“Yea You! Let’s G(r)O(w)!!”
PAK-1 is the alias/stage-name of Samuel Vaqar John – artist, rapper/MC, singer-songwriter, frontman vocalist, promoter, organizer, and other things. He is based out of Honolulu, HI.
[My Story]:
Sure enough my life began in Northern Idaho. 7 years after that, I was a boy in Pakistan Punjab. Couple years from there, a California teen. And then one college day, I was living in Hawaii, and then one day long after college had passed and I was deep in this adulting jive, Hawaii was home.
I recall my earliest musical influences as a kid – Michael Jackson, Roxette, the girlpower pop (Britney, Christina, the Spice Girls ), the boy-bands (Backstreet Boys, N’Sync), country radio, and that’s right, Metallica.
Music shaped me, so too, did life. I was traumatized – me & sis in the line-of-fire of a spiteful divorce (our parents split apart gnarly around my 10th birthday). I was an “outsider”, flayed across conflicting cultures and ardent beliefs. I was the “first-born”, a male expected to mask disappointment, to fall in line, and to lead the way – a tall order for a kid who never got the proper nurture he needed.
I felt alone for so long. Sullen, angry, and depressed too. But above all, I never really felt I belonged.
It took me a long time to realize that other people were dealing with similar demons – hidden family dynamics, heavy loaded scenes, heartaches and real pain.
Silly me, to cope, I bottled up all my rage – the dirt, the conflict, the inner anguish. I tried to distract and to numb, to get away from it all, to feel “good”. Some of it was acting-out, most of it was beating-up on myself.
Come high school, I found artists (and artists found me) like System Of A Down, 2Pac, Limp Bizkit, Eminem, Linkin Park, Papa Roach, DMX, and Disturbed (just to name a few). I related heavy with their lyrics and hella dug on their vibes. Start of Senior year though, I fell in with the “wrong” crowd (i.e. the cool crowd) and subsequently set a record for missing the historical amount of class in a single academic quarter – ditching campus up to 5 days a week to smoke meth and go from naive innocent Sam to junkie rock-bottom Sam in the span of just under 8 months. My health, life, and freedom were all either compromised or jeopardized. When finally, at the point of breaking – a Higher Power intervened.
No, not my principal, who said I’d be expelled unless I’d relocate to a secluded boarding school in Northern California. No, not my mom who said “Just trust Jesus”. No, it was a profound and life-altering, out-of-body, massive brush-with-death sequence experience that set me clear and saved my ass. The convo with the aether. The acceptance and the Let-Go. I had a simple choice, well, no choice really. I’d live.
Couple days later, withdrawal Sam arrived on his new high-school campus to whispers and fanfare, a bonafide celebrity of mystery and circumstance. What would this new chapter, this new beginning hold for our young hero? Well, as fate would have it, Paki Sam was to be accepted and embraced!Simply just for being him.
Wow. Imagine that.
It was ecstasy. It was awesome! And it was in THAT love and support, Pak was introduced to the art of freestyling. Boom! Instantly hooked right in! Dr. Dre gave us the sonics (that 2001 Chronic!), and my brother from another Sam Nam (aka the original Harold cos you gots to know me & Sam were the OG Harold & Kumar before Hollywood hyped ’em up) gave us the GO! I.e. sharpening liquid swords in the Xterra SE, oowee.
The next few years, rap & flow is all I’d do – though on the side, I’d crush college classes. This is the period I got exposed to Nas, KRS-ONE, Nine Inch Nails, OutKast, Rage Against The Machine, Sublime, Damian Marley, Fatboy Slim, Guru, A Tribe Called Quest, Green Day, Rick James – the list goes on.
My search for Heals, a place to Belong, and How I could Serve others along my Path, led me to start honing my craft, writing my raps and performing that. Recording came after. Then the house parties and the stages.
Today, I am engaged in career upgrades as well as underground music/art scenes. I am genuinely HIGH off of all the dope humans I come in contact with! I keep producing insightful and meaningful music, writing creatively while promoting the tenants of HipHop – Peace, Love, Unity and Having Fun – through my lifestyle and artistic outputs.
I feel my impact is best felt through my Energy, Message and Approach. Elsewhere, my Style evolves & involves a delivery of serpentine, percussive flow laced with attractive melodies & cinematic storytelling. My best work is rich in Vocabulary, Layer & Insight. As I continue growth, I stay Armed with a Voice, Vibe and Intention to POWER-UP listeners. I aim to be a speaker for the fun times, the hard times, and our revolutionary linings. I compose songs & lyrics that make for equal parts Let’s Break Free (!), Bob and Weave (!!) and Reflect Inwardly as we Relate Outwardly (!!!) – ultimately connecting to one Another, to a Higher Power, and to our Human BE-ing.
(*!!!IN CASE YOU MISSED IT!!!*)
Make sure to join PAK-1’s Mailing List now! You’ll get exclusive access & special hookups for his Latest Releases, Live Show/Tour dates, & more. (How much more? Sign-on and find out…)
Some PAK-1 Facts:
He’s an American-Pakistani.
He’s a holistic health healer and a RN licensed by the state of Hawaii.
He’s a Leo born 15 Aug 1985.
Places he’s lived (in chronological order): Idaho, Pakistan, California, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Honolulu (current). Spots he’s visited/traveled to/worked in: Bangkok, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Kingston/Jamaica, San Juan/Puerto Rico, Sydney+Melbourne+Adelaide+Brisbane/Australia, Mexico City+Oaxaca+Puerto Escondido+Rosarito/Mexico, Oslo+Mjondalen/Norway, New York City, island of Kauai, island of Maui, Vancouver B.C./Canada, Orlando/Florida, Harrison/Northwest Arkansas, Rio de Janeiro/Brazil, St. George/Southwest Utah, Austin/Texas, Bellevue/Washington, Phoenix+Tucson/Arizona, Boston/Massachusetts…(and he ain’t done yet!)…
He “died” on a methamphetamine overdose at 16 years old, came back to LIFE (!) and has never been the same lame since!
He’s fronted 3 bands to date, starting in 2005 – Peace of Mind Crew (2005-2009), Jive Slinky (co-fronted 2010-2013), and NASTYFLAVAS, fka Samurai Funktion (2013-present).
He sang in choir (tenor/baritone) throughout high school and college.
He’s independently released 4 singles (2022-“Playtime”; 2022-“Remember-Protect”; 2020-“Lyrical Disobedience” ft. Illnomadic; 2018-“Metamorph (Up In The Head)”), and 3 EPs (2022-“PAK-1”; 2018-“I Will Not Be Chain3d”; 2005-“Still Wunda”) as Pak, with the most recent 2022 releases as PAK-1. He released 3 full-length LPs (“Peaceofmind”, “Ques?ion”, “Rhyme4AReason”) all under the Peace of Mind Crew moniker between 2005-2010.
His favorite films include The Matrix, Transformers (1986), Terminator 2, and Forrest Gump. His favorite filmmakers include Ridley Scott, James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino, Oliver Stone, and the Wachowskis. His favorite reading includes textbooks, The Iliad, The Kama Sutra, comics & graphic novels, and spiritual/self-improvement stuff. His favorite video games include Final Fantasy 7 and Mega Man X. His favorite animes are Cowboy Bebop and Mobile Suit Gundam. For more favorites (or anything else you need the scoop on!), please reach out directly (by email or by DM)!
More than anything, PAK-1 uses his distinct voice & perspective to EMBOLDEN, UNLEASH and BOOST the Mind, Body and Spirit! Themes like Empowerment, Having Fun, Social/Environmental Justice, Relationship, Self-Awareness/Acceptance/Love, Imagination, and Spirituality prevail throughout his lyrics. Whether superfan or first-timer, people consistently cite him “Highlight!” or “Favorite!” after every performance – be it intimate lounge, busy sidewalk, or big-ass muthaf*ckin’ stage!
“Everybody I meet, I’m all about CHARGING UP! I’m driven to Create, Push Ahead, Enjoy and Take-In all Life has to Offer 🙂 I want the world to FEEL and KNOW me for the Goods I Kick and the Kicks I Give!”
(Still paying attention?!…Nice. Now follow a rabbit hole to PAK-1 & NASTYFLAVAS (f.k.a. Samurai Funktion), i.e., that live band freestyle sh*t! Go now…or later…)
(More specs ’bout PAK-1, aka Sam John…)
The son of Pakistani immigrants (mother, a flight attendant turned Registered Nurse – she practiced in a state psychiatric hospital and then a state correctional facility, and father, a PhD chemist, mathematician, researcher and finally high school science teacher), Sam was born in Moscow, Idaho and brought up chiefly in Southern California’s Inland Empire, though he also spent formative years in Pakistan’s Punjab province, Northern California’s Napa Valley area, Majuro atoll (capital of the Republic of the Marshall Islands), and Honolulu, Hawaii where he now resides.
Family and personal turbulence (parents’ bitter divorce, anger issues, substance abuse) as an upper-middle class suburban teen saw him in some serious trouble until in 2001, at age 16, he discovered rhyming and fell head-over-heels for the art of freestyle rap. Not long after, he started writing, collaborating, producing, recording and performing – sensing all this his calling. This culminated in independently releasing several underground albums (“Peaceofmind”, “Ques?ion”, “Still Wunda”, “Rhyme4AReason” – all under the moniker “Peace Of Mind Crew”) and subsequent touring between 2008-2012. In summer 2012 he joined live-band Jive Slinky (exiting the band in 2014 shortly before it dissolved) as well as forming & fronting live progressive hiphop/rap/rock/experimental freestyle outfit Samurai Funktion in 2013. Around the same time in 2012 he went back to school, and in 2018, he earned a Bachelors degree in Nursing (adding to a Bachelors in Visual Communication he’d earned in 2008). From then ’til now, he continues to hone and master his craft and practice, produce, and perform to the fullest! Since organizing and performing his first live performance in 2005 (an unforgettable college house party at his mama’s pad!), he’s rocked every space, show, and stage he’s ever booked, and it’s that undeniable mix of Skill, Energy and Presence that continues to earn him a reputation and remembrance in every scene he’s a part!
Throughout his journey, PAK-1 is bent on mastering the craft of honest & unflinching self-expression – delivering impactful, penetrating lyrics & heartfelt renderings channeled off Emotion, Experience, Education and Exchange. Not only that, he embodies a tenacious, independent DIY-spirit as an artist entrepreneur and is a perpetual source of positive vibrations – from championing sustainable mindsets, fostering community engagement, and relaying optimistic perspectives, to pushing Peace, Love, Unity and Having Fun both on and off the stage.
Find PAK-1 forging his own path – deriving strength through music and connecting with others through it all! Always cultivating on a mission to capture imagination, experience catharsis and energize any & all vibing with!
"PAK-1's Perspectve 20xx" by Sam John aka PAK-1:
Our world's in flux.
Climates change,
People party,
Everybody hustles to get by.
We’re simultaneously feeling the highest highs, and the lowest lows.
It’s getting tougher to stay up - to live Just, Free, Dignified lives - to navigate these waters.
But we Find our Way.
Loving life, pushing back against the BS, getting ahead together.
That’s the mission for PAK-1.
Generating
Respect,
Fun,
Knowledge,
Power,
Transformation.
That said, Let’s G(r)O(w)…
PAK-1 