George Takei has joined TraceMe, the social media app that allows fans closer access to their favorite celebrities. It was founded by NFL quarterback Russell Wilson, and the platform now gives fans of Takei exclusive content from his TraceMe Content Collections including topics on activism, Star Trek, science fiction, Allegiance Broadway show, and his history as Japanese American. The app is still in beta, but it also features exclusive content from Wilson, R&B artist Ciara, New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara and Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson.
Takei is known for playing Sulu in the original Star Trek series. Since then, he has amassed a huge following on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. However, those platforms can become very hostile.
“I have a thick skin, and I know how to deal with it,” Takei tells Nerd Reactor. “Some [of my fans] are very vulnerable people and are not experienced in life, and they get more than wounded by some of the ugliness. And I felt terrible about that.”
“What a wonderful way to really have an unguarded, comfortable, forthright conversation with my fans,” Takei continued. “I thought this was a wonderful way to build another community. The word community sounds very small and personal, but it IS that. It’s an opportunity to do that but on a global level. For example, a fan in Prague, Sao Paulo or Singapore. That’s why we’ve been developing this and we’re ready to now open it up and share it with everybody.”
Takei explains how the platform will be welcoming discussion in a civil manner.
“It’s moderated; there’s a gatekeeper,” he said. “Young people may call it a safe space. I don’t really believe in the concept of a safe space. I like to have a thoughtful and civil discussion with people that have different ideas, and I learn from them. There will be a lively exchange, and sometimes some debate. So it’s not going to be what teenagers call a ‘safe space.’ It’s going to be an engaging, vibrant place for civil exchange.”
“It’s going to be about me,” Takei explained. “Certainly, politics will be a part of it. We will engage in civil debate on that. There are other aspects of me. I’m an actor, and I’m a passionate lover of theatre, and that will be a conversation. Movies and television are where I make my living, and we’ll be talking about that.”
Of course, there will be some fun with Takei’s TraceMe world with “Oh Myyyy.”
“I grew my social media back in I guess 2007 or 2008 by trial and error,” Takei added. “And we’ve found that the thing that gets the most likes and shares is humor. In my case, particularly, grumpy cat. We have what we call Team Takei, and we have people assigned to come up with original and fresh humor.”
Takei will also talk about his history along with his legacy project, Allegiance, a Broadway show that is inspired by his story as a child prisoner in internment camps during World War II.
“When I was 5-years old, I was imprisoned in U.S. internment camps simply because Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese, and I am of Japanese ancestry,” Takei said. “120,000 Japanese-Americans on the West Coast were summarily rounded up with no charges and no trial. Due process, which is the essential pillar of our justice system, completely disappeared. It was one of the most racist things to happen, and that experience of growing up in prison behind American barb-wire fences is what shaped me. The political activist in me is what resulted from that experience.”
You can visit George Takei’s TraceMe World at https://www.traceme.com/george-takei
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