FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM DECEMBER 12, 2019 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 67
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Photo credit: Danielle Levitt
New comedy series ‘Awkwafi na is Nora From
Queens’ slated to premiere in January 2020
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Before she became a bonafide
Hollywood movie star, Nora Lum, known
by her stage name Awkwafi na, was just a
YouTube rapper in 2013 living in Flushing.
Now, she’s returning to her roots for a new
Comedy Central show based on her life
in Queens.
“Awkwafi na is Nora From Queens” is
a half-hour scripted narrative starring
Lum — who is the writer and creator
of the highly anticipated series — as a
20-something growing up in Flushing,
striving for a larger than life existence
while living with her dad played by
“Law & Order: SVU” icon BD Wong,
and her foul-mouthed grandmother,
played by Lori Tan Chinn of “Orange
is the New Black,” and cousin played
by “Saturday Night Live” cast member
Bowen Yang.
“I’ve been watching Comedy Central
since I was old enough to hold a remote,
and so many of their shows have defi ned
who I am today,” Lum said. “I am so honored
to be given their platform to tell the
story of an Asian-American girl against
the backdrop of the city I was raised.”
Lum has starred in the fi lms “Ocean’s
8 and “Crazy Rich Asians” (2018), and
won Best Actress for her work in “Th e
Farewell” at Th e Gotham Awards. She
has also released two albums, “Yellow
Ranger” (2014) and “In Fina We Trust”
(2018). Additionally, Lum also ventured
into comedy and hosting, making television
appearances in “Girl Code,” “Future
Man” and “Saturday Night Live.”
Sarah Babineau and Jonas Larsen,
executive vice presidents and co-heads
of Talent and Development for Comedy
Central, said, they’re “happy to be used as
a pawn in Awkwafi na’s elaborate, EGOT
endgame.”
“Th is is a special project. Inspired by
Awkwafi na’s formative years in Queens,
the show is both a personal look into
one of comedy’s brightest stars and also a
relatable, funny profi le of a young huster’s
struggle,” Larsen and Babineau said.
Th e 10-episode series,”Awkwafi na is
Nora From Queens,“ is scheduled to premiere
on Jan. 22, 2020, at 10:30 p.m.
The highly anticipated series “Awkwafi na is Nora From Queens” is slated to premiere on Comedy Central in January 2020.
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