“Yea You! Let’s G(r)O(w)!!”
PAK-1 is the alias/stage-name of Samuel Vaqar John – recording/performing/hiphop artist, singer-songwriter, frontman, promoter, organizer, and more! His deepest roots are in California and Honolulu, Hawaii. Currently he is operating out of the New England area (primarily straddling the borders of Vermont, New York and Massachusetts).
[My Story]:
My Earth life began in a small town called Moscow (not Russia yo – Northern Idaho, whoa! Land of the potatoes! And yes, you are correct, I most definitely still love ’em, haha!) Then, 7 years later, I became a school-age boy ridin’ ’round the Punjab of Pakistan (i.e. from where my lineage hails!) Fast-forward to age 10, and behold, I’m well on my way to becoming a California teen (and like, hella absorbin’ n’ representin’ the scene!) Come age 21, I made the jump to island-livin’ in Hawaii (booyakasha brah!), and before I knew it, 20 years had passed and I had grown into a full-fledged aloha ambassador (kama’aina stylee my G!). As it were, Home, I’m happy to say, was always wherever the Love was.
I recall my earliest musical fascinations as a young human – Michael Jackson, Roxette, the 2000s era pop icons/boy/girl bands (Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Spice Girls, Backstreet Boys etc.), country radio, and oh yea, Metallica.
But it wasn’t just because I liked their music, nope, I clung to music out of necessity – for escape, and for hope.
See I was traumatized young. For starters, me & my sister became the unwitting victims of our parents bitter and nasty divorce (theirs was an arranged marriage) around my 10th birthday. Adding on to that, I found myself a first-generation American-Pakistani, effectively making me an “outsider”, flayed across conflicting cultural norms and stringent rules and beliefs often more clashing than they were meshing. And if that wasn’t enough, turns out I was also the “first-born” in our family, a role that demanded specific etiquette and behaviors (e.g. “fall in line”, “lead the way”), and a male, which came with its own set of warped expectations and gender “appropriateness” (e.g. hide/repress those “sensitive” feelings). Put it all together and it was a near-devastating order for a kid growing up who was not getting enough of the proper nurture a kid needs…
Because of those conditions and my situation, I unfortunately felt alone for a very long time. Angry, anxious, and depressed too. Above all though, I never really felt like I belonged, and that was probably one of the sh*ttiest feelings for sure.
It took me a long time to realize and see that other people were living with similar traumas – emotional neglect and abuse, twisted family dynamics, heartache, pain, and suffering.
As a young person, all I could do to cope was to bottle up all of my anger and rage – the conflict, the guilt, the shame and inner anguish. I aimed 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 myself up.
Come high school, I found artists (or more likely, 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 resonated deeply with their lyrics, attitudes and vibes. However, as I started my senior year of high school, I fell in with the “wrong” crowd and ended up breaking a record for Most Absences in a Single Academic Quarter (not a record I’m proud of) – it was just me ditching class every chance I got in order to hangout with the “older cool heads” who’d smoke meth and then tweak and then just do whatever was called for to pursue the acquisition and smoking of even more meth. I went from “naive-innocent-Sam” to “junkie-rock-bottom-Sam” in the span of just under 9 months. Scary stuff – my health, life, and freedom were all on the line – and I was on the verge of losing all of them. But miracles are real yo, and thankfully for me, so is a Higher Power.
My intervention was Divine.
It was more than my high school principal who said I’d be expelled unless I transferred to a boarding school out in the boonies of Northern California. It was more than my uber-religious Christian mom who kept saying “Just trust Jesus”. No, it was a profound and life-altering, out-of-body, MASSIVE brush-with-death experience/ultra-vivid sequence that set me clear and saved my ass. It was the convo with the ethereal. The Acceptance, and the Let-Go. It was a heartfelt prayer, plea, and promise with the Universe – Live to Serve, Serve to Live.
A couple days after this mystical awakening, a “quit-cold-turkey-and-in-withdrawal-Sam” arrived at his new high-school campus amidst rumors and fanfare – “Just who is this new kid and what’s he about??”. Funny, I was a bonafide “special feature celebrity” shrouded in mystery and strange circumstance. But what exactly would this new chapter – this new beginning – have in store for me, i.e. the now budding young hero? Well, as the Higher-Ups would have it, “Paki-Sam” was to be accepted AND embraced! Simply just for being himself.
Wow. Imagine that.
It was ecstasy. It was AWESOME! And it was in THAT spirit of Love and Support, that Sam the PAKman was introduced to the art of freestyling.
Now when it comes to freestyle and flow, lord have mercy, I was hooked instantly! Dr. Dre gave me and my crew the sonics (that “2001 Chronic”!), and my brother from another Sam Nam (a.k.a the alternate Harold cos you best believe me & Sam were the OTHER Harold & Kumar prior to their Hollywood ascension!) gave us the GREEN LIGHT as we sharpened liquid swords in the Xterra SE, oowee!
For the next few years, rap & flow is all I’d do, while on the side, crushing college classes. This is the period where 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 – and the list goes on.
My search for Heals, a place to Belong, and the Best Ways I could Serve Others along my Path, led me to start honing my craft, writing my raps and kicking all of that for friends, classmates and various bystanders around. Recording came soon after. Then performing and crushing it for the house parties, the venues, and the crowds.
Today, I am engaged in career upgrades as well as actively participating in and cultivating underground music/art scenes. I am genuinely joyed by all the dope humans I meet and come in contact with! I keep producing insightful and meaningful music, writing creatively, while promoting & role-modeling the fundamental tenants of HipHop – Peace, Love, Unity and Safely 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 my 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 in the state of Hawaii, Massachusetts, Vermont, and New York.
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, North Bennington/Vermont…(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 riding this ride?!…Nice. Y’all can follow a rabbit hole to PAK-1 & NASTYFLAVAS (f.k.a. Samurai Funktion), i.e., that live band freestyle sh*t you bound to dig! 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), Honolulu, Hawaii, and most recently, New England, where he currently 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 Perspective 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)…
