As some of you already know (many of you actually don’t), we’re in the processing of a complete make-over for Ningin. Perhaps it’s more fitting to say Ningin will experience a major upgrade in both design and features. Every single area of Ningin will look different. Every single application (social news, blog, forums, profiles) will have new features. Plus, we’re adding one new application! The tentative date for all of this is in about 2-3 weeks. Some site downtime will happen (it’s also an infrastructure upgrade). Most likely this will happen in phases, so the whole upgrade might last as long as a month.

While this upgrade will have many different focuses, the main one is something I’ve stressed about a lot on Ningin, Community. There will be a lot more things you can do to interact with the users on Ningin. There will be a lot more interactions with other Asian media websites. Probably most importantly, there will a lot more interactions in the offline world as well with event happenings and charity organizations. The latter isn’t going to happen right away, but it is a major goal of ours.

Looking back, it’s hard to believe that Ningin has only been on this path since March of this year. The amount of growth in users and content has definitely been great! Who knows where we’ll be if we continue at this pace.

Tags: Design, downtime, features, new, ningin, upgrade

It’s finally the weekend although that doesn’t stop the workload. Development has been working on something big (hint hint wink wink) so please check back for updates.

Also, there’s a new blogger if you didn’t know. His name is Jerry Chen and he’s an anime, jpop, basketball and game expert. Finally another gamer to join us! I felt a bit nerdy being the only one so far.

I somewhat enjoyed this weeks more than others in the past because most of the songs were pretty good (3 out of 5). Always a good sign right? As always enjoy this batch. I really do like finding these music videos every week for you guys so I hope you do too.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2pm, blogger, epik high, foxxi misq, jerry chen, jpop, new, News, rain, weekly music roundup

You know that hikko guy that has watched every episode of Lucky Star at least 10 times? Yea, that’s me. That all-too-spirited guy in 1st year Japanese that knows words like kakushigo but still can’t order cold soba from the joshikousei waitress? That’s me too. That 7′6″ dude on the Rockets who routinely puts up 20 and 10? Naw, that’s Yao, but hanging out with T-Mac on Jimmy Kimmel sounds pretty fun.

What’s up Ningin, I’m Jerry Chen, the new blogger from San Francisco. I’m big on anime and games and basketball and jpop, most to an obsessive degree. I think last night I had a dream where I was just chillin at the neighborhood shouten, then some girl cradling a bag of taiyaki ran into me then dragged me into some restau… wait… never mind. I tell ya, too much anime and you start wishing those anime eye contacts would come standard with every girl~
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: anime, basketball, blogger, games, japan, jerry chen, jpop, manga, new, ningin, san fransico

Hello everybody! I’m Erik, a new blogger here! Introductions have never been my thing, so I’ll make this short. I live in New England, in Connecticut. I’ve been into Asian media for quite a few years and I’ve come across only a few people who were familiar with Asian entertainment until just recently. I feel like it’s getting a bit more recognition in other parts of the world, and hopefully by being a part of this site I can take part in it, no matter how big or small! I started out with Japanese music, where I liked the typical popular artists such as Ayumi Hamasaki, Utada Hikaru, Namie Amuro, and Olivia Lufkin, etc, but that was it. I began to venture into other types of Asian media such as dramas and other forms of entertainment, my obsession as of late being K-pop, with groups and singers like The Wonder Girls, Brown Eyed Girls, Lee Hyori, SHINee, and others.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Asian culture, Ayumi Hamasaki, blogger, brown eyed girls, kpop, lee hyori, namie amuro, new, ningin, olivia lufkin, shinee, utada hikaru, wonder girls, Youtube

TVXQ has officially released their fourth album, Mirotic, only a few days ago but even before then it has hit number 1 on the charts. I’m glad they’re back in Korea again so they can put these fake talentless boy bands to shame.

The new album is title Mirotic which is the combination of a coined Korean word “miro” and the English word “tic”. The word “miro” means “lost or maze” which has lead people to believe the definition is the feeling of being wrapped in love with no way out.

Listening to the entire album, I was more of a fan of the slow songs (especially Jae Joong’s solo) over the upbeat ones although “Wrong Number” and “Crazy Love” were one of my favorites. I really enjoyed the entire album with its techno pop feel; definitely a hit for a comeback album.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: album, boy band, comeback, dbsk, jae joong, japan, korea, mirotic, new, sexy, single, tvxq

As a newcomer to anime, it was suggested that I watch a couple of different styles as well as formats. There’s so much to choose from, but here’s where I began…

Ghost In A Shell: So, I’m gonna start off by simply saying: “Wow.” I know this an oldie but goodie, but I think that seeing this movie first really set the bar high. I was consistently impressed by not only the animation, but maybe even more so by the storyline. While following the covert ops team in a techno-crime thriller sounds like it could be complex enough, I was often caught off guard by all of the existential subtext. Motoko Kusanagi’s “construction” lends itself to major philosophical issues; by having a human brain and spinal cord while the rest of her body is mechanized she is constantly reminded of her duality. To me, this added another level of depth to “The Major” as she forged ahead in her fight against the Puppet Master.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: anime, Comedy, drama, ghost in the shell, haruhi suzumiya, manga, motko kusanagi, new, otakuden, romantic, the melancholy of haruhi

The last blog in our 7 Days, 7 New Blogs event isn’t what you would normally expect from a blog. It’s more a community project that started alone, then joined Ningin for a larger reach.The Asian Heroes Blog profiles successful Asians worthy of being role models. There’s already 40+ profiles written, so plenty to read and explore! Here’s more from the project founder, Stephen Chen:

Warren Buffet said, “Tell me who your heroes are and I’ll tell you how you’ll turn out to be.”

Some friends and I took this to heart and with we soon realized there is a real opportunity to highlight the success stories of Asian heroes. They are our catalysts for change, recognizing possibilities and have the courage to take on risk; to realize that people are most in danger of not being what they might have been.

We hope you will read this blog, be introduced to the titans of the world, be inspired to go out and innovate, and lastly, to discover the great potential of being someone else’s hero.

Along the way, I encourage you to write back and let me know about your progress. I am always available at stephenchen@ningin.com.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: asian, blogger, heroes, new, ningin, stephen chen, success, warren buffet

Ciao a Tutti! MiaCarla here, number five in the new seven of the Ningin newbies! How very exciting to be apart of this fine blogging bunch. As an Italian-American born and raised in Brooklyn NY, I am not your average Asian media enthusiast … but from the first influences of 80’s anime and 90’s Korean Pop, there has always been a drive in me to aid Asian Media acceptance in the western mainstream. Now apart of this global campaign to seek out kindred, as well as diverse fans, to bring them together under one banner. Showing people that, the many facets, of Asian media do not have to be separated by ethnicity’s, language or genre.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: america, asian, blogger, italian, jpy, korea, mia lerda, new, new york, ningin

Hi everyone! My name is Maimounah Masudi and I am a native North Carolinian. Right now I am a senior attending Fayetteville State University and my major is Accounting. I also work as an Accounting Clerk IV at the Bursar’s office at my university. One of my favorite pets is a kitty cat. They are usually small, unless you have a Garfield sized one. I love it when they purr on you and when they pounce on things. I love their cute little eyes and their wirey whiskers. I’m sort of a health fanatic. I love to eat lots of green things. I eat out of cans as less as possible. I love fresh fruit and I think I might die if I go without exercising for a day. I am a Korean drama fanatic. I have even learned the Hangul characters and I can say a few things in Hangul. I also took Mandarin last year and it was so much fun.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: accounting, activism, asian america, blogger, fayetteville, issues, maimounah masudi, new, ningin, society

You guys ask for more interviews, more features, more photos, more stories and we’ve listen. From September 2nd until September 8th - 7 straight days - Ningin will add one new blogger to our roster. Each day, one new blogger will make a personal introduction so you can get to know him or her better.

Soon, Ningin will also have podcasts, video blogging, and many other new features and applications. And we’re always looking for more bloggers. If you want to be a Ningin blogger, head over to this page.

Thanks for helping us grow and please welcome the new bloggers to the Ningin community!

Tags: applications, bloggers, features, interview, media, new, ningin, photos, podcasts, roster, stories, updates, video blogging