If you met him randomly, you’d think Tou Moua was just an ordinary guy trying to support his family.

But when he is under the limelight, he becomes Duce Khan, a popular Hmong rapper uniting people with lyrical compositions.

Tou started rapping in the form of freestyle on the streets of southern California, but nowadays he is bringing attention to social and political issues in the Hmong community and abroad. Flattered that his art has been well received, Tou’s goal is simply to get people to listen.

“Don’t just listen to the music, listen to the words,” he said. “There are so many people who want to talk but no one is listening.”

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I’m sure you’ve all heard of HBC, Hmong Broadcasting Company, and its goals for the Hmong community. Since becoming a contributing writer for Hmong Empire, I’ve had the chance to really get to know how much the Hmong community works to provide sources for us. I’m thankful for this opportunity that I get to spend time with Hmong celebrities, directors, and producers. But just recently, I got to spend some time talking with Padee Yang, one of HBC’s anchor women. If you don’t know Padee, you’ll find through this article that she’s one of the most successful women and I look at her as a mentor. When I saw her at the Hmong New Year, broadcasting live, I knew that she would have great words to spread to the Hmong community. It was only fair that I got her to talk to me and tell me a bit more about herself, HBC, and share with me her life.

Arriving in America with 9 brothers and 1 sister, Padee Yang was raised by a single mother; her father had passed away in Thailand in one of the refugee camps they were residing in. Although their family size was large, their love for each other was larger.

“Looking back, I think I was not the ordinary Hmong daughter.· I refused to be lost in boredom at home and my curiosity of challenges led me to many endeavors.· I kept my teenage years busy by getting involved with church activities and participated in community services serving the less fortunate.·· I had so many dreams of what I could become, and a desire for education, a good career and the freedom to control my own path. However, I wedded at the age of 17,” Padee says.

Padee proved that marriage doesn’t stop you from reaching your goals. With support from a husband, she went on to receive her Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Social Work, while raising three children. “Over time, I realized how important it was for me to chase my dreams and I was determined to make every second count.· I will admit it was a difficult and lonely journey.· Through the endless support from my family I was able to reach my goals,” she says.

Padee comes with a handsome package of accomplishments; she was the Assistant Director for Hmong American Partnership (HAP) in the early 1990’s where she was the spokesperson for the organization. She has been profiled, quoted, and interviewed on Minnesota Public Radio, television shows, and newspapers. She has also helped produced videos for the Hmong community on Planned Parenthood, prenatal care, and Hmong herbs.

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Blood for freedom is a film base on one of the most outstanding and unforgettable Hmong and Thai history. Hmongs migrated from China to Southeast Asia around 1800s. There were 160,000 Hmong people peacefully resettled as minority ethnic groups in the highland or mountainous area of northern Thailand.

During 1965-1983, there’s a serious political conflict between Thai government and the Communist Party of Thailand (CPT).  The conflicts were ongoing demonstrations in Bangkok and soon became a crucial civil war. Since then, the CPT’s activities had spread quickly through out most parts of the country, leading fifteen years of bloodshed battle in Thailand.

Blood for freedom is currently in production and expected to be premier during the International Film Festival of 2012 inMinneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, United States of America, please stay tuned for more updates coming soon.

He slowly enters the room with his dark eyes, holding her gaze. The moon casts a shadow on his perfect face, down his square jaw, his dark eyes, to his full lips. His broad shoulders connect to long arms with perfectly sized muscled arms. The breath he breathes is of a passion beyond earthly matters. In his dark eyes, romance burns like a flame flickering on a candle. He lowers his gaze and tilts her face up to meet his and in the dark, he whispers, “Nyob hauv lub ntiaj teb no, kuv yoo tau txhua yam; tiam si, kuv yoo tsis tau koj txoj kev hlub.”

AHHHHHH!!! Cold water, please! This is what happens when a man appears on your screen and makes you forget about everything; your sanity, your life, and your reality. Instead, he whips you up into a world of make-believe so strong you start to question yourself if this world is even real. Each time I watch a film and it has a good male character, I’m lost in love and fantasy; I’m swept away by the enchanting words he says and how he holds her to protect her. Let’s review our male fantasies, shall we?

Each time I bring home a DVD from Redbox or receive a film to review, all of my thoughts are filled with excitement and I’m ecstatic because I can’t wait to see how the film will play out. Recently, I watched the film, “Larry Crowne,” starring Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts. If you have been in Larry Crowne’s shoes, you’ll come to understand the decisions he made. Who says education is for the young? Who says you have to be a certain age to go to college? I was really surprised at the humor the film brought and it had sentiments to keep the film from being too boring. It was a bit different from what I thought it was going to be, but in the end, it satisfied me.

Have you ever seen a film that truly touched you in ways you’d never expected? Have you sat there, crying your eyes out and wondering where in your life, you could make a difference? When a film is directed beautifully, written with creativity, and the actors bring the full package, the film becomes a mesmerizing piece of art that will become a classic. The Hmong film industry has grown a lot in film making and the ideas have become brighter and better than what they used to be. There will always be a few that stick out when I come face to face with choosing a great film.