by Stacey Nguyen
Northwest Asia Weekly
2021 is a somewhat strange year. A pandemic rages on and many of us are stuck at home, spending hours on TikTok and watching every streaming platform. At least, that’s what I did. All these efforts are worth it. Because it has allowed me to write this article for you with astonishing breadth.
Without further ado, here is my list of the 10 most successful API celebrities of 2021, in scientific order:
10. Olivia Rodrigo
Olivia Rodrigo’s debut single “Drivers License” broke multiple records upon release. Like, this song broke Spotify’s record for most daily streams of non-holiday songs with over 15.7 million streams worldwide on January 11, 2021 and over 17 million the following day. Her debut album, “Sour,” reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and spent a total of five weeks there, making it the longest-reigning first album of 2021 by a female artist. Time magazine also named Rodrigo its Entertainer of the Year.
Ugh, did I mention that Rodrigo is only 18! (She’s also Filipino, German, and Irish.) The fact that she’s so young, and her entire career awaits her, is why she doesn’t rank high on this list. I know some of you haven’t heard of her yet. Wait a moment!
9. Taika Waititi
Taika Waititi, of Māori descent, has a very busy 2021. Although best known as a film director, Waititi provided the score for “Jojo Rabbit” (the 2019 film he directed).
He briefly showed off his acting skills as Ratcatcher’s father in “Suicide Squad,” and even though it was a Suicide Squad movie, his performance suffocated me, and he released the critically acclaimed Native American teen comedy series “Reservation Dogs,” into the world. For that, we are forever grateful to him.
8. Michelle Lee
Michelle Lee has made some career changes in 2021. She started as Allure’s editor-in-chief in 2015, before announcing in July 2021 that she was leaving the long-serving position. to Netflix as its vice president and global head of editorial and publishing—an all-new role for the anchor. Guys, Lee is a huge deal.
7. Zheng Jian
Ken Jeong is full of secrets in 2021! For that, I salute his work ethic. I also appreciate that his current career is mainly as a professional reality TV judge. Our people need this everywhere.
Well, in one go, here’s what Zheng is doing in 2021: He’s in “Operation Rain” (a scary movie – don’t watch it), he’s starring in the live-action Tom and Jerry, he’s in “Boss Level” , he is the voice actor of “My Little Pony: The New Generation” and “Extinction”, and he is the voice of the judge on the reality shows “The Masked Singer”, “The British Masked Singer”, “I Can See You” “, “The Masked Dancer” and OMG I skipped a bunch of stuff because I didn’t want to write them all. Dude was busy in our living room last year!
6. Padma Lakshmi
Padma Lakshmi is still at the helm of the critically acclaimed “Taste the Nation With Padma Lakshmi” and “Top Chef,” but in addition to that, she’s releasing a children’s book called “Tomatoes for Neela” in 2021, Named the United Nations Correspondents Association as UNCA’s 2021 Advocate of the Year, in recognition of her work leading the agency’s #HalfTheWorld campaign that has raised awareness of the speed at which COVID-19 is exacerbating global inequalities awareness.
5. Gemma Chen
Gemma probably first caught most of our attention through her American breakout role in 2018’s “Crazy Rich Asians,” and she hasn’t stopped since.
In 2021, she’s starring in two big movies: Disney’s Rhea and the Last Dragon and Marvel’s The Eternals. Additionally, last May, Chan launched the #StopESEAHate campaign to help victims of hate crimes in East and Southeast Asia.
4. Silk Sonic
This one is a bit of a cheat because Silk Sonic is actually two brilliant APIs with unimaginable skill and creativity. Yes, Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak. In 2021, the two will form a band and release music together.
The first single from their first album, “An Evening with Silk Sonic,” was “Leave the Door Open,” which took home all the awards. Soul Train Music Awards, MTV Video Music Awards, BET Awards, American Music Awards, we’re not sure how many Grammys they’ll win, but I guess the answer is “a lot.”
3. Dwayne Johnson
It feels like a joke to include Dwayne Johnson on this list every year, but this guy refuses to stop being prolific and successful! In 2021, he starred in adventure action films such as “Jungle Cruise,” “Free Man” and “Red Notice.”
He also executive produced the TV series “Young Rock,” a show set in his childhood featuring many great Pacific Islander actors. Does he still play video games? I’m not a video game guy, but you probably know that? It’s called “Fortnite: Battle Royale.” Is it popular? What am I talking about? Of course it’s very welcome. Johnson is in it.
2. Zhao Keluo
Chloé Zhao is a Chinese-born filmmaker. She used to be pretty independent, but in 2021 she comes to us with the Marvel Studios movie The Eternals, which she directed and wrote.
Also, earlier this year, her 2020 film Nomads swept all the awards. It has won a Golden Globe, BFI, AAFTA, Critics’ Choice, BAFTA, Independent Spirit Awards, as well as Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress. Like, really.
1. BTS
Uh, uh, BTS is number one! Man, these guys aren’t even human. They may be time travelers from the future who sneak back into this era with secrets about how to rule the world through pop superstars. They are doing it, man! They are doing it!
I can’t even list their 2021 achievements because there are so many. Instead, I’ll list the ones I’m most interested in. Well, in 2021, they became brand ambassadors for Tamagotchi. Yes, the little pocket pets of our childhood. They also have a really cool McDonald’s meal in 2021. The BTS meal is a 10-piece chicken McNugget meal with medium fries, medium coke, sweet chili and cajun dipping sauce.
Stacy can reach stacy@nwasianweekly.com.
