A NYC-born son of Chinese immigrant parents (hailing from the Tai Ping peninsula region on the Southeast mainland of China), Jeff Lum has been singing and playing blues guitar and harmonica for many years. Following a long paraprofessional legal career, Jeff began teaching citizenship classes at the Emerald Isle Immigration Center. Since his youth he had been strongly drawn to and influenced by traditional American roots music (blues, folk, and country genres). He has developed his love for this music through performing works reflective of American traditions as part of his citizenship classes for immigrants preparing for their exams at EIIC. Jeff feels the musical and lyrical themes of American roots music still connect with people today across generations and culture and he enjoys using music to keep his students engaged during their studies on the path to citizenship. He also continues to perform at EIIC events, as he did prior to his engagement as an artist-in-residence at the EIIC through Creatives Rebuild New York.