The Rap Star [EN]: Chapter 8

< Intro. A Once-in-a-Lifetime >

[Hope Concert for Hospitalized Patients]

A band was rearranging a popular singer’s song to fit their band’s sound, handing out flowers to the young hospitalized patients as they performed.

Sanghyun watched the performance from the terrace-style hallway connecting the special ward and the general ward.

A lively song from a boy band.

“You and I! Let’s hold hands and walk together!”

The lead vocalist, with his heavily grown-out hair styled into a shaggy cut – a so-called lion’s mane – was lacking in charisma. Instead, the drums and bass skills were excellent, making for an exciting stage.

Listening to the song while enjoying the breeze seemed to calm his mind.

“It’s unavoidable, but it’s really cheesy.”

The lead vocalist’s clothes and hair were the latest trends, but a bit too much. To Sanghyun, it seemed outdated.

Having regained some strength, Sanghyun watched the Hope Concert.

After the boy band finished, a four-member female dance team came on and started dancing. The thumping beat made his head nod involuntarily.

Music definitely has power. The power to soothe and heal people.

The reason Sanghyun particularly loved black music, especially rap, was because of the genre’s unique honesty.

Most music sings about ‘public sentiment.’ It talks about love, peace, and hope. Even when talking about hatred and anger, metaphors and allegories are mixed in.

For example, Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” pursued happiness but was a ‘Fuck-You’ thrown at the world from the perspective of the defeated, the losers.

A Fuck-You that introduced the genre of Grunge or Alternative.

But the lyrics are ambiguous. In some ways, it seems like simple bravado from a teenage boy.

Moreover, Dave Grohl, who was Nirvana’s drummer at the time, said about the lyrics of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” that they were written five minutes before completing the performance and singing the song, so they had no greater meaning than simply filling in the blanks.

But rap music is different.

Rap typically consists of 1 Verse (stanza) with 16 Bars (measures), and a song is composed of several Verses (stanzas).

Therefore, a lot of lyrics go into a song.

That’s why most lyrics express one’s actual feelings and stories. It’s not about public sentiment, but about expressing my feelings and saying, ‘If you can empathize because you’ve had the same experience as me, then go ahead and empathize!’ That’s what rap music is.

Of course, it’s an overstatement to assume that all rap music is personal and truthful, but Sanghyun loved rap because he thought it was the most honest music.

Rapper Common’s 2005 album “Be” was nominated for three Grammy Awards in 2006 and received critical acclaim.

The first track of this album, “Be,” contains Common’s extremely personal story.

Looking into my daughter’s eyes

I realize there’s something to learn from her.

The Messiah may return in her body.

If I have to, I’ll change the world through her.

In this song, which was praised by critics as the best first track and the best intro possible, Common tells his own story.

The fact that Eminem, a famous rapper even in Korea, made albums titled ‘Encore – Drugs, Relapse – Overcoming, Recovery – Recovery’ is the same principle.

The fact that he captured the emotions of being addicted to drugs, overcoming them, and finally recovering in his music was something he could do because he was a rapper.

“Ah, hello.”

Various amateur singers such as boy bands, dance teams, and ballad vocalists went on and off the stage. Patients, nurses, and doctors applauded and enjoyed themselves regardless of the performers’ skills.

And when a female high school student appeared on stage, enthusiastic applause poured out.

“I’m someone who does music of a different genre from the previous teams. My name is Shin Hayeon.”

She was a girl with a soft voice and distinctly East Asian features.

“I’m not really skilled enough to be on a stage like this, but I have a connection to the hospital, so I insisted on being on stage.”

Shin Hayeon’s voice had a clear yet gentle feel.

The audience focused on her words, and several doctors and nurses, knowing her connection, were shouting ‘Shin Hayeon, fighting!’

Shin Hayeon waved to those doctors and nurses and continued.

“Actually, my mom received treatment at this hospital for a very long time. That’s when I became close with the nurses and doctors. My mother had breast cancer and eventually passed away.”

Sanghyun, who had been quietly concentrating, tilted his head.

*There must be many cancer patients among the audience. Is it okay to talk about that?*

As Sanghyun thought, a heavy atmosphere settled among the patients.

“At first, my mom was diagnosed with only three months to live. And she lived for three years. My mom told me a story. I came here to tell it to you all.”

Shin Hayeon paused for a moment and gestured.

The accompaniment began to play.

“The song is titled ‘Remission’ [a decrease in the severity of a disease]. It means the alleviation of the disease, fighting the disease. I hope you will listen to it.”

As soon as Sanghyun heard the accompaniment, he knew it was a black music beat.

Even though it was a song about illness, the beat wasn’t calm or quiet.

Rather, it was a hip-hop beat with a dull drum snare forming the measures against the backdrop of electric guitar and synthesizer sounds.

A hip-hop beat that seemed too rap-like for Shin Hayeon, who seemed like an R&B vocalist, to handle.

The song began with Shin Hayeon’s powerful vocals.

Everyone tells me I’m going to die soon

If I had received a thousand won every time

I’d probably be rich

I’m cornered against the wall

But I’m leaning against that wall

I overcame the brink of death and fought and won

I overcame the brink of death and fought and won

Sanghyun was surprised by the provocative word choice. It was too provocative to deal with the feelings of a terminally ill patient.

Silence for a moment as the vocals ended.

The electric guitar sound disappeared, and only the synthesizer and drum sounds filled the beat, and Shin Hayeon’s sudden rap began.

Hayeon, who seemed like a vocalist, surprised him for a moment because he didn’t know she could rap, but Sanghyun quickly became immersed in her rap.

She has a lump in her chest,

But that doesn’t make her different from anyone else

She will continue to overcome and conquer

The doctor said she could only live for three months

But she raised the unit of time by one level

She says, ‘It’s my life, and it’s a once-in-a-lifetime life’

Her flower’s fragrance is too good to live in low spirits

Now it’s about finding a way, living happily

“Breast cancer can’t hold my life”

Her first words coming out of the hospital

I’m already prepared, I’ll never quit

I’ve never said ‘no’,

I look really okay, so let’s do it

When she sang, her voice was skillful, but as soon as she started rapping, all that remained in her voice was ‘sincerity.’

While one verse ended and the bridge continued, Sanghyun headed to the stage.

He wanted to see it from a little closer.

She says, ‘It’s my life, and it’s a once-in-a-lifetime life’

Her flower’s fragrance is too good to live in low spirits

With that fragrance, she blows out the candles on the cake

The lament-like bridge was repeated.

Sanghyun had never seen Shin Hayeon before, nor had he ever seen her mother, but he could tell.

Hayeon’s mother was a person full of strong faith and hope. She was a person who had her own fragrance that overcame the hospital smell even when she was in the hospital. She was definitely a cheerful person who prayed, ‘I hope I can blow out these candles again next year…’ while blowing out the candles on her birthday cake.

After the bridge ended, the second verse began.

I don’t trust the doctor, I trust my mom

Every time I go to see her, she’s losing weight

I wanted to comfort her

But I didn’t know what to say, so I just cried

Looking at the pictures on the wall, I think

I talk about the times we had together

Mom said there’s no such thing as impossible

But she wasn’t logical

What do doctors do

What does God do

My mother said her chest hurt,

And she had a hard time explaining it

I was surprised when I first found out the diagnosis

I cried all day and started praying

Maybe the countdown is getting shorter

But that’s the same for healthy people too

But let’s think about living forever

Then how will you live in this moment

The beat gradually faded as Shin Hayeon’s rap ended. Finally, the beat went off and complete silence was achieved.

Shin Hayeon was crying, and some patients and nurses were also crying. They know.

People waiting for death.

People trying to cure death.

People who can only watch death.

For these people, Hayeon’s lyrics were stimulating instinctive emotions.

The image of a mother who can’t properly explain to her daughter who asks, ‘Mom, where does it hurt?’ is probably not something that only happened to Hayeon.

With the beat turned off, her tearful voice was projected into the speaker through the microphone.

When I found the lump, it was already too late at the hospital

They said there was no chance of beating this disease

They didn’t see it accurately

The doctor kept saying I was going to die

But now my legs are walking

And my heart is beating

My daughter knows the truth

Cancer, get out of here, I own my life

And if I die, I’ll keep fighting until that moment

The beat, which had been slowly growing from the middle, exploded at the starting point of the last rap.

Shin Hayeon once again let out a powerful vocal.

Everyone tells me I’m going to die soon

If I had received a thousand won every time

I’d probably be rich

I’m cornered against the wall

But I’m leaning against that wall

I overcame the brink of death and fought and won

I overcame the brink of death and fought and won

‘Everyone tells me I’m going to die soon. If I had received a thousand won every time, I would probably be rich.’

The first impression I got after hearing the chorus was that it was provocative. But now I could understand.

Hayeon had the right to sing these lyrics.

Because this would have been her mother’s effort to bring a smile to her daughter’s face. Because it would have been her mother’s words.

This is her mother’s song, and her song.

It is a lyric that weaves together conversations with her mother during her illness. Like the title Remission, her song encourages fighting the disease and helps alleviate the disease.

If you give Hayeon’s song a technical score, it wouldn’t be very high.

Simple rhyme with a simple flow.

But there was sincerity in Remission that transcended technique.

She says, ‘It’s my life, and it’s a once-in-a-lifetime life’

Her flower’s fragrance is too good to live in low spirits

With that fragrance, she blows out the candles on the cake

The song ended with the last whispering bridge.

There was no cheering, but warm applause flowed from the patients, nurses, and doctors. It was only one song, but it was a much longer applause than other stages.

< Intro. A Once-in-a-Lifetime > End

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