Goldscene series
Breakout creators, second leads, and new names showing up everywhere for a reason.
For readers tracking who is about to be unavoidable, and why now. Browse 12 stories in this series, or read how we work in our editorial standards.
Chayadhorn "Ing" Kitiyadisai turned ingredient explainers into Ingu Skin, a fast-growing Thai skincare brand now testing whether formulas made for tropical weather can travel across Southeast Asia.
Image: Ingu Skin
Late June rising radar: Felix on hanbok billboards, U-Know Yunho's solo Asia tour map, Esnyr's comeback momentum, Eunnuri Lee's protest art visibility, and Austin Kang's sports-culture crossover clips.
Image: The Korea Times
Felix of Stray Kids was named the Ministry of Culture's 2026 Hanbok Wave artist on June 17, partnering with five domestic hanbok brands on designs, pictorials, and billboards in Seoul, New York, Paris, and Milan.
Image: Jason Hargrove / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
Filipino creator Esnyr Ranollo returned with a 53-minute First Day High YouTube special on June 14, starring Vice Ganda, Donny Pangilinan, Belle Mariano, and other Pinoy stars, hitting 4 million views in under 24 hours.
Image: Esnyr / YouTube
Forty Asian Canadian authors across genres, from debut thrillers and horror to Canada Reads finalists and award-winning fantasy, make a wide reading map.
Image: CBC Books
Kevin Jonas says he got sick in the bathroom while wingmanning Nick Jonas on his first date with Priyanka Chopra-Jonas at the Hollywood Bowl.
Image: Indian Express
Creator Eunnuri Lee argues in a TikTok get-ready-with-me video that white activists too often center self-expression at protests, turning solidarity into spectacle and content.
Image: Where Is The Buzz
PEN America's PEN Ten interview with Sarah Wang centers on her debut novel New Skin and themes of beauty standards and the modern immigrant experience in North America.
Image: Little, Brown and Company
Kimberly Kong, known as Nomtastic Kim, and her partner are building #100AsianRestaurantsInMaryland series spotlighting mom-and-pop Asian eateries statewide.
Image: Valerie Plesch / The Banner
A desk guide to how Asian and diaspora talent is rising now: through multilingual reach, streaming crossovers, fan discipline, luxury visibility, and storytellers who make place-specific TV feel mainstream.
Image: Outhere505 (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Maggie Kang received recognition in Korea, director of Netflix's KPop Demon Hunters, tying the honor to the film's visibility in the K-culture conversation.
Image: TV10 (CC BY 4.0)
Entertainers who move easily between languages are building careers that skip the old crossover waiting period, especially in music and digital content.
Image: Lerdsuwa / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Anika Rao
The Goldscene Desk
Mina Park