistant Professor of Composition