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

Brooke, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you feel you or your work has ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized? If so, tell us the story and how/why it happened and if there are any interesting learnings or insights you took from the experience?

As a female Asian American artist and labor leader, I have often felt imposter syndrome. “Who am I to speak my mind? Who am I to be heard and seen and valued?” It is a continuous process for me to learn how to trust myself and my journey and to know that I have a right to claim space in this world.

Ocean Vuong said, “…as an Asian American, when you dare to have your own agency, your own dreams; when you no longer become the instrument, the empty vessel of larger pre-made art, you will be called pretentious. You will be called unrestrained. They will not be ready for your mind when it creates its own thing. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it. You should do it. But be prepared, expect it, and even more so, why not? Why not be as ambitious as you want to be? Why not be pretentious? What is pretentious but to have the pretense, the assumption, that you belong here. Be prepared to be inconceivable, and then be prepared to innovate beyond that because we need you and we are ready for you.”

So… here’s to being big and bold and pretentious!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a fourth generation Japanese American singer, actor, and labor leader hailing from Orange County, CA. I come from a long line of artists and grew up in the entertainment industry. I recently performed in the celebrated revival of “Into the Woods” (Broadway, City Center Encores, national tour) and originated and developed the critically acclaimed “Cambodian Rock Band,” performing in theaters across the country. The work that I gravitate towards deals with communal healing, anti-racism, social justice, and trans-generational trauma.

I have always known that my purpose in life was to help others through my creative gifts and as I grew older, I discovered the intersection of arts & service with labor union work and arts advocacy. I co-founded Be An #Arts Hero (BeAnArtsHero.com) during the pandemic, lobbying Congress for proportionate relief to the arts & culture sector. One of our proudest accomplishments was organizing the first ever Congressional hearing on the whole of the Creative Economy, in collaboration with both the Republican and Democratic committee leaders, where we were among four witnesses to testify before Congress.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Let your Congressional representatives know that arts and culture requires support and funding that is proportionate to our economic contributions. The creative economy contributes over $919 billion to the U.S. economy, providing more than 5.2 million American jobs.

We are big business because we are local business. Our 675,000 small businesses anchor highly interdependent local commercial ecosystems that create and sustain retail, restaurants, hospitality, tourism, and transportation. If we collapse, America faces economic catastrophe in every state, city, and town.

For tips on how to contact and find your representatives plus a list of arts and culture legislation to support and amplify, visit: BeAnArtsHero.com

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

The Entertainment Community Fund is a literal lifesaver for arts workers across the country. They offer emergency financial assistance, health care resources, and so much more:

EntertainmentCommunity.org

Contact Info:

• Website: BeAnArtsHero.com
• Instagram: Brooke Ishibashi

Image Credits
Into the Woods: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade Cambodian Rock Band: Margot Schulman Washington Post: Peter Bohler New York Times: Sara Krulwich