Problem Statement: Asian American music artists lack media exposure and have difficulty standing out in the mainstream music industry. Purpose Statement: This study was done to design a product showcasing Asian American music artists in a positive and empowering light – breaking preconceived stereotypes and adding diversity to the current music industry. Target Audience: People ages 15-30 Asian American youth People with interest in the music industry People seeking to find new music artists Impact Statement: This project will impact Asian American music artists, the Asian American community, and the music industry in terms of creativity, innovation, and diversity. Creative/Innovation Impact – This project will have a creative impact in the music industry by offering a unique blend of music that is rarely seen in mainstream music Economic Impact – By adding diversity into the music market and providing people with new music, this will generate more sales. In addition, this will be targeting Asian Americans, who hold strong and often untapped economic power. Cultural Impact – Since this project will be focused on showcasing talented Asian American music artists, the public will be exposed to a more diverse group of musicians. We seldom see Asian American artists in mainstream media, so this exposure can break stereotypes and empower people to follow their dreams. Societal Impact – The more the general public is exposed to Asian Americans as part of our society and mainstream music, the more people will be accepting of them and not view them as “foreign”.

2. features
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
THE LOCAL SCENE
FEATURED ARTISTS
SPOTLIGHT ON EVENTS
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5
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STATE-OF-THE-ART SOUND

3. Ever since I started college, I have been consistently active in the Asian American community. I
was first exposed to Asian American issues through the Asian American Studies and Ethnic Stud-
ies courses provided here at San Francisco State University. It was astounding how much history I
lacked knowledge of throughout grade school. I wondered, why was I never exposed to any of these
issues or problems affecting these community of people? Being a second generation Asian Ameri-
can, growing up and dealing with society’s perceptions of myself and my culture can create a sense
of inner conflict and duality. There are constant stereotypes and assumptions placed on Asian Ameri-
cans, and a large reason for this is their lack of media exposure.
For this project, I wanted to address the importance of Asian Americans in the media – in the enter-
tainment industry, television, film, music, as well as in sports. However, I will zone in on a specific
aspect of the entertainment industry and focus on the lack of exposure for Asian American musi-
cians. The reason I’m choosing musicians is because their talent is heard through the ears and not
the eyes. Though people under the limelight in the music industry must adhere to a set of standards
in terms of appearance and stage presence, that raw musical talent must be there also. It is tough to
enter the music industry in general, but it is even tougher to enter as an Asian American. They are
often deemed as undesirable and much harder to market, because they are still seen as “foreign” and
an “outsider”. How do we break these preconceived stereotypes?
I recall at a young age flipping through magazines and wondering, why don’t I see any “familiar fac-
es” (i.e. other Asian Americans)? All of the people who graced the covers of magazines, billboards,
and television were primarily Caucasian or African American. I feel that for young Asian Americans,
they need to see some positive role models in their lives, especially depicted in the media. Therefore,
my design solution to this project is to create a magazine dedicated to Asian Americans in music and
the arts – to showcase their talent as well as providing an outlet for young Asian Americans to find
role models.
5/6
San Francisco State University
Asian Student Union
API: Movements of Heritage
5/17
San Francisco
Asian American Film Festival
Japantown Peace Plaza
5/25
San Jose
(re)present 2011
Theatre on San Pedro Square
7th Annual Asian Heritage Street
Celebration Artist Preview Show
When: April 30th 6pm - 9pm
Where: Minna 111 Gallery
San Francisco, CA 94105
Krunk Fu
Battle Battle
When: May 12 - June 26
Where: East West Players
120 Judge John Aiso St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Nikkei Matsuri
San Jose Japantown
When: May 1, 2011
Where: 5th and Jackson Streets,
San Jose, CA 95112
the local sceneletter from editor
Nina Chan, Editor
Welcome!
54

4. Genre:
Rock, Alternative, Pop
Members:
Nikki Aclaro
Phil Pristia
Paul Thomas
Alan Kao
Cary LaScala
Derrick Hostetter
Hometown:
San Francisco, Oakland, Guam
Record Label:
Unsigned
About:
Seeking Empire is a San Francisco
rock project featuring bay area musi-
cians Nikki Aclaro and Alan Kao (mud)
Phil Pristia (Paper Sons/Phantom
Kicks) Paul Thomas (Good Charlotte)
Cary LaScala (Magic Wands/former
live drummer for The Lovemakers/The
Limousines) Derrick Hostetter (Cast
of Thousands). Currently working on
debut album produced by Paul Thomas.
featured artists
artistprofile
76

5. If you think that R&B needs a fresh face and a new
sound, look no further than Bay Area-bred songstress,
Michelle Martinez. Since the age of 2, this classically
trained vocalist has poised herself as the next big thing,
and won’t stop until she is a household name. Her funky,
feel-good vibe is inspired by contemporary artists like
Alicia Keys, Keri Hilson and Rihanna, who continue to
push the envelope in Pop music, while classic R&B art-
ists such as Brian McKnight and Mariah Carey give her
a fundamental appreciation for romantic balladeers. “I
have a fun and sassy personality and I play that up in my
songs,” she explains. “But I also can tap into my inner
feelings and try to bring out the emotion on slower tempo
songs.”
After winning numerous singing competitions in the Bay
Area, Midwest and Canada, she landed a spot on the WB
Network’s “Live in Hollywood” and won during Amateur
Night. Surely the years of singing experience couldn’t
hurt, as the young singer used the momentum of the win
to start working on her demo with established produc-
ers such as Traxamillion, Charles Williams, and Smash
Hitta. When she finally turned 21, she started performing
at various musical venues around the Bay Area, and later
opened for Colby O’Donis and Donnie of MTV’s “Making
michellemartinezThe Band”. But it wasn’t until she started record-
ing herself on YouTube that she started gaining
international recognition, with over 55,000 subscrib-
ers and over 3 million views and counting. It was
because of her viral videos that Avex Music Group
in Japan sent an invitation to live and train there for
3 months, which she happily accepted.
With the release of her highly anticipated album
“Adrenaline” and working with artists like Clyde
Carson and the music video set to also release
by the end of summer, she is ready to establish
herself after years of dreaming about superstardom.
Though her success so far has come at a young
age, she’s ready to grow and incorporate her ap-
preciation for music into her blossoming career. “I’d
love people to know that my music is a good sense
of who I am,” she shares. “I’m a complex person
and have a multi-faceted personality and that’s why
my music comes from so many different angles.”
featured artists
98

6. Patrick “Murasaki” Orara was born on September
19th 1981 to a mother who was an avid pop music
listener, and to a father who was an aspiring rock
songwriter. At the age of 3 Murasaki memorized,
Stevie Wonder’s “I just called to say I love you”.
The particular tempo and vocal syncopation
served as the foundation of what was to come
as Murasaki’s personal style. During his youth,
Patrick was introduced to the golden era Hip-Hop
and Rock. As a youth, one of his particular hob-
bies was to master reciting his favorite raps from
Wu Tang Clan, Hieroglyphics, Bone Thugs and
Harmony.
In his teenage years, Murasaki found himself im-
mersed in the world of rap battling. He challenged
himself to battle in the halls of his high school, on
air over the weekly radio rap contests, and any-
where else an opportunity to showcase his talents
presented itself. In 2003, Murasaki released his
first mix tape, dubbed “Welcome to the Boonies
Vol. One”. A year later, more mix tapes would
follow including “Vol. 2” and “The Mix tape from
nowhere”, where he shifted his lyrical direction
from rap into songwriting.
In 2006, Murasaki moved to San Francisco, the
new atmosphere inspired Murasaki; wherein the
likes of Lupe Fiasco, MGMT, and even foreign
genre such as J-pop, and K-pop served as a major
influence. During this time, Murasaki started to
write for other rappers, singers, and rock bands.
In fall 2009, just as the mixtape “The Purple Tape”
finished, Murasaki and William “Loky” WJ met in a
music marketing class at SFSU and became close
friends and business associates. And from there
Loky and Murasaki understood that they shared
the same life-long dreams of making music-- and
thus the innovative and talented songwriting part-
nership of Mind Harmony Productions was begun.
Soon after meeting up, Bonnie Wong, a Interna-
tional Business student and aspiring singer at
San Francisco State University. joined their group
and there they formed 3:One. Since then they
have been collaborating on creating innovative
electronic and pop songs.
patrickmurasaki
bonniewong
featured artists
1110

7. April Chase is an alternative rock band from San
Jose, California. While blending pop & rock influ-
ences (Paramore, Phoenix, My American Heart)
with honest melodramatic lyrics, April Chase has
set out to perfect their craft in pursuing a seri-
ous path within the music industry. Playing along
such acts as The Higher (Epitaph Records), Story
Of The Year (Epitaph Records), and over 60 shows
in the last year, these are just humble beginnings
for what is to come for this up and coming band.
While band members are at an average age of
20 years old, they have managed to release their
first self-produced EP “In The Midst Of Sirens”
on January 9th, 2010 in Cupertino, CA. Support-
ing My American Heart (Warcon Records) in their
last bay area show & AJ Rafael (Youtube Sensa-
tion), the concert completely sold out through
pre-sale tickets and door admissions. Since their
first EP has been released, April Chase has gone
on to shooting their first music video with Marco
Bercasio (Mary J. Blige, Rihanna, E-40 & more) for
the first song off of their new CD named “Turn It
Down”. With Carina Valdes on vocals, Tim Fergu-
son and Mark Sahagun on guitar, Brian Walker on
bass, and Lachlan Franckx on drums, April Chase
strives to set themselves apart both as musicians
and as people. If this band continues to progress
at this pace strictly under self motivation, it will be
phenomenal to see what the future holds for these
dedicated musicians.“April Chases introspective
indie-rock melodies crescendo into dramatic cli-
maxes. Were thrilled that this up and coming band
is rocking at LCL. If April Chase is an indication of
the up and coming sound rising in San Jose, were
in for headphone-shaking years to come.” -Annie
Hermes,Left Coast Live
April
Chase
featured artists
1312

8. Don’t follow
your dreams,
lead them.
LilCrazed
1514

9. Event Information
Host: SFSU Korean Student Association
Where: San Francisco State University
1600 Holloway Avenue, Jack Adams Hall
When: April 22, 2011 6pm - 9pm
Performances By
Jamaesori (Korean Drumming) | David So (comedian) |
Sarah Kim and Co (singers) | CAL Berkeley Martial Arts
(TKD) | Mark Agustin (rapper) | Lauren and Monique (sing-
ers) | KariSmA (dance crew)
The Korean Student Association at San Francisco State
University hosted their second annual sold out Korean
Cultural Night event showcasing various Korean-American
talent from all along the Bay Area. They featured cultural
performances from traditional Korean drumming and
Taekwondo to a more modern take on KPop-inspired danc-
ing, as well as funny guy and Youtube sensation, David
So, and we can’t forget -- the amazing music. The show
started off in the thoughts of an individual and carried out
as a play, which ended with a romance story between two
individuals.
Jamaesori, a type of Korean drumming plays an impor-
tant part in traditional Korean music, ranging from folk
music to royal court music. There are a wide variety of
shapes and sizes, for use both in accompanying other
instruments and in special drumming performances. In
the traditional Korean classification of instruments, drums
are grouped with the hyeokbu, or instruments made with
leather.
Talented and local Bay Area singers, Sarah Kim, Lauren,
and Monique graced us with their renditions of Korean
pop songs and original music. They were full of energy
and captivated the audience with their amazing vocals and
song choices, drawing the crowd in even more. If interest-
ed, please check out their Youtube pages to watch more of
their performances.
KSA’s very own members started a dance group in 2010
and have come back around for another year to perform in
KCN. They put a creative spin on popular K-Pop dancers
and leave us with something mesmerizing to watch.
event spotlight
1716
Korean Cultural Night

10. event spotlight
David So has been a local Stand up Comedian in the
city of Sacramento since 2008. He has performed in
various comedy clubs throughout California and has
made a name for himself through his comedic imper-
sonation and stories. He had gained instant popularity
after creating a video response to Alexandra Wallace’s
“Asians in the Library” video rant. Wallace made many
remarks about the Asian community at UCLA that
offended many Asian Americans. This video instantly
went viral and even reached an international audience.
David So used this as a chance to voice his opinion
about this matter, but at the same time, add some
comedic relief to a touchy subject. As with music,
many Asian Americans find it hard to step foot into
that field as well. They aren’t normally seen as “funny
guys” because of the stereotype of being serious and
educationally driven all the time. Events such as these
allow people to be exposed to the various and unlim-
ited talent that they seldom see.
meet
david so
1918

11. WHAT DOYOU AIM FOR?