Paul J. Kim.Though his name may be common, his talent begs to differ.

 Held in a modest auditorium at Cal State Long Beach, Paul J.Kim took the stage by storm last Friday night. Along with the openingperformer, Mike Isberto, Paul J. Kimentertained fans with a “musical buffet” and the release of his new music videofor his track “iLL With Love.” Rightfrom the start, we knew that we’d be in for an amazing show!

The concert opened up with musical performer and special guest Mike Isberto. A songwriter himself and a Kollaborationfinalist, Mike Isberto went acoustic with a cover of Far East Movement’s “Rocketeer.” His voice was smooth and oh-so-comforting—and, might I add, very addicting! In addition, he performed “I’ll Find a Way,” a track off of his EP entitled “I’ll Find You.”  Then it was time for Paul J. Kim to take over. 

 Paul J. Kim began his set with impressive beatboxing. He informed the audience that he first got hooked on this form of art back in high school when he saw someone else beatbox. However, beatboxing wasn’t the only thing that he had to offer.

 Not only could he spit out some amazing beats but he was also extremely hilarious. The definition of a “one-man-show,” Paul J. Kim entertained the audience with point-on impersonations and sound imitations, rapping and singing. Hand him a mic and he could make any stage lively!

 In addition to beatboxing, Paul J. Kim demonstrated a live track recording in which he weaved together beats, sounds and vocals to create a song on stage. Using this method, he performed Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back” as well as spoken word—or as he says, “reciting poetry in a dramatic way”—with the backdrop of the familiar sounds of Irish bagpipes, which were all vocally created.

 After his solo ensemble, his band joined him on stage for several songs. They performed covers of John Mayer’s “Daughters”, The David Crowder Band’s “Shine” and a remixed cover of Travie McCoy’s “Billionaire.” Afterwards, Paul J. Kim premiered his music video for “iLL With Love” for the audience. Check that out here! (hyperlinkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtZNzhM5YRk)

 Following his music video screening, Paul J. Kim invited the music video creators up on stage for a short word and closed the show with a performance of a self-written song called “Run Fly Fall” and Coldplay’s “Christmas Lights.”

 In addition to the concert, we got a short interview with the artist himself, which you can read below.

 What inspires you towrite your music?

Life inspires me. With any artist, they’re always influencedby different things and different experiences. I’ve loved music for a goodportion of my life so I like to write about experiences that are common topeople. My faith influences my music as well and I like to share it that way toa wider audience. Whatever makes life good, true and beautiful…and funny,because people need humor and inspiration.

 On stage you mentionedbeatboxing in high school. Did you see yourself having a career in music atthat time?

If you asked me several years ago if I would be performingin front of people and paying the bills [by those means], I would probably say,“No, I don’t see that happening.” But it’s just been a blessing and God’s beenopening doors for me to share music and messages with the audience.

 How would you describeyour music?

My music is a musical buffet. There are so many differentflavors and genres. In some sense, I’m still finding my niche in music becauseI love all kinds of music, whether it’s alternative, hip hop, spoken word, oracoustic. I love so many different types of music so it’s kind of hard for meto fit in one genre. I also like to be open and creative.

 What do you hope toaccomplish with your music? What kinds of messages do you want to convey toyour fans?

To be honest, I don’t want to sound like everyone else onthe radio. And in some sense, that’s never popular. I want to write and makemusic that sounds good and is catchy—something that people can sing and danceto. But I want to challenge people with values that are deeper than the norm,[messages] that aren’t given to us by the mainstream media.

 Do you have any goalsfor the future? Any New Years’ resolutions, in terms of music?

I want to grow in my craft. I want to grow in the gifts thatGod has given me and I want to use them even more effectively. So, I want tospend more time writing and making new songs. But I do have an EP out called“Run Fly Fall.”

What can your fansexpect from you in the future?

More projects, more heart, and more surprises to come!

 You can check out Paul J Kim at http://www.pjkmusic.com/ 

/article by Viviann Ur
/photographs by Chris Yu 

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