Welcome back to Hmonglish! This is a bit of a bittersweet episode because this is the last episode of season 4. We are currently working through the next steps for the podcast and we will keep you posted, seeing as though we don’t have additional material after today’s episode. Any updates will be shared here and on our Instagram @hmonglishpod. As for today’s episode, we have a really good one, featuring an outstanding member of the Hmong community. His name is Yee Hang and he is a retired a...

Today we have Mai Vang with us. She’s Founder and Executive Director of the Hmong Museum based in St. Paul, MN. She has over a decade of experience in the museum field as a registrar, curator, and collections manager. Her full-time job is as a Volunteer and Intern Program Manager at the Minnesota Historical Society and she has her master's in anthropology. The Hmong Museum is the first and currently only museum dedicated to the preservation and education of Hmong culture, history, stories, a...

Hey everyone! On today’s episode, we have Pheng Her. Pheng is an interesting guy because he has lived a very long life and he’s only in his early 30s. He was pursuing bodybuilding at one point and then he spent most of his 20s chasing the most prestigious position at his office job. He became so burnt out that he just decided to, well, become a farmer. He lives on a homestead with his wife and two kids. They raise poultry, goats, and they even keep honey bees. His business is called Guerri...

Today, we have a pair of sisters on the show, Molly and Grace Vang! Molly is the older of the two and a stay-at-home mom who runs a ridiculously beautiful clothing and lifestyle brand on Etsy. Her sister, Grace, is a content creator who focuses on her successful Instagram page. She also does some freelance modeling on the side. This was the first podcast they’ve ever done, and so they were a little nervous, but we thought they did a great job. We'll mention that we forgot to turn off the A...

Today, we have the pleasure of bringing the Atlanta-based filmmaker Jeremy Thao on the show. He is the director of an excellent short film called Wokman, which is about a single day in a Chinese restaurant. Now, Jeremy is Hmong. Why did he choose a Chinese family? Well, you’ll have to wait and see. What you need to know about Wokman is that it’s totally blowing up right now. It was in the Atlanta Film Festival, which is a big deal because it’s one of only film festivals in the world that qual...

Hey, folks! We are thrilled to be back for season 4 of Hmonglish, and we’ve got a lot of great conversations coming your way. You’ll hear from Hmong entrepreneurs, Hmong influencers, Hmong veterans, and Hmong scholars. But today, for this first episode, Yia isn’t speaking to a Hmong person at all. He’s speaking to a Chinese American man named Ming-Jinn Tong. If you’re a regular listener of the podcast, you’ll know that Ming-Jinn has been on the podcast twice already: once for a prerecorded e...

This episode is a recording of our September 19th live show, which was filmed at the Union Hmong Kitchen on Lake Street in partnership with SPAM. We are so grateful to everyone at SPAM and Hormel who supported this event. Everyone in attendance was treated to goodie bags and delicious appetizers, which came in the form of SPAM fried rice and SPAM musubi. both of which were made with their new maple flavor. Our host, Chef Yia Vang, spoke with Los Angeles-based writer Phillipe Thao abou...

Hey, folks! We're back to bring you a very special episode. On May 23rd, we held our first live show at Yia Vang’s Hilltribe popup space in uptown Minneapolis. It was a resounding success and we are so excited to share it with you here. Before we get into that, please know that we are working hard on creating future seasons and events for Hmonglish. Please sit tight, but in the meantime, keep up with us on Instagram and Facebook @hmonglishpod. There is also a video version of today’s show g...

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 traject...

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. - If you like the show, lea...