Entertainment 📺

Also at the Oscars, Kelly Marie Tran wore a beautiful, green ao dai for the occasion.

The traditional Vietnamese garment, adorned with a beautiful hat and long train, graced the red carpet and Southeast Asian fans were ecstatic. This is the first traditional ao dai to appear at the Oscars’ red carpet.


As for the music realm, a new collab was just confirmed! It’s official: BTS and Snoop Dog are working together on a new track.

Snoop Dog confirmed the collaboration during an interview, sharing his enthusiasm for this upcoming project.


“The BTS experience you keep talking about. I’m going to let them tell you about it. It’s official like a referee with a whistle. I love that entertainment world. It’s good music. It’s a vibe. I make good music. They make good music. And we end up doing this. This is what it’s always about, bringing our worlds together.”

He also told reporters that he would let BTS share the rest of the creative details, leaving ARMYs with plenty of excitement. 

Race in America 🌎

In the figure skating world, Vincent Zhou made an amazing comeback.

On Saturday at the world figure skating championships in France, Zhou placed bronze next to Shoma Uno and Yuma Kagiyama from Japan, who took gold and silver respectively. 
 

During the Olympics, Zhou spoke openly about his mental health struggles including his doubts and the pressure he faced. Especially after having to be quarantined due to a positive COVID test during the competition, Zhou cried with his coach after hearing about his win this past weekend. 

Meanwhile, in San Francisco, a man named Marcus Chung was pistol-whipped and assaulted. 

On March 18th, Chung was walking near a Chase Center when 4 men pulled up next to him. One shouted the homophobic f-slur at him and struck him with his pistol. Chung received 5 stitches for his head injury.


Currently, the investigation has not deemed the incident to be a hate crime.


 

In Other Asian News 🗞

Shanghai, China’s financial district, launched a two-stage lockdown on March 28.

This lockdown has closed the city’s bridges and tunnels along the Huangpu River for about 9 days. 
 

Healthcare workers will arrive shortly to conduct testing procedures, but until then, residents east of the river will remain confined to their homes. In a rush to stockpile, stores were overwhelmed and many wholesale markets were closed. 

All 132 passengers on the Chinese airliner that crashed into the mountains are confirmed dead.

The plane crashed into the mountain area in Southern China last week, leaving rescue teams to search tirelessly and recover passengers as desperate family members and loved ones awaited the news. Currently, the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration has identified 120 victims. 
 

The crash is considered to be China’s worst air disaster in over a decade.
 

What else is on our minds? 🧠

Mutual talks about security?
Today Israel, the U.S., and four other Arab nations met to discuss security measures over Iran and food shortage issues due to the war in Ukraine. Arab leaders also mentioned that while they were securing ties with Israel, they had not abandoned the Palestinian cause, publicly addressing the need to create a sovereign Palestinian state.


Angry Asian Man wins Peabody award?
Last Thursday, the founder of Angry Asian Man, Phil Yu, won the Peabody Trailblazer Award. Yu’s legacy since 2001, before social media advocacy became widespread, consisted not only of his personal viewpoints on pop culture, music, and academia but also calls to action to help causes in need. 


Asian women fight back?
Asian women in NYC are thinking of ways to empower and protect their community. From self-defense classes to pepper spray distribution, Asian women are mobilizing to protect themselves. While it’s been a long year, these women have continued to work tirelessly, because who else will?