Mike Park is a

Korean American Korean Americans are Americans of Korean ancestry (mostly from South Korea). In 2015, the Korean-American community constituted about 0.56% of the United States population, or about 1.82 million people, and was the fifth-largest Asian American ...

musician and progressive activist. His musical ventures include

Skankin' Pickle Skankin' Pickle was an American ska punk band formed in San Jose, California that was active from 1989 to 1997. Biography Skankin' Pickle first formed in December 1988, made up of students from Westmont High School and Los Gatos High School. T ...

for whom he both played the saxophone and sang,

The Chinkees The Chinkees are an American ska punk band fronted by Mike Park (formerly of Skankin' Pickle). The group debuted with 1998's ''The Chinkees Are Coming!'', and followed with 1999's ''Peace Through Music'' and 2002's ''Searching for a Brighter Fut ...

The Bruce Lee Band The Bruce Lee Band (or B. Lee Band) is the name given to the releases of Mike Park and his backing band which up until 2005 included members of Less Than Jake and the Rx Bandits. As of 2014, the collective consisted of touring and recording mem ...

, and Ogikubo Station, as well as an acoustic solo project under his own name. After his time with

he went on to found Asian Man Records, a label which he has run out of his garage in California since 1996 with only help from his parents and friends. Asian Man Records supports mostly

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

and

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

bands. Park will support any band as long as it is "anti-racist, anti-sexist, and anti-prejudice". Park has used Asian Man Records to release his own music, in addition to providing a start for smaller bands to allow them to grow, including Less Than Jake,

Alkaline Trio Alkaline Trio is an American punk rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Matt Skiba (vocals, guitar), Dan Andriano (vocals, bass) and Derek Grant (drums, vocals). Founded in late 1996 by Skiba, bassist Rob Do ...

, and The Lawrence Arms. In 1999 he formed the

Plea for Peace Foundation Mike Park is a Korean American musician and progressive activist. His musical ventures include Skankin' Pickle for whom he both played the saxophone and sang, The Chinkees, The Bruce Lee Band, and Ogikubo Station, as well as an acoustic solo pr ...

an organization whose aim is "to promote the ideas of peace through the power of music", something which Park has been trying to do with his own bands and with the help of other groups. Park was the impetus behind the Spring 1998 "Ska Against Racism" tour. The goal of the tour was to promote awareness about racism and raise money for

anti-racism Anti-racism encompasses a range of ideas and political actions which are meant to counter racial prejudice, systemic racism, and the oppression of specific racial groups. Anti-racism is usually structured around conscious efforts and deliberate ...

organisations such as the Museum of Tolerance. The national tour included

The Toasters The Toasters are one of the original American second wave of ska bands. Founded in New York City in 1981, the band has released nine studio albums, primarily through Moon Ska Records. History Englishman Robert "Bucket" Hingley relocated to New ...

, Less Than Jake, the Blue Meanies,

Mustard Plug Mustard Plug is an American ska punk band from Grand Rapids, Michigan, consisting of Dave Kirchgessner (vocals), Brandon Jenison (trumpet), Jim Hofer (trombone), Nate Cohn (drums), Colin Clive (guitar/vocals), Mark Petz (tenor saxophone) and Gr ...

, Five Iron Frenzy,

MU330 MU330 are an American ska punk band from St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Formed by students of St. Louis University High School in 1988, MU330 played a self-described brand of music called "Psycho Ska", high energy ska punk marked by manic ...

Kemuri Kemuri (Japanese for ''smoke'') is a Japanese-American ska punk band formed in Oxnard, California in 1995. They have an upbeat sound with positive lyrics which they refer to as PMA (positive mental attitude). While the majority of their songs a ...

, and Mike Park himself.

Plea for Peace Foundation

The Plea for Peace Foundation was founded in 1999 by musician and founder of Asian Man Records, Mike Park. The Plea for Peace Foundations is a 501C3 Non-Profit Organization based in San Jose,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The organisation's stated goal is to "promote the ideas of peace through the power of music". Initially the foundation was only active in national and global music tours, but in 2007 it intends to open a youth center for children where they will be encouraged to "perform music, create art, dance and talk to others of similar interests". In 2004, Plea for Peace organized a musical tour of the same name. The tour was a stand against President George W. Bush and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Personal life

Park grew up in

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo Coun ...

in Northern California, where he still lives. He majored in music in college. He is a Minister of the

Universal Life Church The Universal Life Church (ULC) is a non-denominational religious organization founded in 1962 by Kirby J. Hensley,James R. Lewis, The Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religions' (2001), p. 769-70.U.S. Department of the Army, ''Religious R ...

Discography

Solo

*''Michael Park'' (Asian Man, 2001) *''For the Love of Music'' (Sub City, 2003) *'' North Hangook Falling'' (Sub City, 2005) *Mike Park 7 Inch and Art Print (Simple Stereo, 2008) *''Beans & Toast'' (2008) *Mike Park/O Pioneers!!! split 7″ (Suburban Home, 2009) *''

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses ...

'' (Asian Man, 2011)

With 'Skankin' Pickle'

With 'The Chinkees'

*''The Chinkees Are Coming'' CD *''Karaoke with the Chinkees'' 7" *''Peace Through Music'' CD *'' Present Day Memories'' Split CD with Lawrence Arms (out of print) *''Searching for a Brighter Future'' CD

With 'The Bruce Lee Band'

With 'Ogikubo Station'

* ''Ogikubo Station S/P'' (Asian Man, 2017)

References

External links

*
Asian Man RecordsPlea For Peace Official SiteInterview by Sound Scene Revolution (Podcast)Interview
by Tom Bastian of decapolis.com (2000)
Interview
by Josh Snider and Jonny Havoc on BigSmileMagazine.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Park, Mike Living people American male singers American punk rock singers American musicians of Korean descent Asian Man Records Sub City Records artists 1969 births