Hip-hop duo The Quiett and Dok2 of Illionare Records perform in season five of Mnet's rap competition series "Show Me the Money." |
By Kim Jae-heun
The hip-hop songs introduced on "Show Me the Money (SMTM)," a Korean rap competition show that aired on Mnet from May to July, predominantly swept online music charts while the show was on the air. Many popular K-pop bands avoid releasing new albums during this period as they prefer not to compete with the rappers appearing on cable TV's hottest show.
Hip-hop was not the most favored music genre for most Koreans until recent years and before that it only played to devoted fans in underground clubs around Hongik University, western Seoul.
But it seems that the genre has gradually gained popularity among young people and SMTM has undoubtedly played a leading role in bringing the music out of the shadows.
Winner BewhY performs in the seventh round of season five of SMTM. / Courtesy of CJ E&M |
The rap survival series first premiered in 2012, casting seasoned producers such as Double K, 45RPM and MC Sniper as the mentors for participating rookie rappers. The first season started out with a disappointing viewer rating of less than 1 percent. The series returned with its second season anyways the following year, featuring a lineup of notable rappers, including Mad Clown and Swings as contestants. This improved the viewership to top 1 percent ― high enough for the cable TV show to win renewal.
It was the third season in 2014 that SMTM started to draw a larger audience with prominent Korean hip-hop artists from labels like YG Entertainment and Illionaire Records joining the program as producers. Not only did the ratings double to record over 2 percent but also the songs performed in episodes during the mission battles began dominating the online music chart rankings.
Participants of the fifth season of SMTM celebrate after rapper BewhY wins the competition on July 15. |
"In the cable TV industry, it is considered successful for a music show to top 1 percent ratings," said an official of CJ E&M, mother company of music channel Mnet. "Even Inkigayo, a music show broadcasted on national TV network SBS, records 2 percent ratings and it is a success if a cable TV hip-hop show like SMTM hits 2 to 3 percent."
SMTM's popularity peaked with season four last year, with its viewing rate recording 3.5 percent according to Nielson Korea, and its hype continued into season five. The show's video clips uploaded on the country's top web portal Naver's TV CAST hit the jackpot. Winner BewhY's stage performance of "Forever" in the seventh round of season 5 hit nearly 2.2 million views a week after the video was released and recorded a total of 3.87 million views as of Wednesday evening. Runner-up rapper C Jamm's eighth-round performance of "Beautiful" also recorded 3.2 million views.
Runner-up C Jamm performs his song "MM" in the final round of SMTM season 5 on July 15. |
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"Only because I am producing SMTM, I don't think differently about the diversity of other hip-hop shows on TV," said SMTM producer Choi Hyo-jin during a press meeting at M Academy in Gangnam, southern Seoul, on July 19. "Other hip-hop programs have different aims. SMTM and Unpretty Rapstar adopt a survival format and there is honesty between mentoring producers and contesting rappers while participants can drop out at any time. Both producers and rappers go through a hard time physically, mentally and emotionally. You can see how serious and passionate they are with their music and I think it is the key to SMTM's popularity. Culture critic Bae Kook-nam agreed in a way that hip-hop music speaks to young people's hearts in a straightforward manner and it is unique compared to other genres. "People have adapted to rap, rhythm and disdain culture too. It was uneasy to listen to it before. Hip-hop is one way of baring one's heart and complaining of an injustice. The genre was a commercialized product of defiance and the so-called hip-hop spirit was superficial before, but now people are empathizing with it," Bae said. The musicians suggested similar opinions on the sudden popularity of hip-hop in terms of music. Rapper BewhY said the genre collaborates well with other musicians and he thinks it reinvents itself. "Just because music is distinguished by genres it doesn't mean they don't go along together. It just gets better when good tunes meet together and hip-hop has that absorbing power," said BewhY. One of the hottest songwriters, Gray of Above Ordinary Music Group (AOMG), who participated in SMTM season five as a producer, said that rap music was mainly about American culture ― especially that of African-Americans living in poverty or involved in gang violence ― and Koreans could not relate to it. Now, the genre has been localized to bring more relevance in Korean culture and it has improved in terms of expressing lyrics. "If you only look at the domestic market, hip-hop has risen as a major genre and I see a bright future for this genre abroad too," said Gray. "Hip-hop is also part of K-pop and I believe it can be successful overseas as next K-pop trend."
No other hip-hop music shows on either national broadcasting or cable TV have been able to compete with this success.K-pop band Block B's rapper Zico, left, sings with runner-up C Jamm on "Beautiful" during the semifinal
on July 8.
"I also think (the popularity of hip-hop) connects to the demands of the times. It is my personal opinion but rappers write their own stories and most of them are expressed directly and strongly. The lyrics convey messages that reflect social issues like unemployment among young people, although it was not so much apparent in this season's SMTM. Many hip-hop musicians and rock bands live unstable lives," said Choi.Rapper Super B performs in the semifinal on July 8.
"Young people suffer under unemployment and a strict social hierarchy," said Bae during an interview with The Korea Times. "Hip-hop does not beat around the bush but speaks straightforwardly about the hardships they go through and it fits the music very well. Previous songs about love and relationships do not speak to young people.