Jiaoying Summers (born January 18, 1990) is a Chinese-American stand-up comedian, actress and producer. She is best known for her TikTok videos and her focus on combating Asian racism and promoting Asian representation.
Jiaoying Summers 梁娇颖 | |
|---|---|
 Summers in 2022 | |
| Born | January 18, 1990 Henan Province, China |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2013–present |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | jiaoyingsummers |
Early life and education
editSummers was born and raised in Henan Province in China. She was born during China's one-child policy, and her parents delivered her at home instead of a hospital "to avoid the shame of having a girl" as their only child. She came to the United States at the age of 18 and studied at the University of Kentucky.[1]
Career
editIn 2013, Summers served as the president for new business development for her family's construction company. She also interned for the IMAX Corporation in Los Angeles. In 2014, Summers won the title of Miss China in the international beauty pageant "Queen of the Universe".[2] She began acting in 2016.[3]
Summers is the founding partner and CEO of Summers Media, an international production company.[4]
Comedy
editDuring an audition for the police drama show Rebel, executive producer John Singleton heard Summers making jokes and suggested that she "try her hand at comedy". Following his advice, she performed at her first open mic night in 2019.[5] She began posting on TikTok in 2020, and has since gained more than 1.2 million followers and has accumulated over 1 billion views.[6][7]
Summers incorporates personal material into her comedy routines, including her "decision to talk about [China's] one-child policy as a survivor". Her video went viral, leading to being banned on TikTok, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance. TikTok cited violation of community guidelines, and restored her account three months later. Summers has spoken about continued deflated viewership, leading her to suspect she had also been shadow banned.[1]
Summers performs regularly at The Laugh Factory, The Comedy Store, and Carolines NYC, was a headliner at the New York Comedy Festival in 2022 and headlined the Apollo theater in November 9, 2023.[6] She also starred in the Netflix Is A Joke festival's Women in Comedy show.[7] In 2022, Summers released a comedy special as part of the Comedy InvAsian series, on NBC Peacock.[8]
Summers is the owner of two comedy clubs, both located in Los Angeles: The Hollywood Comedy and The Pasadena Comedy.[9]
Personal life
editSummers is a mother of two.[5]
Summers is the Asia ambassador for Operation USA, a non profit humanitarian organization supporting health, education and relief programs. She is also the international ambassador for the Linzhou Charity Federation.[2]
In 2022, Summers was inducted into the Asian Hall of Fame[10]
Filmography
editAs actress
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Major Crimes | Tai Chi Student | as Jiaoying Liang |
| 2016 | The Scarlet Thorn | Lin Wu | as Jiaoying Liang |
| 2016 | Alex and Lotus | Lotus Wang | as Jiaoying Liang |
| 2016 | Hollywood Diversity | Michelle | as Jiaoying Liang |
| 2017 | The Missing 6 | Carrie Ling | as Jiaoying Liang |
| 2019 | American Bistro | Yu Yang | uncredited |
| 2020 | The Madams | Steph | as Gia Summers |
As producer
edit| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | The Scarlet Thorn | as Jiaoying Liang |
| 2016 | The Like Challenge | as Jiaoying Liang |
| 2019 | An Unforgettable Winter | as Jiaoying Liang |
| 2020 | Wo men zhe xie nian |
References
edit- ^ a b Jackson, Nate (January 28, 2022). "Jiaoying Summers' joke about China's one-child policy made everyone laugh – except TikTok censors". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
- ^ a b "Meet Jiaoying Summers". VoyageLA.com. November 5, 2019. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
- ^ "Jiaoying Summers". IMDb. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
- ^ Germano, Prachedes Indyra (February 23, 2022). "The Queen of Comedy – Jiaoying Summers". Jejune Magazine. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
- ^ a b Diamond, Joy (July 7, 2022). "Asian American comedians reclaim their narratives in S.F. 'Asians Are Funny' fundraiser". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
- ^ a b "Stop Asian Hate feat. Jiaoying Summers". Carolines on Broadway. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
- ^ a b "Jiaoying Summers". improv.com. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
- ^ Luparello, Joseph (September 14, 2022). "Chillin' With Jiaoying Summers". ChilledMagazine.com. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
- ^ Ang, Marc (September 19, 2021). "Comedy Is The Next Asian Entertainment Frontier & Jiaoying Summers Is The Trailblazer". TheHollywoodTimes.today. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
- ^ Grein, Paul (October 10, 2022). "Daniel Ho, Hiroshima, Tia Carrere & More to Be Inducted Into Asian Hall of Fame". Billboard. Retrieved February 14, 2023.