Sophia Chang

Sophia Chang was born in Vancouver, Canada to two Korean parents in 1965.[1][10] Her father was a mathematician.[11] She has one older brother, Heesok.[10][11][12] She has two children with Shi Yan Ming.[4][13][14] Chang and Shi Yan Ming divorced in 2007.[13][15]

Chang received her Bachelor of Arts at the University of British Columbia in French Literature.[11]

After graduating from the University of British Columbia, Sophia Chang moved to New York City to start her career in the music industry in the late 1980s. She worked with Paul Simon in the early days of her career.[16] She then worked at Jive Records where she first met RZA.[1] She later became the manager of Razor Sharp Records.[5]

From 1995 to 2007, Chang was the manager of the USA Shaolin Temple in New York City and her then-partner Shi Yan Ming.[13][15]

Chang produced season 1 of Project Runway All Stars from 2012 to 2013.[17][8]

In September 2020, Chang published her memoir, The Baddest Bitch in the Room, which was released by Audible in partnership with Reese Witherspoon’s media brand, Hello Sunshine.[18][19] She also launched the Unlock Her Potential mentorship program for Women of Color in September 2020.[2] For the first year of the Unlock Her Potential program, Chang recruited 107 mentors who were well-established in the entertainment industry, such as Mona Scott-Young, Andre Royo, RZA, Jim Jarmusch, Bao Nguyen and Pamela Adlon.[2][3] For the second year of the Unlock Her Potential program in 2021, Chang was able to recruit 126 new mentors.[20]

Chang's memoir The Baddest Bitch in the Room won the Wavy 2021 Best Book Award.[9]

• Interview with Cecily Lo for Interview Magazine.
• Interview with Dimas Sanfiorenzo for Okayplayer.
• Sophia Chang's Official Website