The Rap Star [EN]: Chapter 199

The 888 Crew’s performance consisted of three songs in a row without any pre-recorded segments, leaving no room for rest.

Of course, a live music show didn’t mean it was broadcast live the moment it was filmed. There was a gap of about 3 to 5 minutes between filming and broadcasting because pre-recorded segments were inserted in between.

This gap could be less than a minute at times, depending on the amount of pre-recorded footage, and up to 5 minutes at other times.

And at the moment the 888 Crew was performing, there was a gap of about 3 minutes.

As soon as “Hitchhiking” ended, Sanghyun and Junhyung moved backstage to take off the black ‘062 X 888’ T-shirts they had been wearing. Meanwhile, the Jimmy Jib camera [a camera mounted on a long, remote-controlled arm] briefly turned to the audience.

-Wowww!

-Kyaaaaa!

The audience screamed as the Jimmy Jib turned its long neck to scan them. But their voices weren’t as sharp and loud as they were at the beginning.

Were they tired? Did the 888 Crew’s performance lose its excitement?

That couldn’t be. There was no way the 888 Crew, who had been running the 888 Show with tremendous high tension for over 3 hours, would let their tension drop in less than 10 minutes of running time.

The reason the audience’s voices had decreased was because their throats were sore.

Because they had screamed so excitedly.

Because they had sung along so energetically.

“What are we going to do?”

“Man, this is no joke. Should we rap too?”

“There are four trainee teams in our company alone benchmarking [studying and imitating] the 888 Crew, you idiot. If you don’t want to join them and compete, you better do what you’re good at.”

The four-member popular male idol group ‘Beckers,’ who were next in line to take the stage after the 888 Crew, sighed deeply.

The reason they sighed was because of the audience’s over-the-top reaction.

They could already picture the audience being drained and slumped over the moment the 888 Crew’s performance ended. It seemed likely that there would be no response except from their passionate fandom when they performed.

‘This is my first time seeing the 888 Crew perform, and it’s really no joke… Huh? Performance?’

Beckers’ leader, Suho, realized that he thought of the 888 Crew’s hot debut stage as a ‘performance’ and was lost in thought. He felt like he had glimpsed some kind of secret.

For singers, a music show ‘stage’ felt completely different from a ‘performance.’

If a performance was a place to show their music, a music show stage felt like mechanically performing a well-choreographed routine.

This was inevitable.

Performances such as concerts were for fans who had already decided to support them. So they could make mistakes, and they could get hyped up depending on their mood.

However, a music show stage was a stage to entice an unspecified number of viewers watching through the TV screen.

To minimize shortcomings, the angle of their arms, their gaze, and even the direction their toes were pointing were all predetermined. Singers had no choice but to pursue a perfect and flawless image within a set framework.

But the 888 Crew was different.

Their actions during the dry rehearsal, dress rehearsal, camera rehearsal, and the actual stage were all different.

They turned their gaze and raised their hands to shout a little louder. As they received a response they couldn’t get during rehearsal, their gestures became even more intense.

Only the starting position of the song was determined, and nothing in between was set. What moved them was not a set framework, but the reactions and breathing of the audience.

‘So that’s why it feels like a performance.’

That’s why the audience was showing such an unbelievable reaction.

They were mechanical, and the 888 Crew was human.

It was the same reason why you could cry watching a great actor’s performance, but you couldn’t cry watching a very well-made CG [computer-generated imagery].

Beckers’ leader Suho glimpsed the 888 Crew’s secret and was amazed at the same time.

‘What kind of confidence do you need to be able to stand on stage without any preparation?’

What if he had to go on stage without the choreography he was given?

The thought alone made him feel dizzy. He could sing the song somehow, but he couldn’t just stand still and sing, could he?

But when he thought about it, the 888 Crew’s gestures and movements seemed very static. They didn’t move much, and there was no dancing to be seen.

Nevertheless, there was no feeling of a lack of movement or that the stage was empty.

The stage felt full with six people.

Excluding Woominho in the DJ booth, there were only five people without a single backup dancer.

Suho felt puzzled by this fact and turned his gaze to the stage. Now, he completely forgot about his worries about the next stage, the state of his choreography, and the movements he had to remember, and focused on the 888 Crew’s last song, “Just For The Record.”

In this way, another 888 kid who followed the 888 Crew’s vibe, although the music genres were different, was being born in an unexpected place.

***

Shin Junhyung, Lee Sanghyun, Shin Hayeon, Oh Minji, Kim Hwan, Woo Minho, and Lee Sangmi.

The expressions of the 888 Crew members, who had changed clothes for the last song and were waiting for the beat, were so bright.

The worries about their first broadcast stage had disappeared as if they had been washed away, and the cheers of the audience, which hurt their ears, were sweet.

‘It’s fun.’

Sanghyun smiled, revealing his teeth.

It was so much fun that he couldn’t help but smile. And he was also happy that there was a song left to express this joy.

“National Team” was a song that expressed their pride in their rap, and “Hitchhiking” was a song that contained gratitude for the things that had carried them so far.

And the third song.

The third and final song to decorate the finale of the Popular Music stage, track 10, “Just For The Record,” contained the feeling of joy.

Joy for this moment.

It was fun to conceive the JFTR album, write the lyrics, have fierce discussions, and record. There were difficult moments, but those moments were also the foundation for the pleasure of creation.

“Just For The Record” was a song that expressed this joy with purity instead of complex rhetoric or metaphors.

‘Let’s show everyone watching this stage how much fun we’re having.’

From the group of middle school girls he met at Sejong Instrument Store to the countless helpers he had met so far. Countless audiences. Countless musicians. Finally, to Sanghyun’s parents in heaven and Hayeon’s parents.

‘Let’s show them.’

Perhaps sensing Sanghyun’s determination, or perhaps it was just time. As soon as Sanghyun’s determination was over, the beat that filled the set began to flow.

Those watching on TV would probably see the screen turn to the audience after “Hitchhiking” ended, and then quickly return to the stage. The 888 Crew members, who had been wearing black clothes, would have changed into all white clothes.

In this way, there was a difference between the actual stage and the stage that spread through the TV screen.

But what didn’t change was their music.

The cheerful drum snare that filled the space began to engrave the position of the measures [musical units]. The 888 Crew members naturally caught the beat, accepting the position with their whole bodies.

The space between the snare and the snare was their playground and arena, their workplace for life, and a comfortable haven where they could rest.

Soon, when the intro ended and the full verse began, it would become a canvas to draw their inspiration and a manuscript to write their story.

As the beat gradually rose and the audience’s expectant gaze focused on the stage, Minji, who was standing to Sanghyun’s right, came forward and grabbed the microphone.

The 888 Crew members’ eyes were on her because Minji rarely made comments first. And the moment they heard Minji’s words, the crew members burst into laughter at the same time.

Because words they had never imagined came out.

“What are you doing? Park Inhyuk.”

That’s right. There was one more person who should be watching their joy right now.

Park Inhyuk.

As soon as Minji’s words were finished, the crew members poured out words as if they had forgotten about it until now.

“Inhyuk hyung [older brother/male friend], is the law book interesting?”

“Is studying fun? We’re having more fun right now.”

“Are you jealous?”

Of course, the crew members’ words were not ridicule towards Inhyuk. It was a message of support to return to his place as soon as possible, and their way of expressing longing.

This appearance of the 888 Crew was like making a speech on the encore stage after confirming first place at the end of a music show.

The expressions of the singers who were watching the stage through the monitor in the waiting room or came out to see the stage with their own eyes changed as if they were dumbfounded.

They couldn’t imagine what they were thinking to be able to say such things on a music show stage.

They don’t care about the constraints of the system.

Beings outside the system.

The verse of Lee Sanghyun, the rapper representing this 888 Crew, opened the door to the final stage.

The beginning that was announced at Sejong Instrument Store around this time last year.

Going on stage without knowing anything

A shoutout to Run-DMC, who was my hero!

President Hong and L&S, the first fan, thankful people

Sanghyun had a bright smile on his face that anyone could see as he started rapping.

When Run This Town was still Walk This Way.

One year from that moment.

Many things have changed, but there was still something that hasn’t changed.

Every day is happy.

I can’t deny it. I’m Happy

Even at the moment of recording this song, next to me

I’ll smile at the fact that it’s not empty

An eraser that erases negative thoughts and hatred

Sanghyun’s 8 bars filled the space between the snare and the snare to the cheerful rhythm.

People can’t help but feel good when they’re with positive and happy people. Because the energy of the positive is contagious.

And the audience was now soaked in Sanghyun’s energy. And the only way to repay that energy was to scream once again with a voice that was already hoarse.

-Wowwwww!

-Aaaaaaak!

Sanghyun, who had finished his 8-bar rap, slipped slightly to the side.

The one who rushed to the center of the stage at that moment was the 888 Crew’s reliable leader, Junhyung.

Junhyung’s rap continued the content from Sanghyun’s lyrics.

That’s JFTR! Our first album

My Elbow that can’t stay still

From Club Hommie to Mudeung Stadium and Hip Hop the Vibe-

High-five with the audience at a distance that can’t be reached-

The audience could feel that Junhyung’s voice was maintaining a much higher tone than usual.

And they could also feel that the change in tone was not caused by musical intentions, but by the excitement that was inevitably leaking out.

Because I’m excited.

The ship filled with your cheers is already full

From your voices that embroider the audience

I smell flowers, even if Sanghyun next to me teases me and says ‘Hollywood’

When Junhyung saw the lyrics ‘I smell flowers’ when making this track, Sanghyun habitually said, ‘Oh, Hollywood.’

And Junhyung inserted it into the lyrics.

Because Just For The Record was a song that recorded the joy that was created at the moment of making JFTR.

< Verse 30. Full Moon > End

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