#snipersound

  (This interview was made in September 2013.)

    ♦ CAREER

    First of all, can you introduce yourself in a few words? What’s the meaning behind “illinit”?

  What's up Under K-HipHop France, this is illinit a.k.a Triple I, representing Seoul, Korea. "illinit" is a term I got familiar with when I used to live in the states. You know, when somebody's real good at something, the dude's illin' it. So, back then, I felt like I had some serious skills with this rap shit, so I just named myself that.

    What inspired you to make music (rap specifically)?

  I started off as a huge fan of the music and culture, you know. I went back and forth between Korea and the U.S. growing up.And in the late '80s to early '90s, I remember hearing LL Cool J on the radio. It was hard to find hiphop when I came back to Korea around that time, but I somehow still got my hands and ears on Wu-tang, Cypress Hill, 2pac, ATCQ, Ice Cube, and all that. I started to grow with it. I felt like I was getting stronger when I listened to hiphop back then. It was as if those rappers were some superheroes to me. Later I naturally started rapping, and it gave that quiet, skinny, 'lil middle-schooler a new identity.

    How did you become a member of Buddha Baby crew?

  So my friend and I, who were a team, wanted to join the game real bad when we came to Korea after finishing high school. We had no connections, so we just made a demo CD and passed that shit out everywhere we went. As we were doing that, in 2001, we tried out for this big event called the Adidas Hiphop Festival. That's where we bumped into people like DJ R2, and Mr. Room9, who later introduced us to MC Sniper. Ever since, we all just started doing shit together and we became a crew.

    Back then, you used to be a part of trio Vespid. What have you retained from this group experience?

  Rolling as a team is cool 'cause you can depend on each other and you can give each other feedback, but it's not always easy to make important decisions when everybody has different opinions. Being a solo artist gives you freedom to execute things the way you want, but sometimes you wonder if you're going the right way, and you could get lost. The whole Vespid experience gave me more strength, wisdom, and self-trust to help me navigate myself through this journey.

    You were already around when Snipersound was established back in 2004. How do you feel about leaving this label after nearly 10 years?

  It feels like I left my hometown to go to a different city to open my own shop, you know what I mean? All the times I spent with them, good or bad, will be cherished for a long time, and everything I experienced while I was with them is essential for the work I'm doing right now.

    Your one-man label "triple i" now holds a partnership with FAME-J’s company Factory Boi Production. Why did you choose to only affiliate instead of signing under this label? Also, do you plan on recruiting other artists under triple i in the future?

  I wanted to try something totally different, like being fully independent. That's something I've been wanting to do for a long time. FAME-J and I have known each other for a while and we respected each others' work since back in the day, and we both thought a partnership would be beneficial for both of us. He's really been great help. My independence day, which was when I dropped the mixtape, wouldn't have been established the way it was without his help. I don't have plans to recruit anybody but who knows what's gonna happen, right? I just gotta focus on getting mine for now. I've been way too hungry for way too long.

    Please tell us about one significant moment of your career...

  Hands down, right now. Doing my own thing, on my own. It's a good feeling.

    ♦ FOCUS ON "EXHIBIT I: THE MIXTAPE"

    Which state of mind were you in when you wrote the songs for “Exhibit I: The Mixtape”?

  I started pumping tracks out in January, this year, which was a few months after leaving Snipersound. I did what I had to do to get the money ready for production. I was feeling good, like straight up confident, to tell my story about the past few years, the way I wanted to. I felt more settled and confident than ever.

    What is your personal favorite track off this EP and why?

  This one's hard 'cuz they're all like my babies. But if I had to pick just one, it's gotta be the title track, 'Jogeumman Gamyun Dwe (Almost There)'. I wrote that one in a couple of hours. The words just poured out. It's simply about my past, present, and future. And I think it's one of the only tracks I ever did in my career with a real "hopeful" sort of vibe. When I was done recording it, I felt like this track was gonna take me somewhere higher, you know, I felt like I'm really almost there.

    If you had to encourage people to purchase this EP, what would you tell them?

  If you dig Korean hiphop and you appreciate ill rhymes, metaphors, word-play, AND real, live, life-story music, this EP is a must-listen. I'm confident about that. It's purely from the heart, but still techincally advanced to the max, how it should be.

    Any promotions planned in the next few days?

  I just released a new single on Sep. 17th. It's up on iTunes now for yall who wanna check it out. And October's gonna be another busy month since I got plans to release new tracks in November and December.

    ♦ MUSIC TALK

    The listeners got to see a new side of Illinit through your joint project with Leo Kekoa, 강남2인조. Can you tell us a few words about this collab?

  Leo Kekoa is a respected veteran in this scene, and I've been a fan for quite a long time, too. One day, he suggested that we should team up and make a project-group, and of course I was mad hyped about it. We met up almost everyday for a few months and put together enough tracks for a full album. But unfortunately, we had some miscommunication problems with the label and were only able to release a few tracks. It's too bad we didn't get to show people what we'd prepared.

    You dropped the full English track “Survival” in November 2012. Before its release, you said that you were more comfortable when rapping in Korean. At the end of the day, are you satisfied with the feedback you received? And do you plan on releasing more English tracks in the future or was it a one-time experience?

  Satisfied with the feedback? I dunno. That one, I just put out there. I really needed to do something at that time. My new album was getting pushed back and all that, so I just told 'em I'mma drop a free single. I was satisfied with the fact that I did an all-English track for the first time ever, though. As I said, I feel more comfortable rapping in Korean, but I love new challenges, so I think I'mma keep 'em coming along the way.

    You got the chance to live in the homeland of hip hop, so what makes Korean rap different from US rap in your opinion?

  Okay, so from a technical standpoint, rap is about the rhymes, right? It's too obvious to say something like, "if it don't rhyme, it ain't rap". And in the U.S, everybody, even old people, are familiar with rhymes. I mean, you grow up being exposed to rhymes, in old poems, songs, books, TV, etc. But it's not like that out here in Korea. The sentence structure is completely different. It's hard for people to understand what you're rapping about because in order to make it rhyme, your rap has to be different from how you'd actually talk in real life. It becomes unnatural. But Korean rappers have been working real hard for many years to perfect this new form of expression, rhyming in Korean to the beat, and I think people are starting to slowly accept it now. Once you accept it, you will be able to realize how intricate and exquisite some of these rappers get with their Korean rhymes.

    The hip hop scene is also very developed in France. Do you know any French artists?

  Yeah, I've heard that hiphop is really big in France. I haven't heard any recent French hiphop, but I remember listening to MC Solaar when I used to live in the states. He's huge, right? Who's big these days?

    Who are the most played artists or songs on your music player right now?

  Basically, I listen to all new releases everyday, but what I'm playing the most these days are the new Big Sean, Magna Carta Holy Grail, and Kendrick Lamar.

    Out of all the songs you released so far, is there one specific track that makes you go « Wow... I’m really proud of this one »?

  I've got to say it's 'Pray' on the mixtape. People from my former label, including Sniper himself, called me up after listening to that track to tell me that they liked it. I wanted to compress all the positive energy I had into that track, and generate positivity for everybody. For me, them, and fans. Everybody. Oh yeah, and I made the music video for that track, too. I'm only a rapper, you know, so I'm really proud of that!

    Many musicians have that one thing that reminds them why they chose to follow this path. So what is your own fuel? What keeps you motivated everyday?

  This is what made me who I am today, and like I said in 'Survival', I just can't live without this. It's exciting to get feedback from fans saying that they were inspired, or that they were cheered up by my music. And that "high" I get when I'm on stage spitting my lyrics as all those people vibe with me, man, that's some good fuel. I could probably still breathe and eat doing something else, but I know I'll never feel this alive.

    Lastly, do you have a message for Under K-HipHop readers?

  It's fascinating to be able to reach out to people on the other side of the planet, and this was officially my first non-Korean interview. It's as if I just re-started my career now, you know, and I'm really thankful for all the support yall have showing me. It gives me strength to go on with what I have planned. I'm gonna keep coming out with new material, so I hope yall enjoy. Thank you.