Bling Empire’sKelly Mi Liis well-versed behind the camera.
The Netflix star, as millennials would say, is a total “boss lady.”
Since its debut in January, the series has drawn comparisons to an IRLCrazy Rich Asiansor Bravo’sReal Housewivesfranchise.
When Mi Li sat down withThe Listover Zoom,she exuded excitement and optimism for her Netflix debut.
She is, indeed, the queen of her ownBling Empire,which she built from the ground up.
Thank you for watching.
It’s so good.
I was wondering if that’s really how it is.
Are you guys all friends?
I’ve been friends with everybody for a very long time.
That’s so cool.
What was it like filming something like that?
Filming was a very amazing experience.
But just very grateful that we had this opportunity.
And towards the end of it, you kind of forget the camera’s there.
Our crew was so great, you kind of just forget they were even there.
How was that sharing that because, you’re saying from your culture, that’s usually more private?
We got so much out of it.
The show kind of forced us to face our problems instead of keep hiding it or keep downplaying it.
And then for me, I’ve learned to set healthy boundaries.
I never learned how to do that.
Because, again, in Asian culture, we don’t really talk about our feelings.
So I’m very, very fortunate and very grateful for the experience.
It sounds so rewarding, especially from that perspective.
That seems like so valuable.
I’m assuming you guys are still together and you’re doing good?
After the show, we actually took about a five-month break where we didn’t really see each other.
We separated our household.
I think it’s during the show as well.
So we’re still living separately.
During the five months of not seeing each other, we really worked on ourselves.
And for me, I grew up so much during that time.
I don’t want to say we got back together, but we started spending more time together.
And it’s been phenomenal.
We’re still individually going to therapy, which I think is very important.
And then we’re going to start coupling therapy as well, soon, once we get there.
But yeah, it’s been a great experience.
How has that impacted your relationship together?
So again, with the Asian culture, we really don’t talk about feelings.
We kind of hide it and we just have to deal with it.
We suppress it, that’s what the Asian culture has always taught us.
That’s all he [sees] his mom and his dad do.
So, yeah, I’m just really proud of him.
And how far he’s came.
Can you tell me a little bit about your ex-husband and all of that?
We met at a very young age.
I think I was 21, at the time; he was 20.
And then we were just friends, nothing happened.
And he was a self-made person as well, which I really respected.
We were living in separate households, but we [hadn’t] formalized our divorce at the time.
They shut it down."
So I’ve been there, I’ve [struggled].
You built your business after that happened, which is so unbelievably impressive.
Can you talk about how you did that and what that was like?
So I have a few different [businesses].
I’ve invested in over 20 different startup companies, and I’ve invested in real estate.
I used to be in food and beverage.
I had my food and beverage restaurant when I was 24 years old.
Had a private nightclub as well, sold that, and invest in tech.
And then I built a company called Greyscale Lab, which does merchandising, import-export business.
And then I also just started my own production company for scripted TV and film.
So, I think for me …
I was just really lucky.
I have great people around me.
I have a great team around me.
I have great partners around me.
So I want to give them the credit for that.
I’m very used to a male dominated industry.
And that was a male-dominant industry in finance.
And then, food and beverage was a male-dominated industry.
Tech startup was a male-dominant industry.
You have to work twice as hard to get to where they are.
I try my best to support female filmmakers, same thing with minority filmmakers.
And the show is, like I said, so good.
I love shows like that, so I’m definitely your target audience.
I already told everyone I know to watch it.
Thank you so much.
I think on the show, you said you spent like $400,000 a month on credit card bills.
And for someone like me, and most people, that’s an unimaginable amount of wealth.
How do you spend that much money in a month?
We traveled a lot.
We flew only private for a couple of years.
And then, Park Hyatt Presidential Suite in Tokyo, $30,000 a night.
So there are definitely ways to spend.
Art, we loved collecting art at the time.
And that’s kind of outside the budget, we had a different art budget.
Well, what is the biggest splurge you’ve ever purchased?
I haven’t purchased individually, by myself.
I don’t know.
For me, this is more fun instead of buying jewelry.
Behind the scenes of Bling Empire
That sounds really fun.
So, I’m going to ask you some more questions about the show, specifically.
What were the biggest feuds on the show from your perspective?
Obviously, we see what happens, like the part with the penis pump, that was pretty heated.
It’s like famous!
I named it, I personally named it.
I personally named it Willy.
I think the dynamic between Christine and Anna [Shay], it’s interesting to me.
Anna lives in her own world.
She doesn’t live by any rules because she doesn’t need to, so she’s not competitive.
I think that fuel and that fire was interesting to me.
And what was the best and worst part about filming?
What am I doing?"
So, during that time it was really difficult just because me and Andrew were doing really bad.
That sounds really nice.
Sometimes the hardest stuff ends up being the best.
Everything happens for a reason, blessing in disguise.
Was there anything that happened on the show while you were filming that we don’t get to see?
So remember that trip that Anna took us to in Paris?
They said that only one the Obamas, whoever it is did that before.
I don’t know how she does it, but yeah.
And then when we left [they were like], “Come back any time.”
I’m like, can I just move in?
Yes, Kevin Kreider is staying in the friend zone
That’s amazing!
I have one more question for you.
What’s your relationship like with Kevin?
Would you consider him?
So Kevin and I, we’ve been friends and we’re still friends.
We still talk like once a week, if anything, so I just see him as a brother.
So, I’m happy he’s still in my life.
He is quite a lovable character.
Is there anything else?
What are you up to next?
I’m in post-production right now for a thriller I just shot during COVID calledAmp House.
Going in pre-production with a feature film.
Then starting pre-production on a feature true story calledAfterwardwith Aaron Eckhart, Terrence Howard, George Lopez.
So that’s all Q1, Q2 next year.
It launched internationally already, and it did phenomenal.
So I’m really excited for it to launch in North America.
It will be soon.
Season 1 ofBling Empireis currently streaming on Netflix.
