We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Grace Jung a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Grace, thanks for joining us today. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

I don’t think risk-taking is a singular task that happens just once in a person’s life. I see risk-taking as a daily challenge to be overcome.

Being a stand-up comedian forces me to risk my ego, dignity, face and reputation every single night when I get up on stage. It’s an excellent way for me to put this challenge into practice and remind myself of how high the reward is when I take these risks while also appreciating how cataclysmically awful I can feel when that risk does not lead to reward. What I know for sure, however, is that even when the lows are low, the lessons penetrate deeply, and I never forget them. I always make time and space to integrate those lessons, and they’re like embedded gemstones in my bones.

The one big risk I’ve taken back in 2021 after I completed my doctorate degree is to stop applying for tenure-track jobs in academia. I stopped applying for any and all jobs I do not want. I made a list of my demands from a job I want like good pay, respectful colleagues, relevant to my creative career, and fulfillment. I abide by this list whenever I am offered a gig.

I earn a living on freelance gigs only, and I’m so grateful to myself for giving me that. It’s empowering, uplifting, freeing, and completely terrifying but I keep that fire under my ass as a reminder that all of this means that I am live.

Grace, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Grace Jung, and I am an internationally-touring stand-up comedian, writer, podcaster, actor and filmmaker.

I began my career first as a writer when I was in 6th grade on Career Day. All the other kids wore costumes to make their occupation easily identifiable but I wore lounge pants and carried a giant hardcover book of The Roald Dahl Treasury in my arms all day, and told any curious inquirers that I am a writer. That’s what I love about being a writer. I can wear whatever the hell I want and look as I please.

As a comedian, I identify as a writer first. My favorite comics are first and foremost excellent writers, e.g., Wanda Sykes, Jessica Kirson, and Norm MacDonald. My writing voice is always on inside my head. About half of the time, it’s a burden because it also keeps me up at night or turns my thoughts into obsessions, but I am so grateful to this voice because it’s what brings out the funny in me as I mine my curiosities and irritations until I land on a punchline.

I host a weekly podcast called K-Drama School where I discuss Korean TV shows. I have a master’s and PhD in Cinema and Media Studies from UCLA. I use my knowledge to contextualize my favorite K-dramas for K-drama fans and listeners who might appreciate my analyses for a deeper understanding of Korean culture and history from my Korean American perspective. This podcast is the basis of my non-fiction book entitled, ‘K-Drama School: A Pop Culture Inquiry into Why We Love Korean Television,’ forthcoming at Running Press/Hachette Book Group in early 2024.

I provide a range of creative services in performance as a comedian and actor. I’m also a filmmaker and screenwriter. The first film project I ever worked on is a short animation entitled “Billo.” It’s based on a short story I wrote in college which won an award at a writing competition. My buddy Cat Min adapted it into a short film for her senior thesis project at NYU Tisch. The film also won an award. Having had this positive experience in my 20s, I felt confident that I could work in the film industry. What I ended up doing was working on loads of unpaid projects for New York filmmakers and film organizations that took advantage of my youthful earnestness.

That actually ended up causing damage. I was also a victim of sexual assault and abuse by filmmakers on projects I produced so the #MeToo movement was definitely something that resonated with me back in 2017. It’s taken me over a decade to develop a basic sense of self-worth to say no to unpaid projects and maintain my boundaries when people ask me to contribute my time, energy and skill to unpaid or underpaid work.

The work I’ve done in my 20s taught me to value myself and my talents while being strategic and efficient with my time, attention and energy. I am so much more grounded, sturdy and self-assured than I was a decade ago. I now value myself and my work with loving awareness. This also gives me the mindfulness to never ask other creatives for “favors.” If I ever need someone’s skills, I always ask them what their fees are and only hire them if I can afford to pay. This is basic professional decorum that I was never shown in the past but I make sure to respect others for their talent just as I would like to be respected for mine.

I’ve also recently began offering my tarot card readings as a service. I was hired for a Lunar New Year gig at SoHo House earlier this year to read tarot for over 20 people. It was the most fun I ever had. I want to do this more for people’s birthdays, showers, bachelorette parties, and other events. It’s something I love to do because it gives me a way to connect with a diversity of souls.

My brand is my voice. My voice is consistent whether it’s at a comedy show, a peer-reviewed journal article, a book, movie, podcast episode, TikTok video or Instagram story. My voice is what gives me energy and empowerment. I use my voice as a service to offer people uplift, freedom, entertainment, expansion, insight, and comfort.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

An unhelpful mindset that I had to unlearn is the poverty mentality. My parents grew up in agrarian households as farmers in South Gyeongsang Province of South Korea. I was born in Busan where my parents worked in book sales. My father eventually worked his way up to middle management at a children’s book publishing house but he and my mom gave that up to move to New York in 1992 when I was five-years-old. While I am in awe of the risk they took to leave everything they ever knew behind to live in a country as undocumented citizens for over a decade without any money, education, or grasp of the English language, the poverty mentality had a strict hold in my parents’ minds, especially my mother. This made going to the doctor or dentist a very low priority. I’ve suffered many physical ailments and injuries including a fractured arm and toothaches but wasn’t always taken to a doctor or taken in at the very last minute. Getting a pair of glasses for my near-sightedness was always a battle with my mom. Poverty is a real trauma, and I am viscerally familiar with its woes. I live with its wounds daily.

I went to college on student loans when the country was in a recession back in 2008 (I graduated in 2009). I majored in English literature. After working a gazillion unpaid internships at non-profits and grassroots film festivals, I landed an office job working at a boutique film distribution company I admired in my college years. But it was such a poorly paid job, and I felt constantly devalued and undermined when I worked there.

I quit after nearly four years and moved to LA to pursue my master’s degree in film studies but I stayed longer and got my PhD after a couple professors told me they saw what it takes to be a scholar in me. But I soon came to see how toxic and inhumane academia is as an institution. By the time I graduated in 2021, our economy was in another recession and inflation. I thought I had to live my life trying to find fiscal stability working for people and companies that constantly disrespected me, but nope. I’ve decided that abundance, success and wealth are a mentality, and if that’s how I want to feel then I have to start owning my own creative pursuits, ideas, talents, time and effort with real seriousness. I established my LLC last year and haven’t looked back since. I let go of my family’s intergenerational trauma of poverty. That buck stops with me. I only see myself today as successful in everything that I do.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

The social media platform I use the most is Instagram. On my profile feed, I generally post photos or videos that pertain to my comedy career. On my Instagram stories, I post videos of dogs. I do this to give my story visitors something sweet to brighten their mood. I only want to use social media for uplift and joy.    

Contact Info:

• Website: gracejungcomedy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gracejungcomedy/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gracejungcomedy/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracejungcomedy/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/gracejungcomedy
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/gracejungcomedy
• Other: kdramaschool.com