Rejoice! Mnet uploaded the videos of six more candidates’ 2nd round of preliminaries in full-length, so this week we’re additionally throwing light on the lyrics of Double K, Hanhae, Hash Swan, and Olltii!
Mnet’s Show Me The Money has been the stage of many controversies surrounding lyrics. This weekly series will pick out the show’s witty rhymes, punchlines, messages, whatever appears to be of interest lyrics-wise, and provide translations, explanations and background information.
HiphopKR recently subtitled AKATV‘s How to Win SMTM featuring rappers myunDo, Mc Rap, Kidk Kidk, and two mysterious producers.
In 7 + 1 episodes of How to Win SMTM, a former Show Me The Money producer named Kae Jinsang (an alias translating to: The F*cking Truth) teaches the three Gimchi Hill Gang members in their humble residence how to win Show Me The Money’s fifth season. He shares his knowledge about how to write the application, when to line up for the audition, how to impress the producers, how to win the 1:1 battle, and more. He even invites a famous rapper who participated on SMTM as a producer before …
With its exaggerated humor, the show wittily makes fun of and criticizes Korea’s famous hiphop show. A lot of the jokes can only be enjoyed with a bit of background information, so we suggest you first watch each episode and then read our notes below for everything you need to know as well as some fun facts. Enjoy!
Subtitle Credits How to Win SMTM Translations, Timing, Edit: Lena Translation Check: Nahae Quality Check: Lena, Nahae
[x_custom_headline type=”left” level=”h1″ looks_like=”h3″ accent=”true”]Episodes and Translators’ Notes[/x_custom_headline]
Episode 1: Follow Me
https://youtu.be/HKMpQeym5SY
The Korean TV show ‘세상에 이런 일이’ (How Is That Possible) shows all kinds of incredible, unbelievable events.
Kae Jinsang is introduced, a very frivolous and rude character who exudes a lot of hot air, constantly cusses, and lives up to his name by bluntly stating the truth. He also blithely abuses his position as a “teacher” and the fact that he is older than his three students, who, according to Korean etiquette, have to treat and address him with respect.
Jinsang tells Kidk Kidk to change his name to lolol (ㅋㅋㅋㅋ) because Kidk Kidk (키득키득, read: kideuk kideuk) literally means to snicker/giggle/chuckle.
Kae Jinsang tells Mc Rap to move to the side because he’s been sitting in the way of the camera directed at Jinsang.
Episode 2: Writing the Application
https://youtu.be/czEZbK9K0DY
The lowkey advertising in the beginning of the episode uses the well-known slogan of a drinking water brand (“Water that’s close to my body”), as well as that advertisement’s music, while Jinsang is actually drinking makgeolli.
When deciding on myunDo’s character, they’re saying how everyone has a certain concept about myunDo in mind and urge him to voice it. They mean “ugly,” and Jinsang says it by shamelessly disguising the word “ugly man” as “fall man.” The word in question is “추남” (chunam), which is written with the characters for “ugly” and “man” (醜男) but Jinsang explains it as “秋男” with the characters for “fall” and “man” which is pronounced the same. “Fall man” (or “가을 남자” ga-eul namja, which is the Korean word for it) refers to a somewhat melancholic, sensitive, and romantic image of a man.
The text on the collage of a typical fall man, where the subtitles read “The Fall Man,” refers to the Korean drama ‘The Innocent Man‘ (세상 어디에도 없는 착한 남자) with Song Joongki. The Korean title was changed from “A guy so nice you can’t find anyone like him anywhere else in the world” to “Such a true fall man you can’t find anyone like him anywhere else in the world,” further poking fun at myunDo’s looks.
Episode 3: Creating the Characters
https://youtu.be/9un43GmhnEE
While watching the introduction video of former 45RPM member A. C. Lee from SMTM’s first season, a real tear-jerker after which you cannot help but pity A. C. Lee, the three rappers are actually envying him because he has such tasty food and better lodging than them. Watch A. C. Lee’s appearance on SMTM where he battled SongRapper.
albamon is a word made out of ‘alba’ and ‘mon’ (probably from ‘monster’) whereas ‘alba’ (알바) means ‘part-time job’ in Korean (originating from the German word ‘Arbeit’ meaning ‘work’). albamon is a website for finding part-time jobs and famous for their commercial with Hyeri from Girl’s Day.
Please note that they are by no means making fun of defectors but of the program which exploits the fact that someone is a defector. They are also poking fun at Kidk Kidk who does have the looks for the concept. That is why they laugh, and because the idea is so absurd but also shockingly true.
There has been a North Korean defector on SMTM before, Kang Chunhyuk. Watch his first audition here. He also mentioned Aoji Coal Mine in his lyrics (“My mother caught tuberculosis at Aoji Coal Mine”), a place infamous for especially hard labor.
Episode 4: Entering the 1st Round of Auditions
https://youtu.be/wN-dGHtvtPw
There is nothing to note for this episode. Let us know if you have any questions!
Special Episode: Silver-Spoon myunDo
https://youtu.be/mvVmXyrqUik
When Jinsang says that he would have passed Mc Rap if he had been there, he means that if he had still been working for Mnet on SMTM when Mc Rap auditioned, he would have passed him. As it turns out, he did in fact work there when Mc Rap auditioned. Oops!
Jinsang abuses his status to have the food mixed with the sauce instead of dipped into it.
Episode 5: How to Pass the 1st Round of Auditions
https://youtu.be/qWiFbk44FVA
Like most Korean fans who watched this video, you might be 100% sure that the new man with the mask is San E, but it is actually his younger brother Sean who effortlessly and perfectly imitates his brother, profiting from their striking resemblance. The Korean on-screen text calls him “Sean E” (샨이), hinting at this fact. (We received permission to reveal this piece of information.) myunDo immediately recognizes him and calls him “hyung” as they traveled the US together while filming Swaggers Made in USA (if you’re attentive you can spot Sean in several episodes).
When myunDo raps in English, the Korean on-screen text reads !@#$%^& and then “Sorry, we can’t write down English by hearing.”
When “Sean E” asks myunDo if he doesn’t want to consider plastic surgery, the on-screen thought bubble over myunDo’s head reads: “Evaluate my rap, not my face!”
“I don’t rap these days, I sing ballads.” – Sean E (Just wanted to point this out because it’s so hilarious.)
Mc Rap’s punchline “Because I’m Asian, music until the end” is a pun on ‘music’ (노래, read ‘norae’, lit. song/singing) and ‘yellow’ (노란, read ‘noran’).
The two masked hyungs ask Mc Rap which of the three big labels (YG, JYP, SM) he wants to go to, as if they were at KPop Star and not SMTM.
Episode 6: How to Pass the 2nd Round of Auditions
https://youtu.be/2CsVecPHU0M
Although we wrote in the subtitles “I was bullied for my looks,” remember that the word myunDo is using allegedly means “fall man” and not “ugly man.” However, since the latter is what they actually mean, we kept it that way in the subtitles to make it clear.
Correction: myunDo says he was bullied for his looks in elementary, middle, and high school. So, basically all the time.
When myunDo raps ‘Jawn Tho’, the Korean lyrics on screen write the English words in Han-geul, which is rather funny. It reads something like: yukaendo wadadu […] ttae jeondo raenmigaettae jeondo, rejeondo raenmigaettae jeondo
Jinsang-hyung says “Into the fire!” because remember that when candidates are eliminated during the second round they literally go down in flames.
MC Sniper is not actually a voice actor, Jinsang just mockingly calls him that because there is a lot of narration in MC Sniper’s songs.
Episode 7: How to Survive the 1:1 Battle
https://youtu.be/WBFJj4koseQ
Nearly all the foul tips Jinsang-hyung gives are things that actually did happen before on the show.
When Kae Jinsang demands the lesson fees, the Korean on-screen text reads: *Beware of swindlers 24/7*
This concludes our translators’ notes. Hit us up in case you still have any unanswered questions! And if you enjoyed the watch, do share this post or the videos and leave a comment letting AKATV and us know how much you laughed. Thank you!
Here are our translators’ notes for AKATV‘s Rapper Car with Microdot!
In my very own opinion, this is the most entertaining episode so far. Kjun and Microdot talk a lot: about All Black, the dissing incident on SMTM with Andup, his relationship with his Brother Sanchez, working out, and a lot more.
So, the stage name Microdot was made of micro + dot, while micro comes from micro scooter which Microdot often rode as a child and dot from the mole of the engineer in the studio where Microdot first recorded.
In this second part, he first raps ‘Homage‘, a track completely in English off his ‘MICROTAPE EP‘.
When they talk about how Sanchez does not do any chores, Kjun wants to imply that Sanchez thinks that he helped Microdot get popular through SMTM and thus Microdot should do the chores in return.
Note: Korean people call their older brothers “hyung” but due to the non-Korean influence, Microdot calls Sanchez “Chez“.
Sanchez is shocked that his brother has learned the word “개소리” (kaesori) which is made up of the words ‘개’ (kae, lit. dog) which is used as an intensifier rendering the word into a swearword, and of ‘소리’ (sori, lit. sound). It translates to ‘nonsense/stupid talk/rubbish’ (*) and is not that bad of a cussword, actually (in my opinion at least).
When Kjun says, “I think I had a wrong impression,” he actually says “I was thinking about the movie ‘Taegukgi: The Brotherhood of War'” (South Korea, 2004) which is, as the title suggests, about the beautiful relationship between two brothers during the Korean War. So Kjun implies that he thought the two Shin brothers had a great relationship just like the two brothers in the movie.
“But I went fu- … very close” — Yes, he nearly said the Korean F-word. (This is definitely worse than 개소리).
The last song of the two episodes is ‘Celebrate‘ which features The Quiett, Babylon, and Sanchez (aka Fassnakuh).
Coming up are two single episodes, one with J.slow and Freelow, and one with Jung Sangsoo–look forward to them!
On April 23, I sat down with independent artist Microdot for an exclusive video interview. We discussed topics such as his music career after Show Me the Money 4, his upcoming album (and the featured artists), his international tour experience, the globalization of “Downbad.” movement, and his upcoming projects. A special shoutout to Astro Vancity for inviting me to Microdot’s Vancouver show. You can check out the exclusive interview and concert footage here!
HiphopKR: Good to see you again Microdot! Why don’t you introduce yourself to your international fans? Microdot:My name is Microdot. I rap and am still in the game. I did an interview with HiphopKR last year in July. I’m still the same me, but now I’m in Vancouver!
What’s been new with you since July?
In terms of music, I released more songs. On Show Me the Money 4, I made it to top 10 before being eliminated. I fell off to Black Nut, but we’re really good friends. The show changed my whole career path. I feel blessed to be where I’m at right now. I pretty much did shows everywhere in Korea you could possibly think of, and recently started my [international] tour.
I remember back in July when we interviewed you, you had all these goals you wanted to achieve… and you’ve done it all! Yeah, it’s crazy! I don’t know how to explain it. I always have my big goals, but those little milestones, I definitely reached them.
Since Show Me the Money 4, you released three digital singles in Korea. On your Instagram, you mentioned you were working on an album for your international fans. How is that going? It’s going good! I actually got about three tracks done now. I’m making tracks while touring, which is going very good in terms of progress. I’m recording about two or three more as soon as I get back to New York. My next album is going to feature several different artists. Every track that I’ve done, apart from one, have a featured artist. I want to bring more people into the game. I want to put myself out too. For the one track I’m rapping alone, I’m shooting a music video back in New York. I’m pretty pumped for that.
I’m actually going to put a few Korean songs in the upcoming album. There’s going to be about 10 tracks total. In this album, I’m really pouring out my English vocabulary, and concentrating on my Korean too. Typically, my Korean tracks have a little bit of English, but this album is the other way around – many tracks are mostly in English with a little bit of Korean. It’s like a different perspective. Also, I dropped a few songs on my Soundcloud channel since Show Me the Money 4.
I’ve just been building a lot of content. I will be releasing my upcoming single ‘Hella Trill’ with the music video in early-May. The music video was shot in Chicago, New York, and Japan, with extra filming in Korea. The track will have a little bit of everything – electro dub-step, bumpy, West-coast hiphop.
Have you been reaching out to more international artists than Korean artists?
I’ve been reaching out to both. I want to reach out to my “idols” but I don’t think I’m quite there yet, you know? I want to get to a spot where I can reach out to them directly, without a middle person. I guess I have to keep working hard to get there. Back in Korea, I reached out to Dok2 again. My brother Sanchez is probably going to be on the album too. I’ve been waiting for Beenzino, but I think it’s going to take a while since he’s so busy. I’ve reach out to Jessi too.
I recorded a track while I was in New Zealand over the nights with my high-school friends called Times x Two, so look out for that.
You’ve done shows in Japan, Australia, the United States, and now Canada. What has been your favorite city so far?
So far, I’d have to say the hype was crazy in Melbourne. Chicago and Japan was memorable too – the buzz, atmosphere and vibe was quite equal to each other. In Chicago, the venue had to change on the day of the show due to unforeseen construction. Shout-out to University of Illinois for finding another venue so quickly that day. Everything worked out real good. Sydney showed a lot of love too.
In terms of your performances, how does the Korean audience compare to your international audience?
Japan was the craziest… they showed crazy love. I performed with Hanhae, Kisum, Yookjidam, and Kanto. The performance experience was quite different than other countries. I find that all my international audience show crazy love.
Let’s talk about “Downbad. Movement”Back in our July interview, you explained about the culture and movement. Over the past year, I’ve noticed a lot more support from your fans and other artists. How’s it going in your eyes?
“Downbad. Movement” is crazy. It started from a clothing label with the meaning of physically wearing what you believe in. A lot of people see that in me in just the way I act and from always representing it. “Downbad.” is not a belief or something people follow, but more like what you represent, and how you portray yourself. Clothing-wise, I’m going to be relaunching “Downbad.” internationally at the end of May.
Any other artists supporting the movement?
Black Nut, BewhY, my brother Sanchez… but I don’t want Downbad. to be over-emphasized in front of people like a brand. If they like it, they can cop it. That’s the thing: you don’t want to be shoved something at you and be forced to represent or be something you’re not, you know? I feel like is has to be natural. It’s not the fact that I am selfish and don’t want to give them away, but it’s the fact that, to me, the value of it is different. You nurture it, you want to portray it, you want to respect it, represent it. When it’s forced at you, you end up wearing it once and throw it away, you know?
And now for some light-hearted questions: in the Korean hiphop scene, who would give you the biggest run for your money in an arm wrestling competition?
That’s a good question! Maybe Snacky Chan? He’s a big guy.
How about Don Mills? Yeah, Don Mills is a fighter. B-Free (of HI-LITE Records) is a boxer. I used to train in mixed martial art a bit, until I ran out of money *laughs* It’s fun. It’s not the fact that you’re learning to beat someone up, but it’s the art of it, like music. Different ways you can nurture your body, and the movement of it. It’s pretty cool, I respect that. Anyways, yeah, Don Mills is huge. I saw him at the gym once when he was on film for ICON TV and he was real tall. I feel like he could kick me in the head and I’d be done!
Do you have any advice for anyone wanting to go into fitness?
Fitness is a commitment. You have to be obsessed with it. It sounds really weird, but if you want to be successful in life, you have to be obsessed with driving yourself to work hard towards being successful. In a similar manner, working out is the same way. Have a goal, stick with it. Commit yourself and stick with it. The best motivation is results.
You’ve always been an artist that expressed independence. Do you have any plans to join a label?
Nah. But that being said, I’m working with Culture Think. They act as my booking agency. They purely work on my schedule, and nothing else. As I mentioned before, I’m an independent artist. If there are 8 slices to a pie, Culture Think would control one of them. Being overseas so much, I can’t even answer phone calls and e-mail responses are delayed. It’s about professionalism. I learned these things through my experience as an artist. I believed that it was time to take the next step to building my foundation that could control firmer in each segments.
Culture Think organize a lot of big shows such as the Rapbeat Show. As an independent artist, I’ve been approached by managers and labels that have peaked and boomed. But Culture Think is an organization that had consistency in their growth. They helped a lot of artists in the game. They gave me a shot to do shows before I even made it to the second round of Show Me the Money last season. We are like family and loyalty is most important to me. Working with like-minded people and keeping our eyes on the future as much as the present, with the greed in passion and success together.
Will you be performing at the next Rapbeat SHOW & NITE?
Yep. On May 13 at the LOTTE Hotel in Seogongdong, Seoul City.
Any closing remarks as we wrap up the interview?
I’m dropping my new single ‘Hella Trill’ along with the music video in early May. As an artist, I’m not ready to release consistent, one-channel music. I always want to try variety. My new album is going to have a lot of random stuff. It should be good. I’m always focused on my goals. After Vancouver, I have a Toronto show next weekend, then shows in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Within 2 months, I’ve performed in 4 countries, 9 states/provinces, and 12 international shows. I’ve got to meet a lot of nice people. Honestly, it’s like a dream come true. I’ve always said it from the start that it was my goal to make it worldwide.
I read my comments online. I do this for my fans as much as for myself. If you want me to come, your city has to show me love. I cannot make a show happen because one person asked online to come to their city. There’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work involved. I’m not trying to disrespect, but that’s just how it is. If you want to invite me to an international show, hit me up at microdot.mgmt@gmail.com. I check my direct messages (DM) too. I actually had a lot of shows set up through DM. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Downbad is launching at the end of May.
My new album may feature artist Wise from Teriyaki Boyz. I grew up listening to their music, especially their tracks from “The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift” soundtrack.
Please support my brother Sanchez (aka Fassnakuh) on Show Me the Money 5. He’s doing good. We’ll see how it goes. I can’t spoil it for the camera, so watch the show next month.
I’m looking forward to the Vancouver show tonight. Shoutout to HiphopKR – you guys supported me since Day 1, literally. I appreciate you coming to Vancouver!
