Kyra Karatsu
@kyra.karatsuKyra Karatsu was born and raised in Santa Clarita, CA. She is currently a first-year Journalism student at College of the Canyons in Valencia, CA and hopes to transfer to a university after the completion of her AA degree. Kyra is a Japanese-German Yonsei and enjoys reading and writing about the Asian American experience.
Updated January 2021
Stories from This Author
Identity in the Music Industry with Musician & Two-Time Grammy Nominee Nick Lee
Aug. 30, 2023 • Kyra Karatsu
Introduction LA Native Nick Lee has amassed quite the resume during his time in the music industry: record producer, songwriter, composer, trombonist, and, as of 2021, two-time Grammy nominee for his work on pop hit “INDUSTRY BABY” by Lil Nas X (ft. Jack Harlow) and accompanying album MONTERO. “It’s still surreal to me,” Lee said, “Makes me feel proud of myself. It’s an incredible badge I have the honor to wear.” Attending Juilliard for a short time before leaving to …
Ancestry & Artistry: The Works of Annie Sumi
Dec. 22, 2022 • Kyra Karatsu
Japanese Canadian Annie Sumi is many things: songwriter, ethereal folk artist, and, recently, co-creator of the Kintsugi exhibition at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre in Toronto. Providing creative insight inspired by family heirlooms, her work on Kintsugi weaves together the threads of her ancestry with her artistry as a musician. Ancestry Sumi originally hails from Ontario, Canada. Second-generation Scottish through her mother’s side, she recalls that she grew close to the songs and traditions that were brought to Canada from …
Food for Thought—TikTok & Tamagoyaki
June 17, 2022 • Kyra Karatsu
Like any good Gen Z-er, I’ve made my fair share of TikToks since I first downloaded the app two years ago. Most are silly and trivial and recorded primarily for my “impressive” following of 45 followers—the majority being school friends. Although it pales in comparison to the millions and even billions of views that top users (often dubbed “Content Creators”) regularly receive, the most popular TikTok that I ever made was, interestingly enough, a minute-long video of my dad and me …
The Times of Tulelake
May 10, 2022 • Kyra Karatsu
Located near the Oregon-California border, the ghost of what once was one of California’s two internment camps now stands rather quietly against a backdrop of mountains and shrubs. But for much of the 20th century, Tulelake and the nearby town of Newell – where the Tule Lake Segregation Center stands – were no strangers to the bustle of human activity. A Japanese American relocation camp turned high-security segregation center turned homestead farming community, the Tulelake area has since evolved into …
From Short Story to Stage Play: Masao and The Bronze Nightingale
April 28, 2022 • Kyra Karatsu
After years of partnership and production, Dan Kwong and Rubén Funkahuatl Guevara’s Masao and The Bronze Nightingale has finally set stage at the CASA 0101 Theater in Boyle Heights. Based on Guevara’s short story of the same name, Masao and The Bronze Nightingale is set in post-war 1940s Bronzeville—a thriving African American community that sprouted in Little Tokyo after Japanese Americans were forcibly removed. As Japanese American jazz musician Masao Imoto (played by Michael Sasaki) navigates through the vibrant, multicultural …
To Build a Bridge
March 18, 2022 • Kyra Karatsu
“Why do you want to marry him?” That is what my maternal grandfather asked my mother in the days leading up to her wedding. It was genuine, blunt, honest. Even today, it was a question that my mother recalls as one that stunned her into momentary silence. After a pause and some thoughtful reflection, she was finally able to answer his query. The matter was then put to rest, never to be spoken between the two again. Her father’s curiosity …
Cole Kawana: JANM and the Power of Artificial Intelligence
Jan. 24, 2022 • Kyra Karatsu
“A snapshot of human memory.” That’s what 23-year-old Cole Kawana likes to call one of the Japanese American National Museum’s newest exhibits, The Interactive StoryFile of Lawson Iichiro Sakai. Kawana, a recent graduate from the University of Southern California and a 5th generation Japanese American, envisioned the technology-based project in 2019. As the founder and president of Japanese American Stories—a nonprofit that develops artificial intelligence avatars to help preserve and share the oral histories of Japanese Americans who lived through …
My Two Aunt Karens
Nov. 2, 2021 • Kyra Karatsu
The name “Karen” has grown to symbolize many things in the recent year. Specifically, it’s become a sort of slang to describe an entitled, conceited woman who cries out for a store’s manager when things don’t go her way. From making a scene at the gas station to harassing teenagers on the street, the name “Karen” has undoubtedly carried a hefty weight. Ironically, I have two Karens in my life, neither of whom, thankfully, fits such a description. And while …
Grammy-nominated Flutist Ron Korb on his Journey to Japan
Sept. 1, 2021 • Kyra Karatsu
There’s a glint of pure excitement in the eyes of Grammy-nominated flutist and composer Ron Korb as he begins to open up about his experiences in Japan. “Every single day, there was some new thing, some exciting little thing,” he reminisces, “It was never boring. I just loved every minute of it.” From the good, to the bad, and to the beautiful, Korb recalls the events that have made the country worth visiting 21 times. Korb’s journey to Japan began …
We Hereby Refuse: The Illustrated Stories of Camp Resistance
June 11, 2021 • Kyra Karatsu
“It’s the story of camp as you’ve never seen it before,” said Frank Abe, one of two authors of the upcoming graphic novel We Hereby Refuse: Japanese American Resistance to Wartime Incarceration. “I hope readers see that there were several paths to resistance, and none of them were easy,” Tamiko Nimura, the second author of the novel commissioned by the Wing Luke Museum, commented in a recent interview. Blended into over 150 pages of art by illustrators Ross Ishikawa and …
