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Viral Moments on Saturday Night Live
Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
Yang could not have had a better year onSNL.His portrayal of Fran Lebowitzhad everyone belly laughing and even got the attention of the New York City icon, who said her answering machine was filling up with people talking about the sketch.
Yang reacted to the feedback onLate Night with Seth Meyers, saying, “That’s confirmation that she’s seen it and that she doesn’t care for it, and I think that’s the highest compliment you could possibly get from someone like Fran.”
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‘We Ride at Dawn, Grandmas!’
Saturday Night Live.Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
A month earlier,he announced that he was matching $10,000 donationsto theAsian Pacific American Labor Allianceas “we advocate for the civil and human rights of AAPIs, immigrants, and all people of color.”
03of 12Bowen THEE IcebergWill Heath/NBC/GettyAnother unforgettable character that will absolutely be sold out as a Halloween costume this year wasYang as the icebergwho famously sank the Titanic. The Iceberg came on Weekend Update to defend himself from years of unfair slander — and to promote his music career.“It’s 12 tracks. No skips. Swear to God,” is the line that truly won us over, so we’ll be buying three copies of the album.
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Bowen THEE Iceberg
Will Heath/NBC/Getty
Another unforgettable character that will absolutely be sold out as a Halloween costume this year wasYang as the icebergwho famously sank the Titanic. The Iceberg came on Weekend Update to defend himself from years of unfair slander — and to promote his music career.
“It’s 12 tracks. No skips. Swear to God,” is the line that truly won us over, so we’ll be buying three copies of the album.
04of 12The Elton John We Didn’t Know We NeededRosalind O’Connor/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty ImagesWhen Yang appeared as Sir Elton John duringSNL’s “Stu” sketch, featuringPete Davidsonparodying Eminem’s song “Stan,” we screamed. The short but brilliant cameo revealed Yang hammering away at the piano, performing with all of John’s cadences down to a T, and ended with the famousJohn and Eminem the-war-is-over arm raisefrom the 2001 Grammys.
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The Elton John We Didn’t Know We Needed
Rosalind O’Connor/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
When Yang appeared as Sir Elton John duringSNL’s “Stu” sketch, featuringPete Davidsonparodying Eminem’s song “Stan,” we screamed. The short but brilliant cameo revealed Yang hammering away at the piano, performing with all of John’s cadences down to a T, and ended with the famousJohn and Eminem the-war-is-over arm raisefrom the 2001 Grammys.
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Edmund’s Back
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Shifting the Culture
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
In April, Yang was named one of HuffPo’sCulture Shifters Who are Shaping Our Future. Writer Matthew Jacobs profiled the star and dissected his impact onSNL(so far) and his successful pop culture podcastLas Culturistaswith fellow actor/comedian/BFF Matt Rodgers.
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Entertainment Weekly Cover Star
Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images
08of 12Leading a Sticky SituationAt the start of June, Yang announced that he joined the all-star, all-queer cast for Adam Goldman’s audible originalHot White Heist, the bio for which says it’s the “first and only podcast about a sperm bank heist. What else do you need to know?“The hilarious fictional podcast follows Yang as Judy Fink, who attempts to steal sperm samples from the greatest minds in history with a group of misfits. The rest of the cast includes Cynthia Nixon, MJ Rodriguez, Jane Lynch, Alan Cumming and Margaret Cho.
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Leading a Sticky Situation
At the start of June, Yang announced that he joined the all-star, all-queer cast for Adam Goldman’s audible originalHot White Heist, the bio for which says it’s the “first and only podcast about a sperm bank heist. What else do you need to know?”
The hilarious fictional podcast follows Yang as Judy Fink, who attempts to steal sperm samples from the greatest minds in history with a group of misfits. The rest of the cast includes Cynthia Nixon, MJ Rodriguez, Jane Lynch, Alan Cumming and Margaret Cho.
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Another Day, Another Leading Role
10of 12The Las Culturistas Culture AwardsThrow away the Academy Awards because theLas CulturistasCulture Awardsare here and there is a category for everyone. The creators of the wildly popularTop 200 Moments in Culture History, podcast hosts Yang and Matt Rodgers, came back with 100 categories of culture that ranges from the Little Mix award for being absolutely fierce boots to most colorful color.(For the record, we’re campaigning for aquamarine.)
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The Las Culturistas Culture Awards
Throw away the Academy Awards because theLas CulturistasCulture Awardsare here and there is a category for everyone. The creators of the wildly popularTop 200 Moments in Culture History, podcast hosts Yang and Matt Rodgers, came back with 100 categories of culture that ranges from the Little Mix award for being absolutely fierce boots to most colorful color.
(For the record, we’re campaigning for aquamarine.)
11of 12Emmy KingJim Spellman/Getty ImagesYang is up for his first-ever Emmy for supporting actor in a comedy series forSNLat this year’s awards, airing Sept. 19 on CBS. His nomination marks two historic feats: one for being the first Chinese American male acting nominee in the category and two, for the firstSNLfeatured player to receive the nomination.
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Emmy King
Jim Spellman/Getty Images
Yang is up for his first-ever Emmy for supporting actor in a comedy series forSNLat this year’s awards, airing Sept. 19 on CBS. His nomination marks two historic feats: one for being the first Chinese American male acting nominee in the category and two, for the firstSNLfeatured player to receive the nomination.
12of 12TIME’s 100 Most InfluentialQueen Sandra Oh did the honors of writing about Yang and his ranking as one ofTIME’s 100 Most Influential People of 2021. In her essay, she described Yang to be “quick-witted, hilarious and absurd, with an elegant heart.” If being listed as “most influential” of the year wasn’t enough, Oh signed off her note, writing, “I am so proud to see him finding his way on his own terms. I hope he has whatever he needs to come to full fruition, because he’s mega.“She added, “I am fully prepared to be his aunt. He can text me anytime. anytime.“We are fully jealous.
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TIME’s 100 Most Influential
Queen Sandra Oh did the honors of writing about Yang and his ranking as one ofTIME’s 100 Most Influential People of 2021. In her essay, she described Yang to be “quick-witted, hilarious and absurd, with an elegant heart.” If being listed as “most influential” of the year wasn’t enough, Oh signed off her note, writing, “I am so proud to see him finding his way on his own terms. I hope he has whatever he needs to come to full fruition, because he’s mega.”
She added, “I am fully prepared to be his aunt. He can text me anytime. anytime.”
We are fully jealous.
source: people.com