349 episodes

Being part of a culture of almost 100 million Vietnamese people living in the world today has its pain and challenges, but it comes with plenty of history, privileges and honors. Join Kenneth Nguyen as he spotlights Vietnamese excellence from around the world. Each episode explores the creative process of individuals shaping the diversity of what it means to be Vietnamese--as a local, born and raised, or as a third culture kid, and even the divisions that separate us politically and culturally. This show can take multiple directions, but what it will do is show Vietnamese from a transpacific lens, in all its facets and complexities.

The Vietnamese with Kenneth Nguyen thevietnamesepodcast

    • Society & Culture
    • 4.9 • 54 Ratings

Being part of a culture of almost 100 million Vietnamese people living in the world today has its pain and challenges, but it comes with plenty of history, privileges and honors. Join Kenneth Nguyen as he spotlights Vietnamese excellence from around the world. Each episode explores the creative process of individuals shaping the diversity of what it means to be Vietnamese--as a local, born and raised, or as a third culture kid, and even the divisions that separate us politically and culturally. This show can take multiple directions, but what it will do is show Vietnamese from a transpacific lens, in all its facets and complexities.

    351 - Hoang Nguyen - Laser Scientist

    351 - Hoang Nguyen - Laser Scientist

    Hoang Nguyen is a senior laser scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.


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    • 1 hr 10 min
    350 - Viet Thanh Nguyen - Author of The Sympathizer

    350 - Viet Thanh Nguyen - Author of The Sympathizer

    Viet Thanh Nguyen’s novel The Sympathizer is a New York Times best seller and won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. The novel has been made into an HBO Series, which is now available on streaming.
    Viet is a University Professor, the Aerol Arnold Chair of English, and a Professor of English, American Studies and Ethnicity, and Comparative Literature at the University of Southern California. 
    Viet was born in Ban Mê Thuột, Viet Nam (now spelled Buôn Mê Thuột after 1975, a year which brought enormous changes to many things, including the Vietnamese language). He came to the United States as a refugee in 1975 with his family and was initially settled in Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania, one of four such camps for Vietnamese refugees. From there, he moved to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he lived until 1978.
    Seeking better economic opportunities, his parents moved to San Jose, California, and opened one of the first Vietnamese grocery stores in the city. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, San Jose had not yet been transformed by the Silicon Valley economy, and was in many ways a rough place to live, at least in the downtown area where Viet’s parents worked. 
    Viet attended St. Patrick School and Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose. After high school, he briefly attended UC Riverside and UCLA before settling on UC Berkeley, where he graduated with degrees in English and ethnic studies. He stayed at Berkeley for a Ph.D. in English, moved to Los Angeles for a teaching position at the University of Southern California, and has been there ever since.


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    • 53 min
    349 - Phil Van - Writer/Director

    349 - Phil Van - Writer/Director

    Phillip Van has worked as a commercial and branded narrative content director for over a decade. His projects often highlight the surreal in the everyday, combining an uncanny and dryly humorous tone with dynamic visual storytelling. He’s Vietnamese American and the first on his dad’s side to be born in the US. He grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii and Portland, Oregon and he currently lives in Los Angeles.
    After attending NYU Graduate Film, Phillip was named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 New Faces of Independent Film,” and appeared in Shoot Magazine’s New Directors Showcase. His work has since been featured by the New York Times, Rolling Stone, MTV, Pitchfork, AdAge’s “Best Ads,” Short of the Week and Vimeo’s Staff Picks. His commercial work has won D&AD, One Show and Addy awards and his narrative short films have garnered accolades at festivals including Berlin, Sundance and Telluride. 
    On the literary front, he’s one half of the writing duo Goodwin & Van. He and his writing partner Chris Goodwin penned the screenplay To The Extreme, which was featured on The Hit List, Young & Hungry List and The Black List, the annual rundown of Hollywood’s best unproduced screenplays. It’s currently in development through No Trace Camping (Room) and Ramona Films (The Disaster Artist), with Dave Franco attached to star.


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    • 1 hr 19 min
    348 - Supdawk - Content Creator

    348 - Supdawk - Content Creator

    Supdawk kicked off in 2020, founded by the dawk going by "Anonymous." This Vietnamese-American, born to refugee parents, was raised in Chicago but now calls Orange County home.
    It all started as a joke on YouTube back in '07, but by 2020, it turned into a full-on passion. Supdawk got into sharing his unique humor on big-time social platforms, tapping into that Asian American subculture with a comedic twist. Amidst the pandemic, the follower count just blew up.
    Supdawk's all about spreading those good vibes and laughs, aiming to shake up how folks see Asians, breaking down stereotypes one joke at a time.
    https://www.instagram.com/supdawk


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    • 1 hr 23 min
    347 - David Nguyen - Chef

    347 - David Nguyen - Chef

    David Nguyen is a first generation Vietnamese American Cook and Content Creator. His culinary journey started at a young age.
    Growing up, he'd watch his mom cook to provide for the family—from selling rice plates as a street vendor in Vietnam to cooking for family gatherings. She is his biggest inspiration, and the reason why he cooks today. He's been fortunate to have worked for some of the best restaurants in the country, including The French Laundry.
    David started filming and sharing his recipes on social media in 2020. With some persistence and a little luck, he now has a community of passionate foodies like himself.


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    • 1 hr 8 min
    346 - Kieu Chinh - Actress - The Sympathizer

    346 - Kieu Chinh - Actress - The Sympathizer

    Kieu Chinh is a Vietnamese-American actress, producer, humanitarian, lecturer and philanthropist.


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    • 51 min

Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5
54 Ratings

54 Ratings

phobowl ,

It’s time for us.

I love Kenneth’s point of view that through all the pain and suffering we have gone through as a people, it’s time that we claim our spot in the sun. If u want to
Be in touch with the next generation of Viets this is a must listen.

LyzRocks ,

Viet Culture!!

I just stumbled upon this beautiful gem. If you want to learn more about the modern Vietnamese culture this is the podcast for you.

Pckes ,

THANK YOU!

As a second generation Vietnamese American, THIS has been the podcast that I didn’t know that I have been waiting for all my life. I have learned and been inspired by all the interviews which are so important as time keepers. Without this podcast, many of these stories will be lost. It is thought provoking, honest and heart felt. Kenneth is a talented interviewer. He talks with much ease and fluidity. His questions are always so thoughtful and respectful to the interviewee even when the topic is controversial. Thank you to Kenneth for all your time, passion and commitment to the vietnamese community! I look forward to listening to all of the episodes and to have conversations with my parents about the topics covered.

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