Korean-American hip-hop star Yoon Mi-rae is back with a new album, ‘Gemini II’
Yoon, dubbed ‘rap queen’, was one of the first singers to bring the American hip-hop style to Korea, and has just released a new album – her first in 16 years
It was in the late 1990s when hip-hop artists began to emerge in Korea. For the first time, the term “rapper” made sense in the K-pop music scene. Korean hip-hop was roughly classified into two groups: mainstream and indie.
The former appeared on television and sold hundreds of thousands of albums, whereas the latter put together mixtapes and performed in clubs in downtown Seoul.
Yoon Mi-rae, then known as Tasha of hip-hop act Uptown, was one of the first hip-hop singers who brought the American hip-hop style to Korea. At that time, the Korean-American singer born to an African-American father and Korean mother wandered around bars and clubs to act as a “fill in” between shows. At that time hip-hop was not well received in Korea, so production staff didn’t treat her well.
“Back then, many people thought rappers were all gangsters. Thankfully, things have changed over time,” said Yoon during a press conference at YES24 Live Hall in eastern Seoul on Thursday.
Today the hip-hop scene in Korea has become mainstream, bigger than any other music genre, thanks to the popularity of music reality shows such as Show Me the Money, Unpretty Rapstar and High School Rapper. K-pop idols such as BigBang, BTS and Monsta X were musically inspired by hip-hop.
Dubbed “rap queen” since her debut 21 years ago, Yoon is officially back with a 12-song album, “Gemini II”, her first in 16 years. Her songs cover issues, ranging from complaints about her husband to affection for her son, the power of women, freedom and inner peace. “I wanted to show everything as it is and sing my own story,” said Yoon.
The track You & Me is a neo-soul based urban pop genre that tells the story of how friendship turns into love. “The song itself is about romance but its music video is centred on showing different facets of love, surpassing race and sexual preference,” she said.
Another lead song Thin Lines is an R&B hip-hop track that expresses true love in a marriage. Yoon co-wrote the lyrics with her rapper husband, Tiger JK, to give a realistic yet witty impression of love in marriage.
Cookie is a warm-hearted love song dedicated to her son, Jordan. “Cookie” is a nickname for Jordan, according to Yoon. “Actresses and singers tend to be forgotten as they get older,” she said. “But at least I wanted to be honest about becoming a wife and mother rather than deceiving my age to look young and sexy.”