Tatler speaks to Bing Chen, Prabal Gurung and Kevin Lin to discuss how their non-profit Gold House is changing the future of the Asian diaspora
In the ever-evolving landscape of social and cultural institutions and initiatives, Gold House stands out as a beacon of advocacy and empowerment for the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community in the US.
At the heart of this non-profit group are three visionaries: Bing Chen, the founder and president, who is known for spearheading the launch of YouTube’s multi-billion-dollar influencer ecosystem; his co-founder Kevin Lin, renowned co-founder of video live-streaming platform Twitch; and respected fashion designer Prabal Gurung, who serves as CEO.
The foundation was formed in 2018 with 500 successful A-list AAPI founding members, who each contributed US$ 25,000 worth of material assets— whether mentorship, donation or investment. By connecting executives across industries, financing new ventures and reshaping AAPI portrayals, the team aimed to promote positive depictions of AAPI people onscreen, in boardrooms and in the media; today, Gold House has become the first call for anything Asian in Hollywood because of their finger on the pulse of the community—either for their access or to ensure cultural authenticity.
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Their collective efforts have not only fostered a sense of unity within the AAPI community but also catalysed systemic change across industries from entertainment to tech. Through initiatives like the Gold House Gala—which broke the internet in May, when the community’s best and brightest convened to celebrate the 100 most impactful AAPI changemakers in culture and society over the past year—they continue to uplift and celebrate the contributions of Asians, ensuring that future generations are supported and recognised.
“There is this amazing renaissance of Asian creativity,” says Chen. “We had the most awarded film of all time with Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022); the most watched Netflix series of all time with Squid Game (2021); and K-pop is still crushing it. I really want to unify the Asian diaspora worldwide and I’m very optimistic we’ll get that done.”
While great strides have been made in terms of representation of the community as a whole, and in the entertainment industry in particular—a recent joint study with US university USC Annenberg found a significant increase in Asian characters in top box office films, from 3.4 per cent in 2007 to 15.9 per cent in 2022—there is still much work to be done. The motivation behind ensuring the success of Gold House is also deeply personal for its founders.
Gurung brings a unique perspective to Gold House. Born in Singapore and raised in Kathmandu, Gurung’s journey to New York has been one of constant advocacy for representation and inclusion. “The lack of representation in the mainstream world is astounding,” Gurung says. As a queer Asian immigrant, he has long been an advocate for visibility and a seat at the table. “When I joined the fashion industry, the lack of representation and visibility, the constant microaggressions and the blatant racism were so apparent to me,” he says. “People had several opinions about us Asians: [we were either the] monolithic model citizen, the job-stealing immigrant, the emasculated nerd, the tiger mum or the submissive human— among many other dangerous tropes that stop the world from seeing us as being actual humans.”