Mythos Nova, LLC

In the early 2000s, I found myself in a very unusual set of circumstances.

Not long after returning from Louisiana, where I had been living with my dad, I found myself on my own again in New York. At the time, I was working in Sony Music’s archives division, supporting Legacy—the label responsible for reissuing some of the greatest catalogs in Sony’s history.

I had also joined Sony’s newly created Asian affinity group, FAME: the Forum for Asians in Music Entertainment. Through that group, I was introduced to a theater company connected to the popular Off-Broadway production The Donkey Show, an interactive concept created by Diane Paulus and Randy Weiner, the award-winning writer-and-director couple.

The Donkey Show reimagined Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream inside a disco. The project I became involved with followed a similar concept: Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors set inside a karaoke bar. It was being workshopped with Second Generation, an Asian-centered arts organization in New York.

At the end of each performance, the floor would open to the audience for karaoke—including a karaoke competition. By then, it had been years since I had sung seriously, but I missed performing for an audience, so I threw my hat into the ring.

I had no idea I would become their first winner and, after several rounds, their champion.

The prize was a lifetime pass to the show, which I used frequently. I was single, lived in a tiny apartment, and never particularly enjoyed staying home.

After I competed—and won—a number of times, they finally retired me. 😂 I continued attending the show, though, and eventually became its photographer.

That experience connected me with the stage manager of Queens Pride, an extension of New York City Pride, who was also a DJ at a gay bar in Manhattan. Through him, I would eventually share the stage with performers such as Amber, Lumidee, Ultra Naté, Jade Starling, and RuPaul’s Drag Race star Jiggly Caliente. I later performed on the main stage at New York City Pride and, for a short time, worked as an assistant stage manager for both Queens Pride and New York City Pride.

The show also introduced me to the legendary talent agent Jadin Wong, who later signed me to a nonexclusive deal. Through the same Sony affinity group, I spent a semester studying under celebrity business manager and accountant Bert Padell—whose clients included Madonna, Britney Spears, and Derek Jeter—when he taught at The New School.

It’s remarkable how much time has passed and how much has changed.

Randy and Diane went on to give their own TED Talks. Diane earned multiple Drama Desk and Tony Awards for productions including Hair, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Pippin, and Jagged Little Pill. Randy is now an executive producer of Masquerade, the immensely popular reimagining of The Phantom of the Opera.

Sadly, Jadin and Bert have both passed away, but I remain deeply grateful for everything they taught me.

Now it’s my turn to make something of myself—and to bring other people up with me. I believe that’s the point. Once you’ve been doing this long enough, you have a responsibility to open the door and welcome others into the fold.

Maybe one day, I’ll be the person mentioned in someone else’s grateful post as they remember the people who helped bring them up.