September 22, 2020 • 38 mins
Esther talks to actor, radio and television host Ellie Lee about being Korean in the entertainment industry. Ellie talks Korean cinema, breaks down the K-Pop phenomenon and why it's here to stay, dishes about the skills required to interview A-list celebrities, why there aren't more Korean American actors, her plans to conquer Hollywood, and her major life change in becoming vegan.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
I decided to cut out all meat. Now I love
cooking because now it's interesting to me. Before I hated it.
I'm like, I don't care about it. It's been this
very amazing, interesting, fascinating chapter of my life and I
just I love it and I'm I feel so much
more energetic. I'm just like, I don't know. It just
makes me feel like me. Welcome to get down with
(00:25):
kay Town. I'm your host esther Troy. We've heard it
enough and we all know about this. We've come a
really long way since Asian American representation in media has
been strictly stereotypical and one dimensional. Slowly things are shifting.
You're seeing better representation. I'd say we are fighting to
stay that way and to help us with that. And
someone who has been on the forefront of this movement
(00:47):
and living it every single day is Ellie. Ellie is
an insanely talented TV host, actress, and social media in
flintser and honestly one of the most hilarious girls I've
ever met. Seriously, Ellie, You're hilarious. Thank you. She's also
a regular host on I Heart Radio Halla, and you've
seen her on major TV networks such as each One, MTV,
(01:11):
E News, you name it. She's sort of a big deal.
Ellie has also appeared in several independent films and continues
to act in many shows that you will see very soon.
And we'll get to all that in a minute. And
Ellie and I met a while back through mutual friends,
and since then, I believe we've had like a very
mutual admiration towards each other. And I remember last year
(01:32):
we were actually talking about creating a Korean vegan cooking show.
We created a deck and everything. Girl, I still one
day want to do that with you. I think it'll
be super fun, and I think I just want to
like hang out with you and just like laugh my
ass off. That's why I'm always available, Ellie. I just
like really love your energy, and literally I can feel
(01:53):
it through the screen of my phone, Like when I'm
feeling blue, I look at your Instagram and watch your
stuff and you're just so good, like naturally, just so funny.
Your personality really you know, comes out and you can
really feel your energy through a screen, which is very
hard to do. So you just recently moved to l
A to pursue your career even further. Yes, can you
(02:15):
talk about that? How is that? How's it been? Yes?
So I moved out here to l A from Brooklyn
in July. And okay, you know I've been in New York.
I've grinded. I started from nothing. I come from a
family of like immigrants and like we my dad owned
clothing store kids clothing stores. And but since I was
a little girl, I like wanted to be in the
(02:36):
entrainment industry. I like fell in love with movies. I
fell in love with actors. But when I was growing up,
I never saw people that look like me on screen.
So I realized, oh, this isn't something that people that
look like me do. So I'm just going to bury
this dream because it could probably never happened to me.
And I think that as I grew up, I really
started falling in love with hosting because in my mind,
(02:56):
I was like, Okay, so I can't be an actor
because there's no asans that are actor. But maybe if
I become a host, I can become like close to
these people and like see how they didn't like be
around these people that are living there like the lives
that I want to be living. So you always had
an admiration totally. Oh yeah, film TV like actors like
I used to sit there and like drool, and I
should just be like I want to do this, and
(03:18):
I have no idea how to do it, you know.
And so I think back in two thousand and eleven
and when I really decided I quit my nine five,
I was like, f this, I'm going to go for
my dreams on. I started dog walking and auditioning like crazy,
just randomly, like kind of like no trading. Yeah. Yes,
So I booked a small place. So I started taking
(03:38):
acting classes, and I realized, whoa, this is what makes
me feel. I literally when I act, I literally feel
like I'm unstoppable. Like I'm like probably when you cook,
it's just like adrenaline to the max, and then you
and then when you're out of it, you're like this, WHOA,
what the hell was that? You know that feeling? Right?
You feel alive exactly, And so I was like, I
have to change this feeling. So yes, I've been very
(03:59):
success on the hosting front. I you know, I've done
morning shows, I've been on e I've interviewed everybody and
their moms. I've done all that stuff. But now I
feel like this move to l A was is for
me to become like the true artist and the actor
that I truly feel that inside my bones I am.
And I feel like I've had a lot of insecurity
around it. I feel like I've been really intimidated by it.
I've really psyched myself out. I think just the acting
(04:22):
industry is a mind of just complete Like anybody that
enters this industry is insane. Okay, there's no stability. It's
always up and down. Even if you get a little success,
it doesn't matter because you can be straight down to
zero again. It's so scary and there are many times
I'm like this, why in the world am I doing this?
(04:43):
But it's like it's it's I'm just chasing. It's just
that I have a thirst for it. I have a
hunger for it, like I know that it's part of
my d n A, Like I know that I've been
anointed to have these feelings for this thing. And I'm
the kind of person like I'm I was telling Marcia,
your producer, I'm a double areas and we're just fire
and we just go for everything and we don't stop.
And like that's the way I am. And so me
(05:04):
moving to l A was a big move for me.
You were struggling with this because I remember our conversation
when you were still living in New York. You're you're
still struggling with the idea of moving out here. Yes, yes.
And so basically I got offered a show by E
and they wanted me to come and shoot this pilot.
So I sound signed this contract and all this stuff,
and I was like, oh, this is my sign, like
(05:25):
l A wants me. There's work for me in l A.
Let's go. So me and my boyfriend of four years
and our dog packed up. We did a cross country
road trip for twelve twelve days. I landed in l
A and I started freaking out. I mean I started
literally having like a mental breakdown. I was like, what
am I gonna do? I was like, I don't know
how to get my dreams, Like I like, sure I
have like reps and everything like that, but the idea
(05:46):
that I was actually in l A scared me so much.
I broke down, and something in me told me to
like text my friend. She's a Korean girl. I don't
know if you know, her name is Nellie Choy, and
she's like, oh, I know, she's like really spiritual and
all the stuff. I text her and I was like,
I'm having a treakdown. I don't know why I'm texting you,
but I feel like I just need you to tell
me something. And she literally is the first person that
(06:07):
really told me to dive into like self love work
and self worth work. And so I started listening to
all these podcasts and following all these different types of
women who are really diving into this thing. And I
started looking to myself and I was like, whoa, I've
seen that a lot on your yes progression as you
moved to l A. Yes, it kind of shifted yes,
oh yes, Yes, it was like the teutonic plates. Okay,
(06:30):
we're like shifting. And basically when I looked at myself,
I was like, Wow, I'm a mess and I have
no love for myself and this relationship I was in,
I was showing up ten percent and it was it
was a mess. And I decided in the second week
I got to l A that I was going to
break up this relationship and I was going to start
my journey independence, self love, self worth. And the last
(06:55):
six months I've been here have been the craziest, most
transformative metamor physics of my life. And I am not
the same girl that came here on July twelfth in
Los Angeles. I am a completely different person and all
and I have been broken to my knees aster like
broken to my knees. But I have learned my greatest
(07:15):
lessons in literally the darkest times in my life, where
and I had nothing. None of my family was here,
none of my close homies were here, my brother and
my sister, everybody was back home in New Jersey. My
boyfriend that I came here with, like the love of
my life, everything was gone. And I was like, Oh,
I came here so that I can be stripped of
everything and everybody to really find myself and get quiet
(07:38):
and figure out me. And that's literally been my journey
this entire time, and nothing career wise, it's been crickets.
But what I realized is, Oh, this time is being
given to me to sharpen me, to get me ready
to what's to come into my career. And literally I
have cleared so much negativity in my life but relationships,
(08:00):
bad friendships, everything, and I've created so much space now
and every day all I do is work on myself
and I'm just getting ready because I know, I know
that my career is going to explode for sure. And
then there are moments where I'm like, this is it, Ellie,
are you just playing yourself? And then I get back
to no, no no, no, no, no, yes, baby, you are
going to manifest everything you want in your life. And
(08:21):
so this period of my life has been insane. I
can't wait to see. And you just gave me the
chills because it's crazy. What something like a move physically
getting out of a place and going to somewhere new
and you could just like strip yourself of everything and
become someone completely different. Level up speaking of your next
(08:44):
move in your career, yes, I just want to talk
to you about how it's been for you as I
guess a Korean American in the entertainment industry, so you know,
so you know, my bread and butter has been hosting,
and so when I became an on camera host, the
only person that I looked to growing up with SuChin
pac who was a VJ over at MTV. Remember she
was a Korean woman and I remember watching her MTV
(09:06):
but like, what the hell she looks like me, Like,
this is what's going on? And so when I saw her,
I realized, oh, this is possible for me. Somebody that
looks like me can be a host. I can do this.
And so for me, when I go into rooms of hosts,
I rarely see another Asian girl. It's always a latina's.
It's always by racial girls, black girls, white girls. But
(09:29):
I never so rare that I see another Asian girl. Okay,
can I stop you right there for a second, because
why do you think that is? Why do you think
Asian women maybe don't feel or I don't know, why
isn't there any other you know, look at the way
we're raised. We're not raised to be like, oh you
want to be an entertainment you know what I mean?
Like we're raised to like have these jobs of like
(09:50):
the very stupid, stereotypical like the doctors, the lawyers, like
study your ass of be a pharmacist, all this stuff
our parents are not talking about. Entertainment is a thing
for you, Like that's something that you should explore. Do
you think that it's literally the way we were brought up?
Is that why? For me personally, I've never been surrounded
by any Asians that were an entertainment, you know, Like
I grew up in New Jersey, Like I never saw
(10:11):
it and like I didn't know people that were in
it never, So how can you think that's possible for
you if you never see it or you're're never witnessing
or you're never around it, you know. But there are
a lot of upcoming Asian American actresses and actors that
are really like in the acting world, but still in
the hosting world, there's not a lot of us. There's not,
like I seriously, there really isn't. There really isn't. So
(10:32):
for me when I saw that, I was like, oh,
I'm gonna use this to my advantage, you know what
I mean, And like I tell this story. But I
when I got this audition because v H one was
looking for a new host, and I walked into the room,
there was a white girl going into the audition room,
and there was a super cute Latina girls sitting in
the in the chair right, and I sat across from her,
and I started freaking out. I'm like, why the hell
(10:53):
would they ever choose me. I'm like, there's a white girl,
pretty as hell going in there, this Latina girl, cute
as a button, probably really funny. She's probably gonna kill it.
And I literally remember texting my brother and saying, I
think I'm gonna leave. I don't think I deserve to
be here. And he literally said to me, Nuna, which
is like big older says. He said, Luna, you are
there because you are good. He's like, you did not
(11:14):
get there out of luck. You got there because you
have the skills. You stay, and so I stayed. That
was the most intense audition of my life. Forty five minutes.
They threw everything at me. What what is that interview?
So they're like, okay, um, so you got to prompter.
All right, We're gonna roll a prompter. It's gonna be
a whole script and you have to run with the
whole thing and like in search your personality. Okay, so
I did that, Like so like you you haven't even
(11:35):
seen never, never seen it. So they start, yeah, they
start rolling right and now they're like this, okay, Now
we're gonna do a slide show of tense celebrities and
Halloween costumes. And we wanted a riff on every single celebrity.
So it was to show like do you know your celebrities?
Do you know your pop culture? Then they're like this,
You're on a red carpet, Claire Danes is coming up
to you. Okay, what are you gonna ask her? So
they want to know do you know all the TV film?
(11:55):
Like are you up to all that stuff? And then
they were like okay, like literally everything that a host
could do, they were throwing it at me to see
if I could handle it. And I walked out of
that audition being like I freaking nailed that. I felt
so good and like, so the next four months I
was auditioning, they were like like like making me think
I wasn't gonna get It wasn't And then finally they
(12:16):
called me in. I met with the executive producers of
the v H one's Morning show. They fell in love
with me, and five days later they called me and
they're like, we want you for the host and we
want you we want to put you on the morning
show with Nickolosch. And literally that was a very big
turning moment. And also like I was an Asian girl,
Asian girl. I remember seeing you like next to Nicolo.
(12:36):
I mean, it could have been anyone, could have been anyone,
And there were there were celebrities that I I was
going up for the v H one. I'm so proud
that it was a Korean American girl. Yes, And I
used to tell them like, you guys took a chance
on an Asian girl, and like they could have just
been like, we want a white girl, but no, they
were like, let's do this, you know, and so like
it was really it was a moment for me. It
(12:58):
was a really huge career turning point for me. And
obviously you felt so proud as a Korean. Yeah, like,
oh my god. My parents, like my dad when I
first when I quit my job, he was like this, Ellie,
nine point nine percent of people that go into the
entertainment industry fail. He's like, why are you doing this?
And I said, but dad, there's still that one person
(13:18):
point one percent. I on that point one percent And
when he saw me on H one. Since then, he
has been nothing but supportive for me. You could have
been a a girl that wants to make it in
(13:41):
Korean Korean TV, because obviously in Korea everyone wants to
become like a k pop star, right, that's like a thing,
but you decided to do it. In American media, people
used to be like, do you want to go to
Korean and be like oh, hell no, I want the
toughest challenge. I'm not gonna go and like be with
people that all. I'm gonna do it here and I'm
gonna do a big I mean, it's it's amazing to
(14:02):
see a Korean host interviewing like Korean k pop stars. Yes,
in American media in English. First of all, these ka
pop stars don't even speak English. Can we talk about
that for a second. Like you and your interviews with
all all of the top kapop stars, they've all gone viral.
All the interviews have gone by. I mean, okay, can
(14:22):
you name a few? Okay, so Xo, I've interviewed BTS twice,
This got seven stray Kids, Tiffany Young and everyone and
anyone that's like the hottest. The hottest would come in
and then I would interview them and then all of
them went viral. It's insane, but you know what it is.
Tell me America doesn't really understand k pop yet, right.
(14:46):
They see these like pretty boys dancing around and they're
not taking them seriously. They're not understanding them. I don't know.
It seems like America loves Korean k pop star, So
can you elaborate on that? A little bit. So k
pop is a phenomenon. Uh, it is. It is something
that people can't even describe its power. It's as a trend.
It's not going away. If anything, it's going to get
(15:07):
bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger. And it's the
blow up of BTS has just shown the immense power
of Korean pop culture and like, really, where K pop
is going to go? Like I'm very excited and interested
to see where it's going to go. But basically, the
fandom is so hardcore. There's no fandom in this entire
world that is like k pop fandom. Yeah, do you
(15:29):
think it's comparable to like end sync, like back in
the more hardcore, more hardcore about the fandom of something
about these K pop stars that resonates so deeply with
these girls, Like it's it's almost like unexplainable and like
sometimes like like I was doing this live show once
with all these kapop fans and I was like, oh,
(15:50):
I know, because you want their babies and they're like this, no,
we don't want their babies, And what it is, it's
it's it's almost it's not a sexual love thing. It's
like it's there's something really innocent about these K pop
stars that these kids really resonate with, and it's almost
like they want to protect them. That love is just unconditional.
(16:11):
They will literally do anything for these guys. It's crazy,
it's incredible. It's incredible, it's incredible. So that's why you're saying,
like America doesn't understand it yet, what do you mean
by that? Because I feel like America sees like these
pretty Asian boys and they're like, okay, this is like yeah,
they're confused if they don't really get it. They're like, okay,
so do you find them attractive? Like are they are
they masculine? Like are they feminine? You know, like they
(16:32):
don't really understand it. And I feel like a lot
of journalists, obviously there's a language barrier and also a
culture a barrier, so when they're interviewing them, it's very
awkward and it's like there's a lot of just nothingness
going on, and the boys feel and the girls feel uncomfortable,
and like the host is trying to make it work
and it just never works. But if you get to
Korean American who understands k pop, also, my Korean isn't
(16:53):
that great, but I know how to speak some Korean,
so I put that little conglish in, you know. And
these are my people, Like I've looked at these but
my entire life, I feel comfortable with you exactly. So
as soon as they sit down, and like, you know,
I always tell people like my skill my skill set
is basically this, somebody comes into a room, right, they're
most likely famous person whatever, Right, I have ten seconds
(17:14):
right to figure out what their energy is. Are they hungover,
are they tired, are they in a bad mood? Or
do they not want to be here? Right? And these
are like a list celebrities, yes, and my job is
to figure out where their energy level is and look
at them and go, okay, I have to substitute this
much energy to meet you and lift you up so
that the video content is insane. And that's my job, right.
(17:35):
So when these K pop stars come in, I immediately
make them feel comfortable and make them feel like I'm
just like their sister, you know, and we just talk.
I spit some Korean in there, you know, make them laugh,
make them comfortable, and then bam, you just have a
really great fifteen thirteen nine minute interview and fans have
gift these interviews. There's memes like it's just and people
have my YouTube videos on you on these interviews, like
(17:58):
it's just insane, and I'm really grateful for it. And
like most of my followers are K pop fans and
like really they say to me, they're like, we came
for the artist, but we left loving you, and it's
like thank you. You say that you feel grateful, but
I think that these people and the K pop stars
are actually grateful for you. Finally there's someone that can
interview these K pop stars without being awkward in America. Right,
(18:21):
you said that Americans still don't understand K pop, but
so like, how do we get them to understand K pop?
Is through these interviews exactly? Right, exactly, and to show
like these kids are super chrismatic, they're very funny, they're
you know, they've been to K pop camp, you know,
so they're very disciplined and well mannered. They are very
different from American artists. Their discipline is unlike anything else.
(18:44):
I like that you said k pop camp, because what
is k pop camp? If you want to become a
K pop star, you have to start very young, and
you probably eleven, twelve, thirteen and if a major record
you know, company, decides that they want to bring you
on as a trainee, you basically start training like you're
in boot camp like military camp, and you typically are
(19:07):
living at this camp. You're living with these people. You're
dancing for X amount of hours every day, you're singing,
you're doing personality stuff like you know, some members you
see on variety shows and some members you don't because
they really see, Okay, this guy's funny, we'll put them
on this show. This guy's not that funny, We'll just
keep them in the back, or like, yeah, what are
variety shows, elliot? Oh yes, sorry, Korean shows. We have
(19:30):
a lot of variety shows where it's like host and
like celebrity guests, and then they do like interviews or
they do fun games and like those are the kind
of variety shows, but they go on to like promote
their albums or their songs or whatever the hell they do.
It's kind of equivalent to like American reality shows. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
totally totally toy. How do people figure out, Okay, we're
gonna get this nine year old or eleven year old
(19:51):
into the student and we're gonna start training them a
lot of the times, it's like the kids being like
I want to do it and the parents being like okay, God,
like ten years Look at Boa. Boa was a huge
K pop singer who's been in the game forever. She's
at first like she's the first, but she's been doing
it since she was like eight years old, and it's
because her parents were like, yeah, go and go and
do this thing, you know, which is insane. I was
(20:11):
kind of and my kid, go and do that. So
what is it about Koreans letting their child at ten
years old? I think there's something really glitzy and glamorous
about the idea of becoming a celebrity, you know. And
I think that's especially in Korea, right, I mean, everyone
wants to be a ka pop star in Korea, Like
that's like a thing. Yeah, and every fan of K
pop wants to be a k pop star, you know.
(20:33):
Everybody thinks it's like this amazing thing, but it's actually
super hard work and a lot of sacrifice. And like
when I interview these groups to it, I look at them,
I'm like, it's hard, right, and they're like, yeah, you know,
this isn't easy. The road they chose is so hard.
And like BTS is one out of a billion, like
most groups will never reach the heights of success that
(20:55):
they have, you know, So what is it about BTS girl?
It is something about them, I think also, I mean
you met them so like, so cool, so sweet, so
down to earth, very funny, very personable, and I think
they're just really grateful for the position that they're in.
And I think collectively, just across the board, they all
have really strong personalities and there's a lot of them.
(21:18):
So when you have a lot of guys to like,
you know, of course the fandom is going to triple
in size. So going back to hosting an interviewing cream
Kee pop star, do you think that also, kidgen hold
you into just doing all the K pop stuff? Not
(21:39):
that that's bad, I'm just curious, what is that like? Yeah,
I mean I think that's what I'm known for. But
when I was an I Heart, I mean I was
interviewing everybody, like everyone from rappers to country singers to
K pop stars to like teeny popper, like YouTubers, everybody
came in. So like me, I just look at people
as people. I just look at them. I'm like, oh,
you're just like me, And that's how I conduct every interview.
(22:02):
So have you ever interviewed anyone that are Korean celebrities
that are not K pop stars. I've never interviewed Korean
Koreans outside of K pop stars and Korean Americans. I
mean there's not a lot of us, you know exactly. Yeah, yeah,
so I haven't interviewed a lot of them. Okay, I've
interview any Well, that's that's what I'm saying, Like, are
there where the Korean celebrities at We're like Steven June, yes,
(22:25):
and like like it's sound said, I can't even name, Like,
there's not many of you. Yeah, there's not many. There's
not many, Margaret show. I'm an interview But yeah, I
have never interviewed Korean American celebrities. I gotta do that.
So here's the interesting part. Korean K pop stars are
this crazy phenomenon. What about like the Korean actors, like
the other part of entertainment industry. How come that hasn't
(22:46):
coincided together? You know, because K pop stars are churning
out pop music. You know, they're turning out universal pop music.
That's really and then you know they got the whole thing.
They got the dancing, they got the music video, they
got the colorful hair is they're wearing eyeliner. You know.
It's like k pop is like really something you can
package really cutely and really just bring all over the
(23:07):
the universe and people will really like resonate with it
something about it. But like Korean actors, like you know,
if you watch Korean movies, a lot of it's like dark,
and like you know, a lot of it is like
very Korean centric, so it's not like a universal thing.
But k pop it's like when you see the bubbly
and the and the pink and the green, and it's
just like all this stuff that's like so much more
(23:28):
appealing than like, you know, Korean cinema, which was I
think a plan, like Korean government plan that going back
to like Korean cinema and you said it's got dark
and I love but there's something about Korean cinema that's
so special, right, I think you can see that in
a global light now with like Parasite exactly. There are
a lot of great films like Parasite in Korean cinema,
(23:51):
but those haven't ever gone viral like Parasite, right, why
is it now that's a good question. I definitely think
it's the movie. I think it's the director. I think
it's the time that we're in as well. I think
all of that helps. But also like I remember watching
Parasite and being like an American movie could never, could
(24:12):
never do something like this. There wasn't one second of
that movie where I was not invested or just so
zoomed in, just like the acting is incredible, Like for Koreans,
I think in a Korean cinema, like everything feels so effortless.
It's like when and this is my theory, it's because,
like you know, mental illness is really taboo in Korea,
(24:33):
Like you know, there's no you don't talk about depression.
That's like dumb and like it doesn't exist and all
these things. And for me, I think when you're an
artist in Korea, the only way to release how you
feel and everything inside is through your art. And like
that's my theory on why I think Korean actors are
so killer is because this is their only way to
release everything inside of them. So when they do it,
(24:55):
you can't take your eyes away from them. It's like
they're they're they're they're so embody that Charter, they are
the characters are you. Forget about it. You don't even
want to feel like you're watching a movie. I mean Parasite.
I mean, yes, it is an insanely amazing movie. But
I'm like thinking back to movies like Old Boy, Right,
that movie was just as good as Parasite. I would
(25:15):
feel like, right, I mean, it's incredible, incredible, like you
just feel creepy all inside. But that didn't blow up
the way Parasite blew up. So it's definitely the times
that for sure, for sure, for sure, for sure, absolutely,
I think this is a really interesting time for Asian
Americans in the entertainment industry. It's a very interesting time.
(25:36):
And I think that this is only the beginning. Like
I feel like Hollywood or everybody thinks like, oh, it's
just a phase. It's not a phase. Like we're definitely
not a face. We are forced to be reckoned with.
We are the quiet bunch, but watch us because when
we roar, we roar aloud, you know, And I really
think that's this is the come up of the movement.
So that's why every single person in every player in
(25:57):
the game, you me, I own up. Yeah, And we
are so important in the game, you know, because there's
not a lot of us. So when we stand strong,
we have to stand strong and really represent our people
like to the t. And that's something that's really important
for me. Same, like we have to come together. And
I think that's a big part of why I started
(26:19):
this podcast as well, because it's like there's no one
just like talking about this. I mean, yes, I'm talking
more on Korean culture because I'm I happen to be
Korean and I lived and breathe it. I feel like
it's important that we just talk about it and stick
together each other. Absolutely. Yeah, uplift each other. Like it's
not a time for like people. It's not competition time.
(26:39):
It's like, how can we get together and rise together? Seriously,
why are Asian Americans so competitive? Because we're smart, you know.
So Ellie, what's in it for you next? What what's
your planned? What? What do you want to do? I
want to be a movie star. I want to make films.
I want to make films that made what I felt like,
(27:01):
that made me want to be an actor. Like I
want people to leave like movies that I'm in thinking, feeling, crying, laughing.
I don't even care if you hate it, I just
want you to feel something when you leave that theater.
And to me, like, I've had a lot of shame
growing up saying like I want to be a movie star,
and now I'm like this, I'm going to be a
movie star period, and like and I would love to
(27:24):
be part of like television shows that like really tell
an Asian American story, Like I really want to be
in that world swimming taking laps, like I really want
to make art that just stays with people. You're going
to represent, girl, Yeah exactly. I want to talk about
your lifestyle a little bit because I do this thing
where I cook for my guests, and I was excited
(27:45):
to cook for you because you know, you're probably the
only cream veasan that I yes, yes, yes, probably probably. Honestly,
it's really hard to be vegan as a Korean because
our food just has everything, every fish, pork, especially fish,
like if you're every thing, if you were pescatarian, like
that's fine, yeah, but like vegan like plant based yeah
(28:06):
yeahan base yeah yeah yeah. But like you know, I
love is like a square radish and like anchovy shrimp
all over it. It's like it's it's very frustrating. Yeah,
it's not the easiest thing, Okay, So I'll tell you. So.
I became a dog rescuer in high school, and I
fell in love with dogs and just like the mistreatment
of dogs, like in shelters and like all this stuff.
(28:26):
And I was volunteering every everywhere and literally aster like
I would do anything I've done, like illegal things, to
like save dogs, Like I would do anything for a dog.
But I was really conflicted because I'd be like, Okay,
I would do anything for this one animal, but then
I would go home and like eat chicken, you know,
or I eat bacon and stuff like that. So it
was like a guilt thing. Oh yeah, a huge ethical thing.
And for a long time, I try to like suppress bex.
(28:48):
I'm like, there's no way I can change the entire
way of how I know how to eat. And then
I read this book called Eating Animals and it changed
my life. And as soon as I folded the last page,
like flipped on last page, I was like this, I'm
done with meat. And I went no pun intended cold turkey.
That was in two thousand and thirteen. I decided to
(29:08):
cut out all meat. And then I cut out all dairy,
and then I cut out eggs and then fish. I
was like, how can I do this? How can I
do this? How can I do this? I love fish?
I love fish. And then I was like the way
that my personality is, I'm go big or go home.
And I was like, I'm going I'm going big. So
I cut out everything. And since then, you haven't had
(29:28):
any any nothing, nothing, nothing nothing, So like when you
eat cream food, so you have to make everything yourself.
So I've really learned how to make things on my own.
Like now I make tough ten and like Kim chicken
and like mun do and like now you know a
lot of the cream grocery stores they're like they like, okay,
vegans like a thing, so like they'll have like vegan
(29:50):
on like certain labels, and like I follow like a
lot of like vegan people who I love cream food,
so like I know the things to buy and like
where to go and like what to get. But I've
really taught myself so in like now I love cooking
because now it's interesting to me. Before I hated it.
I'm like I don't care about it, but now I'm
like you have to have to have to absolutely so
like it's been this very amazing, interesting, fascinating chapter of
(30:13):
my life. And I just I love it and I'm
I feel so much more energetic. I'm just like I
don't know. It just makes me feel like me and
like just I don't know, I I and to me,
it's like now I can really like look at animals
and being like, Okay, I'm really doing right by you guys.
You know, I'm really I'm really doing this. I mean,
it's a lifestyle. I think it's incredible. Especially as a Korean.
(30:35):
It must be very hard. But I'm going to share
many vegan recipes with you because you know, a lot
of my clients, especially my higher end clients, are vegan,
and I do cream food, so I had to kind
of like learn how to make Korean vegan dishes. There's
this thing that I came up with. Well, it's jack
fruit barbecue, but I do it in like cream barbecue Marida,
(30:57):
so it's like and it's it's like rugogie but jackfruit. Yeah.
But you know, and I do like a spicy Marinas.
It tastes like spicy pork, but it's jack fruit and
it's really really good. And I did it for like
a James Beard Foundation dinner and they were going crazy
nuts over that barbecue. And I'm going to give you
that recipe, please please do I love jackfruit. It's like
(31:19):
the one thing that tastes like yeah kind of. I
mean it's like the pull chicken of. I think it's
more like a texture thing, which is why it taste like.
It doesn't really taste like me. It doesn't, it doesn't.
It's really about the marinae. It is. It is it is.
I made your favorite curran dish for you, which is
mandud so this mandy that I made obviously plant based,
(31:40):
shocking mushrooms tofu chives, carrot onions and tongue me on,
which is the Vermitelli noodles. Yeah, it's very very good.
Like I don't miss me eating these dumplings. Is there
hard to find really good plant based dumplings? Wow? Interesting question,
(32:00):
because I feel like it's really hard to do mandu
or dumpling. It's very hard to find a good man do, yeah,
like a vegan one, like it's true. Yeah, it's true, Okay,
got it. So, but there's a lot of bad ones.
Nobody knows how to do a good man do like
this is a good mon do. It's crispy on the outside,
it's still soft on some inside, like and it's not huge.
(32:22):
It's so this mandu obviously I made it, and it's
not crispy because I didn't make it like just now.
Oh good mm hmmm mm hm oh yeah, m hmm.
Listen to those flavors of okay, describe it to me.
(32:46):
Here's what it is. You don't even need the kung jung.
You don't you, m M. I like to flavor my
dumplings like inside, like I wanted to be, want you
to be able to eat it without sauce exactly. Sometimes
you don't have sauce, and mando is one of those
things where sometimes you're eating it on the go and
(33:08):
you're eating in the car. You don't have you can't
like dip it in like toy sauce. So I like
to make my mond do flavorful. You know it's also
good because I know you handmade it too. You saw
me freaking folding to his dumplings last. Honestly, this girl
could have gone a frozen out of store, but she
was like, no, I thought about it. I'm in l
a like I literally traveled here and I made dumplings.
(33:29):
These are so good. These are so good, Like you
can't store by these, like you just you can't. You can't.
And it's like the perfect size. When I was telling you,
like it's hard to find the perfect mando, like some
people do it too big, like too much dope, not
enough filling, or like the filling isn't flavored, or like
it's it's it's mushy, you know what I mean, it's
(33:50):
all chives or something. Yeah, yeah, exactly exactly. But the
ratio of the filling has to be right as well, exactly,
and the outer later it can't be thick. An I
don't like about and need a thin layer like this
so that I'm getting all the filling inside and I
can really taste that, you know, Oh my god, it's good.
(34:12):
I want to make this on all. Yeah, it's so.
I mean, it's not hard as long as you learn
the basics, it's not hard, right. Manda is one of
those things that might be time consuming, but also it's
one of those things where you bring your family together,
your friends together, and you just you know, sit in
a big group and like make dumpling. It's a community
(34:33):
driven food item. What's the prep time from beginning to
the end. So it really depends on how much mond
do you're making. Let's say you're making like mand just
for like two people or four people. It's it doesn't
take that long to make the filling. That's really quick.
It's really about the folding of the mando, which you
can make it like really basic too. It doesn't have
(34:55):
to be people look at this fold. I wish you
guys could see this fold. It's like, so ah done,
Like this is good. My harmoney told me my har
money being. Grandma always said your man do is your children.
So the more beautiful you make your man do, your
children will be I love. So it was so I
(35:17):
was like I went crazy with the practicing on beautiful babies.
I'm man do is such a community driven, like such
a such a family, Like you remember making like mand
do with your family. It's like it's such a beautiful
way for like families to come together and like you
(35:37):
talk your fun. Grandma's teaching you, Mom's teaching you. You know,
it's just like it's beautiful. And I don't like dumplings,
said no one ever. And I feel like every culture
has their own version of a dumpling or a mond
do right, like every every culture is the best. I mean,
(35:59):
let's be real, I really like sick. I don't need
anything all day because I knew I was gonna eat
these and I was like, I need to be like
extra empty. Oh man, I sure, Oh, I feel like
I should have fifty of them. What do you mean?
I just there's more left. I mean those are pretty filly,
and don't you like not missing what I'm talking about this.
(36:20):
We do have a veggie mandu at mock Bar, and
we do three different types of dumplings. We do pork,
beef and you're vegan one. So good, you know, they're
like more popular than my other ones. And I love
that because I'm just like I love yeah, I love
hearing that because it's it's like, dude, and also it's
(36:41):
the most work honestly, the vegan ones, because like all
the chopping on the vegetables. Right, But doesn't your vegan
ramen do really well too? Oh my gosh, it's killer.
So want that right now? Yeah? Eat your top seller
one of them? Yeah, one of the top sellers. Yeah.
And it's like it's like the fermented being paid tied
down to us. As the base of the Oh my god,
(37:03):
it's so good. It has like an addictive quality to
it and that broth. Yeah, so I feel like Korean
food can very easily be vegan and super delicious. It's
just a matter of doing it because there's not many
do it obviously. But like, yo, let's talk in ten years,
because I'm sure half of Korean we can kind of
(37:23):
open a van Korean restaurant together. Yes, yes, well, we're
gonna do our show. We're gonna do our show, which
is gonna be so big that we're going to create
a store where people can come and there's like pictures
of us in the walls and stuff like that. You know,
we pop in once a year. I can see it now.
I love it, love it. But thank you, thank you
so much. Where can our listeners find you? Yes, on
(37:45):
Instagram you can find me at Ellie y j Lee.
My YouTube is Ellie Lee with an extra E at
the end. And I'm launching a podcast, a spirit my
spiritual awakening podcast called at Just Woke Up Podcast on Instagram.
So please follow me there and you know you listen.
If you follow me, you'll be inspired. Okay, you'll be inspired, yes,
(38:05):
But that's what I love you. I love you, and
that's our show. Thanks for listening. If you like what
you heard, please subscribe and leave us a five star review.
Get Down with Kaytown is a production of iHeart Radio
and was created by our executive producer Christopher Hasiotis and
me Esther Troy. Follow me on all social media at
toy bites and I'd also like to thank our producer,
(38:26):
editor and mixer Marcy to Pina. For more podcasts from
I heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcast,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
I decided to cut out all meat. Now I love
cooking because now it's interesting to me. Before I hated it.
I'm like, I don't care about it. It's been this
very amazing, interesting, fascinating chapter of my life and I
just I love it and I'm I feel so much
more energetic. I'm just like, I don't know. It just
makes me feel like me. Welcome to get down with
(00:25):
kay Town. I'm your host esther Troy. We've heard it
enough and we all know about this. We've come a
really long way since Asian American representation in media has
been strictly stereotypical and one dimensional. Slowly things are shifting.
You're seeing better representation. I'd say we are fighting to
stay that way and to help us with that. And
someone who has been on the forefront of this movement
(00:47):
and living it every single day is Ellie. Ellie is
an insanely talented TV host, actress, and social media in
flintser and honestly one of the most hilarious girls I've
ever met. Seriously, Ellie, You're hilarious. Thank you. She's also
a regular host on I Heart Radio Halla, and you've
seen her on major TV networks such as each One, MTV,
(01:11):
E News, you name it. She's sort of a big deal.
Ellie has also appeared in several independent films and continues
to act in many shows that you will see very soon.
And we'll get to all that in a minute. And
Ellie and I met a while back through mutual friends,
and since then, I believe we've had like a very
mutual admiration towards each other. And I remember last year
(01:32):
we were actually talking about creating a Korean vegan cooking show.
We created a deck and everything. Girl, I still one
day want to do that with you. I think it'll
be super fun, and I think I just want to
like hang out with you and just like laugh my
ass off. That's why I'm always available, Ellie. I just
like really love your energy, and literally I can feel
(01:53):
it through the screen of my phone, Like when I'm
feeling blue, I look at your Instagram and watch your
stuff and you're just so good, like naturally, just so funny.
Your personality really you know, comes out and you can
really feel your energy through a screen, which is very
hard to do. So you just recently moved to l
A to pursue your career even further. Yes, can you
(02:15):
talk about that? How is that? How's it been? Yes?
So I moved out here to l A from Brooklyn
in July. And okay, you know I've been in New York.
I've grinded. I started from nothing. I come from a
family of like immigrants and like we my dad owned
clothing store kids clothing stores. And but since I was
a little girl, I like wanted to be in the
(02:36):
entrainment industry. I like fell in love with movies. I
fell in love with actors. But when I was growing up,
I never saw people that look like me on screen.
So I realized, oh, this isn't something that people that
look like me do. So I'm just going to bury
this dream because it could probably never happened to me.
And I think that as I grew up, I really
started falling in love with hosting because in my mind,
(02:56):
I was like, Okay, so I can't be an actor
because there's no asans that are actor. But maybe if
I become a host, I can become like close to
these people and like see how they didn't like be
around these people that are living there like the lives
that I want to be living. So you always had
an admiration totally. Oh yeah, film TV like actors like
I used to sit there and like drool, and I
should just be like I want to do this, and
(03:18):
I have no idea how to do it, you know.
And so I think back in two thousand and eleven
and when I really decided I quit my nine five,
I was like, f this, I'm going to go for
my dreams on. I started dog walking and auditioning like crazy,
just randomly, like kind of like no trading. Yeah. Yes,
So I booked a small place. So I started taking
(03:38):
acting classes, and I realized, whoa, this is what makes
me feel. I literally when I act, I literally feel
like I'm unstoppable. Like I'm like probably when you cook,
it's just like adrenaline to the max, and then you
and then when you're out of it, you're like this, WHOA,
what the hell was that? You know that feeling? Right?
You feel alive exactly, And so I was like, I
have to change this feeling. So yes, I've been very
(03:59):
success on the hosting front. I you know, I've done
morning shows, I've been on e I've interviewed everybody and
their moms. I've done all that stuff. But now I
feel like this move to l A was is for
me to become like the true artist and the actor
that I truly feel that inside my bones I am.
And I feel like I've had a lot of insecurity
around it. I feel like I've been really intimidated by it.
I've really psyched myself out. I think just the acting
(04:22):
industry is a mind of just complete Like anybody that
enters this industry is insane. Okay, there's no stability. It's
always up and down. Even if you get a little success,
it doesn't matter because you can be straight down to
zero again. It's so scary and there are many times
I'm like this, why in the world am I doing this?
(04:43):
But it's like it's it's I'm just chasing. It's just
that I have a thirst for it. I have a
hunger for it, like I know that it's part of
my d n A, Like I know that I've been
anointed to have these feelings for this thing. And I'm
the kind of person like I'm I was telling Marcia,
your producer, I'm a double areas and we're just fire
and we just go for everything and we don't stop.
And like that's the way I am. And so me
(05:04):
moving to l A was a big move for me.
You were struggling with this because I remember our conversation
when you were still living in New York. You're you're
still struggling with the idea of moving out here. Yes, yes.
And so basically I got offered a show by E
and they wanted me to come and shoot this pilot.
So I sound signed this contract and all this stuff,
and I was like, oh, this is my sign, like
(05:25):
l A wants me. There's work for me in l A.
Let's go. So me and my boyfriend of four years
and our dog packed up. We did a cross country
road trip for twelve twelve days. I landed in l
A and I started freaking out. I mean I started
literally having like a mental breakdown. I was like, what
am I gonna do? I was like, I don't know
how to get my dreams, Like I like, sure I
have like reps and everything like that, but the idea
(05:46):
that I was actually in l A scared me so much.
I broke down, and something in me told me to
like text my friend. She's a Korean girl. I don't
know if you know, her name is Nellie Choy, and
she's like, oh, I know, she's like really spiritual and
all the stuff. I text her and I was like,
I'm having a treakdown. I don't know why I'm texting you,
but I feel like I just need you to tell
me something. And she literally is the first person that
(06:07):
really told me to dive into like self love work
and self worth work. And so I started listening to
all these podcasts and following all these different types of
women who are really diving into this thing. And I
started looking to myself and I was like, whoa, I've
seen that a lot on your yes progression as you
moved to l A. Yes, it kind of shifted yes,
oh yes, Yes, it was like the teutonic plates. Okay,
(06:30):
we're like shifting. And basically when I looked at myself,
I was like, Wow, I'm a mess and I have
no love for myself and this relationship I was in,
I was showing up ten percent and it was it
was a mess. And I decided in the second week
I got to l A that I was going to
break up this relationship and I was going to start
my journey independence, self love, self worth. And the last
(06:55):
six months I've been here have been the craziest, most
transformative metamor physics of my life. And I am not
the same girl that came here on July twelfth in
Los Angeles. I am a completely different person and all
and I have been broken to my knees aster like
broken to my knees. But I have learned my greatest
(07:15):
lessons in literally the darkest times in my life, where
and I had nothing. None of my family was here,
none of my close homies were here, my brother and
my sister, everybody was back home in New Jersey. My
boyfriend that I came here with, like the love of
my life, everything was gone. And I was like, Oh,
I came here so that I can be stripped of
everything and everybody to really find myself and get quiet
(07:38):
and figure out me. And that's literally been my journey
this entire time, and nothing career wise, it's been crickets.
But what I realized is, Oh, this time is being
given to me to sharpen me, to get me ready
to what's to come into my career. And literally I
have cleared so much negativity in my life but relationships,
(08:00):
bad friendships, everything, and I've created so much space now
and every day all I do is work on myself
and I'm just getting ready because I know, I know
that my career is going to explode for sure. And
then there are moments where I'm like, this is it, Ellie,
are you just playing yourself? And then I get back
to no, no no, no, no, no, yes, baby, you are
going to manifest everything you want in your life. And
(08:21):
so this period of my life has been insane. I
can't wait to see. And you just gave me the
chills because it's crazy. What something like a move physically
getting out of a place and going to somewhere new
and you could just like strip yourself of everything and
become someone completely different. Level up speaking of your next
(08:44):
move in your career, yes, I just want to talk
to you about how it's been for you as I
guess a Korean American in the entertainment industry, so you know,
so you know, my bread and butter has been hosting,
and so when I became an on camera host, the
only person that I looked to growing up with SuChin
pac who was a VJ over at MTV. Remember she
was a Korean woman and I remember watching her MTV
(09:06):
but like, what the hell she looks like me, Like,
this is what's going on? And so when I saw her,
I realized, oh, this is possible for me. Somebody that
looks like me can be a host. I can do this.
And so for me, when I go into rooms of hosts,
I rarely see another Asian girl. It's always a latina's.
It's always by racial girls, black girls, white girls. But
(09:29):
I never so rare that I see another Asian girl. Okay,
can I stop you right there for a second, because
why do you think that is? Why do you think
Asian women maybe don't feel or I don't know, why
isn't there any other you know, look at the way
we're raised. We're not raised to be like, oh you
want to be an entertainment you know what I mean?
Like we're raised to like have these jobs of like
(09:50):
the very stupid, stereotypical like the doctors, the lawyers, like
study your ass of be a pharmacist, all this stuff
our parents are not talking about. Entertainment is a thing
for you, Like that's something that you should explore. Do
you think that it's literally the way we were brought up?
Is that why? For me personally, I've never been surrounded
by any Asians that were an entertainment, you know, Like
I grew up in New Jersey, Like I never saw
(10:11):
it and like I didn't know people that were in
it never, So how can you think that's possible for
you if you never see it or you're're never witnessing
or you're never around it, you know. But there are
a lot of upcoming Asian American actresses and actors that
are really like in the acting world, but still in
the hosting world, there's not a lot of us. There's not,
like I seriously, there really isn't. There really isn't. So
(10:32):
for me when I saw that, I was like, oh,
I'm gonna use this to my advantage, you know what
I mean, And like I tell this story. But I
when I got this audition because v H one was
looking for a new host, and I walked into the room,
there was a white girl going into the audition room,
and there was a super cute Latina girls sitting in
the in the chair right, and I sat across from her,
and I started freaking out. I'm like, why the hell
(10:53):
would they ever choose me. I'm like, there's a white girl,
pretty as hell going in there, this Latina girl, cute
as a button, probably really funny. She's probably gonna kill it.
And I literally remember texting my brother and saying, I
think I'm gonna leave. I don't think I deserve to
be here. And he literally said to me, Nuna, which
is like big older says. He said, Luna, you are
there because you are good. He's like, you did not
(11:14):
get there out of luck. You got there because you
have the skills. You stay, and so I stayed. That
was the most intense audition of my life. Forty five minutes.
They threw everything at me. What what is that interview?
So they're like, okay, um, so you got to prompter.
All right, We're gonna roll a prompter. It's gonna be
a whole script and you have to run with the
whole thing and like in search your personality. Okay, so
I did that, Like so like you you haven't even
(11:35):
seen never, never seen it. So they start, yeah, they
start rolling right and now they're like this, okay, Now
we're gonna do a slide show of tense celebrities and
Halloween costumes. And we wanted a riff on every single celebrity.
So it was to show like do you know your celebrities?
Do you know your pop culture? Then they're like this,
You're on a red carpet, Claire Danes is coming up
to you. Okay, what are you gonna ask her? So
they want to know do you know all the TV film?
(11:55):
Like are you up to all that stuff? And then
they were like okay, like literally everything that a host
could do, they were throwing it at me to see
if I could handle it. And I walked out of
that audition being like I freaking nailed that. I felt
so good and like, so the next four months I
was auditioning, they were like like like making me think
I wasn't gonna get It wasn't And then finally they
(12:16):
called me in. I met with the executive producers of
the v H one's Morning show. They fell in love
with me, and five days later they called me and
they're like, we want you for the host and we
want you we want to put you on the morning
show with Nickolosch. And literally that was a very big
turning moment. And also like I was an Asian girl,
Asian girl. I remember seeing you like next to Nicolo.
(12:36):
I mean, it could have been anyone, could have been anyone,
And there were there were celebrities that I I was
going up for the v H one. I'm so proud
that it was a Korean American girl. Yes, And I
used to tell them like, you guys took a chance
on an Asian girl, and like they could have just
been like, we want a white girl, but no, they
were like, let's do this, you know, and so like
it was really it was a moment for me. It
(12:58):
was a really huge career turning point for me. And
obviously you felt so proud as a Korean. Yeah, like,
oh my god. My parents, like my dad when I
first when I quit my job, he was like this, Ellie,
nine point nine percent of people that go into the
entertainment industry fail. He's like, why are you doing this?
And I said, but dad, there's still that one person
(13:18):
point one percent. I on that point one percent And
when he saw me on H one. Since then, he
has been nothing but supportive for me. You could have
been a a girl that wants to make it in
(13:41):
Korean Korean TV, because obviously in Korea everyone wants to
become like a k pop star, right, that's like a thing,
but you decided to do it. In American media, people
used to be like, do you want to go to
Korean and be like oh, hell no, I want the
toughest challenge. I'm not gonna go and like be with
people that all. I'm gonna do it here and I'm
gonna do a big I mean, it's it's amazing to
(14:02):
see a Korean host interviewing like Korean k pop stars. Yes,
in American media in English. First of all, these ka
pop stars don't even speak English. Can we talk about
that for a second. Like you and your interviews with
all all of the top kapop stars, they've all gone viral.
All the interviews have gone by. I mean, okay, can
(14:22):
you name a few? Okay, so Xo, I've interviewed BTS twice,
This got seven stray Kids, Tiffany Young and everyone and
anyone that's like the hottest. The hottest would come in
and then I would interview them and then all of
them went viral. It's insane, but you know what it is.
Tell me America doesn't really understand k pop yet, right.
(14:46):
They see these like pretty boys dancing around and they're
not taking them seriously. They're not understanding them. I don't know.
It seems like America loves Korean k pop star, So
can you elaborate on that? A little bit. So k
pop is a phenomenon. Uh, it is. It is something
that people can't even describe its power. It's as a trend.
It's not going away. If anything, it's going to get
(15:07):
bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger. And it's the
blow up of BTS has just shown the immense power
of Korean pop culture and like, really, where K pop
is going to go? Like I'm very excited and interested
to see where it's going to go. But basically, the
fandom is so hardcore. There's no fandom in this entire
world that is like k pop fandom. Yeah, do you
(15:29):
think it's comparable to like end sync, like back in
the more hardcore, more hardcore about the fandom of something
about these K pop stars that resonates so deeply with
these girls, Like it's it's almost like unexplainable and like
sometimes like like I was doing this live show once
with all these kapop fans and I was like, oh,
(15:50):
I know, because you want their babies and they're like this, no,
we don't want their babies, And what it is, it's
it's it's almost it's not a sexual love thing. It's
like it's there's something really innocent about these K pop
stars that these kids really resonate with, and it's almost
like they want to protect them. That love is just unconditional.
(16:11):
They will literally do anything for these guys. It's crazy,
it's incredible. It's incredible, it's incredible. So that's why you're saying,
like America doesn't understand it yet, what do you mean
by that? Because I feel like America sees like these
pretty Asian boys and they're like, okay, this is like yeah,
they're confused if they don't really get it. They're like, okay,
so do you find them attractive? Like are they are
they masculine? Like are they feminine? You know, like they
(16:32):
don't really understand it. And I feel like a lot
of journalists, obviously there's a language barrier and also a
culture a barrier, so when they're interviewing them, it's very
awkward and it's like there's a lot of just nothingness
going on, and the boys feel and the girls feel uncomfortable,
and like the host is trying to make it work
and it just never works. But if you get to
Korean American who understands k pop, also, my Korean isn't
(16:53):
that great, but I know how to speak some Korean,
so I put that little conglish in, you know. And
these are my people, Like I've looked at these but
my entire life, I feel comfortable with you exactly. So
as soon as they sit down, and like, you know,
I always tell people like my skill my skill set
is basically this, somebody comes into a room, right, they're
most likely famous person whatever, Right, I have ten seconds
(17:14):
right to figure out what their energy is. Are they hungover,
are they tired, are they in a bad mood? Or
do they not want to be here? Right? And these
are like a list celebrities, yes, and my job is
to figure out where their energy level is and look
at them and go, okay, I have to substitute this
much energy to meet you and lift you up so
that the video content is insane. And that's my job, right.
(17:35):
So when these K pop stars come in, I immediately
make them feel comfortable and make them feel like I'm
just like their sister, you know, and we just talk.
I spit some Korean in there, you know, make them laugh,
make them comfortable, and then bam, you just have a
really great fifteen thirteen nine minute interview and fans have
gift these interviews. There's memes like it's just and people
have my YouTube videos on you on these interviews, like
(17:58):
it's just insane, and I'm really grateful for it. And
like most of my followers are K pop fans and
like really they say to me, they're like, we came
for the artist, but we left loving you, and it's
like thank you. You say that you feel grateful, but
I think that these people and the K pop stars
are actually grateful for you. Finally there's someone that can
interview these K pop stars without being awkward in America. Right,
(18:21):
you said that Americans still don't understand K pop, but
so like, how do we get them to understand K pop?
Is through these interviews exactly? Right, exactly, and to show
like these kids are super chrismatic, they're very funny, they're
you know, they've been to K pop camp, you know,
so they're very disciplined and well mannered. They are very
different from American artists. Their discipline is unlike anything else.
(18:44):
I like that you said k pop camp, because what
is k pop camp? If you want to become a
K pop star, you have to start very young, and
you probably eleven, twelve, thirteen and if a major record
you know, company, decides that they want to bring you
on as a trainee, you basically start training like you're
in boot camp like military camp, and you typically are
(19:07):
living at this camp. You're living with these people. You're
dancing for X amount of hours every day, you're singing,
you're doing personality stuff like you know, some members you
see on variety shows and some members you don't because
they really see, Okay, this guy's funny, we'll put them
on this show. This guy's not that funny, We'll just
keep them in the back, or like, yeah, what are
variety shows, elliot? Oh yes, sorry, Korean shows. We have
(19:30):
a lot of variety shows where it's like host and
like celebrity guests, and then they do like interviews or
they do fun games and like those are the kind
of variety shows, but they go on to like promote
their albums or their songs or whatever the hell they do.
It's kind of equivalent to like American reality shows. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
totally totally toy. How do people figure out, Okay, we're
gonna get this nine year old or eleven year old
(19:51):
into the student and we're gonna start training them a
lot of the times, it's like the kids being like
I want to do it and the parents being like okay, God,
like ten years Look at Boa. Boa was a huge
K pop singer who's been in the game forever. She's
at first like she's the first, but she's been doing
it since she was like eight years old, and it's
because her parents were like, yeah, go and go and
do this thing, you know, which is insane. I was
(20:11):
kind of and my kid, go and do that. So
what is it about Koreans letting their child at ten
years old? I think there's something really glitzy and glamorous
about the idea of becoming a celebrity, you know. And
I think that's especially in Korea, right, I mean, everyone
wants to be a ka pop star in Korea, Like
that's like a thing. Yeah, and every fan of K
pop wants to be a k pop star, you know.
(20:33):
Everybody thinks it's like this amazing thing, but it's actually
super hard work and a lot of sacrifice. And like
when I interview these groups to it, I look at them,
I'm like, it's hard, right, and they're like, yeah, you know,
this isn't easy. The road they chose is so hard.
And like BTS is one out of a billion, like
most groups will never reach the heights of success that
(20:55):
they have, you know, So what is it about BTS girl?
It is something about them, I think also, I mean
you met them so like, so cool, so sweet, so
down to earth, very funny, very personable, and I think
they're just really grateful for the position that they're in.
And I think collectively, just across the board, they all
have really strong personalities and there's a lot of them.
(21:18):
So when you have a lot of guys to like,
you know, of course the fandom is going to triple
in size. So going back to hosting an interviewing cream
Kee pop star, do you think that also, kidgen hold
you into just doing all the K pop stuff? Not
(21:39):
that that's bad, I'm just curious, what is that like? Yeah,
I mean I think that's what I'm known for. But
when I was an I Heart, I mean I was
interviewing everybody, like everyone from rappers to country singers to
K pop stars to like teeny popper, like YouTubers, everybody
came in. So like me, I just look at people
as people. I just look at them. I'm like, oh,
you're just like me, And that's how I conduct every interview.
(22:02):
So have you ever interviewed anyone that are Korean celebrities
that are not K pop stars. I've never interviewed Korean
Koreans outside of K pop stars and Korean Americans. I
mean there's not a lot of us, you know exactly. Yeah, yeah,
so I haven't interviewed a lot of them. Okay, I've
interview any Well, that's that's what I'm saying, Like, are
there where the Korean celebrities at We're like Steven June, yes,
(22:25):
and like like it's sound said, I can't even name, Like,
there's not many of you. Yeah, there's not many. There's
not many, Margaret show. I'm an interview But yeah, I
have never interviewed Korean American celebrities. I gotta do that.
So here's the interesting part. Korean K pop stars are
this crazy phenomenon. What about like the Korean actors, like
the other part of entertainment industry. How come that hasn't
(22:46):
coincided together? You know, because K pop stars are churning
out pop music. You know, they're turning out universal pop music.
That's really and then you know they got the whole thing.
They got the dancing, they got the music video, they
got the colorful hair is they're wearing eyeliner. You know.
It's like k pop is like really something you can
package really cutely and really just bring all over the
(23:07):
the universe and people will really like resonate with it
something about it. But like Korean actors, like you know,
if you watch Korean movies, a lot of it's like dark,
and like you know, a lot of it is like
very Korean centric, so it's not like a universal thing.
But k pop it's like when you see the bubbly
and the and the pink and the green, and it's
just like all this stuff that's like so much more
(23:28):
appealing than like, you know, Korean cinema, which was I
think a plan, like Korean government plan that going back
to like Korean cinema and you said it's got dark
and I love but there's something about Korean cinema that's
so special, right, I think you can see that in
a global light now with like Parasite exactly. There are
a lot of great films like Parasite in Korean cinema,
(23:51):
but those haven't ever gone viral like Parasite, right, why
is it now that's a good question. I definitely think
it's the movie. I think it's the director. I think
it's the time that we're in as well. I think
all of that helps. But also like I remember watching
Parasite and being like an American movie could never, could
(24:12):
never do something like this. There wasn't one second of
that movie where I was not invested or just so
zoomed in, just like the acting is incredible, Like for Koreans,
I think in a Korean cinema, like everything feels so effortless.
It's like when and this is my theory, it's because,
like you know, mental illness is really taboo in Korea,
(24:33):
Like you know, there's no you don't talk about depression.
That's like dumb and like it doesn't exist and all
these things. And for me, I think when you're an
artist in Korea, the only way to release how you
feel and everything inside is through your art. And like
that's my theory on why I think Korean actors are
so killer is because this is their only way to
release everything inside of them. So when they do it,
(24:55):
you can't take your eyes away from them. It's like
they're they're they're they're so embody that Charter, they are
the characters are you. Forget about it. You don't even
want to feel like you're watching a movie. I mean Parasite.
I mean, yes, it is an insanely amazing movie. But
I'm like thinking back to movies like Old Boy, Right,
that movie was just as good as Parasite. I would
(25:15):
feel like, right, I mean, it's incredible, incredible, like you
just feel creepy all inside. But that didn't blow up
the way Parasite blew up. So it's definitely the times
that for sure, for sure, for sure, for sure, absolutely,
I think this is a really interesting time for Asian
Americans in the entertainment industry. It's a very interesting time.
(25:36):
And I think that this is only the beginning. Like
I feel like Hollywood or everybody thinks like, oh, it's
just a phase. It's not a phase. Like we're definitely
not a face. We are forced to be reckoned with.
We are the quiet bunch, but watch us because when
we roar, we roar aloud, you know, And I really
think that's this is the come up of the movement.
So that's why every single person in every player in
(25:57):
the game, you me, I own up. Yeah, And we
are so important in the game, you know, because there's
not a lot of us. So when we stand strong,
we have to stand strong and really represent our people
like to the t. And that's something that's really important
for me. Same, like we have to come together. And
I think that's a big part of why I started
(26:19):
this podcast as well, because it's like there's no one
just like talking about this. I mean, yes, I'm talking
more on Korean culture because I'm I happen to be
Korean and I lived and breathe it. I feel like
it's important that we just talk about it and stick
together each other. Absolutely. Yeah, uplift each other. Like it's
not a time for like people. It's not competition time.
(26:39):
It's like, how can we get together and rise together? Seriously,
why are Asian Americans so competitive? Because we're smart, you know.
So Ellie, what's in it for you next? What what's
your planned? What? What do you want to do? I
want to be a movie star. I want to make films.
I want to make films that made what I felt like,
(27:01):
that made me want to be an actor. Like I
want people to leave like movies that I'm in thinking, feeling, crying, laughing.
I don't even care if you hate it, I just
want you to feel something when you leave that theater.
And to me, like, I've had a lot of shame
growing up saying like I want to be a movie star,
and now I'm like this, I'm going to be a
movie star period, and like and I would love to
(27:24):
be part of like television shows that like really tell
an Asian American story, Like I really want to be
in that world swimming taking laps, like I really want
to make art that just stays with people. You're going
to represent, girl, Yeah exactly. I want to talk about
your lifestyle a little bit because I do this thing
where I cook for my guests, and I was excited
(27:45):
to cook for you because you know, you're probably the
only cream veasan that I yes, yes, yes, probably probably. Honestly,
it's really hard to be vegan as a Korean because
our food just has everything, every fish, pork, especially fish,
like if you're every thing, if you were pescatarian, like
that's fine, yeah, but like vegan like plant based yeah
(28:06):
yeahan base yeah yeah yeah. But like you know, I
love is like a square radish and like anchovy shrimp
all over it. It's like it's it's very frustrating. Yeah,
it's not the easiest thing, Okay, So I'll tell you. So.
I became a dog rescuer in high school, and I
fell in love with dogs and just like the mistreatment
of dogs, like in shelters and like all this stuff.
(28:26):
And I was volunteering every everywhere and literally aster like
I would do anything I've done, like illegal things, to
like save dogs, Like I would do anything for a dog.
But I was really conflicted because I'd be like, Okay,
I would do anything for this one animal, but then
I would go home and like eat chicken, you know,
or I eat bacon and stuff like that. So it
was like a guilt thing. Oh yeah, a huge ethical thing.
And for a long time, I try to like suppress bex.
(28:48):
I'm like, there's no way I can change the entire
way of how I know how to eat. And then
I read this book called Eating Animals and it changed
my life. And as soon as I folded the last page,
like flipped on last page, I was like this, I'm
done with meat. And I went no pun intended cold turkey.
That was in two thousand and thirteen. I decided to
(29:08):
cut out all meat. And then I cut out all dairy,
and then I cut out eggs and then fish. I
was like, how can I do this? How can I
do this? How can I do this? I love fish?
I love fish. And then I was like the way
that my personality is, I'm go big or go home.
And I was like, I'm going I'm going big. So
I cut out everything. And since then, you haven't had
(29:28):
any any nothing, nothing, nothing nothing, So like when you
eat cream food, so you have to make everything yourself.
So I've really learned how to make things on my own.
Like now I make tough ten and like Kim chicken
and like mun do and like now you know a
lot of the cream grocery stores they're like they like, okay,
vegans like a thing, so like they'll have like vegan
(29:50):
on like certain labels, and like I follow like a
lot of like vegan people who I love cream food,
so like I know the things to buy and like
where to go and like what to get. But I've
really taught myself so in like now I love cooking
because now it's interesting to me. Before I hated it.
I'm like I don't care about it, but now I'm
like you have to have to have to absolutely so
like it's been this very amazing, interesting, fascinating chapter of
(30:13):
my life. And I just I love it and I'm
I feel so much more energetic. I'm just like I
don't know. It just makes me feel like me and
like just I don't know, I I and to me,
it's like now I can really like look at animals
and being like, Okay, I'm really doing right by you guys.
You know, I'm really I'm really doing this. I mean,
it's a lifestyle. I think it's incredible. Especially as a Korean.
(30:35):
It must be very hard. But I'm going to share
many vegan recipes with you because you know, a lot
of my clients, especially my higher end clients, are vegan,
and I do cream food, so I had to kind
of like learn how to make Korean vegan dishes. There's
this thing that I came up with. Well, it's jack
fruit barbecue, but I do it in like cream barbecue Marida,
(30:57):
so it's like and it's it's like rugogie but jackfruit. Yeah.
But you know, and I do like a spicy Marinas.
It tastes like spicy pork, but it's jack fruit and
it's really really good. And I did it for like
a James Beard Foundation dinner and they were going crazy
nuts over that barbecue. And I'm going to give you
that recipe, please please do I love jackfruit. It's like
(31:19):
the one thing that tastes like yeah kind of. I
mean it's like the pull chicken of. I think it's
more like a texture thing, which is why it taste like.
It doesn't really taste like me. It doesn't, it doesn't.
It's really about the marinae. It is. It is it is.
I made your favorite curran dish for you, which is
mandud so this mandy that I made obviously plant based,
(31:40):
shocking mushrooms tofu chives, carrot onions and tongue me on,
which is the Vermitelli noodles. Yeah, it's very very good.
Like I don't miss me eating these dumplings. Is there
hard to find really good plant based dumplings? Wow? Interesting question,
(32:00):
because I feel like it's really hard to do mandu
or dumpling. It's very hard to find a good man do, yeah,
like a vegan one, like it's true. Yeah, it's true, Okay,
got it. So, but there's a lot of bad ones.
Nobody knows how to do a good man do like
this is a good mon do. It's crispy on the outside,
it's still soft on some inside, like and it's not huge.
(32:22):
It's so this mandu obviously I made it, and it's
not crispy because I didn't make it like just now.
Oh good mm hmmm mm hm oh yeah, m hmm.
Listen to those flavors of okay, describe it to me.
(32:46):
Here's what it is. You don't even need the kung jung.
You don't you, m M. I like to flavor my
dumplings like inside, like I wanted to be, want you
to be able to eat it without sauce exactly. Sometimes
you don't have sauce, and mando is one of those
things where sometimes you're eating it on the go and
(33:08):
you're eating in the car. You don't have you can't
like dip it in like toy sauce. So I like
to make my mond do flavorful. You know it's also
good because I know you handmade it too. You saw
me freaking folding to his dumplings last. Honestly, this girl
could have gone a frozen out of store, but she
was like, no, I thought about it. I'm in l
a like I literally traveled here and I made dumplings.
(33:29):
These are so good. These are so good, Like you
can't store by these, like you just you can't. You can't.
And it's like the perfect size. When I was telling you,
like it's hard to find the perfect mando, like some
people do it too big, like too much dope, not
enough filling, or like the filling isn't flavored, or like
it's it's it's mushy, you know what I mean, it's
(33:50):
all chives or something. Yeah, yeah, exactly exactly. But the
ratio of the filling has to be right as well, exactly,
and the outer later it can't be thick. An I
don't like about and need a thin layer like this
so that I'm getting all the filling inside and I
can really taste that, you know, Oh my god, it's good.
(34:12):
I want to make this on all. Yeah, it's so.
I mean, it's not hard as long as you learn
the basics, it's not hard, right. Manda is one of
those things that might be time consuming, but also it's
one of those things where you bring your family together,
your friends together, and you just you know, sit in
a big group and like make dumpling. It's a community
(34:33):
driven food item. What's the prep time from beginning to
the end. So it really depends on how much mond
do you're making. Let's say you're making like mand just
for like two people or four people. It's it doesn't
take that long to make the filling. That's really quick.
It's really about the folding of the mando, which you
can make it like really basic too. It doesn't have
(34:55):
to be people look at this fold. I wish you
guys could see this fold. It's like, so ah done,
Like this is good. My harmoney told me my har
money being. Grandma always said your man do is your children.
So the more beautiful you make your man do, your
children will be I love. So it was so I
(35:17):
was like I went crazy with the practicing on beautiful babies.
I'm man do is such a community driven, like such
a such a family, Like you remember making like mand
do with your family. It's like it's such a beautiful
way for like families to come together and like you
(35:37):
talk your fun. Grandma's teaching you, Mom's teaching you. You know,
it's just like it's beautiful. And I don't like dumplings,
said no one ever. And I feel like every culture
has their own version of a dumpling or a mond
do right, like every every culture is the best. I mean,
(35:59):
let's be real, I really like sick. I don't need
anything all day because I knew I was gonna eat
these and I was like, I need to be like
extra empty. Oh man, I sure, Oh, I feel like
I should have fifty of them. What do you mean?
I just there's more left. I mean those are pretty filly,
and don't you like not missing what I'm talking about this.
(36:20):
We do have a veggie mandu at mock Bar, and
we do three different types of dumplings. We do pork,
beef and you're vegan one. So good, you know, they're
like more popular than my other ones. And I love
that because I'm just like I love yeah, I love
hearing that because it's it's like, dude, and also it's
(36:41):
the most work honestly, the vegan ones, because like all
the chopping on the vegetables. Right, But doesn't your vegan
ramen do really well too? Oh my gosh, it's killer.
So want that right now? Yeah? Eat your top seller
one of them? Yeah, one of the top sellers. Yeah.
And it's like it's like the fermented being paid tied
down to us. As the base of the Oh my god,
(37:03):
it's so good. It has like an addictive quality to
it and that broth. Yeah, so I feel like Korean
food can very easily be vegan and super delicious. It's
just a matter of doing it because there's not many
do it obviously. But like, yo, let's talk in ten years,
because I'm sure half of Korean we can kind of
(37:23):
open a van Korean restaurant together. Yes, yes, well, we're
gonna do our show. We're gonna do our show, which
is gonna be so big that we're going to create
a store where people can come and there's like pictures
of us in the walls and stuff like that. You know,
we pop in once a year. I can see it now.
I love it, love it. But thank you, thank you
so much. Where can our listeners find you? Yes, on
(37:45):
Instagram you can find me at Ellie y j Lee.
My YouTube is Ellie Lee with an extra E at
the end. And I'm launching a podcast, a spirit my
spiritual awakening podcast called at Just Woke Up Podcast on Instagram.
So please follow me there and you know you listen.
If you follow me, you'll be inspired. Okay, you'll be inspired, yes,
(38:05):
But that's what I love you. I love you, and
that's our show. Thanks for listening. If you like what
you heard, please subscribe and leave us a five star review.
Get Down with Kaytown is a production of iHeart Radio
and was created by our executive producer Christopher Hasiotis and
me Esther Troy. Follow me on all social media at
toy bites and I'd also like to thank our producer,
(38:26):
editor and mixer Marcy to Pina. For more podcasts from
I heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcast,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
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I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com