Chow Mane
Chow Mane is here to put on for the Bay Area, along with his Asian roots. Being a first generation Asian American, Chow Mane, real name Charles Yan is a rapper and producer hailing from San Jose, California, who received his undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley Class of 2016.
With his breakout single “Chinatown” in 2017, he makes it a point to mix satire and comedy with hip-hop, poking fun at himself but also declaring his worth.
His bold lyrics exude confidence and steez, mixing in his own Chinese language as adlibs as he sees fit. Starting out producing, it was in high school when he began rapping and experimenting with various sounds. He states, “I’m Chinese/Viet. I try to incorporate that culture into my music, to get that across to both people within the community and people who aren’t familiar.”