Mark’s biological name “Monchai” is a word of Thai origin used to define a blessing that a monk would give to a warrior to grant him invincibility in the battlefield. The artist Mark II (pronounced Mark The Second), named after his godfather, has indeed gone through countless trials & tribulations growing up as a child of Thai immigrants in Los Angeles, CA & continues to live through each & every one of them; music being one of the reasons why. Raised by a family of all trades, he was drawn towards the arts at a young age; spending his childhood listening to all types of music at the same rate as the average American kid would be playing video games.
It was not until late middle school/early high school that he started to dabble in the realm of freestyle battling, which honed his wit, rhythm, & technique. This soon evolved into songwriting, which became an obsession as he spent days & nights trying to write the most technically sound verses possible. This is evident in his lyricism to this day, heavily technique based & intricate in structure. Like-minded individuals linked up with him to form an enigmatic art collective known as Freelanced Obsessions*. Recently he has formed Channel 40, a super group of musicians in his area that he frequently collaborates with.
When he is not emceeing, Mark also takes on the role of interviewer and artist recruiter for DMV based music blog BackToPluto.com. Mark II is currently working on his debut record more than 5 years in the making with multi-genre producer Innabox, as well as an EP with up-and-coming producer Jonathan Lowell, who crafted the beat of his current single “Lightning” inspired by the lead character of Final Fantasy XIII.
Website: http://markthesecond.bandcamp.com
