Asian Heritage Month Feature: Creatives Roundtable

Collaboration with The MIX on Asian creatives and their journeys to self-actualization through creative pursuits

VIDEO: Cold Tea Collective x The MIX – Asian Creatives Roundtable

“If you had a million bucks, what would you do? I said I’d cook — all I wanted to do was cook.”

— Matt Murtagh-Wu (aka The Dumpling King)

Going against the grain isn’t always easy, especially when what you want to pursue comes with not only risk, but also with no clear path.

For Asian Heritage Month, we teamed up with The MIX, Canada’s newest media platform by creators, for creators, to bring some awesome Asian-Canadian creatives together from the world of dance, fashion and food, and learn what drives their creative pursuits.

Meet the Creatives (and learn why we chose them):

Elim Chu

You may recognize her from our 18 Asian-Canadian Women You Should Know list — we want you to get to know her better. We love Elim because she is so in tune with who she is as a person, she helps others express themselves through their clothing choices, is a champion for conscious consumption and advocate for self-care and mental health.

Website: www.elimchu.com
Instagram: @Elim_Chu

Ken Yung

We first met Ken about ten years ago when he was a substitute teacher for a hip hop dance class. He very quickly became one of our favourite dance teachers because he was unabashedly himself and because he would ask, “Any questions? I’m sorry if you can’t understand me through my fobby accent,” embracing his bilingual skills and encouraging us to do the same with other cultures, through music and movement. Ken is a choreographer, teacher and mentor, supporting the next generation of professional dancers as Co-Director of KTL Co., a professional dance training and mentorship group based in Vancouver.

YouTube: KennonLive
Instagram: @kennonnn

 

 

 

 

 

Matt Murtagh-Wu (aka The Dumpling King)

Matt and I became quick friends when I slid into his DMs and asked him about how he started his business, The Dumpling King, delivering hand-made frozen dumplings across the Lower Mainland. What we love about him is that he is passionate about sourcing his ingredients from local Chinatown butcher shops, and makes a huge effort to understand and bring awareness to the local business community of Vancouver’s Chinatown. Being of mixed-race, growing up, he was left feeling like he needed to prove how Asian he was and decided to do that through food — if you try his dumplings, we 100% guarantee you’ll be convinced.

Website: The Dumpling King
Instagram: @therealdumplingking

 

 

Thanks to Ross, Mia, Hillary, Jessy, Bronson, Tommy, Cristobal and Bruna from The MIX for bringing this story to life with us. Read The MIX’s article here and check them out at the following links:

Website: www.mixsociety.com
Instagram: @mixvancouver / @mixtoronto
Facebook: @TheMIX

Want to hear the roundtable discussion more in depth? Email us at coldteacollective@gmail.com or DM us on Instagram or Facebook to let us know and we’ll work on an extended audio cut for you!

Produced in collaboration with The MIX