We recently had the chance to connect with Arigato Grande and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Arigato, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: Are you walking a path—or wandering?
I’m definitely carving a path and taking on every side quest I can handle along the way! Everything I do is on the way to being a traditionally published author, but I also participate in so many other things that I believe bring value, build up the community around me, or make a difference in the world. Whether it be having difficult conversations on Jubilee on behalf of those who aren’t given a voice, taking care of my community through donations, volunteer programs, or spreading awareness, or making videos on TikTok to address funny or important topics – all of these things bring value in my opinion and share messages I believe are important for others to hear.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Jenny Ly, but I also go by Arigato Grande as it’s my online persona in so many spaces. I am a variety content creator, aspiring author, once Pop-Parody music artist, and an internet personality. I’m atrocious at attempting to create a unified brand, so I exist in the media space as exactly who I am in real life. My life’s goal is to become a traditionally published author and share stories for Asian American youth to make them feel seen and heard in society. Along the way, I try to better the community by encouraging respectful conversations, even if difficult, continual growth and self-improvement, and educating oneself and others.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. Who taught you the most about work?
My grandmother taught me the value of education and hard work. Raised in the swamp-riddled farmland in rural Vietnam, she was not allowed to go to school. Her parents did not find value in sending her to school, where they needed her hands working their farm. But she craved it, she wanted to learn more about the world and the things her friends were learning without her. She borrowed her friend’s homework, their practice tests, and notes, and she would sneak out in the middle of the night while everyone was asleep. She couldn’t use lanterns because her family would notice the missing oil, so she would climb onto the roof and study under the moonlight. She would beg and plead for her parents to let her attend school on test days. And she would show up to school on foot because her parents refused to take her, and she would take the tests she studied for in the dead of the night. Whenever I felt the need to complain about school work or how overwhelmed I felt, I reminded myself of my grandmother, who fought tooth and nail for a scrap of education. It reminds me of my privilege and how she didn’t live through two wars just for me to complain about a book report.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
Let your flowers grow. There were so many times I went HARD and poured 100% of myself into everything I ever touched or engaged with, whether it be content creation, writing, music, or just hosting events for my friends. I prided myself in doing everything at full capacity because I HAD to be the best at it. But it became exhausting. I poured so much of myself into my work, my career, and when I rarely saw the progress I was hoping for, it was easy to be discouraged. I left my corporate life to chase a career in video games. I believed and I KNEW compared to my peers, I worked the hardest, I put in more hours, I networked extensively, I put myself out there – I did everything I was supposed to do and more. And it all didn’t seem like enough. No jobs landed in my lap despite over 200 applications. No doors opened for me. I felt the slamming of failure after failure, rejection after rejection, and the envy of those around me who managed to make it while I painstakingly waited at my inbox for scraps of a response. I realized I couldn’t continue to make it like this, barely scraping by to eat. I was put on food stamps and government assistance because I couldn’t afford the bills. It was shameful. It was embarrassing. So I pivoted. I decided if I was going to create games, I couldn’t do that without a roof over my head or food on the table. I went back into corporate. I volunteered at indie dev studios. Now I have an amazing job at a fantastic company, and even if I’m still in corporate, it supports my lifestyle so I can carve out time for writing. And on top of that, game writing opportunities started knocking on my door. No more applications, but the connections and hard work I poured into these past two years came back to me. People I met at conventions years ago are suddenly asking for my help. All that hard work wasn’t for nothing – I was planting the seed, and it was finally blossoming. Now I’m a game writer, consultant, game director, and producer for various studios that all sought my leadership and skillset. And I have a roof over my head. Let your flowers grow.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
I think the public version of me is a more refined, carefully polished version of me. Though on TikTok I am much more colloquial and brash, more vulgar with my words rather than in more polished platforms such as Jubilee, it’s still an authentic facet of my being and a true part of who I am. Some days, I don’t have the patience or poise to conduct myself the way I would in a formal debate. Some days, I want to curse and be casual with my followers. Some days I want to dress nicely and say something with clean messaging. To some, maybe they find that inauthentic, but to me, I’m sharing every layer of my multifaceted personality, so that’s as real as it gets.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I think for the longest time, I was living for others. I lived for my parents and their expectations of me; I lived for my team and the expectations they had of me. I lived to impress people, to prove people wrong, but I didn’t get to live for me. Now, I feel at peace with myself. I feel certain with the person that I am and the work I am doing. I am deeply proud of the work I’ve done thus far and excited for the work that’s coming. Stay tuned for Seaside Studio Games and Project Hummingbird!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://cozysoundsari.wixsite.com/jennifer-ly-portfoli
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/plurfferfish
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-ly-3105229a/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=YFebV1XbMhoDwfnsyE9Sbg
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ArigatoGrande
