Asian American Pie concert at World Cafe Live celebrates AAPI Heritage Month

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month kicks and a very cool concert is in the works to celebrate.

It will feature an all Asian American-fronted lineup and it's called Asian American Pie.

John Kim Faye's first big band was The Caulfields.

"Which in the early 90s, got a record contract with A&M Records," he said.

Now, Faye is a successful indie artist.

"I'm about to release record number 16 this fall," he said.

Getting to that point personally and professionally wasn't easy.

"I was a bit of a target for some pretty harsh stuff growing up," he said.

Faye chronicles his journey in his memoir, "The Yin and the Yang of it All".

"And the subtitle is, 'Rock'n'Roll Memories From The Cusp, as Told by a Mixed-Up Mixed-Race Kid'," he said.

Faye was born to a Korean mom and an Irish dad out of wedlock. In Delaware, inter-racial marriage was illegal until 1967. It was also a place where very few identified as Asian.

"We were trying to like distance ourselves from that," he said. "You want to come off as white as you can."

Faye eventually found his voice and his identity in music. Now, he and fellow Korean American musician, Judah Kim, are hosting a concert called Asian American Pie.

"It's a rock and roll show. It's fun," said Kim.

Kim was inspired to create Asian American Pie while doing some self-reflection after the pandemic and how blessed he is to be pursuing his passion.

"That path of gratitude led me to sort of realize how blessed I am to be born in this country," he said. "For me and my family, the arts runs really deep."

Traditionally, Asian American families have equated success with money and stability.

"There's so much pressure around one way of life and looking at things," Kim said. "And I wonder what that's doing to our mental health and I wonder what gifts aren't being shared with the world because of that."

So for Asian American Pie, Kim and Faye will perform alongside Alyssa Garcia, Beau Freres and Moonroof.

All the acts are fronted by Asian American lead singers.

"This whole event is a way for all of us to embrace ourselves more," said Faye. "I want to be something to someone else that I never had as a kid."

"This is sort of a rallying cry to see who else is out there because I know there's more people out there with exceptional talent," said Kim.

Asian American Pie, the Rock and Roll show, is Saturday night, May 11th at World Cafe Live.

For tickets and more information, visit WorldCafeLive.com.