Character Honors

Character

GoldenTV and Character, the team behind the Unforgettable Awards, the longest-running Asian and Pacific Islander Entertainment awards show, have announced the honorees for the inaugural Character Honors, a celebration of AAPI visionaries and icons shaping culture, business, and the future. This marks the company’s, previously known as Character Media, expansion into a broader editorial platform that spans beyond entertainment and into business, innovation, and global leadership across all industries.

On the very first day of AAPI Heritage Month, Friday, May 1, the ceremony, held at The London in West Hollywood, will honor eight individuals who are icons and trailblazers in their respective industries. Each will be featured on the cover of the Character magazine, with an editorial feature on their achievements and contributions.

Jiro Egawa, Senior Vice President of Platform Growth and Monetization at Xumo, will receive the Innovation Leadership Award. Xumo is the streaming joint venture between Comcast and Charter Communications. In his role, he oversees the company’s Enterprise and free, ad-supported television (FAST) businesses, customer experience strategy for its device and app ecosystem, engagement and retention growth, and monetization initiatives. As the founding executive at Xumo, he played a key role in establishing Xumo as a leader in the connected TV space by launching the first FAST service partnership with LG Electronics.

VP Global Creative Director of Disney Consumer Products and co-founder of The Hundreds, Bobby Hundreds, will receive the Global Trailblazer Award. Known for his streetwear brand, Hundreds wrote about his company and his expert knowledge of streetwear’s history and its rise into mainstream culture in his best-selling book, “This Is Not A Shirt.” As VP global creative director, he has established exciting collaborations, including among Disney, Complex, and BLACKPINK, that combine streetwear, Disney characters, and pop culture icons.

Journalist and media personality Lisa Ling will be honored with the Global Impact Award. A longtime journalist who has worked for several news organizations, including CNN, OWN, ABC, and Channel One News, Ling has been at the forefront of reporting on hard-hitting topics such as the opioid crisis, civil war, the state of caregivers, and more. She later became a co-host on the Emmy Award-winning ABC daytime series The View. Most recently, she was a special correspondent for CBS News, producing a multi-part series on the Crisis of Caregiving, the Psychedelic Renaissance, and the State of Spirituality. She is also the founder of MightyLings, a platform that promotes intergenerational strength, wellness, and spiritual building.

​Nanxi Liu, Co-CEO & Co-founder for Blaze.tech, receives the Emerging Visionary Award as a next-generation leader whose early achievements signal transformative influence. Her company, Blaze.tech, is a leading platform for health care organizations to build HIPAA-compliant, mission-critical applications. She has been named to 100 Women in AI and to the Forbes 30 Under 30 List.

​Asian American Girl Club Founder and CEO Ally Maki will be presented with the Community Builder Award for her work in creating and strengthening community, fostering spaces of belonging. Asian American Girl Club is a community, commerce, and media platform that celebrates Asian American women and redefines what belonging and visibility look like today. She recently launched AAGC Originals, a media platform that highlights Asian women through podcasts, short-form content, and film/TV projects.

​Fashion designer Thai Nguyen will be honored with the Design and Culture Award for his beautiful fashion designs that blend his Vietnamese heritage with modern twists, as well as his reinvention of the áo dài, the traditional Vietnamese dress. His designs have been seen on Jennifer Lopez, Ariana Grande, Kelly Marie Tran, Ali Wong, and more. He’s also worked as the fashion expert on Netflix’s Say I Do.

​Tatcha founder Vicky Tsai will receive the Toyota Call Your Shot Award, presented to an individual whose bold vision embodies the spirit of Toyota’s campaign and inspires others to pursue new possibilities. Known for blending traditional beauty rituals with modern ingredients to promote radiant, healthy skin, Tatcha has become a leader in luxury skincare. Tsai worked closely with Japanese scientists and cultural experts to bring the natural Japanese ingredients and timeless rituals to the mainstream.

​Din Tai Fung North America CEO Albert Yang receives the Cultural Game Changer Award for expanding the popular franchise into key locations, including South Coast Plaza and Westfield Santa Anita. The success of the two restaurants led to the opening of additional locations at Del Amo Mall, Westfield Century City, and in Las Vegas.

​“Character Honors was created to spotlight the breadth of AAPI leadership shaping the future across industries,” Takashi Cheng, CEO of GoldenTV, said in a press release. “As Character enters its new chapter, this inaugural class embodies that expanded vision, driving meaningful impact across business, innovation, design, and media.”

​The inaugural Character Honors will be hosted by comedian Helen Hong and Emmy Award-winning KTLA 5 News journalist Gene Kang, and features a special performance by singer Katherine Ho.

​The proceeds from Character Honors, including the funds raised through a silent auction, will benefit Make Noise Today, a nonprofit initiative dedicated to empowering AAPI youth through storytelling as a catalyst for equity and cultural change. The event is co-presented by sponsor Toyota and executive-produced by Kelly Mi Li and Kimmie Kim. For more information on the event or to attend, please visit here.