Meet Mark Ndesandjo... musician, novelist - and half-brother of U.S. President Barack Obama.

After the September 11th attacks in the U.S. when he lost his job and focus, Ndesandjo built an unlikely life for himself in the Chinese boomtown of Shenzhen.

[Mark Ndesandjo, Half-Brother of U.S. President Barack Obama]:
"Emotionally I needed to be in someplace new, someplace where I could re-evaluate myself and to start from scratch."

Besides his artistic pursuits and charity work teaching the piano to Chinese orphans, Ndesandjo runs several businesses including a BBQ restaurant, popular for its beer and hearty cuisine.

Some of his Chinese staff said it was unbelievable to have the president's brother as their boss.

"I felt great surprise and a little excited. But it's my job and I'll continue to do it as normal."

Other Shenzhen residents hoped for improved Sino-U.S. relations with an Obama sibling now living in China.

[Mr. Li, Shenzhen Resident]:
"Obama's brother coming and living in China is a pleasant surprise to us. We welcome him. I think it is very important and essential that China and the United States mutually understand each other."

Once publicity-shy, Ndesandjo broke his media silence to launch a novel, which draws on painful memories of his late Kenyan father - Barack Obama Senior - beating his mother.

[Mark Ndesandjo, Half-Brother of U.S. President Barack Obama]:
"And I remember times in my house when I would hear the screams and I would hear my mother, my mother's pain."

He spoke little of his relationship with his famous brother, who has the same father but a different mother, but said the successful presidential campaign last year had helped heal the family's wounds.

[Mark Ndesandjo, Half-Brother of U.S. President Barack Obama]:
"It was Barack who supported me and inspired me."

While Ndesandjo wouldn't talk politics, he spoke fondly of his young Chinese wife and said America could learn from China's deep-rooted family values.