Through sheer talent and determination, Jin Au-Yeung has made musical history. In 2002, he became the first full-blooded Asian-American rapper to sign a deal with a major record label. Jin's rise to fame began in Miami, Florida where he was born and raised. The son of Chinese immigrants, Jin watched his parents work extremely hard every day as they ran their own restaurant. In junior high, Jin became fascinated with hip-hop music and dreamed of becoming a professional rapper. He was inspired by artists such as Nas, Wu-Tang Clan, The Notorious B.I.G. and other New York rappers from the early 1990's, an era now referred to as The Golden Age. Realizing he had a talent for freestyling, he would perform for his classmates, co-workers and whoever would listen. Jin began entering freestyle battles in local hip-hop clubs where he was usually the only Asian person around. He was often underestimated due to his Chinese ethnicity. But Jin's talent won the crowds over and he was awarded the championship every time. He quickly developed a reputation as Miami's cleverest hip-hop lyricist. But in the hip-hop world, Miami is known more for bass-heavy dance music than clever lyrics. He knew this would be another obstacle to overcome in order to gain acceptance. In 2001, his parents decided to move the family to Chinatown, New York City. Jin realized that living in the birthplace of hip-hop would be a huge stepping stone to making his dream come true. He began performing freestyles and selling his own mixtapes on the streets, in hip-hop clubs and wherever he could. He quickly gained a huge following just as he had done in Miami. His big break came when the BET program "106 & Park" began inviting local rappers to have freestyle battles every Friday. Jin was ready for the national exposure. He auditioned and again was underestimated due to his race. But Jin proved everyone wrong by winning the battles week after week. After winning for seven weeks straight, Jin was inducted into the show's Hall of Fame. That same night, he announced that he had signed a deal with Ruff Ryders; the same record label as DMX, Eve and Jadakiss. Since then, Jin has been profiled in numerous newspapers and magazines. In 2002, he landed the role of Jimmy in the film 2 Fast 2 Furious. He also has been recording his album which will debut in October 2004. He hopes to be someone that other aspiring Asian-American rappers can look up to. After much hard work, Jin's dreams of acceptance and success in hip-hop music have come true.

ZEBULON:
Give me some background info on Jin. Where do you come from and what made you decide to get into battle rap?

JIN:
My parents are from Hong Kong. They immigrated to the United States in the 70s. I was born and raised in Miami, Florida. I'm about to turn 31. I'm married to an amazing woman and we have a beautiful baby boy. As far as how I first got involved with freestyle battling, I'd say I was about 13 years old. It was just part of the environment that I was grew up in. At school, in the cafeteria, all the aspiring mcs wanted to be the seen as the best. Battling was one of the ways to achieve this.

ZEBULON:
Dope… What, for you, is the most memorable battle you've ever been in?

JIN:
I'd probably say it would be the Serius Jones battle that I lost. To date, no battle has taught me more about humility, character and challenged me more so as far as finding my self worth.

ZEBULON:
Haha that was an ill battle though. What is your opinion on written battles as opposed to freestyle battles?

JIN:
I don't have a particular opinion truthfully. They are both an art form that bring unique qualities to the table.

ZEBULON:
No doubt. I've read that you had a nearly four-year stay in Hong Kong at one stage. How did that contribute to you as a person?

JIN:
From 2008 to 2012, I lived and worked in Hong Kong. It was the most growth I've ever experienced both personally and more importantly, spiritually.

ZEBULON:
Now that you're back in New York, and your transformation into a Christian rapper is complete, what can Jin fans expect in the future?

JIN:
I don't know if I'd say my transformation is complete. I wouldn't even necessarily describe it as me "transforming into a Christian rapper". The walk with Christ is an on going process and everyday is full of learning and growth. As it pertains to my music, listeners can expect more genuine lyrics and transparency than ever before.

ZEBULON:
I feel you… The "new" Jin is quite creatively captured on your latest EP, "Brand New Me", which was released in December last year. For the ones who haven't copped or heard it yet, what can they expect from the project?

JIN:
Brand New Me is an EP of 5-6 tracks that I recorded in 2011 around the time I got married. The title is pretty accurate in how it describes my mindset while I was writing and recording these tracks.

ZEBULON:
There's a track you did before the EP was released that caught my attention. It's called "Y.O.G.O(You Obey God Only)". That was a response to Drake's YOLO track right? What inspired it?

JIN:
Y.O.G.O was a cover track I did to release the EP online. Understandably, it may come across as a response to Drake's track, but it's not necessarily a rebuttal of any sort. As far as inspiration, I'd probably quote a lyric from the track. "You only live once? Had to ignore the trend. I died to the world. Now I'm born again."

ZEBULON:
Haha nice. You're also working on another album at the moment called "Hypocrite". Tell me more about that.

JIN:
Hypocrite will be my first English album in 6 years as I've been releasing mainly Cantonese material. It's without a doubt nothing like any of my albums before both content wise and sonically. It's probably the most mature and honest that I've ever been as far as how I'm approaching the subject matter. I think the title is a bold title and that's what I'm hoping to be with this project.

ZEBULON:
So will you still be doing any battling in future?

JIN:
My biggest factor for not battling anymore is because I don't feel my heart is in it. Until that changes, I wouldn't expect to see me engaging on that platform anytime soon.

ZEBULON:
Ending it off, any advice for the ones out there having trouble figuring out who they are as an emcee?

JIN:
It is a process. Most of the time, you just need to let nature take it's course.


Trivia

Is a professional rapper.

Won the BET "Freestyle Friday" MC Battle 7 weeks in a row, inducted to the show's "Hall of Fame".

In May 2005, after the disappointing sales of his debut album, he announced that he was retiring from rapping. But he has since re-emerged under the name "The Emcee" and will take his rapping career in a new direction.