Ivana Kohutková is the editor-in-chief of fjúžn magazine, named after the festival about foreigners and minorities in Slovakia, organised by the Milan Šimečka Foundation. The festival has been held in Slovakia for 19 years. Michal Novotný, better known to the public as "Yaksha", hails from Martin, northern Slovakia.
His father was from Vietnam, though Novotný only got to know his Vietnamese side of the family after his father’s death. Straight after secondary school, he founded one of Slovakia’s first streetwear shops and was a frequently booked DJ, later becoming the CEO of the prestigious record label Def Jam Recordings. He owns the creative agency LOVE THEM and the globally renowned music label F*CK THEM, which has garnered over a billion views on YouTube.
He was instrumental in launching both international and Slovak artists and works as a creative for some of the biggest names and brands in the industry. He is a lover of fashion, art, and active sports. He is also involved in the community of Slovak Vietnamese, connecting the first, second, and later generations of Vietnamese immigrants.
Your father was Vietnamese and your mother Slovak. What is your family history? My grandparents were descendants of circus performers and carousel operators. In Humenné, eastern Slovakia, where they were performing at the time, my mother was born.
Their relationship didn’t work out, and they separated. My grandmother found another traveller who didn’t have a circu.
