Bong Joon-ho, Awkwafina, BTS among those named Top 100 most influential Asians
Other big stars on Gold House’s annual A100 List include Blackpink, Dwayne Johnson, Keanu Reeves and Henry Golding.
Director of four Oscar award-winning film 'Parasite' Bong Joon-ho poses for photographs during a news conference in Seoul, South Korea, February 19, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) non-profit organisation The Gold House recently released its third annual A100 List celebrating Asians, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and their impact on society.
The list is announced annually in May to mark the Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in the US. This year and for the first time ever, voters were also allowed to choose the single most impactful person for each category, such as fashion and lifestyle, media and entertainment and social activism.
Actress Awkwafina snagged the selection for the media and entertainment category, while former US presidential candidate Andrew Yang took the spot for social activism. CJ Entertainment chairman Miky Lee was also selected for the Legend Honor, a lifetime achievement award, while designer Prabal Gurung took the spot for fashion and lifestyle.
K-pop group BTS is on the list again this year after appearing last year. Joining them are Blackpink and Oscar-winning Parasite director, Bong Joon-ho.
Other stars on the list include Crazy Rich Asians actor Henry Golding, Chrissy Teigen, Dev Patel, Daniel Dae Kim, Keanu Reeves and Dwayne Johnson.
Nominations are a public process, with the final list being decided by a collective panel of multicultural icons such as George Takei, David Henry Hwang and Lea Salonga, as well as Gold House members.
“The AAPI community is facing a pivotal juncture in our history,” said a Gold House spokesperson. “Unprecedented hope and progress – seen in IPOs and other major company exits to the Democratic Presidential Primaries to the Oscars and Golden Globes – quickly turned into hateful harassment and violence. The A100 spotlights significant contributions made by the Asian diaspora that transcend ethnicities, generations, industries, and continents – a powerful reminder that we have always been and will continue to be an integral part of the fabric of American society.”
Check out the full A100 list here.
