RAP STAR

Chapter 32 [verse 3, 888 crew, END]

Sanghyun and Junhyung bombed their final exams but threw themselves into the final preparations for the L&S performance on Saturday, July 23rd. Since summer vacation started on July 19th, they didn't have to go to school and could focus solely on rehearsals.

BAND L&S X 888 CREW

It was a name decided upon belatedly for the performance. Originally, only Sanghyun and Junhyung's names were supposed to be on the poster, but it was decided differently after the meeting between L&S members and 888 Crew members. Although only Sanghyun and Junhyung were performing, there was no objection because Sanghyun and Junhyung represented the 888 Crew.

"Anyway, our promotion skills are lacking," Sanghyun thought with deep regret as he observed L&S's promotion methods. It was a time before Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or even YouTube, yet their promotion was still inadequate. At best, they could only post one-sidedly on Cyworld's 'Gwangju 20-30 Gathering' or to people who liked music in Gwangju, or to underground band clubs.

"Can I redo the poster design?" When Kim Hwan, with a background in visual design, suggested this, Min-sik, the leader of L&S, didn't seem to attach much importance to the poster. After all, music lovers would find their way somehow. That was Min-sik's mindset. It seemed stubborn like that of an underground musician.

Even Min-sik, who respected mainstream music, had this mindset, so Sanghyun wondered what other bands were like. However, when the L&S members saw the new poster draft created by Hwan, their eyes lit up with excitement.

"This is killer!"

"Wow, the designer is different."

The praised poster had L&S and 888 Crew written in a font that resembled emerald green on a background of the same color, and the idea was brilliant. The wording was simple.

Band L&S8 Crew

The combination of L&S and 888 was overlapped. The idea of giving a special effect to "&S8" to make it look like 888 stood out. In Junhyung's expression, it was a "gangster vibe explosion" poster.

Firstly, the bold white letters of "L&S" were designed in relief on a green background, making them stand out even from afar. Then, the letters "888 Crew" were engraved in a rough black tone symbolizing black music. When seen up close, the "888 Crew" letters were even clearer. In other words, from a distance, L&S was more visible, but up close, 888 was more prominent.

The final poster design looked like this:

Band L&S8 Crew
(Band L&S X 888 Hip-hop Crew)

Date: 2005.07.23 18:00
Entrance Fee: L&S8 won
Soft straight line

At the bottom of the poster, a simple yet clear map was included. There was a disagreement within L&S regarding the entrance fee. Originally, the band members wanted to hold a free performance. However, Sanghyun explained that if L&S performed for free, it could harm other bands. If bands of similar skill levels performed for free, the general audience might perceive it as "Oh, this level is free." So, they decided on an ambiguous price of 1888 won. Those who wanted could pay 2000 won and get 112 won back, while the entire entrance fee from others would be donated to a suitable place.

The boss of "Soft Straight Line" heard about the purpose of the performance and even changed the rental fee to free. It was a city isolated musically, and the underground scene wasn't active. Gwangju's underground music scene was like an isolated island in the Korean music industry, but those involved had their own strong bonds and solidarity. Sanghyun felt good about it.

Fifty posters were printed and plastered all over the place, including Sejong Musical Instruments, driven by Sanghyun's strong insistence.

"You can't ignore marketing."