- Born
- Birth nameJin Au-Yeung
- Nicknames
- Jin
- MC Jin
- Height5′ 6″ (1.68 m)
- Jin Au-Yeung, aka MC Jin, was born and raised in North Miami Beach,
Florida. Both his parents immigrated from Hong Kong to the United
States with hopes of starting a family and providing their children
with an opportunity to chase the American Dream. Little did they know,
their firstborn would grow up to pursue a path that was not only less
traveled but in this case, uncharted territory.
There were no aspirations of becoming a doctor, lawyer or fireman for
this little boy. He wanted to be a rap star.
At a young age, Jin fell in love with rap music and Hip-hop culture.
Emulating his favorite MC at the time, LL Cool J, Jin knew that his
destiny involved having a mic in his hand. What this lead to was years
of demo tapes, talent shows and managers with pipe dreams.
In 2002, his big break came in the form of a nationally televised rap
battle competition known as Freestyle Friday on BET's 106 and Park.
Remaining undefeated for 7 consecutive weeks, Jin was inducted into the
Hall of Fame and in grand fashion, announced that he had signed with
Hip-hop powerhouse, Ruff Ryders, home to mega-stars such as DMX and
Eve.
The roller coaster ride begins here.
From Rolling Stone Magazine to MTV's Artists to Watch, 20 year old Jin
was touted as the next big thing to hit the music industry by storm. A
young Asian-American battles his way to signing a high-profile record
deal. The story was unique and one that the Hip-hop community had not
yet seen.
With a steadily growing fan base, Jin was able to do major touring
across the country as well as overseas before any commercial release.
With his profile at an all time high, Jin was casted as Jimmy the
mechanic alongside Paul Walker and Tyrese Gibson in 2 Fast 2 Furious.
The experience on set definitely left quite an impression on Jin but
music was still his primary focus at the time.
In 2006, Jin had parted ways with Ruff Ryders with both parties
mutually feeling that it would be best to end on good terms. His debut
album The Rest Is History released in 2004 went on to sell 250,000
copies worldwide.
After releasing a few independent projects and staying on the road
doing shows, 2008 brought about an interesting turn of events. Jin was
presented with the opportunity to go to Hong Kong and release an all
Cantonese Hip-hop album. What was expected to be a short stay to do
promotions for the project ended up being a 4 year stint. In that time,
he released a few more albums but more importantly, Hong Kong allowed
Jin to blossom and realize his passion for acting. Gallants, which won
Film Of The Year at the Hong Kong Film Awards was his first time on a
film set since almost 6 years ago for 2 Fast 2 Furious. In it, he
played a young and cocky martial artists who had more skills running
his mouth than running his father's business. As well, Jin was casted
as Unicorn Chan, childhood friend of Bruce Lee in the biopic Bruce Lee,
My Brother which details the younger years of the legendary actor and
martial artist.
The opportunities were not only on the big screen as Jin was also
casted prominently in 3 Hong Kong produced 30 episode TV series, as
well as given hosting duties on different variety shows. This lead him
to winning Most Improved Actor at the annual award show.
In 2012, Jin started devoting more time to the stateside from both a
personal and career perspective. A husband and a father now, his
passion for music and performing has never been more intense, but with
a new sense of focus. He was enthusiastic to be casted for the role
Chan in The Rza's The Man With The Iron Fists as he saw it as another
chance to further hone his craft. Next up for Jin is Andrew Lau's crime
drama Revenge Of The Green Dragons, where he plays a detective who's
trying to make his neighborhood a better place but finds that he's not
quite accepted by the good or the bad guys.- IMDb Mini Biography By: The Great Company
- SpouseCarol(February 12, 2011 - present) (1 child)
- 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. - Is a professional rapper.
- Recorded a song for Obama's campaign in 2008 and performed it at a rally in Washington Square Park, NY.
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