Jin…still freestyling and rapping
Jin is a rapper and most notably a freestyle rapper who got his big break back in 2001 where he went on BET’s 106 & Park. There was a segment called Freestyle Fridays where each week the emcee would battle (basically rap insults) another emcee. If someone won 7 weeks in a row, they were inducted to the hall of fame. When you think of rap, you usually don’t think Asian, but Jin has skills.
Check it out…the first video was probably his weakest: 106 & Park Compilation
Here’s a more recent freestyle battle. It’s a bit harder to hear:
After being inducted to the hall of fame, he was signed with the record label Ruff Ryders becoming the first Asian American to sign with a major rap label. Unfortunately his relationship with the Ruff Ryders didn’t bring up large commercial success. Soon after, he decided to go independent. Here’s one of the best songs I’ve heard from his new releases:
More recently he completed in Cantonese. Here’s an article for more information on Jin: http://www.ballerstatus.com/article/news/2007/07/2896/
Will Jin ever gain major commercial success in the US? Hopefully one day, but if not, at least he’s paving the road for more Asian rappers.
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