GOLDEN HOUR PODCAST
WITH
charlene kaye

A member of Podcast Potluck Collective

ASIAN JOY

INTERSECTIONALITY

CREATIVITY

MUSICIANSHIP

SOLIDARITY

ASIAN JOY ✦ INTERSECTIONALITY ✦ CREATIVITY ✦ MUSICIANSHIP ✦ SOLIDARITY ✦



a podcast spotlighting

asian musicians

Listen to the trailer

Meet the pod squad

  • FOUNDER/HOST

    Charlene Kaye (KAYE) is a musician, actor, comedian and visual artist based in New York. She has released several critically acclaimed albums, served as the lead singer for indie rock stalwart San Fermin, and shreds as Slash (“Gash”) in an all-girl Guns N Roses cover band called Guns N’ Hoses. She has toured with St. Vincent, alt-J and Arctic Monkeys, played SNL and the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and is currently touring her first hour-long comedy show Tiger Daughter.

    Celebrating her Asian heritage and building community is a core part of Charlene’s work. Growing up in Arizona in the early 2000s, Charlene didn’t have very many Asian musicians to look up to. When the pandemic hit in 2020, along with a surge of hate crimes against Asian Americans, she began interviewing other Asian creatives over Zoom and putting it up on YouTube. But after the Atlanta spa shootings in 2021, the urgency to develop that project became undeniable. Her longtime friend Dave Yim suggested taking that idea and specifically spotlighting Asian musicians. And here we are.

    Even if you aren’t Asian, or a musician, the threads of belonging, identity and creativity transcend. Thanks for being here.

  • PRODUCER/EDITOR

    Dave is Golden Hour’s producer extraordinaire, editing whizz, and occasional co-host. Dave and Charlene met nearly 15 years ago when they were both recent college grads looking to make it in the New York City music scene. While Dave never quite made it to Radio City Music Hall, his passion for storytelling only grew with his career in media.

    In early 2021, Charlene pitched Dave an idea for a podcast interviewing Asian creatives. Dave’s idea was to drill down a step further and focus on Asian musicians, using Charlene’s well-earned reputation as a rock goddess. With that, Golden Hour was born, and after nearly two dozen conversations with artists across every genre, we’re just getting started.

buy our merch! support the pod!

buy our merch! support the pod!

This podcast is a labor of love and the best way you can support it is to buy our merch! Then when your friends ask “hey, why is a dragon shredding on your sweater?” you can tell them allllll about the podcast. Grassroots, baby.

“there’s a difference between experience and identity. and the biggest difference is, you get to choose one.”

DARREN CRISS

ACTOR, SINGER, COMPOSER

being asian in my own life, i was the supporting character. i was never the lead in my own life.

STEPHANIE JAE PARK

Hamilton, The King and I
Singer/Songwriter of Saffron Lips

WHEN YOU’RE STARTING OUT, THERE’S A GAP BETWEEN EXPERIENCE AND INSTINCT. AS YOU GROW AS AN ARTIST, YOU LEARN THAT YOU HAVE CHOICES. THEN YOUR INSTINCT AND EXPERIENCE CAN ALIGN AND CROSS-POLLINATE.

SAMEER GADHIA

YOUNG THE GIANT

EPISODES

DARREN CRISS:
Returning to Music and Mixed-Race Identity

STEPHANIE JAE PARK:
Becoming Eliza Hamilton and Finding Her Voice

IAN CHANG of SON LUX:
The Singular Drummer on His Road to Becoming a Professional Musician

SUPERKNOVA:
Med School, Battling Depression, and Producing Music All Herself

JESS BOWEN of
THE SUMMER SET:
Being “the Girl in the Band” and Learning to Take up Space”

NO-NO BOY:
Songs about the Missing Chapters of American History

SAMEER GADHIA of
YOUNG THE GIANT:
Telling His “American Bollywood” Story

APL DE AP of
THE BLACK EYED PEAS:
From Humble Beginnings to Superstardom

LEA THOMAS:
Finding Spirituality in Nature and Music

YVETTE YOUNG:
The Guitar Virtuoso talks Love of Butt Rock, Overcoming Anorexia, and Sticking Up for Herself

and more
to come…

MILCK:
Finding Her Way Through Trauma and Creating a Viral Protest Anthem

MIKE PARK:
Asian Man Records Founder on a Life in Punk Music

KENTON CHEN:
Viral YouTube Covers and Learning Self Love

SHANGHAI RESTORATION PROJECT:
Give Up a Day Job and Collaborating With Your Partner

ÊMIA (Anh Le):
Storytelling in Songwriting and Singing Karaoke Backup Vocals

JAMEE LOCKARD and EMMA LEE
of the band MICHELLE:
F*ck Your Opinion

NOBUKO MIYAMOTO:
The Birth of the Asian American Movement

KIMMORTAL:
The Filipinx Canadian Talks Community-Driven Hip Hop

THAO NGUYEN:
Finding Healing in Music and Becoming Her Truest Self


GOT FEEDBACK FOR US, OR SOMEONE YOU’D LIKE US TO INTERVIEW?

let’s chat.