Interview with Jihyuckmun(@jihyuckmun)
Thank you so much for joining us! What brought you to this specific career path?
I am 22 year old guy who is dealing with stage 4 liver cancer. It didnt start off this way, Iwas a young, ambitious kid from seoul, south korea who always envisioned to inspire others and influence bigger aspects of the culture. growing up overseas far from home in the bay area (norcal) has played a big role when it came to who i was becoming and what i wanted to do with my life. I’ve always wanted to take my talents and character to be bigger than who “I” wanted to be but to represent the korean people and their culture in the ways that are not misinterpreted or misunderstood.
when i moved out of cali to seattle for furthering my education, i decided to travel the world and learn, just learn about the different cultures and people from all around the globe. and i picked modeling as the tool to open up the doors. Modeling brought me to new york, london, LA, then back to korea. Since then I’ve met numerous individuals that has inspired me in ways that no books or lectures can.
Being brought up from california encrypted the hip hop music scene deep into my dna. I’ve always wrote lyrics for my own entertainment. After a while in korea I found out I had cancer and it motivated me that i have no time to waste. So, im working my way towards becoming an artist.
Can you share the most interest in what exciting happened to you since you started doing this?
I’ve had a chance to work with many charity organizations regarding cancer research and etc. Its truly been an honor to be able to help the people and families that's going through what I'm going through and to be able to support and connect.
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them thrive and not “burn out”?
As humans we always face adversity and challenges and its inevitable, and in order not to be discouraged and burnt out we need to learn how to embrace those moments. It doesn’t have to be pretty all the time it’ll get ugly. embrace the beauty behind madness.
We can only succeed with some help along the way. Is there a particular person you are grateful to who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
A dearest friend of mine that ive made along the way in Korea. She has truly been my pillar and an inspiration for me to become who i am now and to strive to be the best possible version of myself. Without her, I wouldn’t have dare to have made it this far.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?
I’ve not only donated via charities but worked with a handful of them to share what i have and contribute to the cause. We need as much help as we possibly can in all the ways possible
Do you have a favourite “written Quote”? Can you share a story of how that was relevant to your life?
All time inspiration and the preacher, MLK jr.
“If you cant fly then run. if you cant run then walk. If u cant walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” this quote is actually the very first tattoo that ive got. I’ve faced many obstacles in life but no matter how hard and unforgiving they were i learned that i have to move forward regardless of what it takes. Because if you’re not moving forward, then you’re only going backwards.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
Primarily my instagram, @jihyuckmun
Anything specific you’d like to have mentioned in the article?
I would like to emphasize the fact that I'm a 22 year old Korean guy with a stage 4 liver cancer who used to work as a model/basketball player but now is taking a career step towards the music industry.