Season 2, Episode 12: “22 Nights” ft Chhom Nimol — Live on Stage

Narration: Last season, one of our episodes featured the powerful vocalist Chhom Nimol, lead singer of the Cambodian psychedelic rock band Dengue Fever. 

If you haven’t heard it, I highly recommend going back. The title of the episode is “Not Standing Still Anymore”. The episode covered Nimol’s youth in a Thai refugee camp, and her rise to fame through winning Cambodia’s version of American idol. It was a life arc type story. How she got to where she is now. 

Well, after recording and releasing the episode, the team and I worked with Nimol to share her story as part of our live performance series. But something surprising happened. Nimol sat us down, and told us that she wanted to do something very different on stage. She wanted to tell the story of the most vulnerable moment of her entire life, the story of her arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement at a check point between San Diego and Los Angeles many years ago, when she was new to this country and also new to her band. This was something she had never spoken about, but clearly for her, it was time. 

Over the next fifteen minutes, Nimol shares that story with you, while illuminating the links between immigration enforcement and the prison industrial complex. 

My name is Meklit and this is Movement, music and migration remixed.

Nimol: Hello everyone. So, in 2003, I have a show with my band, with Dengue Fever. So after the show, we driving home to LA. There's the checkpoint between LA and San Diego. So they stopping us. Ethan, keyboard, he was a driver. They asking us about ID. So Ethan show them the ID. And I show them the passport. My visa was just expired.

So, okay. So get out of the car and go in the office. And we get to talk more. So we waiting for almost one hour. After that, they tell Ethan to going home. And they arresting me. They took me to the room. And I ask them, Sir, when I'm going home? And he told me, I don't know, just wait, wait here, we'll let you know later.

So we waiting until next morning, about 6 a.m. in the morning. They brought us the breakfast. And lady, this breakfast. And I asked them, what kind of foods are? And they told me, breakfast burritos. And I told him, I never had burritos before. Can I order some salad? Ma'am, this is not a restaurant. And I say, okay.

And, the next day, they bring us to the San Diego jail. It means the big deal. They tell us to change the clothes and all the personal items. Put everything in here. So they brought me to the room when I walk in. I saw beautiful girl, tall and blue eyes. She was my roommate and I asked her where you from? She said Russian I said, oh Russian. I'm from Cambodia. Oh, yeah, and then we chit chat and She asking me why I'm here and I told her I have a show with my band And they arresting me because my visa expire.

And she said, I'm a dancer, I live in America for 10 years, I get fight at the bar, and my green card expire.I might go back home, but you might be have chance. I say, I don't know, let's see. So, at the night time, I cannot sleep, because I'm moving around so much, and she told me, Girl, I got it. First night, just like that. Okay. 

And the next morning, we went to breakfast room. I saw one girl, tall and brown skin. She from Sri Lankan. Her name is Nina. She's serving food for us. Every single day, she work. I'm very sure like one, one dollars a day. And she been the, in the jail for almost one year. And she told me, I talk to her, she told me she don't want to go back home. She want to come to America because she want to support her family.

She come from the board from Canada to US. That's why they get arresting her. So, okay, I saw so many women at the room was so sad and depressed because everybody just wanted to live in America at that time. 

So a week later I met African girl. She had a braid and beautiful. She's very smiling and a lot of energy. And I come to talk to her. I asked her, can you do that for me? And she said, yeah, I can do for you, but not today. Because I have to take the old sock first. I told her, it's okay, yeah, I can wait. So, she finally do for me. 

And couple day later, the guard was telling me, you have a visitor. And I was, I feel like, who is come visit me? Because this almost 10 days already, nobody calling me, no, anything at all. And she, they told me, you have a visitor. And I, when I walk into the room, I saw my sister and lawyer. I finally, I'm so emotional because 10 days feel for me, like it just happened to me. I never think I'm going to be like 10 days, no makeup, no eyelashes, no lipstick. You know? I love to be pretty every day. 

And my sister told me, Oh, you look cool with the braid. And you're losing weight. Cause I don't eat, I don't sleep. And after that, I was so happy. But lawyer telling me, we working so hard to helping you. But we don't know when you getting out.

And I'm feeling a little bit much better, but still depressed. When I go back home, I go back to the room. This I want to go home so bad. I'm sorry. The night time when we watching the TV, there's American Idol on TV. I'm watching my dream on TV.

So I don't know what's going on, because every day I just saw woman coming to the room never see the woman going home. And everybody look really sad, and depressed, and no hope.

So, a week later, the guard calling me and tell me to talk a private room. They telling me, today you bring all your stuff and you're going home.I was so happy. I'm going home. When I go back to the room, the girl asking me, Who is visiting you? And then I tell them, Yes, I'm going home. And they're happy for me. And I wish them they can go home like me. 

I finally get out. My sister tell me, What you want to eat? And you miss the most the food. I told her, I want a steamed rice and soy sauce. And she say, okay, we take you to Asian restaurant. And she brought me a new clothes and she say, okay, all your new clothes right here, the bad last clothes, we need to burning out. My community, my country we believe the bad luck, we don't need to bring back home. We need to throw in the trash. So, and two months later, we finally released the first album with my band, Dengue Fever.

And this song we called 22 Nights.

Narration: That was Chhom Nimol performing “22 Nights” at Movement LIVE. Movement is produced by Ian Coss and myself, Meklit Hadero. Our editor is Megan Tan. Our co-creator and podcast godmother is Julie Caine. Nimol’s Live story was produced with support from National Geographic, ASU Gammage, the Center for the Art of Performance at UCLA, and the Mellon Foundation. Our broadcast partner is The World. We are distributed by PRX.

If you enjoyed this story, consider sending it to a friend, or leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts. Believe me, this stuff really does help people find the show. If you happen to be curious about my albums, or performances, you can learn more at meklitmusic.com. Movement will be back with new episodes every other Tuesday through the fall.