RAP STAR

Chapter 87 [verse 14. Beat The Underground]

"Did I do something? Did I do it right?"

Min-ji couldn't remember at all how she rapped. She didn't even realize she was rapping. It felt like someone enthusiastically freestyled to a random beat while they were chatting in the studio.

Looking around, Kim Hwan and Park In-hyuk were staring at her with wide eyes, astonished.

Min-ji snapped out of it. There's only one reason they would look like that. She must have made a mistake.

"What happened? What did I do wrong? Did I ruin the beat? Did In-hyuk oppa or Hwan oppa mess up their parts? No, it's my turn now, right? Did I forget the lyrics? Why didn't I sing the chorus?"

Min-ji tried to regain her composure and listen to the beat, but she couldn't hear it at all.

She realized the reason too late.

"Wow!"

"Scream!"

The tremendous cheers drowned everything out.

In place of the dazed Min-ji, Park In-hyuk started the chorus. The cheers were so loud that the beat was barely audible, but through the in-ear monitor, the snare could barely be heard. In that moment, a savvy staff member raised the in-ear volume.

Min-ji heard In-hyuk's voice and managed to snap out of it. She started hurriedly singing along with the chorus.

"What's going on? Is that person an idiot?"

Looking at Min-ji's expression made them laugh. She looked like she didn't know what she did, just blinking her eyes.

She probably thought she made a mistake.

"Mistakes happen. It was so different from practice, right? Suddenly doing so well would be cheating."

Indeed, In-hyuk missed a couple of lines he was supposed to double. Because Min-ji was rapping so smoothly and firmly, the doubles felt like a footnote.

"Is this a joke?"

The atmosphere sent to the audience changed.

Of course, there were many people who were already favorable to the 888 Crew from the beginning. People who were already fans of the 888 Crew or started supporting them after reading internet articles. But there were even more people who weren't like that.

People who were indifferent, watching with curiosity and expectations.

The cheering grew louder with each "Ho!" The sound of banging balloons to the beat also grew louder.

Sometimes artists say the public is ignorant. They complain that they're swept away by others' judgments rather than their own opinions. But there's no successful artist who says such things.

The public is never ignorant.

Even if they don't know hip-hop or music, they can distinguish between "good" and "bad" amazingly well.

And now, they were beginning to judge the enigmatic team, 888, in a positive light.

"I can't mess up that evaluation."

In-hyuk started to sway and walked to the edge of the stage. His movements, bouncing his shoulders to the beat, looked like he was dancing.

The eyes of his colleagues, the staff, and the audience all gathered on him.

-Thunk.

In-hyuk put his right foot on the monitor speaker and bowed deeply. Then, with his left hand, not holding the mic, he stretched it straight up to the sky and started doing a strange dance.