The inaugural Character Honors arrived with an ambitious goal: to celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander leaders across entertainment, business, media, fashion, technology, and culture while launching a new chapter for Character and GoldenTV. Held on May 1 at The London West Hollywood to kick off AAPI Heritage Month, the evening brought together an impressive mix of actors, entrepreneurs, journalists, executives, designers, and creators for what ultimately felt like a surprisingly intimate gathering despite the high-profile room.
Produced by the teams behind the long-running Unforgettable Awards, the inaugural ceremony also marked the relaunch of Character Media and served as a reminder of how expansive Asian American influence has become across industries. More notably, many of the night’s conversations centered around the idea of cultural ownership and self-definition. Honorees repeatedly spoke about preserving identity while navigating mainstream American spaces, whether through fashion, media, technology, or business. Fashion designer Thai Nguyen, who received the Design and Culture Award, spoke on the red carpet about the importance of modernizing Vietnamese fashion without losing its cultural integrity. “I never want to westernize it because it’s so beautiful the way it is,” he said while discussing his modern interpretation of the traditional áo dài. “These are not costumes. These are clothing. It’s self-expression.”
The event itself moved efficiently throughout the evening, something that can be difficult for first-year award shows balancing speeches, performances, and presentations. Much of that credit belongs to the Character and GoldenTV teams, particularly Takashi Cheng and executive producer Kelly Mi Li, who helped guide the evening with a sense of polish without sacrificing warmth. Cheng opened the ceremony by speaking about the importance of representation and authentic storytelling within Asian American media spaces, themes that carried throughout the night.
The inaugural honorees reflected the broad reach of AAPI leadership across industries:
Jiro Egawa, Senior VP of Platform Growth and Monetization at Xumo — Innovation Leadership Award
Bobby Hundreds, Global Creative Director of Disney Consumer Products and Co-Founder of The Hundreds — Global Trailblazer Award
Lisa Ling — Global Impact Award
Nanxi Liu, Co-CEO and Co-Founder of Blaze.tech — Emerging Visionary Award
Ally Maki, Founder and CEO of Asian American Girl Club — Community Builder Award
Thai Nguyen — Design and Culture Award
Vicky Tsai, Founder of Tatcha — Toyota Call Your Shot Award
Albert Yang, CEO of Din Tai Fung North America — Cultural Game Changer Award
Throughout the evening, many of the speeches leaned personal rather than corporate, which gave the ceremony much of its emotional resonance. Ally Maki spoke about the impact Asian American Girl Club has had on women who found comfort and connection through the brand. Thai Nguyen reflected on learning to sew as a child in Vietnam before eventually building a career in fashion in the United States. Nanxi Liu discussed how cultural influence often reveals itself in everyday life through the brands, stories, and communities people carry with them.
One of the more emotional moments came from Vicky Tsai, who shared a story about surviving a serious car accident at 19 years old and credited her Toyota vehicle with saving her life. The story also gave context to Toyota’s support of the event and the role sponsorships can play in helping create spaces dedicated to celebrating underrepresented communities. Tsai later spoke candidly about the barriers she faced while raising funding for Tatcha as an Asian American woman and the importance of opening doors for others coming behind her.
Albert Yang’s speech drew some of the biggest laughs of the evening as he reflected on growing up being teased for bringing Chinese food to school lunches, contrasting it with the mainstream popularity Din Tai Fung now enjoys today. The mention of DTF.com quickly became a running joke throughout the night, helped along by emcees Helen Hong and Gene Kang, whose chemistry kept the room energized between presentations. Bobby Hundreds added to the humor by repeatedly calling attention to the “handsome man” handing out awards on stage, another improvised bit that continued resurfacing throughout the ceremony.
The ceremony also featured a performance from Katherine Ho, who performed her rendition of “Yellow,” known to many audiences from the soundtrack for “Crazy Rich Asians.” The stripped-down performance fit naturally within the tone of the evening and added another reminder of how influential Asian American artists have become across music and entertainment.
The guest list reflected the broad cross-section of industries and talent the event hoped to bring together. Notable attendees included Asif Ali (“Deli Boys”), Brandon Finn (“Chief of War”), Chen Tang (“Warrior”), Cody Christian (“All American”), Devin Kawaoka (“Shrinking”), Ellen K, Eugene Lee Yang (“The Try Guys”), Gia Kim (“XO, Kitty”), Jeff Yamazaki, Jenna Ushkowitz (“Unconventional,” “Glee”), Jolene Purdy (“The Bondsman”), Kara Wang (“Good Trouble,” “Top Gun: Maverick”), Paris Berelc (“Kissing is the Easy Part,” “Do Revenge”), Peng Peng Lee, Ryan Alexander Holmes, Steven He, Ylona Garcia, and many others from across entertainment, music, media, and digital culture. Also in attendance was Five Alive, an up-and-coming Asian American pop group hoping to help demonstrate that Asian pop acts do not have to fit neatly into the K-pop mold to find an audience. Their presence felt reflective of a larger theme throughout the night: the growing diversity of Asian American creative voices and the expanding ways those voices are defining themselves on their own terms.
The evening closed with remarks from Lisa Ling, whose speech centered on the approaching 250th anniversary of the United States and the evolving role Asian Americans, particularly Asian American women, have played in shaping the country despite often being excluded from its broader historical narrative. Her speech carried both reflection and conviction as she spoke about the long road from visibility to genuine influence and belonging.
The inaugural Character Honors also marked an important moment for Character and GoldenTV as both brands continue expanding their efforts to spotlight Asian American and Pacific Islander voices across entertainment, business, journalism, and culture. Character has spent more than three decades covering AAPI stories through its magazine, digital platforms, and live events, while GoldenTV has continued building a streaming platform focused on AAPI-centered programming and storytelling.
If the goal of the Character Honors was to create a space that brought together multiple generations of Asian American leaders, creatives, and entrepreneurs at the start of AAPI Heritage Month, the inaugural ceremony largely succeeded in doing exactly that while laying the groundwork for what could become an important annual gathering for the community moving forward.
About Character
For over 30 years, Character has been the nation’s leading print magazine and digital media publisher spotlighting Asian and Pacific Islander stories. Through its print magazine, online articles, video content, and signature events, including the Unforgettable Awards and live concert experiences, Character continues to connect brands and audiences through powerful storytelling that celebrates API voices and culture.
About GoldenTV
GoldenTV is the nation’s first streaming and cable platform dedicated to celebrating and elevating Asian American and Pacific Islander voices across entertainment, culture, and storytelling. Operating as a hybrid SVOD and FAST platform, alongside a traditional cable presence through Spectrum, GoldenTV offers audiences a curated destination for original programming, films, series, award shows, and cultural events that highlight the creativity, achievements, and global impact of AAPI creators and leaders. Through premium content and cultural storytelling, GoldenTV connects audiences with stories that reflect the richness and diversity of the AAPI experience.