The Rap Star [EN]: Chapter 229

< Verse 35. City of Angels (End) >

“Everyone’s expecting Hoodman to take off his hood at the Compton Black Block.”

Sanghyun countered Weber’s statement.

“Hoodman is that rapper who performed at TNT, right? Am I the only one who thinks the name Hoodman sounds lame?”

“‘Hood’ has a double meaning, so it’s not that weird, is it? But aren’t you worried about being completely overshadowed by Hoodman at the Compton Black Block?”

“I don’t know… I just have to work hard.”

“Come to think of it, did you ever see Hoodman when you were performing at TNT? It was around the same time.”

“No. And I got cut from TNT pretty quickly.”

“Oh, right.”

“I am curious to see how good he is, though.”

Sanghyun was dropped from the TNT lineup after a few performances. There were various reasons, but the bottom line was that the DJ didn’t want Sanghyun’s rap to be featured at TNT.

“They say he’s incredibly good. No, beyond just being good, they say there’s something indescribable about him? But I think Hoodman’s manager is deliberately hiding his face and spreading rumors. It’s a kind of marketing.”

“Why?”

“It’s only been about a month and a half, but it feels too flashy. Well, it’s common in LA for neighborhood friends who were just hanging out on the streets to suddenly gain popularity, but this feels a bit excessive, wouldn’t you say?”

“Hmm, have you ever seen Hoodman perform?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“Then we’ll find out at the Compton Black Block. Whether his skills are real or just the power of marketing.”

Weber shrugged at Sanghyun’s fundamental remark.

“It’s probably the power of marketing. That’s why I’m telling you to join the Vevo label. If you join, my family will promote your music. They’ll cheer during your performances. So you can do better than Hoodman at the Compton Black Block!”

“Fuck. What kind of label doesn’t have musicians, DJs, managers, or performance connections?”

“If you join, Standard will be our DJ, and I can be your manager!”

“Ugh, you Justin Bieber wannabe. I’m leaving.”

“Justin…? What’s that?”

Sanghyun, who had been drinking beer with Vevo after closing time, left the store.

As he stepped out onto the street, he felt a sharp chill. He’d heard that November in LA was similar to October in Seoul, but it felt much colder.

“Ugh, it’s cold.”

Sanghyun started walking home.

It was more than a 30-minute walk, so he usually drove, but he had left his car because Weber had suggested they drink.

Sanghyun listened to music on his portable CD player as he walked through the LA night streets. Maybe it was because he was drunk, but the music, which he was playing louder than usual, felt pleasantly pounding in his ears.

‘Well, listening to music always makes me feel good.’

That’s when it happened. Two black men suddenly appeared in front of Sanghyun, blocking his path.

Sanghyun tensed up instantly.

These days, the 治安 (Chi An) [public safety/security] has improved a lot, so it wasn’t particularly dangerous except in the black hoods (residential areas) of Compton. Of course, there was still a risk of robbery or pickpocketing, but that was the case even in Seoul.

However, it was hard not to be nervous when two burly black men appeared like this after midnight.

“What’s going on?” Sanghyun asked, taking off his earphones. He hadn’t realized how loudly he was listening to music; the thumping drum sounds were audible outside the earphones.

Then, the black man wearing a black New Era cap, who had blocked his way, spoke.

“Are you… SB?”

“SB?”

Sanghyun made a puzzled expression at the incomprehensible question, and the black man behind him chimed in.

“Aren’t you SB?”

“What’s SB?”

“We don’t know either.”

“What are you talking about?”

He couldn’t understand their words, but fortunately, they didn’t seem to be acting threatening.

“Mel, how the hell are we supposed to explain this?”

The man called Mel, wearing the black New Era cap, thought for a moment and then asked Sanghyun.

“Hey. What comes to mind when you hear SB? What do you think it’s an abbreviation for?”

“SB?”

“Yeah, SB.”

“…Shibal?” [Korean profanity, similar to ‘fuck’]

“…?”

Westrun, Mel, and Sanghyun.

It seemed that these three musicians needed to have a longer conversation.

***

The Compton City Shopping Center has a swap meet street, which can be thought of as a Korean ‘general shopping mall’.

In this swap meet, there is a small record store, which is the famous Cycadelic Record.

Cycadelic Record was still one of the best-selling stores in the Compton City Shopping Center, even though the arrival of Walmart and Target nearby had threatened its survival.

The reason was that the seemingly shabby record store had more than just the meaning of a simple record store.

The Cycadelic Record store was called the ‘mecca of gangster rap’ among local black communities and hip-hop fans in LA. Because musicians from Compton, who are now superstars, would bring their first demo albums here first.

From N.W.A’s Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube to Schoolboy Q and Kendrick Lamar, who aren’t superstars yet.

The owner of Cycadelic Record was a supporter who sold their first creations, which no one recognized, and helped them grow into world-class musicians.

“What? Really!?”

“Why would I lie?”

Westrun shrugged, but Sanghyun’s surprise didn’t fade.

Sanghyun had heard about Cycadelic Record a few times.

The mecca of gangster rap.

The place where N.W.A was born.

The place where there is a label targeting the LA scene.

He also knew that the owner was called ‘Uncle Kim’ or ‘Papa’.

However, he had never imagined that ‘Uncle Kim’ would be Korean. Names like Kimberly were often shortened to Kim, and there were often Americans with the last name Kim.

What surprised Sanghyun the most when he arrived at Cycadelic Records’ studio, following Westrun and Mel, was not that they had listened to ‘LA inst 56′, but that the owner of Cycadelic Records was a Korean man named Kim Wan-joon.

“How can I meet Kim Wan-joon?”

“How can you meet him? Just go to the store tomorrow when it’s bright. If he’s not there, talk to Kirk Kim.”

“Kirk Kim?”

Then Mel took out a CD and placed it in front of Sanghyun.

“Kirk Kim is Papa’s son. Let’s talk about that later. You’re the one who made this CD, right?”

“Yes.”

“sb isn’t an alphabet but your stage name is 56?”

“Yeah.”

“Damn. Did you write this with a pen stuck in your ass? What kind of handwriting is this?”

Mel shook his head and grumbled.

Mel and Westrun already knew Sanghyun. They hadn’t met him in person, but they knew that there was an Asian guy who was friends with Standard in the LA underground.

And they also knew that the Asian guy’s stage name was a number. They didn’t know exactly that it was ’56’, though.

“So this was fifty-six…”

The time and effort that Mel and Westrun had put into tracking down the owner of the beat tape was enormous, but it was a truly anticlimactic conclusion.

In fact, Sanghyun’s beat tape was placed in the Pasadena record store due to a mistake by Vevo, who runs two record stores.

“But why did you look for me?” At Sanghyun’s question, Westrun countered with a question instead of answering.

“Oh, before that, let me ask you one more thing. I heard you’re a rapper? Is being a DJ your main job?”

“No. I’m a rapper. Producing is just something I do on the side. Like Kanye West or Dr. Dre.”

Westrun made an ambiguous expression at Sanghyun’s firm words.

He had never heard Sanghyun’s rap, but he had never heard a positive review of it.

‘That Asian guy? Whether he’s good or not, it’s all fake. How can an Asian guy do hip-hop?’

‘What about Dumbfoundead? Aren’t you friends with him?’

‘Dumb is a refugee and has lived in LA since he was 3 years old. He can perfectly understand the hip-hop culture of complaining about poverty and discrimination. But that Asian guy isn’t, is he?’

Westrun recalled his conversation with his friend and examined Sanghyun. He had a feeling that this Asian guy in front of him was the type who wasted his producing talent and spent his time rapping.

“Can I call you Five? Hey, Five. Can I listen to your rap?”

“No, let’s get some answers first. I can’t stand it when I ask a question and you answer with a question.”

“Oh, right. Ask away.”

“I followed you here because I wanted to come to Cycadelic Record, but why did you call me? Do you want to buy the beats from the beat tape? Sorry, but I’m not selling them.”

Westrun shook his head at Sanghyun’s words.

“Five. We don’t want to buy this beat tape, we want to work with you. Do you know how surprised we were when we heard this? The beat you made is crazy! You know what I’m saying?”

Westrun, recalling when he first heard the beat, suddenly got excited and shouted ‘u know what i’m saying?’ several times.

However, Sanghyun thought for a moment and then shook his head.

“Sorry, but I’ll have to decline unless you’re interested in me as a rapper.”

“What? Why!”

“I learned producing only to support me and my friends as rappers.”

Westrun made a dumbfounded expression at Sanghyun’s words.

Supporting is only helping someone who is good at something. And no matter how he thought about it, Five didn’t seem like he would be better at rapping than producing.

If he really had such rap skills, there would be no reason for him to be rolling around in the underground.

‘I guess I have no choice but to become friends with him first. Or, if I listen to his rap and it’s good, I can give him some directing and maybe do a collaboration on a song or two.’

Westrun thought so and pointed to the CD player that Sanghyun was listening to.

“Okay. Let’s listen to your rap and talk. Is that a demo tape?”

“Oh, there are too many Korean raps here. Does that computer have internet access?”

Sanghyun turned on the computer and downloaded 10 songs from his email.

“Did you make all the beats?”

“Standard made two, and a producer in Korea made three. I made the other five. But where’s the bathroom here?”

Mel, who had been standing still, pointed to the floor below.

The studio they were in was located on the second floor of the Cycadelic Record store. The first floor was the record store.

“Then can I look around the first floor?”

“It’s not my store, but it doesn’t matter. Look around.”

Sanghyun nodded at Mel’s words and went down to the first floor. He had drunk so much beer that he had to pee badly.

Also, it was embarrassing to wait quietly next to someone listening to his song.

“Oh, Dr. Dre.”

Sanghyun, who had gone to the bathroom, turned on the lights and looked around the store.

The store wasn’t that big, but it was well-organized. In addition to albums, they also sold Cycadelic goods such as T-shirts, New Eras [brand of baseball caps], and hoodies.

However, what immediately caught Sanghyun’s attention was something else. It was the photos that filled one wall of the store.

Photos of the owner of Cycadelic Record, Kim Wan-joon, a good-natured man presumed to be, with superstars such as Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, and Ice Cube. There were so many photos, and Sanghyun couldn’t recognize all of these rappers. Even Dr. Dre was too young in the photos compared to his image in his mind, so he didn’t recognize him right away.

‘Why didn’t I know about this person when he’s here? Is it not known at all in Korea?’

However, Sanghyun didn’t know that quite a few people in Korea knew about it.

In 2012, the LA Times published a fairly large article titled ‘Kim Wan-joon of Cycadelic Records Helps the Birth of Gangster Rap’, which made it known in Korea as well.

Sanghyun didn’t know everything about hip-hop. However, there was one thing he knew for sure.

That was that ‘My rap will definitely work in America.’ To be exact, it wasn’t in the realm of fact, but a firm confidence and sincere belief.

Sanghyun didn’t follow Westrun and Mel for no reason. It was a coincidence that they came across LA inst 56, but he wanted to turn this coincidence into an opportunity.

‘If they listen to all 10 songs, they’ll definitely react positively.’

However, Sanghyun’s thoughts were wrong. Because…

“You crazy bastard!”

After only two songs, Westrun and Mel’s screams erupted.

“If you haven’t died while peeing, come up here quickly!”

Sanghyun was briefly taken aback by the much more intense and rough reaction than he had expected, but soon smiled and went up to the second floor.

Westrun rushed at Sanghyun.

“What are you? Why are you rapping in the LA underground scene? No, before that, why haven’t you made it big? Even if you’re Asian, there’s no way you wouldn’t have made it?”

Westrun then realized that among the evaluations his friends had given Five, there was never a word that he ‘couldn’t do it’. They all said it with modifiers such as ‘apart from his skills’ and ‘it’s not a problem with his rap’.

Westrun was someone who believed that, apart from prejudice and discrimination, skill would eventually prevail.

That’s why Eminem, who is white, commanded the rap scene, Michael Jackson planted his flag in the white music industry, and Run-DMC was able to bring rap music to the surface.

So it was really strange that Five hadn’t made it big.

Then Sanghyun opened his mouth.

“I haven’t been in the City of Angels for long.”

“Who uses such childish words as the City of Angels these days?”

“I don’t know. So do I have to go home now? Because I rejected the producer offer? Or can we rap together?”

At Sanghyun’s question, Westrun and Mel could tell that this guy had been aiming for this from the beginning. Rejecting the producer offer and letting them listen to his rap.

“You said that your producing is to help you and your friends as rappers, right?”

“That’s right.”

“I think the first thing we need to do is become friends?”

Mel grinned at Westrun’s words.

“There’s a fastest way to become friends.”

Mel, who said that, rummaged through the pockets of the clothes hanging on the wall and brought something out. What Mel brought was marijuana.

For a while, Westrun and Mel bickered, taking Sanghyun’s words that he would never do marijuana as meaning that he ‘didn’t want to be friends’.

LA. Los Angeles.

A city with the meaning of ‘angels’ in Spanish.

Sanghyun’s flapping of wings began in earnest in the City of Angels, one day two weeks before the Compton Black Block.

< Verse 35. City of Angels (End) >

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