I'm on a roll! I'm back with something new to share.
*Disclaimer: I don't want to offend anyone or overgeneralize a slang term, these are just my own thoughts*
Cultural definitions for different groups of people pop up all the time. An overwhelmingly popular defining term in my generation is, without a doubt, ABG. What is ABG? Well it stands for Arterial Blood Gas, a sampling of blood levels to detect oxygen and carbon dioxide in arteries... JUST KIDDING (but not really because that is actually a real medical term). But in all seriousness, ABG is an acronym that stands for Asian Baby Girl (or aznbbygirl) that was coined in the 2000s, as the first generation Asian Americans began to come of age, creating their own identities in the sociocultural circles of the American fabric. If you were to search ABG on Urban Dictionary, the most trustworthy of sources for slang definitions, this is what you would see:
Thank you Lolzercoptorzallday for the thorough definition. Generally, this is what ABGs were defined as at their peak, Asian girls rebelling against their cultural norms and the expectations of their immigrant parents. Typically, immigrant Asian parents wanted their kids to be studious, obedient, responsible children who were smart and successful. But as first generation Asian Americans began to come into their own, their conflicting Asian and American cultural identities led to the birth of a new identity. Granted the term ABG doesn't universally apply to all Asian American girls, but it became a term to describe an entirely new "breed" of Asian American.
The image of an ABG has definitely transformed since the conception of the term. Fastforward to 2019, ABGs aren't necessarily rebellious tatted up girls with long nails and piercings that hang out with Asian gangsters (although there is no doubt in my mind that there are still girls like that). There is no fear or intimidation behind the term ABG these days,
as the term is thrown around very loosely and generally. The term is so broad these days that it seems any girl with dyed hair, put together makeup (with or without falsies), tattoos, or form fitting/revealing clothing is being called an ABG. Many ABGs these days tend to be in Asian sororities (who hang out with Asian fratertnities, wannabe Asian gangsters?) and generally label themselves as rave slaves who love to party ("Omg Porter, I love Porter Robinson!", "Ugh I always say I'm gonna retire but I got my EDC and Hard Summer
tickets!", "Are you going to roll both days, I think I'm going to roll both days."). And how could I forget, modern ABGs are OBSESSED with boba. It practically runs through their veins but their Asian genes with fast metabolism keep them slim and small.
Okay I understand that I shouldn't be strereotyping and this may not be true for EVERYONE, but these are really just the observations I've made! And I can't even count how many times someone has called me an ABG. It's honestly just because I have blonde hair. Like hello, how does that make me an ABG. You know what, here, I'll link an article that generally covers what ABGs these days are like:
I guess there's no real one way to generalize this ABG term, but there's no doubt that it has evolved immensely over time.
MOVING ON
So all that was actually just a segue into what I really wanted to talk about. I have been a loyal follower of a relatively newer podcast called Asian Boss Girl! My friend told me about this podcast near the end of the last year and I'll admit it, I binge-listened(?) to that podcast within a week (granted it only had around 30 episodes). I'm always hesitant about starting a new podcast, because I feel like I really need to build a bond to the host or content and it has to vibe well with what keeps my attention. (*sidebar: I made a post about my favorite podcasts a while back if you need recommendations! Podcasts have changed my life and my daily commute) It only took me one episode to warm up to Asian Boss Girl and I was hooked almost immediately.
So what is Asian Boss Girl?
You may have noticed that the acronym of this podast is.. GASP.. IT'S ABG. (hence why I titled this post as Redefining ABG.) But this time, its ABG with a twist, a boss ass twist. ABG is run by three Asian American ladies, Melody (Mel) Cheng, Helen Wu, and Janet Wang. I love their reasoning for beginning the podcast and the topics they speak about are so relatable, especially to a young Asian American woman like myself. They're in their 20s and 30s and use the podcast as a platform to speak about their experiences with relationships/dating, growing up, friendships, self-care, work-life balance, and more. Being from three completely fields of work, finance, tech, and production, they each offer different viewpoints on a variety of topics.
What really drew me into their podcast was just how candidly and freely they spoke. It really felt like I was sitting down with my girl squad and we were just chatting after work, drinking some wine and catching up. It felt so nice to learn from Asian American women who were a bit older than myself that had more experience and wisdom to share about where they are in life. It gave me perspective on the direction my life is taking and gave me some insight into
events that I could expect in the future like a change in career paths or serious deliberation on relationship values and expectations. It's also just refreshing to have more Asian representation in the media, and not just the stereotyped Asian portrayal, but a more educated and realistic voice that more people can actually relate to.
TLDR; I love love love the ABG podcast and I think what they're doing is incredible. If you need a new podcast to listen to, I highly recommend giving ABG a try! The link to their website is below and their podcast is available on all major podcast platforms (:
Take it easy ~
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