2023
About the Program
“What is Canadian culture but a mix of roots?”
Canada and Taiwan are two places that have always had a multicultural and diverse society. On the bus, on the streets, it’s not unusual to hear multiple languages spoken at once. In music, too, these languages hold emotional power that reminds us of who we are, no matter how far we travel. In collaboration with Jade Music Fest, we welcome a multilingual artist to the TAIWANfest stage.
Through multiple languages and original songs, handwash shares his story of migration, diaspora, and finding community. From his home in Hong Kong, where his visions of a future has become obscured, to his new home in Vancouver, where identity is an everyday struggle. Listen as handwash and band continues to reach for their dreams.
Hon Lam Chan was born and raised in Hong Kong, and is currently based and actively engaged in Vancouver’s music scene, including but not limited to community shows, festivals, and local pubs. His work often explores themes of masculinity, Asian identity as a Hong Kong diaspora, and topics surrounding how meditation serves his personal growth and creative practice.
handwash is Chan’s stage name. He took the name from washing instruction labels, noting the interpersonal parallel between garments and music. The attention to detail in his “clothes” focuses on the listeners’ relatability, providing a different lane to the individualistic side of hip-hop.
handwash draws sonic inspiration from everywhere, from dance to ambience, like many of his favourite contemporary hip hop and r&b artists. His roots, language, and identity makes him unique.
From the Curating Team
Curating community performances at TAIWANfest is like painting a self-portrait, constantly questioning Taiwanese culture's role in a Canadian festival. With these community performances, we aim to foster cross-cultural dialogue and break down ethnic barriers, highlighting Canada’s diverse society.
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TAIWANfest Vancouver is grateful to be held on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam Indian Band), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish Nation), and Səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation). We acknowledge our privilege to be gathered here, and commit to work with and be respectful to the Indigenous peoples of this land while we engage in meaningful conversations of culture and reconciliation.