Snacky Chan Drops The Jazz EP [Interview]

Korean-American rapper Snacky Chan recently released a new EP called The Jazz. The artist who was born near Philly but grew with the Boston rap scene and later moved to Korea, has always loved digging into jazzy samples for his records, and here he touches on music that will please audiences from both continents and beyond. Here’s a quick interview he gave to our main dude Juke Da Gook aka Booda.

Who is Snacky Chan?

SC: Snacky Chan is an MC and founder of indie label Dynasty Muzik. Born in Philly and raised in New Jersey, he first made a name for himself in Boston while attending Northeastern University. He’s now based out of South Korea.

Why the name Snacky Chan?

SC: Rather than naming yourself, I believe you should be named. It’s more honest that way. My friend named me that.

How and when did you get into Hip­Hop?

SC: I got into it during my teens. Lived right next to Philly so the culture just seeped into our community. It was a beautiful time for hip hop.

You’re living in South Korea now. What made you move there?

SC: A lot of reasons man. It’s a really tough question because it was a culmination of things. I saw more opportunity in Korea. I was tired of struggling in the States. I wanted to meet Korean women lol.

How would you explain the difference from the U.S. industry compared to the South Korean industry?

SC:Hmm.. where do I start? There are so many differences. First off the market is really small. The whole country is roughly the size of the State of Indiana. This affects the way we make music. We have to water it down in order to make money. If your music is too “difficult” to understand, you won’t be able to make enough bread to sustain yourself. Thanks to K-Pop though, there has been a trickle down effect and now some of our indie artists are making some money from overseas which really helps.

What inspired you to do an EP that is jazz oriented?

SC: To tell you the truth it’s not really that Jazzy haha. It’s just the lead single is called The Jazz, so I decided to name the EP that. Also, in Korea, sample-based music is considered “jazzy hip hop”, so it kinda made sense. I just prefer sample driven beats.

Which jazz musicians do you like?

SC: I’m not heavy into jazz. More hip hop-jazz fusion. For ex. Digable Planets, Gangstarr, Tribe, Nujabes..

Why do you think people should listen to your latest release The Jazz EP?

SC: Hmm. I mean everyone has different tastes so I can’t really say this is what you would like. If you like that east coast underground sound, you should def check it out though.

What is the message you want to deliver to your listeners through your music?

SC: There’s not really one message. Some songs like ‘The Jazz’, might make you think about socio-economic issues of the US. Other songs like ‘Feelin You,’ might make you think of women in a more mature, appreciative way.

What did you grow up listening to?

SC: Qwame, Rakim, Tribe, Dr. Dre, Too Short, 3, Tupac, etc..

Who were your biggest influences?

SC: I would have to say Mobb Deep and Nas.

Who would you like to collaborate with the most?

SC: Hmm. Good question. It’s been my life-long dream to work with DJ Premier.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?

SC: Not really sure. What I’ve learned is that life is really unpredictable. Things I’ve said I would never do, I’ve done. I would have never expected to be living in Korea but here I am. One thing that has been consistent throughout my life has been my involvement with hip hop. I’ll be in this God forsaken industry until the end. That’s for sure.

Any future projects the fans should know about?

SC: I’m keeping my ears open to ill beats so it’s just a matter of time before I put something together. Not really sure what the future will bring. Just stay in touch with me through my Facebook or Twitter.

Any last words and shout outs?

SC: Big ups to Elementality and Danny Yoo for reaching out. Shouts to the people reading this. Thanks for taking the time!

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One Response to “Snacky Chan Drops The Jazz EP [Interview]”
  1. daewooparts says:

    dope interview ,dope artist too

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