This weekend comedian Awkwafina will become the . Who is this Awkwafina? I had never heard of her before Crazy Rich Asians. Within the first week of the film’s release, I had a few friends tell me that I’m just like Rachel Chu’s best friend Goh Peik Lin, played by Awkwafina.
As I was watching her clips on YouTube I thought, “this chick is funny!”, I was super flattered that anyone could possibly think I was anything like her. She is cool. I ain’t cool. I was sitting in my pyjamas in the middle of the day organising my sock drawer (and having a great time FYI) when I got those texts from my friend. I also thought “Wow, you can be an Asian comedian?!”
I don’t know why I didn’t consider comedy as a career before. I’m Vietnamese, and the way our language is structured lends itself to comedy. All our words are monosyllabic; we use signs to change the meaning and inflection of the same word. This means one word can have multiple meanings, which lends itself to displays of rapid word play. Family gatherings have been my training ground for a life in comedy - my entire family has a wicked sense of humour.
I grew up in the South Western Sydney suburb of Campbelltown, where my sister and I were one of the few Asians in school. Here I was the butt of the joke.
But I haven’t always been behind every joke. I grew up in the South Western Sydney suburb of Campbelltown, where my sister and I were one of the few Asians in school. Here I was the butt of the joke. A kid with the surname Bush used to tease me for my last name on the bus ride home. He’d call me “Chu-ey Chewing Gum, Chu Chu train. Ching Chong Chu.”
Firstly…Bush? If I knew what that word meant when I was six I could’ve given it back. And secondly, being teased for being different meant that I just wanted to fit in with my peers. When I was seven I remember so desperately wanting to be white that I drew a picture of a girl with pale skin, freckles, brown eyes with green flecks and dirty blonde hair. I put the picture under my pillow and prayed that when I woke up I would look like her.
Now I’m glad I didn’t Freaky Friday that one because a) I can’t draw, so I would’ve woken up as an incredibly wonky looking white chick, and b) I like being Asian now. I’m Vietnamese and our food is fresh and delicious. I have a network of family to support me that spans across generations and Western Sydney suburbs. And, at 35, I look 10 years younger than my Caucasian counterparts because gravity and the elements are somehow kinder to my skin then theirs. If my future child tells me they want to wake up white I will be mortified that they are ashamed of our rich Asian culture.
Writer Madelene Chu in her natural state: "Crouched in the gutter shoving food in my face." Source: Supplied
When I was growing up the only comedians on TV and in the movies were middle-aged Jewish men. The only male Asian comedians that come to mind are Ken Jeong and Australia’s Anh Do. And even then, comedy wasn’t their first career choice. Ken Jeong was originally a practicing physician and didn’t get a big break in comedy until he was 38 playing a doctor in Judd Apatow’s Knocked Up. Anh Do originally studied a Business/ Law degree and was offered positions upon graduating that required a minimum of 60 hours work a week. He decided to pursue a career in comedy instead.
Now there’s Awkwafina and it’s got me thinking… Maybe it’s an option for me too?
And Asian female comedians? There is of course Margaret Cho, who carved out a career in comedy in the 90s, however, she remains largely unknown outside queer and underground circles. It wasn’t until a exploded all over our Netflix screens on Mother’s Day in 2016 did the world say “Yes, Asian women can be funny too”. Now there’s Awkwafina and it’s got me thinking… Maybe it’s an option for me too?
There’s a reason why Crazy Rich Asians has made more than at the box office. It’s funny. As is Netflix series Kim’s Convenience, SBS series , based on the story of my favourite writer Benjamin Law (who I was insanely in love with up until I realised he was gay), and Fresh off the Boat, which to be honest I haven’t watched yet but I’m gonna binge it soon I promise.
And now I’ve been so inspired that I’m working on my own project too - so hopefully one day my show will become noteworthy and maybe even inspire other young Asian women who are also craving mainstream representation. And it’s gonna be funny I promise.
