Who Is Awkwafina? A Look At Nora Lum, Yen Analogue of All-Female ‘Ocean’s Eight’
Warner Bros. Films just announced the finalized lineup of stars gracing silver screen in "Ocean's Eight," the planned remake of the 2001 comedy heist film "Ocean's Eleven," boasting a star-studded list of actresses with the film set to begin production.
Deadline reported that Warner Bros. plans to have the remake begin development in October in New York, announcing that Sandra Bullock and Cate Blanchett will now be joined by Anne Hathaway, Rihanna, Helena Bonham Carter, Mindy Kaling, and Awkwafina.
While almost all of the names of the list are big names in Hollywood and the entertainment industry in general, one name stands out for the fact that she is new to Tinseltown's table of theatrics: Awkwafina.
Awkwafina is the stage name of hip hop artist, comedienne, and television personality and host Nora Lum, best known for her satirical work in comedy and music that touches on issues of feminism and race.
Lum's musical releases include the likes of "Queef," NYC Bitche$," "Yellow Ranger," "Mayor Bloomberg (Giant Margaritas)," "Peggy Bundy," "Flue Shot," and "My Vag." She also creates music videos for her tracks and posts them on her own Awkwafina YouTube Channel, which currently has about 33, 000 subscribers. A warning to viewers however, as some of her material might not be safe for viewing by minors and at work.
For the big screen, Lum recently appeared in "Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising," the sequel to Seth Rogen's and Zac Efron's 2014 comedy.
An Asian-American, Lum is the daughter of a first-generation Chinese American father and a South Korean immigrant mother. Lum was born in Forest Hills, Quens, NY as an only child to the Lums. The comedienne's mother died when Lum was only four years old, leaving her in the care of her father and grandmother.
Lum had an interview with NBC back in 2014, where she spoke of how she ended up pursuing a career in music rather than picking a more stable job like, say, a meat inspector. According to the artist, Lum's father encouraged her to pick more stable professional prospects like a sonogram technician and an air traffic controller, in addition to the aforementioned mean inspector gig.
"My dad was like, 'You gotta do this, man. These are the hot jobs of the millennium,'" Lum recalled of her father. "I was like, 'I highly doubt that.'"
Lum's interest in music first surfaced in her pre-teen years when she picked up the trumpet as she attended New York's LaGuardia High School. It was not until she got to college, however, until she truly ended up developing a real interest in the field when.
"When I went to college, it became more of a hobby and that's when I think I got the realest music education," Lum told the publication. "It wasn't something that I had to do. It wasn't an obligation."
"Ocean's Eight" is set to begin production in October