Famous dragon people: Are they dragon-y enough?!

By Stacy Nguyen
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Welcome to the Year of the Wood Dragon! It’s going to be a sexy fun year full of growth, wisdom, and energy.

The dragon astrology sign is one that embodies charismatic power—fearless and adventurous individuals with the confidence and gravitational pull that draws all others into their golden orbit. On the flip side though, dragon individuals can tip too far into their power and, at times, be temperamental, domineering, volatile, and self-centered.

So which dragon famous person fully exemplifies their positive dragon traits? (And which unfortunately mirror the dragon’s more noxious traits?)

Lilly Singh
Born 1988

Lilly Singh is an actor, comedian, rapper, and television host from Canada! She was born and raised in Toronto and her parents are Indian Punjabi immigrants who raised her as Sikh. Singh started out on YouTube but has since expanded her media empire by a lot. She had a late night show on NBC not too long ago, “A Little Late with Lilly Singh,” which ran for two seasons. As for whether or not Singh is especially dragon-y—well, let me ask you this: Are CEOs of companies reportedly valued at $20 million dragon-y? Then yes, Singh is a “bawse” dragon.

Ja Rule
Born 1976

If you grew up in the early aughts, you know rapper Ja Rule’s raspy voice and his extremely catchy songs. He was everywhere, with hits like “I’m Real.” So yeah, Ja Rule is charismatic like many dragons are—but! Perhaps he was also overly confident to a fault. Ja Rule is also widely known as one of the dudes who, in 2017, tried to make the Fyre Festival happen. That music festival was widely disorganized and a huge public embarrassment, with stories about concert-goers paying thousands of dollars only to sleep in tents with no access to food or water. Litigation ensued. Ja Rule’s tears were probably not enough to put out the flames. Dreams burnt to the ground.

Kamala Harris
Born 1964

One of our favorite Hapas, born to Indian and Jamaican American parents, is a dragon! And she is also the Vice President of the United States. I’d say that role—plus her history of activism—makes Kamala Harris pretty leader-y and also pretty dragon-y. Harris has achieved a lot of historical “firsts” in her impressive career. She was the first Black person and first woman elected district attorney of San Francisco and attorney general of California. She was the first Black and Asian American woman to run on a major political party’s presidential ticket. And of course, she is the first woman and first woman of color to be elected vice president.

Keanu Reeves
Born 1964

Another one of our favorite Hapas, Keanu Reeves, is surprisingly a dragon! And I say surprisingly because even though he is great at movie martial arts and seems physically super strong, Reeves has such a humble and quiet nature to him that he doesn’t telegraph as someone with obvious dragon-y strengths. He’s been known to give a significant portion of his salary to film crews and generally, he stays away from controversy. I’d say he’s the type of dragon person that you’d want in your corner when the apocalypse comes and stuff.

Steven Seagal
Born 1952

This dragon actor is also trained in martial arts and, according to his Wikipedia page, he is a Buddhist. Uhhh, okay. If you say so, Steven Seagal. Just note that this man has also gone on record declaring Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin (also a dragon!), “one of the great living world leaders.” Seagal has also faced a number of lawsuits, charged with things like employment discrimination, sexual harassment, breach of contract, and other financially fraudulent things. Because of all of this and more, I’d say that he totally exemplifies the worst traits of the dragon.

Bruce Lee
Born 1940

This man needs basically no introduction, here’s one anyway. Bruce Lee was a filmmaker, actor, and martial artist especially known for his films, “Enter the Dragon,” “Fist of Fury,” and “Way of the Dragon.” What you may not know is that Lee spent his early years in Seattle! He attended the University of Washington in 1961 and worked in Seattle’s Chinatown before he made it big in Hollywood. As for whether or not Lee embodies positive dragon traits—well, just look at the legacy he has left!

Other notable dragons!

Fred Rogers (1928), the Mister Rogers
Shirley Temple Black (1928), famed child actor before there were stricter laws about child labor, diplomat
Maya Angelou (1928), the Maya Angelou
Pelé (1940), soccer player, former Minister of Sports of Brazil
Liam Neeson (1952), Irish actor, has a special set of skills
Reese Witherspoon (1976), actor, has her own book club
Ryan Reynolds (1976), actor and spokesperson for gin
Rihanna (1988), the Rihanna
Stephen Curry (1988), really good basketball player
Halle Bailey (2000), actor who played Ariel in the newest “The Little Mermaid”