Famous South Korean hip-hop trio Epik High was working on a song called “End of the World” before the epidemic hit last year.
SEOUL – The famous South Korean hip-hop trio Epik High were working on a song called “End of the World” before the epidemic hit last year. Now, Tablo’s frontman says, “I wish this song wasn’t relevant.”
His group had 2020 planned out, from the Coachella show to a global tour. Then early last year, Tablo said he and bands Mithra Jin and DJ Tukutz saw their plans “completely become dusty.”
With the world sharing their feelings of “fear, confusion and trembling,” the group stayed home to record the moment in songs, making a new double album with the name “Epik High Is Here.”
The first half released features a collection of 10 songs featuring a diverse roster of artists including heavyweight K-pop CL, rising rapper Woo and singer and songwriter Kim Sawol. a song from South Korea.
Tablo said that one of his favorite songs on the album “Rosario,” is one of two major tracks, which show duality in his inner world – and perhaps this level in the pandemic. “I have a demon that I can’t shake off,” he said. “But at the same time, I’m very optimistic.”
He said the trio put a lot of thought into the flow of the album, balancing it with a mix of “dark and very hard” songs and those that take “a minute to breathe.” The ups and downs reflect the band’s career.
Epik High has had a long career spanning nearly two decades in South Korea’s competitive entertainment scene. They did not immediately gain fame on their first official tour in 2003, but the trio soon revived the improved hip-hop scene in South Korea.
Their music was varied, with an experimental mix of genres, skilfully weaving poetic words in English and Korean, a growing punchlines with pseudonyms, and dense rhymes. The band has a knack for composing songs on happy subjects in South Korea, from the white-collar work culture, an overly competitive education system to religion – highlighted on their “Lesson” series.
By 2010, the trio had reached home albums and won several awards. Tablo married the famous actress Kang Hye-jung and was expecting a baby.
Then, his career was interrupted by the spread of online rumors that he was telling lies about graduating from Stanford. At the time, South Korea was reeling from scandalous diplomatic scandals involving government officials and celebrities.
As rumors began to make headlines, more than 200,000 people signed up for an online group called “TaJinYo,” a Korean acronym for “We Want the Truth From Tablo.” ”South Koreans began flooding boxes into Stanford professors wondering if Tablo had really graduated. He had.
Tablo said his family began receiving death threats. Strangers hit the family home and workplaces. On the street, he was recognized and humiliated. Even close friends turned their backs.
To clear his name, he returned to his alma mater with a camera crew in tow while touring school and visiting professors and friends again. His last name was a twist.
Tablo describes the three years of online and offline harassment and litigation as the “lowest point” of his career. His father, whose health had deteriorated by the weight of the scandal, died in 2012.
“The problem is … I lost someone who can’t be changed,” he said. “I lost my father… just because of what people did… for no reason. ”
Tablo says the scandal still worries him. “It’s been a long time coming, yes, but I can’t be okay with it and that will affect everything I do,” he said. “There’s a hole that can’t be filled.”
Despite bittersweet words, Tablo said that the name of the new album – “Epik High is Here” – represents his desire to live in the present day.
“Perhaps the map we drew years ago was just to show us the vastness of this world, and just how many of us are lost – together – in it,” Tablo wrote of the first page of the new album pack. “Whatever the case, this is where we are now. ”
“Epik High is Here” is now available.