Kollaboration Staffers take 5 in sunny Palms Springs
It takes a lot of hard work from a lot of hard working people to put on shows like Kollaboration and Kollaboration Acoustic each and every year. That’s why the dedicated staff of Kollaboration LA took advantage of the precious few weeks of downtime between the wrap of Kollaboration Acoustic 5 and the gearing up for Kollaboration 11 (11/5/2011 @ the Nokia Theatre) and headed east to the desert oasis of Palm Springs for a weekend of relaxation, bonding, and good food.
The retreat house itself was a site to behold, located in southern Palm Springs right off the Indian Canyon Golf Resort, and fully loaded with modern amenities such as automatic blinds, flat screen TVs in every room, and an amazing sound system wired to play music around the entire house (including the patio and pool decks).
The garage even came stocked with a pool table, a ping-pong table, a whole fleet of bicycles, and even a combination Galaga/Ms. Pac-Man arcade cabinet.
Of course, being a Palm Springs vacation home, the house also featured a private pool and hot tub for all to enjoy. It was a perfect environment for a great summer retreat.
Finally, in what has become a treasured tradition, it wouldn’t be a Kollaboration retreat if there weren’t some amazing food.
In his second year with the organization, Kollaboration staffer and professional chef, Mr. Seong Hwang, successfully transformed the Kollaboration staff from an experienced talent show production team into an efficient kitchen brigade as he directed teams of staff members in the preparation and execution of his culinary vision.
The results were nothing short of amazing with spreads featuring dishes such as fusilli pasta bolognese with garlic string beans, pulled pork sandwiches two ways (traditional and Korean influenced), stuffed turkey meatloaf, and even jalapeno cornbread.
Many staffers agreed that the food alone was worth the trip. Feel like you missed out? Never fear, the next staff retreat is just around the corner. And if this recap has gotten you interested in joining the Kollaboration staff, keep an eye on this website for information on our next staff meeting.
Special thanks to Willy Lam, Christine Kim, Roy Choi, and of course Chef Seong, for their hard work in the planning and execution of this retreat.
Read about our Kollaboration Summer 2010 Interns experience.
Davina Dan – Summer 2010 Intern
Long drives sitting through traffic, running through the streets of ktown putting up posters and handing out flyers in the hot summer sun, and excel sheets on top of excel sheets, adding links to every single one of our YouTube videos to spread the word about the upcoming show, as well as numerous questions from ticket buyers that all need answers in a timely manner; sounds miserable, right? Right. :P Well... that's what one would think, but I would do it all again in a heartbeat. I honestly had the time of my life this past summer doing what I love.
I had heard about Kollaboration years ago, but was never able to make it to a show because I was always working on the weekends. But this year I had finally freed myself from the shackles of my job and decided I wanted to do something that I loved, and Kollaboration was exactly that. I was able to meet tons of awesome people and had a great experience at all of our events. KA4 was especially memorable, it was my first Kollab show and the fact that it was a sold out show made it that much better because it seemed to emphasize that all of our hard work paid off. All the labels that we put on each of the flyers by hand, the time we spent planning and marketing, the numerous emails we had to answer, the tickets that we had to organize, everything was well worth it in the end.
My time as an intern at Kollaboration was definitely unforgettable; it was a fun learning experience. Not only did we prepare for the show, we had special meetings where we got to meet with people in the industry which was cool and interesting; and we did a little presentation marketing a certain pocket video camera with our own twist- this was probably the most school-like task we had, and not in a bad way, it was actually pretty fun preparing for it. I loved that I was able to get a lot of hands-on experience. We got to see all the steps in preparing for a show, even meeting with the people at the Ford Amphitheater. Then there was also the SMTown Live After Party and the Tully's Grand Opening, all of these events were different learning experiences and a lot of fun, but that doesn't mean it wasn't stressful, there were a few stressful times as well, but when is life ever stress-free?
Furthermore, the Kollaboration internship reinforced my belief that happiness is way more important than money, I wasn't making any money being an intern but I was really happy being involved, I was much happier being broke and doing what I love as opposed to making a decent amount of money but being absolutely miserable. Kollaboration has taught me a lot, and not just in relation to concerts and the Asian American community. I look forward to being involved in all the shows to come, (Christine, you won't be able to get rid of us! Connie and I will be your interns forever! :] ) even though I'm not in the country this year, I will without a doubt help out again once I get back!
Connie Luu – Summer 2010 Intern
Uplifting live music, breezing cool air, and working with an amazing group of staff members. That was the night of Kollaboration Acoustic 4. Looking back, it was truly an unforgettable summer.
I remember the first day of my internship; I had mixed feelings as to what I was getting myself into. I was going to school, working part time and taking on this internship. I really didn’t know what to expect and I was worried about how my summer would turn out. Little did I know, I learned a lot about myself, met some pretty amazing people and developed friendships throughout the experience. I was even fortunate enough to work on Tully’s Grand Opening (where I found my love for caramel frosting) and the SM Town After-party. I also found my partner in crime during the process of these events.
As a KA4 intern, I got to see how the planning, ticket tours and ticket sales all happened. At times, we would have outings and they were interesting and fun. We always had a good time taping, posting, and laughing despite the heat. Aside from the show, the interns were given a marketing project to work with. On the first day of the assignment, all of the interns were in this big conference room thinking of the concept for our project. Within 5 minutes, we were shooting out ideas and compiled them together. It was really a fun experience that all of us worked on together. Since the interns were split into 2 groups coming in the office to work on the acoustic show. We didn't have much of an opportunity to get to know the other "group." Working on the marketing project really helped us get to know each other better.
Kollaboration has really taught me to come out of my shell and not to worry about the unexpected. I’m grateful to be a part of the Kollab family and given an opportunity to be a part of the movement.
Kollaboration was asked by MNET to be on their show Beats Per Mnet with hosts Felicia Khong and our very own PK! It was an interesting experience because PK is the one who usually answers the questions about Kollaboration, but this time, he was the one asking the questions. It gave us a chance to reflect on how much Kollaboration has grown and what it is today. It was great to also see PK living out his dream of hosting his own show. Thank you MNET, BPM, and PK!
What’s step one for putting on one of the biggest showcases in Asian American talent in the nation? Find the talent of course, and that’s just what the hardworking staff of Kollaboration did this past Sunday at the live auditions for Kollaboration Acoustic 5 (to be held Friday June 17, 2011 @ the Ford Amphitheater – tickets on sale soon!). It was a long and busy day, made even longer by the loss of an hour thanks to daylight saving time, but the staff powered through, and thanks to veteran leadership (and a few angry stares) was able to stay on schedule and get things done.
Over forty artists came to the CGV Cinemas in K-Town to perform live in front of a panel of judges for the chance to be a part of the Kollaboration movement and share their talents to the world. Combined with the number of video submissions we received, this was officially the biggest audition for Kollaboration Acoustic to date! Unfortunately, as the new PR & Marketing manager, I conducted the post-audition interviews and I did not get to hear any of the live auditions (which was kind of a bummer). From all accounts though, the talent was impressive and the auditions were a great success. The staff is now faced with the mammoth task of deciding which artists will make the cut and be offered a spot on the lineup for Kollaboration Acoustic 5.
No matter what happens, I’d like to give a big thank you to all of the artists who came in or submitted video auditions for our show. We wish you luck on all of your future endeavors!
Stay tuned for the official lineup announcement coming soon!
Kollaboration Caroling
Kollaboration celebrated the holiday season by spreading some cheer by caroling at the UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital inside the Ronal Reagan UCLA Medical Center on Monday, December 21st 2009. Caroling took place down the Children’s Hospital hallways in front of the patients’ rooms. Pediatric patients were able to join the carolers from their hospital beds through opened doors. It was a rewarding experience for everyone that participated, as carolers got to witness the bravery of children battling with advanced and often harsh therapies and treatments. Despite weakened physical conditions, the Mattel pediatric patients and their families were in strong spirits and chimed in their own variations of “Jingle Bells”, “Santa Clause is Coming to Town” and other holiday favorites.
Kollaboration staff members were accompanied by former Kollaboration 9 performer, Hip Hop and Jazz Violinist Paul Dateh (http://pauldateh.com) who recently returned from his Tokyo tour and Kollaboration Acoustic 3 performer, Gerald Ko a.k.a Singindork888 (http://www.youtube.com/user/singindork888) who came in support despite his busy work schedule.
Video and camera footage of the caroling event was omitted to safeguard the privacy of the pediatric patients and affiliates at the Mattel Children’s Hospital. The event was made possible thanks to Ms. Vanya Greene, the Music Therapies Coordinator and for more information on Mattel Children’s Hospitals ongoing music therapies for pediatrics and other volunteer opportunities please visit: http://www.uclahealth.org/body_volunteer.cfm?id=68
Kollaboration Dinner Club
Written by Daisy Kim
The Kollaboration Dinner Club met for its first official meal last Thursday, 9/17 at Masan restaurant in Ktown.
To ensure a memorable first meal, our Dinner Club organizer Mike Jung pulled some mischief off his sleeve and made it a mission for us all to eat LIVE octopus (a.k.a Sanakji).
After some oooh's, ahh's, and ewww's, we were tempted enough with the slimey creature crawling on our plate. The exciting part was when you picked up a piece to eat, it would crawl and wrap itself around the edge of your chopstick. Consider it having to play chase-tag with your dinner.
The 1st picture is the look of Seong's face after eating the eyeballs, as shown in picture 2.
I'd give the experience of eating live octopus, which is this live and chewy, slimey, succulent, and salty bite a 4 out of 5 for novelty. Overall quality of food at the restaurant- 3 out of 5.
On Friday, September 4th, we had our FIRST Kollaboration Bowling Tournament. The three organizations that competed in the bowling tournament were KAC Media, Ktown 213 and Kollaboration. We played two games and the team with the highest total points after both games was the winner. Many members of each organization showed up to cheer on their organization which put the pressure on each bowler but also made us want to bowl even better. The theme of the night was to bond with each teammates as well as members of the other organizations and I truly feel we did that. After the first game, all three teams' totals were pretty close. Kollaboration was in the lead, then came Ktown213 and then KAC Media. Halfway through the second game, things started to heat up and Kollaboration and Ktown 213 were neck and neck. During the last few frames, there were many lead changes between the two teams and the match was tight all the way to the end. With the help of Jacob and Seong's strike's in the last frame, our team WON the event by about 13 pins. Overall, we had a great time and we will definitely be having more of these kollaBOWLation's in the future. In order to give other staff members chances, we will be holding another qualifying event before the next kollaBOWLation so stay tuned folks and have a great weekend.
John Legend is one cool dude. He's an amazing singer, his music is cool, and the way he carries himself is definitely cool.
A few weeks ago, a friend of mine was flying on a plane and sitting next to John Legend's manager with John sitting right behind them. Since John was performing in Seoul on March 28, they casually suggested a performance in Seoul the night before to raise money for charities-- John's Show Me Campaign to fight poverty in Africa, and various Korean orphanages.
Kevin Kim, my friend who was on the plane, calls me to tell me about this idea and also getting the US Ambassador (whom we met the year before) involved, to which I reply "That's a great idea." I say this because it would be impossible to try to set something up with only a few weeks planning, and he wouldn't dare ask me to help him on such a project. A few days later... we're in full planning mode (a direct violation of my Lunar New Year's resolution to start saying no to people).
We decide it would be A Night of Charity for Children with John Legend. Guests of honor would include the US Ambassador to Korea, Kathleen Stephens, as well as Tasha (Yoon Mirae), the #1 R&B singer in Korea. And having a performance with both of them would be great. We wanted an intimate event with high ticket prices. So Kevin and I land in Seoul 4 days before the event date. Radio interviews, newspaper interviews, meetings at the Embassy, coordinating through email with John's team, coordinating with the venue (Bamboo House), and getting the grand piano and sound equipment had to be squeezed into the 3 days. Add to that the jet lag, Kevin and I were zombies in suits.
On March 28, everything fell according to plan. With the help of other Netkalers (Netkal is an org that I'm a part of - Network of Korean American Leaders) Esther Song, Sara Kim and Sonny Hong, the event went smoothly without a hitch. Ambassador Stephens was so accommodating and friendly. She met and took photos with every single person in the room. Her popularity is rising very quickly with the Korean people.
Prior to the event, I had a chance to sit down with John, Tasha, and Tiger JK (Drunken Tiger). I mentioned to John that Tasha had a rap for "Greenlight" (his current hit) ready. Well, since he was only doing the piano tonight, how about if she rapped for him right there to see if she would be right for his concert the next day. She raps, he says ok, and the plan is set for her to come onstage during the last half of "Greenlight."
I had the privilege of experiencing John perform live in front of a small group. The next day, I went to the concert. Not a flashy concert with a bunch of theatrics and pyrothechnics. It was a basic, music-filled, nonstop lineup of John's music-- an amazing performance. The Korean audience showed their appreciation on every song-- confirming the fact that there ARE big John Legend fans in Korea, with many of them singing along. Move to "Greenlight," and as soon as it's time for the rap part, Tasha walks onto the stage and is met with a deafening roar from the crowd. What a nice surprise it must've been for the audience!
So it was just a whirlwind five days in Korea-- really just a blur. I want to thank all the people along the way who put their trust in us and believed that this would all happen. Tasha and JK I've known for a very long time. JK and I grew up together. Good people, and they just celebrated their son Jordan's 1st birthday. And John Legend... softspoken, unbelievably talented, and a nice guy. I work with celebrities quite often, and occassionally, I have to deal with big egos, divas, primadonnas, and whatever other negative term you could think of. John isn't one of them.
By the way, the only reason I agreed to do this event is because we want to turn it into an annual event-- a night of Musical Diplomacy. Music builds bridges. I wonder who our next artist will be...
From Friday to Saturday, July 24 to 26th, our Kollaboration Staff went on a retreat to Lake Arrowhead. Read about our Kollaboration Summer Interns experience at the retreat!
Joyce Chun – Summer 2009 Intern
Kollaboration Retreat: One word that I would use to describe the Kollaboration retreat is: welcoming. When I first decided to intern for Kollaboration this summer, I had no idea what to expect and what kind of experience I’ll take from my time here. Little did I know that this summer I would be embarking on a life-changing journey with an amazing group of people. As dramatic as that sounds, Kollaboration really has opened my eyes to be true to myself, strive to accomplish my goals, and look at the bigger picture.
The retreat site itself was awesome, thanks to Waffle Willy, with its lake view balcony and cabin-esque decorations that provided a very homey intimate atmosphere. I just KNEW great things would happen that weekend. Within the first couple hours, inside jokes and friendships were created that are still used across various online exchanges to this day. The theme for the retreat was branching out and getting to know someone you didn’t know and it really hit home for me. Though I was new to Kollaboration this year and did not know the majority of the people present, the Kollaboration family was very welcoming and I felt like I developed new and lasting friendships through the experiences I had that weekend. I genuinely feel like Kollaboration has grown to become my second family. =]
One of the most inspiring things about the retreat was when we all shared our life stories or dreams in our indoor campfire circle. Everyone’s story was deeply moving and it helped me realize the importance of having a community to share your inner feelings with in order to bond and grow together, because no one can do it alone.
My favorite part of the retreat was by far staying up all night playing nonstop Mafia and shamelessly accusing each other of being the culprit. Mafia can actually be quite a stressful game…if you aren’t good of course ;) but it definitely brought a lot of laughter from defenses like “If I’m the mafia…then it’s one of us, both of us, or none of us“ and “WHOOORE!!.”
I love the Kollaboration family and I’m grateful I was given the opportunity to partake in the movement this summer. I’m so glad everyone had their camera and took a million pictures, because every time I look at the retreat pictures I can’t help but smile. I know I will treasure the memories and I can’t wait to come back next year!
Tiffany Le – Summer 2009 Intern
In the midst of the hot summer, I got to get away to the cool breezes of Lake Arrowhead last weekend. There was never a dull moment, from the car ride there to the last moments playing Mafia until we parted ways. I met some of the most genuine people I’ve ever known and became part of a second family. I’ve known about the Kollaboration movement since 2007 and have always admired everyone’s efforts in putting on such a ground-breaking show. I finally got a chance to join this summer as an intern and I have to say that it is one of the best decisions I have made.
In the short span of two days, new friendships were made and existing ones grew stronger. We ate, played games, ate, played more games, and did I mention, ate? The food was amazing to say the least. Meals were prepared by our very own chef Seong with the help of the Kollaboration staff. Each meal was made with love and care which made it taste even better.
Playing games till dawn was the best part of the retreat. No one took themselves too seriously so it was friendly competition. Teams bonded during activities and skits. We learned more about ourselves and each other and our role in the world. It got emotional at times but we all supported each other and gained a deeper understanding of one another.
Overall, it was an unforgettable experience filled with laughter and good company. We walk away from it with plenty of memories and some embarrassing pictures. I feel like I’ve gained friendships that I will keep for a very long time. Hopefully our family will grow and next year it will be even better!
Lisa Phan – Summer 2009 Intern
Good friends, good food, and good memories were the results of second Kollboration staff retreat. Even though I’ve been on staff for two years, I wasn’t close to any of the other staff members. Maybe it was because I was on the youth staff or maybe it was because I just didn’t have the experience to be a big contribution to the Kollaboration cause, but after retreat, my view on things changed.
This staff retreat is the first retreat I’ve been to where we have our own personal chef. At first I was skeptical of how good he was because we were told that we had to help him cook; however, Chef Seong surpassed my expectations and I learned something from the group cooking. Most of us didn’t seem to have a lot of cooking experience but with Seong’s help, we achieved making the best food I have ever tasted. That just reminded me how much teamwork can accomplish. Plus we had super yummy food to reward us for our success.
All the games were extremely entertaining. Only in Telephone Charades can a unicorn become a rhinoceros and tennis becomes volleyball. However, my favorite game was Mafia. When I was “mafia,” I was able to fool and everyone and win against the “citizens.” And I love John’s reasoning of “If it’s not me, and it’s not you, it has to be them, or it’s the both of us…” We played 5AM and still woke up to make breakfast, except for me… on the last day… Punishment was the best part. You have to have been at retreat to know what I’m talking about ;)
This whole weekend was a really great experience for me. I feel that we really are a family, ie: Andrew mooing super loud to save Tiffany. Even though I didn’t get to bond with everyone in that short period of time, I think just talking to them again was all we needed to take another step in our friendship. I’m so glad we all have a million pictures to remind us of the fun we had. We will definitely have to do this again next year. RAW RAW POTATO!!
Jen Ju – Summer 2009 Intern
The Kollaboration staff retreat this past weekend was really an event I’m glad I experienced. Being new to Kollaboration, I didn’t really know many of the staff members and volunteers who seemed to all have been friends with each other for a really long time. Spending a few days with them in a cabin in Lake Arrowhead really let me all bond with them and truly feel a part of the Kollaboration movement.
I have been on different get-to-know-you retreats before, but they have always been extremely structured. The Kollaboration retreat had enough organization so it didn’t feel like we were just all up there in the same cabin together, but it also gave us enough freedom to do what we wanted to do. The leadership and team-building games we played were extremely entertaining. The silliness was a good way to get to know each other.
One of the most memorable activities was when we were asked to express our views on certain issues by standing on one side of the room or the other depending on what we believed. Because I didn’t really know every one that well, it was nice to learn of their perspectives and understand where they were coming from. This also happened during our sharing activity, where people shared their life stories (condensed). It really made us know each other a lot more.
The food – and making it, of course - however, was probably by far the highlight of many on the trip. Not only did Chef Seong make amazing dishes, he taught others how to cook various things as well. Every one at the retreat was so full after every meal. I think a lot of the bonding also happened in the kitchen as we all watched and helped out with the cooking.
The Kollaboration made me realize even more how wonderful every one who is a part of it really is. Each individual truly believes in what Kollaboration does and tries very hard to help the movement along. Each person who is a part of Kollaboration loves it and is friendly and fun and welcoming.
After Facebook-friending each other, and spamming each other’s walls after we all returned from Lake Arrowhead, I think every one is thinking, “Let’s do it again!”
