Meet Tyler Chen | Actor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tyler Chen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tyler, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I decided to pursue an artistic/creative career because working in the arts is something that gets me truly excited and wide-eyed. All my life my parents had convinced me that going down the STEM education pipeline and becoming either a scientist, doctor, lawyer, or banking or financial analyst was the route to a successful, happy life (as is the case with most immigrant Asian families). I never really thought much about what it is I really wanted to do for a career until I was in high school when I discovered what musical theater was. My high school, Stuyvesant High School, has a tradition where the students create, write, and produce their own original musical and showcase it in a competition at the end of the year. I was convinced by my friends to audition for the cast and I was put in the ensemble my first year participating in this tradition. Even though I had no speaking role, being a part of the community and watching everyone’s talents come together to create something entertaining, no matter how amateurish we were, was exhilarating. And in the next year, I auditioned again and got cast in lead role. From then on, I continued down this acting and performing rabbit hole. I really enjoyed watching theater, reading plays, and enrolling in acting classes. My parents pleaded me to at least get a bachelor’s degree in something unrelated to the arts, and so I did. But after graduating undergrad, I decided to give my artistic dreams a shot. And I’ve been on this journey ever since. Appreciation of the arts has always been a big part of my life, I love to see others perform, and I want to do so too in my own way.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
As an actor, everything about me—sets me apart from others. Every actor has something unique to bring to the table. No one person is going to have the same life experiences, the same values, the same mannerisms (from the way you walk and talk, to the way you express your emotions). I have a lot to offer just being myself. Even when I’m auditioning alongside however many hundred Asian-American males for the same role, no one’s audition will look or sound anything like mine.

But I’m most proud/excited of my specific background, getting the chance or potential to be represented and selected to show up as the lead. The landscape of this industry is changing. I’d like it if I could help be a part of the change in the way we represent Asian-Americans in media and entertainment. That we live actual American lives, and are more than unoriginal, severely dated, and myopic stereotypes.

Truthfully, I’m quite green to this industry and I’m still finding my bearings. But I’ve reached a point where I’m not lost, I know what to do, and how to reach success. I’ve only been able to get to this point because I’ve invested in good sources of knowledge. Doing research, reaching out, applying and enrolling for things, taking chances and meeting people, even if you feel there’s no material benefit. When you push yourself to try new things, you’ll learn a lot more about what it is you should do to get where you want to be.

It definitely is not an easy journey. There are days where I seriously question my sanity and my abilities to stay in this game. But that’s where you need to 1) trust yourself, because if you don’t how will anyone else? 2) trust in your friends and support systems because we can’t do everything alone, and 3) find a way to bring yourself back from the noise. Meditate, seek therapy, sleep early, and learn to slow down in life. Everyone wants quick answers, immediate gratification, constant stimulation and results, and shortcuts to success. But the reality is that everything takes time. I believe luck does play a big part in success, but I also believe that we make our own luck. We become what we believe and set out to do, but we can’t set out to do everything in a day.

I want people to know that I, one of the least likely people to become an actor (if you were to ask anyone who knew me growing up), am an actor. I may not be at the heights of success just yet, but I am an actor today. And I will help tell great stories. Stories that may have to do with the Asian-American experience, or just plain stories that happen to include an Asian-American actor. And hopefully I can inspire others who look like me to do the same. Anything is possible.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
When it comes to New York, there’s no shortage of pristine culture, whether that’s food, the arts, or community. If we’re talking about nightlife, I personally frequent St. Marks Place (near NYU, in between NoHo and East Village), Upper West Side and Upper East Side, Ktown (Midtown), Chinatown, and LES. These places have some of the best izakayas, gastropubs, and restaurants open late. A favorite Japanese jazz club of mine called Tomi Jazz can be found on the Upper East Side.

If we’re talking museums, parks, and other attractions, then the big ones to visit are The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Central Park (of course), Brooklyn Bridge Park, Prospect Park (Smorgasburg and brownstones), Washington Square Park (the Park Poet and other cool street performers and vendors), Union Square (thrifting and playing chess with strangers). Man, there’s simply too much to do in the city, I couldn’t possibly list every single thing to explore. And of course, you can do the typical tourist things like visiting the Empire State Building or the Statue of Liberty.

Chelsea Piers, Bronx Zoo, Roosevelt Island Tramway, Bryant Park, my mind is racing. There’s simply too much to list. Not to mention there are seasonal things too, depending on when you visit; there’s the ball drop at Times Square on New Year’s Eve for, one very famous, example. It’s New York, you could stay a whole 24 years of your life (aka how long I’ve been alive) and still not have experienced everything. So take it from a born-and-raised Brooklynite; you’ve got to just come and experience it firsthand.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to give a shoutout to all the teachers in my life because education, good education, goes a really long way in the development of one’s character. Thank you to my high school teachers Mr. Kerry Garfinkel, Mr. Eric Ferencz, Ms. Julie Sheinman, Ms. Chie Helinski, and Mr. Perry Badgley. They taught me invaluable life lessons and gave me a sense of self and general direction in my life. Thank you to the teachers in my life related to my artistic journey, Antu Yacob, Kana Sato Colla, Nathan Flower, Matthew Dudley, Justin Cimino, Catherine Dwyer, Jason MacDonald, Celestine Rae, and Terry Knickerbocker. They have helped me navigate this difficult path and helped make me gain the skills to not only become a more substantial actor, but a more substantial person as well. And last but not least, a shoutout to my closest friends and my family: the teachers I’ve had in my life for the longest time. I’m sure there are people I may have missed, but every single person I’ve come across in my life has shaped me and matters more than they think. But I have to give special thanks to the above people for being unforgettable parts of my life.

Instagram: @tylershinwei

Twitter: @tylershinwei

Image Credits
Terry Knickerbocker Studio Your Seat (Dir. Mike Messina)