How Jay Park broke from K-pop to US hip-hop – from boy group 2PM to MBN rap battle Signhere
As the Asian-American star turns 33, we look back at how this humble talent strafes musical genres and cultural borders alike
Jay Park bridges worlds – a common household name among K-pop fans and hip-hop lovers alike. From the leader of former K-pop boy group 2PM, to solo artist, he has produced numerous catchy tracks, set up his own label, made bold statements and, of course, broken boundaries as an Asian-American in the music industry.
On April 25, Park will turn 33, and to mark the milestone here are some interesting facts which you should definitely know about the artist.
He loves Mexican food
Park isn’t shy about his love for Mexican food, telling an episode of TV show Baek Jong-won's Alley Restaurant that his closest friends back in his hometown, Seattle, run a Mexican restaurant. He loves the food so much that he heads over about two or three times a week just to satisfy his cravings whenever he’s back home.
He opened up the hip-hop scene in Korea
Aside from being a solo artist, Park is also a producer, entrepreneur and even the CEO of his own successful label, AOMG.
AOMG took off in 2013 and since then Park has built up the Korean hip-hop scene through various partnerships, especially one with Korea’s major entertainment giant, CJ E&M, in 2016.
He also appeared on Mnet rap competition show Show Me the Money, as a judge in seasons four and six, and even created Signhere on MBN 2019 – making AOMG the first hip-hop label to have its own audition programme.
Some of the well-known artists under the label include Loco and Gray, and AOMG recently debuted new signing DeVita.