From the moment we started our Skype interview Jin made it clear he wanted to be 100% transparent about where he is at now. I will say that he fully lived up to his opening promise.
From Hong Kong to Kansas City (where your humble interviewer resides), Jin shared his mind, heart, and where the Holy Spirit is leading him.
Jin didn’t get saved in some glorious transformation. When I spoke with him he said he wished he had some amazing tale in which God spoke to him audibly. But his coming to faith just happened gradually after spending time with a body of believers in Hong Kong. He said it wasn’t a major event that grabbed him, but just constant, friendly Bible study. He made a clear impact on me about his spiritual growth when he said “I’m not a theologian, but I can tell you how Christ has changed me.”
Jin said that he noticed some interesting things upon entering the Christian Hip hop culture.
“I’m super conscious of my surroundings,” Jin said. “I’ve read the comments. ‘So-and-so secular artist just got saved. He is going to make the dopest projects!’ I’m like: ‘Slow down. Let’s pray for this dude. Let’s see where his head is at first. Let’s see where his heart is outside of hip hop.”
“A long time ago I wasn’t aware of the Christian-rapper-versus-rapper-who-is-a-Christian [debate.] I didn’t send out a press release to the people of the world saying I was a Christian rapper when I got saved.
“What does that really mean? If an artist writes songs about how great God is does that automatically make him a Christian rapper even though afterward they sell crack on the street?” Jin asked.
Being new to the culture, he had some additional insights. Jin made it clear to me that just because he has Christ-focused rap, he is not going to lose his edge as a lyricist.
“I was talking to Propaganda after a show and he told me not to lose my teeth. He told me that he saw too many artists come into Christian rap and lose their edge to please the culture and the trends.
“Isn’t it interesting that the thing stressed to me pre-transformation was ‘You got to be about what you rap about.’ You have to have authenticity. It’s the same thing now.”
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One thing that I find striking are his interactions with other artists when it comes to doing guest features on their songs. Jin makes it clear he is accessible on Twitter and through other social media outlets. He put himself out there and was able to do a lot of work with various artists of with different levels of notoriety.
Jin takes a lot of joy in the Holy Spirit leading him in this collaborative setup. At the same time, there is a minority of negative interactions that happen as well.
“There are some projects I can’t commit to at the moment. I have stuff I haven’t finished. When you tell some people that you would be surprised how drastic their tone switches on the next email.
“Some people hit me up out of the blue and just ask for 16 bars. The ones that pierce my heart the most are the ones that praise my testimony first, then when they don’t get what they want, throw my past in my face.”
While this isn’t a consistent thing, it happens enough to notice.
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Jin is not just a Christian hip hop artist, he is also a fan.
“One artist I would really want to do something with is Braille. I was in Australia and I had the chance to see him and he put on a show!” Jin said.
He even inquired about some good KJ-52 songs to add to his rotation.
Jin has been married for a little over a year and recently had a son named Chance with his wife. He joked with me that the nightlife habits he had back in the early days of his rap career are now being put to good use.
“When Little Man is fiendin’ for that bottle I have no problem getting up,” he joked.
Jin goes on to give a great insight into parenting and fatherhood.
“Having a kid is a game changer. You now have someone to be driven for,” he said.
Wrapping up our conversation I asked Jin if there is anything he could use prayer support for. His response was humbling: “I feel the one thing that is hindering my walk with God, I’m not talking about the rap aspect, in the total sum of my life have I given it all up? I want God’s hands in everything. I want Him challenging me on that. It’s easy to say, ‘Lord I trust my career in your hands’ – but doing that is another story.”
If you have been questioning if Jin was legit there is no question he is down for Christ. Check out all of his projects at the low price of free.
FREE DOWNLOAD of “Crazy Love Ridiculous Faith” + mini-intro video
https://crazyloveridiculousfaith.com/
Say Something
https://www.rapzilla.com/rz/music/freemp3s/2137-jin-say-something-mixtape
Sincerly Yours
https://www.rapzilla.com/rz/music/freemp3s/3107-jin-sincerely-yours
