
24 episodes

Hmonglish Gleam Tower Media
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- Arts
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5.0 • 114 Ratings
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Hmonglish is a podcast that explores the intersection of Hmong and American culture. Chef Yia Vang lived his entire life processing his Hmong American identity. This program provides a space for him to explore this dual heritage while also educating the populace on Hmong culture with the help of guests and other members of his community.
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Xee Reiter: Abandoning Traditional Roles as a Hmong Woman (For Art)
Hey, folks!
You’re about to listen to the last episode of season 3. Don’t worry, we are already working on the foundation of season 4 and we’re even planning a live show in late spring. We’re going to be taking a break from regular episodes for a while, but we will drop bonus content in the meantime. And be sure to follow us on social media for updates.
Today’s episode is one of our personal favorites. We’ve got Xee Reiter with us. She’s an artist based in Minnesota whose life trajectory started on a very traditional route. A traditional marriage. A traditional Hmong wife. But she refused to accept this as her destiny. She took her life into her own hands and threw herself into the art world.
Since then, she has produced an incredibly prolific body of work across art murals and exhibits – she’s even done some work with Yia. We think you’ll find her story inspiring and, hopefully, you’ll find plenty of opportunities to laugh because these two are hilarious when they get together. -
Sophia Vuelo: The First Hmong American Judge in Minnesota
Hey, folks!
Today we have Judge Sophia Vuelo as our guest. This incredible woman was the first Hmong American judge in Minnesota and the second to be appointed in the country.
She arrived here over 40 years ago when her family fled Laos due to the Vietnam War. Her father died before she was born and her mother, with 7 children in tow, came to Eau Claire, Wisconsin to start a new life.
Her story is beautiful and awe-inspiring, but I’ll let you hear it from her.
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If you like the show, leave us a 5-star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and be sure to subscribe. The same goes for our YouTube channel: if you like what you’re seeing, give us a like, a comment, and subscribe to the channel.
If you haven’t done so already, follow us on social media on Facebook and Instagram: @hmonglishpod.
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Support for Hmonglish comes from SolarPod, an Immigrant-founded and owned company that makes and installs the Z-Rack, no-roof-hole racking system.
Proudly manufactured in Shakopee, Minnesota, this product is designed to eliminate the use of fossil fuel compounds that are often used in solar installations. Not only that, but the z-rack preserves the integrity of your roof in the process.
The SolarPod Z-Rack: revolutionary solar innovation made radically simple.
Get a quote for your home or business at mysolarpod.com
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All music courtesy of a paid creative license with Artlist -
Tou Lo: Marine, Firefighter, Entrepreneur (What Can't He Do?)
Hi, folks. Welcome to episode 4 of season 3. Today we have Tou Lo with us, who is an incredible individual. Listen to this: the guy is both a former marine and a former firefighter. You don’t meet many of those!
Today, he is the owner of Yelo Autosports, which is an auto detailing service based in Little Canada, Minnesota.
He is a wonderful human being and he shared a lot with us during this episode, including his recent trip to Laos, in which he reconnected with his Hmong roots in order to really see and feel the place his parents came from.
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If you like the show, leave us a 5-star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and be sure to subscribe. The same goes for our YouTube channel: if you like what you’re seeing, give us a like, a comment, and subscribe to the channel.
If you haven’t done so already, follow us on social media on Facebook and Instagram: @hmonglishpod.
-
Support for Hmonglish comes from SolarPod, an Immigrant-founded and owned company that makes and installs the Z-Rack, no-roof-hole racking system.
Proudly manufactured in Shakopee, Minnesota, this product is designed to eliminate the use of fossil fuel compounds that are often used in solar installations. Not only that, but the z-rack preserves the integrity of your roof in the process.
The SolarPod Z-Rack: revolutionary solar innovation made radically simple.
Get a quote for your home or business at mysolarpod.com
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All music courtesy of a paid creative license with Artlist -
Sheng Elizabeth Lor: Am I Hmong Enough?
Hey folks, welcome back to Hmonglish.
This is episode 3, which means we are halfway through the season because we typically record the show in batches of 6 episodes.
As you know, we release the show on Wednesdays, so that means the next two episodes will be released on March 8th and March 15th.
Today’s episode is with Sheng Elizabeth Lor. It is just about impossible to describe this woman because she is so many wonderful things all at once, so what we'll say is this: she’s a good friend of Yia’s, she is based in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and she runs a company called the Social X Change project, which can be described as a digital creation platform that focuses on uplifting marginalized communities in arts and activism.
She is also an editor for the Hmong American Experience, which is the largest Hmong media organization in the world. This woman is so incredible and so inspiring, and we can’t wait for you to hear from her!
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If you like the show, leave us a 5-star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and be sure to subscribe. The same goes for our YouTube channel: if you like what you’re seeing, give us a like, a comment, and subscribe to the channel.
If you haven’t done so already, follow us on social media on Facebook and Instagram: @hmonglishpod.
-
Support for Hmonglish comes from SolarPod, an Immigrant-founded and owned company that makes and installs the Z-Rack, no-roof-hole racking system.
Proudly manufactured in Shakopee, Minnesota, this product is designed to eliminate the use of fossil fuel compounds that are often used in solar installations. Not only that, but the z-rack preserves the integrity of your roof in the process.
The SolarPod Z-Rack: revolutionary solar innovation made radically simple.
Get a quote for your home or business at mysolarpod.com
-
All music courtesy of a paid creative license with Artlist -
Pahoua & Brian Yang Hoffman: The Expectations Placed on Hmong Dating and Marriage
Hey, everyone! We’re hoping that you enjoyed last week’s episode and we’re super excited to bring you another one.
Today, we’re featuring Brian and Pahoua Yang Hoffman. Brian is an entrepreneur who currently owns Yeah Yeah Taco in Minneapolis. Pahoua is the Senior Vice President of Government & Community Relations for HealthPartners, which is a massive nonprofit healthcare provider based in Minnesota
Pahoua was with us last season and we really enjoyed our time with her. But this time, we wanted bring her husband along so that we could talk about relationships from a multicultural perspective.
Because, here’s the thing: Brian is white – he’s Jewish – and Pahoua is Hmong. When she was with us last season, she specifically spoke about how it was expected of her to marry a hmong man and so we wanted both her and her husband to dive into the nuances of this situation and many others.
Brian and Pahoua are brilliant individuals and they bring a lot of wisdom to the relationship conversation – which you’d expect from two people who've been married for almost 20 years.
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If you like the show, leave us a 5-star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and be sure to subscribe. The same goes for our YouTube channel: if you like what you’re seeing, give us a like, a comment, and subscribe to the channel.
If you haven’t done so already, be sure to follow us on social media on Facebook and Instagram: @hmonglishpod.
-
Support for Hmonglish comes from SolarPod, an Immigrant-founded and owned company that makes and installs the Z-Rack, no-roof-hole racking system.
Proudly manufactured in Shakopee, Minnesota, this product is designed to eliminate the use of fossil fuel compounds that are often used in solar installations. Not only that, but the z-rack preserves the integrity of your roof in the process.
The SolarPod Z-Rack: revolutionary solar innovation made radically simple.
Get a quote for your home or business at mysolarpod.com
-
All music courtesy of a paid creative license with Artlist -
Tsai Thao: The First-Ever Hmong Model Featured in Times Square & NY Fashion Week
Thank you for stopping by to listen today! We are thrilled to be doing a third season of this show. We have been fortunate enough to step things up on the production side and we now film and record at an actual studio, called Muze, which is in St. Paul, Minnesota.
The studio is run by two Hmong women, Milly and Elmo, and they have been a major help in making this season look better than ever.
Speaking of looking better, we put a lot of work into the video content for this season, so please, if you are more of a visual person, hop on over to our YouTube channel to check that out.
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As for today’s episode, we have Tsai Thao, who became the first Hmong model to be featured on a billboard in Times Square in New York City. Not only that, but she has walked in New York Fashion Week and many other shows across the country.
She is with Yia today to talk about what it took to become a successful, nationally recognized model, and it might not be what you think.
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If you like the show, leave us a 5-star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and be sure to subscribe. The same goes for our YouTube channel: if you like what you’re seeing, give us a like, a comment, and subscribe to the channel.
If you haven’t done so already, be sure to follow us on social media on Facebook and Instagram: @hmonglishpod.
We'd also like to offer a word from our sponsor, SolarPod, makers and installers of the revolutionary Z-Rack solar panel, proudly manufactured in Shakopee, Minnesota.
The Z-rack is designed to eliminate the use of fossil fuel compounds that are often used in solar installations and preserve the integrity of your roof in the process.
The SolarPod Z-Rack is solar made simple. Get a quote for your home or business at mysolarpod.com
-
All music courtesy of a paid creative license with Artlist
Customer Reviews
Fun!
Very fun podcast and love the variety of guests. I just feel the host takes over the interview often and wished I could also hear more from the guests regarding the podcast’s topic and their own opinions. Look forward to more shows 😊
Therapy for My Hmong Soul
As a Hmong American being, I have found myself unexpectedly crying in every episode I’ve listened to. In her farewell, Gia used the word, “grieving” to describe her reaction to a historical event. I resonated because grieving seems to be what my soul is doing all on it’s own through each episode. Thank you, Yia and Gia, for claiming space in this world through “Hmonglish.” Your Hmonglish voices tell me that my Hmonglish voice matters too.
Informative, felt heard, helps during my journey
Like Gia, I’ve spent most of my life shaming the Hmong parts of me. As I’ve gotten older, I feel new shame in not being proud of this part of me and am trying to find ways to undo the shame and find ways to be proud of my Hmong-ness. This podcast has definitely helped me find my pride, feel heard, and has been inspiring me to be a part of the change. I cannot wait for the next season. Thank you for this!