Fear is Easy. Hope is Real.

#TeamNotLazy. We Make Things. 302 => PEK => LAX

[jasonchumusic]

Hey, everyone. Before you watch this new video... I know some of you might see a video titled "Asians and Black Lives", and think: I'm not Asian, or Black. So what does this have to do with me? But you are all people. We are all people. And we are living in a world that sometimes asks us to forget that. So this video is not just for Asians, or for Blacks. This video is to remind us that we are all someone - and that we are at our best, when we turn to each other, instead of turning on each other. If you would like to help the conversation grow, please Like and Share this video on here, YouTube, Twitter, and email!

[jasonchumusic]

I never thought of my parents as pilgrims - they're a scientist and a teacher. A father. A mother. But I see these topics in the news - immigration, refugees, politics - and I realize: just like so many generations of men and women who have built this nation, my parents are immigrants. So, this year, I've decided to give thanks for the new pilgrims that continue to bless America even as this country has welcomed us through the years. ‪ #‎HappyThanksgiving‬. After watching, please Comment and Share with your friends & family!! LYRICS HERE: https://youtu.be/6g4KsRSHzD4 Words // jason chu Sound & production // Benjamin To of The BAND WITH NO NAME Film Company Visuals // Yohan Yoon Location // Happy Days, Garden Grove CA (happydaysmenu.com) Guitar // James Renes

[jasonchumusic]

(jasonchumusic)

At Yale, Mizzou, Wesleyan, and other campuses around the nation, this past week has seen a public outcry over students' rights to safety and a racism-free community.

As a friend of these schools, I'm grieved and excited by this turn of events - grieved that there are those within the campus community would consider threatening violence against their fellow students; excited to see a public movement towards talking about race larger than any I've seen in my lifetime.

Inspired by these students, and hoping to add my voice to theirs, I wrote and recorded this track while on tour.

#MuchLove.

[jasonchumusic]

"Thug" parties with blackface costumes. "Oriental geisha" outfits and "Indian" headdresses. Halloween is no excuse for ignorance. Race is not a party. Culture is not a costume.

Meeting a new culture, the first thing we see is strange outfits, different customs, and weird foods. But underneath, we're all human - and deserve to be treated like we are.

Words // jason chu

Director & Editor // Yohan Yoon Cam Op // Lorraine Yang Audio // Phoebe Ng

Thanks // Elliott Miller, Jon Moy, Fong Tran Poetry, Claudia Chen, Tiffany Leung.

[jasonchumusic]

Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, and other high-profile presidential candidates have been making hateful, xenophobic speeches and gimmicks aimed at our communities and families. We couldn't let this go without speaking up for the country we love, so some friends and I shot a spoken word video to remind everyone: nothing is more American than coming here from somewhere else. I'd be honored if you took two minutes to watch. Please share it if you agree with this message, or want to help create discussion: that our voices and stories will not be mocked and silenced.

[jasonchumusic]

BOOKING BAY AREA SHOWS!!!! Bay Area homies/organizations/schools: I am in your area from August 9-15!!!! Got a school, community organization, church, or other event for me to rap/talk/lead a workshop at? Send me a message or email jasonchumusic at gmail dot com, and let's talk. ‪ #‎MuchLove‬.

[angrygirlcomics]

Please don’t repost this work anywhere else, or remove artist comments!

I’ve finished the first 8 pages of my graphic novel, Spells for Spirits, LLP., and am posting them for you guys to read. :)

[jasonchumusic]

The little sister Wendy making some dope ass comic art!!!!!!!! Check it out!!!

[jasonchumusic]

THEY WON'T SHOOT ME (I am not Freddie Gray): a spoken reflection.

As with many of you, my heart has been aching for this nation. It is a long ache, and not one that will go away. Not as long as our eyes are open, and our hearts warm.

It is tempting to ignore the pain, to live our lives simply thankful that it is not my brother lying on the autopsy table, my community being torn apart.

But then, I remember: it IS my brother. This IS our community.

And so we speak.

-j

[superheroesincolor]

“Marvels” - Jason Chu (Official Music Video) Starring Hudson Yang

“I started reading comics because they looked tight Stopped believing in them, because of real life Picked them up again because I chose to believe the world is more than what I see around me Maybe my cape doesn’t fly And bad men win - even good men die But one small spark can light the whole night So one small life can fight the good fight Heroes aren’t just childhood dreams Grown men and women still need to believe I can’t read your mind or fire a laser beam But if we can conquer our fears, how much more could we could achieve? “

Jason Chu facebook / soundcloud / twitter

To stream & download music and buy CD’s, hats, t-shirts, posters, and more, visit grandmaster.bandcamp.com   

[jasonchumusic]

Love these screen caps of the video - we worked super hard to showcase just a little of the diversity in the community around us & I'm super glad someone out there noticed.

[jasonchumusic]

A Reflection on March 23

Over the past few years, my birthday has become a small exercise in giving up.

Let me explain.

Yall know I love people: meeting new friends, listening to their stories. I love sharing thoughts, building, hearing people's hearts and hurts and dreams. Your dreams.

As a musician, 1000% of my energy goes to gathering people together in community: and striving to be a voice of hope in, of, and for that community.

But over the past few years - since Beijing - I've started stepping back every March 23rd. Instead of practicing gathering, engaging, and energizing - like every other day - I let go. My life is loud and on the move; on my birthday, I try (step by step) to learn quiet. Stillness.

Each date is another opportunity to remember who I've been on previous ones: 3/23/2009 in New Haven at Sushi Palace with the homies. 3/23/2011 in Beijing when Nate and I went to that sample sale at Joyce's company and I bought the jean jacket I still wear today (the one I wore in MARVELS).

And the beat goes on - Where will I be on 3/23/2016? 2017? 2027? Who will I be - and where will the journey lead me?

On March 23, 2014, ask me and I would never have dared to say half of what this past year brought. The places I've been, the people I've met, and most of all the stories we've been able to tell together. The songs, the shows, the adventures.

I guess what I'm trying to say is: I had a happy birthday yesterday. Thanks to everyone around me who's listened, watched, and let a Chinese kid from Delaware speak with them.

‪#‎MuchLove‬.

-j

[jasonchumusic]

A hero isn't about being super. We become heroes because of what makes us human.

MARVELS.

A music video about heroes & hope.

Starring Hudson Yang and jason chu. Directed by Jason Poon. Produced by Jason Hampton. Music by Elyonbeats & Claudeo.

[jasonchumusic]

The Waiting.

It'll never get old.

We write, record, shoot, edit, plan - and the hours/days/weeks/months of work & heartache & struggle always come racing down to a quaking stillness in the days before.

I felt it in Beijing; I felt it a year ago when we dropped MILLENNIAL; and Lord willing (إن شاء الله) I'll feel it again and again on this journey of work and words.

It's this odd space between creation and birth, where something beautiful is just about to take off - but in the moment, it's still hidden. Shy. Quiet and patient.

Each time, the stakes go up: each time, there's a little more of ourselves that we've poured into the work. More collaborators. More time. More hope. (And honestly? More money.)

So each time, I get this fluttering anxious energy that whispers: will it matter?

But Art always matters: even if no one else notices, even if all that happens is that I know, in the corners of my heart, that I've created something more honest than my last attempt (and less honest than my next). And in that creation, I learned something about myself, about my friends and family, about the beautiful and terrifying world of adulthood that I'm tip-toeing into with bated breath.

So we await the celebration.

‪#‎MARVELS‬ 3.13.15. http://tiny.cc/MARVELSevent

[jasonchumusic]

The hopeful race

"Your music is about healing - remember that - remember mission"

That's how the note in my iPhone reads. It's been sitting there for the past week since I typed it to remind me who I am.

It's so easy to forget myself. In a world where YouTube views and Facebook engagement are an hourly concern (and both plummeting for independent artists thanks to behind-the-scenes shifts favoring corporate accounts), my heart's eyes often turn outward. They ask: "What do they want? What will get shared? What can you do to get heard & seen?"

This easily, I go from artist to entertainer; from leader to follower; from truth-teller to dancing monkey. The worst is that it's not pressure from anyone else that does this: these voices of crowd-following doubt come from within.

At these times, I sink into fitful bouts of sleep and prayer for entire afternoons, wrestling with myself. Relief comes in a phone call, a Facebook message, a voice in my soul as I lie half-awake. It whispers: don't obsess about the many you don't know. Just be faithful to those you do.

So I press on toward the goal. I write songs, hopeful they'll find their ears. I reach, though maybe not viral, with a heart as true as I can hold. I don't founder on the barriers that suddenly loom, but I learn to vault higher or swerve faster.

All in hope.

[jasonchumusic]

My high school had a uniform - khaki pants, TUCKED IN polo shirts/button-downs with our school's logo - that they had us students wear. Because we HAD to dress 97% the same, we got it in with little accessories.... ball chain necklaces for guys, girls would buy chokers and rubber band bracelets at mall stores like Hot Topic and Spencer's.

It was little touches like how low we sagged our pants, or what we drew on our backpacks with sharpies and pens and white-out. Big headphones if you were into music and wanted to show that off.

After school, when the last bell rang, the halls would switch up 100% - polo shirts off, revealing band shirts or graphic tees underneath, baggy hoodies for the skate kids, hats and beanies on showing allegiances (Eagles/Phillies for the kids into sports, Volcom/DC for the skater kids, etc.).

We just got these new HERO beanies in from the embroidery shop ($15 + shipping & handling), in preparation for the new MARVELS single coming out next month, and I'm stoked.

Every time I wear this joint or the snapback ($20 + S&H), I flash back to the kid I was, wearing those polo shirts and khaki pants every day. I was & will never be a fashion icon (ex., the cover to MILLENNIAL, lol) I ALWAYS wanted my clothes to let people know what I was about (in order: Dragonball Z, import cars, Star Wars, Nas....).

I'm hyped to have stuff now that lets people know 100% who I am and what I'm about: hope & healing in a broken world. Learning that "heroes" aren't about being powerful, but a "hero" means sacrificing to show love to the world.

To order the HERO beanie or snapback, message me on here or go to the Merch tab at http://grandmaster.bandcamp.com.

[jasonchumusic]

😧😯😮😲😋. #meats

[jasonchumusic]

Hey, guys :)

New music video... this one's actually super personal.

So, it's Valentine's Day. And "love" is kind of a weird topic, because I've said "love" before..... but it always turned out to be a little too quick.

So in this relationship, I was super slow to say anything like that. I didn't want to rush another relationship, and hurt her.

But a week ago, to surprise Nuo, I asked her come to a warehouse in LA to "help with a music video". She didn't know that I was waiting with some gifts, finally ready to say it to her.

This video is part 2 of that surprise. My directors Benjamin and Tim took our footage from that day, and set it to a jazz-rap version of Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud" (her favorite love song) that my friends Jae, David, and Ruth helped me make.

Watch "The First 'I Love You'" on YouTube now: http://youtu.be/6S9563ZgxqA. I'd love (no pun) it if you guys would Share & Tweet it out, too!

[jasonchumusic]

all these distractions just so i don't think about you, girl... Watch the video: http://tiny.cc/HABITS music // Fiberoptics rap // @jasonchumusic singer // Sarah Jake