For members of the Korean rap group Klass, expressing themselves through their music is empowering them to learn new skills and inspiring them to pursue their passions.

When the group’s founder James An, was 10, his family moved from Gwangmyeong-Si, South Korea, to Vancouver, British Columbia, and as he was adapting to life in Canada he would emulate rap performers such as Eminem.

“That played a big part in my gaining confidence and having self empowerment especially when the environment completely changed,” says An, who graduated this month with a double major in management and religious studies. “My English wasn’t very good, but rapping was something I enjoyed.”

Rapping is a way for An to express himself in ways that he may not always feel comfortable enough to share in conversations with his friends or family. 

Now, he’s writing his own songs, sharing stories about his life family and school life and dreams about his future. At first, An was uneasy about sharing his innermost thoughts.  His confidence strengthened as he continued writing more lyrics.

“I thought to myself, ‘I have a story to tell that people would be interested to hear,’” he says.

In the fall of 2014, he started Klass, a campus rap group that performs mostly in Korean but also in English.

The group has grown to nine members, who write and perform their own songs covering topics such as relationships with family and friends and life on campus.

“Hip hop music is originally from the neighborhood that concentrates on very vulgar images because the genre itself derives from it,” says Jade Lee, a junior from Fullerton, Calif.  

But Lee says another type of rap music that the group performs is more mild, focusing on the song’s melody and message.

“Like a love song with a hip hop infusion,” says Lee. “We try to touch on both types. Some are bragging stories, then some love stories, and stories that carry more important messages about society.”

The group held its first concert at Platt Performing Arts House in the spring with all of the members rapping. It’s a chance for the performers to present a persona that’s more ostentatious than even their closest friends had seen.  

“Once we get on stage, we put our swag on and start spitting out the words,” says Lee.

As one of the three women in the group, Lee, a Wharton actuarial science and finance major, hopes to inspire more women to rap.

“Walking into the group, I was a little intimidated because women are the minority,” says Lee. “But the group is more focused on ethnicity and Korean culture, so I don’t feel a gender divide.” 

Music is an outlet for the members to express themselves in ways they may not have felt free to do.

In his song “Like Nobody Knows” An’s lyrics tell of his longing to tell his story: “A dream I chased that nobody knew. Heavy breathing even when I lie down. A door that opened all of a sudden my heart dances toward that door. The cocoon I must leave to become a butterfly to fly even momentarily and meet the flower.” 

An plans to pursue a career as a rap artist using music as a vehicle for bringing social change in South Korea.