Dumbfoundead's Battle Rap Memoir 'spit' Is A K-town Story Of Ciphers And Survival

Jonnie Park has ever gone by galore names. The astir Google-able is his hip-hop moniker “Dumbfoundead,” which he’s gone by for decades arsenic a seasoned conflict rapper and an creator who’s put retired a jaw-dropping 13 albums while becoming 1 of nan kings of legendary Leimert Park hip-hop crew, grounds explanation and unfastened mic Project Blowed. As a resident of L.A.’s Koreatown since childhood, he’s still known arsenic “The Mayor of K-town.” To his friends, he’s conscionable “Dumb.” Of each nan aliases and titles he’s fought for, “author” mightiness look to beryllium nan astir unlikely. But arsenic a master erstwhile it comes to producing scathing basking bars successful conflict raps, it felt only correct to put his travel down nan warpath of rhymes connected insubstantial successful his debut memoir “Spit,” released April 14 connected Third State Books.

Recounting razor-sharp memories starting from childhood, Park’s book includes nan harrowing communicative of his family’s migration from Argentina to L.A. erstwhile he was 3. He talks frankly astir nan perils and prejudice of increasing up Korean American successful Southern California and thrusting himself into nan hip-hop scene, where, aft stumbling successful arsenic an outsider to Black culture, he yet recovered his sound connected stage. It speaks to nan instauration that later served him good arsenic an actor, podcaster, comedian and precocious TV writer for season 2 of nan deed show “Beef.” But he says his estimation arsenic a conflict rapper is nan 1 that will ever matter most.

Recently Park said to nan Times astir nan hardest parts of penning his caller memoir, nan value of Project Blowed and taking his underground rap mentality pinch him from nan gutter to nan stars.

For your memoir you purposely return nan parts of your life from puerility until astir property of 30, nan highest of your hip-hop career. What was it for illustration to spell backmost and return that travel again?

To me, it’s ever benignant of nan halfway of who I am. Even arsenic a multi-hyphenate, I ever opportunity I’m first and foremost a conflict rapper. It was specified a pivotal infinitesimal astatine a clip successful my life and I return that explanation pinch maine wherever I go, truthful it doesn’t consciousness excessively distant. But to really beryllium successful that arena feels very distant. I look backmost and I conscionable deliberation astir nan audacity of a young Asian kid successful that world. I’m conscionable for illustration “Wow, I really had nan balls to do this astatine 1 point.” And I still emotion nan subculture of conflict rap. It’s thing I’m a portion of and a communicative that I want to show successful each these different mediums — whether it’s screenwriting aliases processing a TV show, I still consciousness for illustration there’s a batch to beryllium done pinch that subculture.

Why was it important for you to thief your readers study astir nan method facet of conflict rap and what it takes to beryllium a conflict rapper?

There’s a batch much layers to it than group know. Obviously we cognize Eminem’s “Eight Mile” was nan tallness of nan communicative of wherever conflict rap sewage to, and it did a awesome occupation of that. Obviously it’s been galore years since then. But I besides wanted to fto group cognize that nan group progressive successful this subculture aren’t conscionable successful poorness trying to make it retired and get connected a grounds label. This is simply a existent subculture that group obsess complete and I conscionable wanted to find an excuse to nerd astir it and besides thatch group this benignant of caller era of conflict rap. I besides item immoderate of my peers really deserved it, and including nan unfastened mic I went done called Project Blowed. That’s nan 1 point I emotion astir this book is that I tin immortalize immoderate of my individual heroes and places that I clasp beloved to my heart.

But mechanics of really our brains activity erstwhile freestyling is thing I find interesting. People ever inquire maine “How do you guys freestyle aliases battle?” And I was really tense astir explaining it. I conscionable didn’t cognize really I would do that. I had nan thief of my co-author, Donnie Kwak, who I’ve known for galore years. He’s ne'er written a book either, but he’s conscionable benignant of for illustration a large relative to maine and we’ve had galore conversations astir this. So being capable to break that down was really cool for me. And I still really emotion that section astir freestyling and battling for dummies.

Dumbfoundead’s memoir “Spit” chronicles his emergence done underground conflict rap, offering deeper penetration into nan subculture.

(Lenne Chai)

What was it for illustration for you arsenic you were discovering your sound done unfastened mics astatine Project Blowed?

Project Blowed freed specified a large portion of me. I deliberation erstwhile I saw nan different rappers there, and they were taking [rapping] to heights I ne'er imagined, nan styles of raps that I would spot here, from there, were truthful unorthodox. At that point, I was listening to everything connected nan power on pinch operation tapes and stuff. But this was not moreover that. This wasn’t moreover for illustration nan underground operation tapes. It was nan astir earthy and purest shape of rap. It was truthful weird and abstract, moreover for me, conscionable nan young Korean kid astatine nan property of 14 that hadn’t gone southbound of Pico Boulevard, increasing up connected Third Street, and each of a abrupt I’m connected 43rd. It was for illustration different world for me. Next point I know, I’m immersed successful this world wherever there’s achromatic kids that are into anime, punk stone and rapping their a— off. And I’m like, “This is insane!” So it did a batch for my cognition of everything, much than conscionable hip-hop.

Why was it truthful important for you to benignant of showcase your Korean from not only nan standpoint of a rapper but besides arsenic a writer?

Definitely nan Korean American portion was very important to me, because we spot Korean culture, Korea particularly being this world powerhouse, and what we cognize of it is nan “Squid Games,” and nan K-Pop of it all. And truthful I did want to stock this much successful nan position of a Korean American. Even much specifically, successful Southern California, successful Los Angeles, location is simply a different vibe of Asian American life than nan remainder of nan country. I’m nan epitome of that. A batch of our parents person these wholesale businesses downtown aliases barren cleaners aliases liquor stores. Growing up successful K-town, a batch of Korean families person a dada who’s an alcoholic, and there’s a batch of home unit situations. I deliberation done my story, a batch of group will spot themselves successful these situations.

Jonnie Park, a.k.a. Dumbfoundead, writes successful his memoir astir increasing up successful Koreatown.

(Third State Books)

I deliberation it besides conscionable speaks to each nan different layers of struggle, battles that you and your family person gone through. Were location immoderate aspects of this book that were really challenging for you?

The hardest portion was decidedly penning astir my father, and knowing that this book is going to beryllium retired successful nan nationalist because it’s truthful revealing. There’s affairs, there’s businesses that he worked astatine that are named. These families do beryllium — I grew up pinch that family that my dada had an matter with. I don’t talk to them aliases anything, but it’s each successful nan book. And I did want to beryllium honest, I conscionable felt for illustration this is simply a spot to do it if I’m going to do it. I don’t cognize if my dada will publication it, but if it ever sewage translated into Korean, he’s decidedly reference it. I still don’t person a awesome narration pinch my begetter and I conscionable consciousness for illustration location wasn’t, there’s not overmuch of a closure to that still. And possibly nan book will thief unfastened up immoderate caller conversations betwixt him and I. So that portion was a small difficult, and besides talking astir immoderate of nan home unit successful my house. Growing up pinch my dada and my mom, it made maine consciousness for my mom a lot.

The opening and nan extremity is nan astir difficult part, because nan extremity really discusses benignant of for illustration that insecurity arsenic an artist, and wherever I’m astatine successful my life arsenic an artist, seeing a batch of my friends becoming highly successful. I really wanted to beryllium honorable astir that. The book doesn’t needfully extremity pinch maine being triumphant and emotion astatine ease.I still consciousness that arsenic an artist, and I deliberation that’s why it’s conscionable an ongoing battle.

Describe what that’s for illustration having travel retired of that underground rap segment and showing your skills to nan world successful TV and movie while holding connected to that underground mentality.

Even being successful a writer’s room for “Beef” Season 2 — that was my first writer’s room — felt for illustration a cipher. Knowing erstwhile to jump into nan speech astatine nan correct time, and knowing erstwhile to autumn back. That conscionable tells you that nan skills that I acquired from freestyling and conflict rap, I was capable to return into nan existent world and use it successful truthful galore different places.

I deliberation it’s truthful absorbing that I sewage that “Beef” Season 2 gig because nan showrunner and nan creator of nan show really loves my position connected Asian American civilization connected my podcast [“Fun With Dumb”], conscionable based disconnected of that. I sewage to a spot successful my life wherever I conscionable felt very comfortable being susceptible and self-deprecating done each nan things I’ve done successful conflict rap. I was capable to use it to podcasting, too. And to person that joke and wit and that vulnerability, that comedic consciousness that I’ve acquired from battling and freestyling, 1 point conscionable led to nan other. I still person nan aforesaid benignant of slate of stories and ideas that I’ve been trying to get made for galore years. That includes stories connected conflict rap, K-town and being Korean, American. Those are ever benignant of nan things I return pinch maine to immoderate I’m trying to make correct now, and possibly erstwhile I make those, I tin move on, but I’m still moving connected that.