There aren’t many who straddle the line between being a Pop star and an MC quite like Jay Park. The Korean-American star started his musical career through the K-pop group 2PM, before leaving in 2009 and heading back to his hometown, Seattle. Since then, he has made his way as one of the most successful solo artists in Asian Hip Hop, and by extension created a bigger Hip Hop presence in Korea and all over Asia.
Without him, there wouldn’t be the two biggest Hip Hop labels in Korea – AOMG and H1GHR Music - which he founded and operated as CEO, before stepping down in 2021, and opting for advisory roles. He has also had stints as a judge for the popular Hip Hop reality series Show Me The Money, alongside multiple features with MCs all over the region.
Despite his illustrious career and status, Jay has always been one to rally together MCs from both circuits of up-and-coming and established names – and birthing something special. Take H1gher Music’s remix of the Malaysian rap collective FORCEPARKBOIS’ ‘Lotus’ for an example. Through that, listeners from the Korean market would be put on to a new and dope crew of rappers. Jay Park is all about building bridges between all of Asian Hip Hop.
Coming into 2023, he doesn’t seem to be taking a backseat on this either. This week alone, he’s part of two cyphers that were released on Dingo FreeStyle with a bevy of Korean MCs from the underground and the mainstream. And we can’t think of a better way to be introduced to a new MC or to see what a seasoned vet has under their sleeve, if not through their performance during a cypher. As Park shared on Instagram: “F*** the charts! You hear us in the streets!!!”
Check out the ‘Blue Check’ and ‘We’ remixes below.