MC Jin burst onto the US scene over 20 years ago when he crushed the competition at the BET 106 & Park’s Rap battles on Freestyle Fridays. A young Chinese-American kid burst onto the scene by taking out seasoned rappers with a deadly but witty flow of English slang peppered with choice Chinese gems. Now, a few decades later, MC Jin is deep in the game and has made a serious OG name for himself in Asia, especially after he stunned the Chinese audience with his tri-lingual skills at 2017’s groundbreaking inaugural Rap of China broadcast. He’s back in the motherland, Hong Kong, this weekend to perform live and debut his new apparel line Regular at ComplexCon HK. LiFTED caught up with the OG to ask him five questions.

The idea for Regular has been something I’ve explored for a few years now, but what was more important than dropping a line, was being clear on what I wanted the brand to represent, which is encouraging everyone to embrace and “define your regular.” My regular is being grateful. Grateful to be performing at ComplexCon and unveiling my vision for Regular to the world.

Although I was born and raised in the States…Miami to be exact, Cantonese was the exclusive language spoken in our household. More so, we watched endless Hong Kong films and TV shows, as well as listened to tons of 90’s Canto-pop. I loved it then, and still love it now. Although I can’t say I envisioned adding Cantonese to my Rap portfolio early on, it does seem like the natural progression in hindsight.

I wouldn’t say it was a secret sauce, but it was definitely a unique ingredient I had at my disposal. To be honest, I just did it cause it felt natural to do, not really knowing how effective it would be. Looking back, it was a bold move. As they say, “high risk, high reward.”

I don’t think I ever stopped. I was certainly ready to stop at some points. What I think stopped was how visible I was. That’s for sure. Even now, depending on who you ask, you might get different answers as far as, “What’s up with Jin?” I’m just grateful that even when I was uncertain of my next step, a path would reveal itself. Rap of China in 2017 was definitely a pivotal moment in the journey, like so many before and after it.

I suppose I never really put too much thought into how I foresaw streetwear would grow. If we’re talking about the 90s, as a kid, I only knew I wanted to be fresh like those I emulated. As I got older, I think while being fresh was still part of the equation, there was more emphasis on being authentically oneself. It seems like that’s the constant balancing act, even as it pertains to streetwear.