[INTERVIEW] MC Mong - Part 2

10: Your fifth album definitely progressed in terms of sound. You placed electronic onto hip-hop and also used string and wind instruments depending on the song. But you managed to isolate the various sounds from each other.
Mong: That's right. I had four mixing engineers for my album and this could actually be a sensitive issue for them but the songs all had different propensities so I had no choice but to go with engineers who match the songs. I ended up mixing 'Indian Boy' six times. A lot of sounds were included in it but I didn't want any one of them to become buried under another so I was really careful.

10: Does this mean you are becoming more interested in how to perfect a song?
Mong: You can produce a thousand different types of drum sounds these days. I didn't know it in the past but I do now so my thoughts are becoming more complex. And before, I would stick to a theme once I get engrossed with it but nowadays, I talk a lot with the guys I work with. I had initially only thought of draculas for the song "Horror Show" too but we developed on the idea as we talked.

10: I think "Horror Show" expresses who you are right now the best. The layout of the song is very complex with the sound containing both rock and hip-hop. It also reminds me of a musical. I think you tried really hard to develop on that idea meticulously.
Mong: I really poured my heart and soul into it. And I've continuously been learning how to write songs. I felt the song would seem too plain if I kept repeating the same beat so I changed the melody at the end, gave a club-music type of feel to it in the middle and ended it like it would be played by a rock band. I wanted to create a single show with various layouts.

10: And I think that process created a song that expresses who you are. Just listening to the song reminds of a certain stage or something. Even a musical. And the way the beat is arranged seems trendy but is also quite different from how other hit songs are arranged these days.
Mong: Yes, I think that's the sort of music I can do in my current situation because that's what I'm interested in right now. I also thought a lot in terms of the trend because it's changing so fast that you can't ignore it. But all the songs become similar once you start following the trend. So I thought hard about how I could make my songs my own.

10: You also quite explicitly expressed your feelings in a lot of the album. Is this because you've become more sure of yourself? For example, you talk about yourself in the narration for your song about actress Choi Jin-shil who passed away. Have you become more brave?
Mong: I'm actually more scared but I talked about it anyway. It's like making the first move because you're scared of what will come at you. (laugh)

10: Why is that? Is it because you have more to lose? You didn't have much to lose in the past but you have a lot to lose now. (laugh)
Mong: I do have a lot. (laugh) Because I'm also head of my household I've become more cautious of what I do. And I'm not sure of myself yet although it's true I've become more at ease. But could that be called real happiness? In the past, I used to become happy over buying even the smallest thing after doing hard physical labor to make money. But now, no matter what I buy, I'm not sure if I'm really happy about it. I don't know. I don't know anything.

10: Do you feel much pressure about having to support your family or those around you?
Mong: There are so many people I have to take care of. My older brother is unemployed and I live with my mother. My dad has been living apart from my mom since their divorce but he has gone blind. I also have to think about the people at my company. I didn't listen to others opinions before but that's the first thing I do now. I've become very scared because I have so many people to take care of. I think I would do everything any way I wanted to if they didn't exist. But I think about so much even just thinking about my family.

10: It seems that they are just that much more special to you.
Mong: Yes, the stories in my music come from my relationship with them. They are pretty much my all right now. As a simple example, I enjoy giving my mom allowance rather than spending money on my own clothes and when I make more money than I expected, I share it with the people at my company. I'm not saying financial matters are unimportant, but that my perspective on life has changed a lot.

10: Then what is happiness to you?
Mong: I'm producing an album for some guys right now. And whether you believe it or not, I don't expect to make a lot of money from them. The reason I'm producing for them is because I want to the process of them discovering who they are. One of them used to be on hip-hop group People Crew and is back after suffering from an illness and another cried for three hours upon hearing he would get to make an album. That's how I was in the past. I think I would be happing being able to do something in shaping their lives. And I need to party like a mad man on stage. I think that's all.

10: What sort of person do you want to live as when you grow older?
Mong: My dream used to be running a convenient store. But there was a time I changed after doing music and making money. I wanted to run a business but I got cheated on so I've lost the greed for that but these days, I think more and more that I want to do whatever I want as long as I can take care of myself and my family. The first thing I want to do is go overseas to do volunteer work for about five years. I would experience a lot of things through that and share the love I have received so far. And when the time comes that I'm not sought for anymore by the broadcasters, I want to live as a songwriter. It may sound like I'm trying to sound cool but I think I'd be happy just writing the songs I want to write. Just write a song, sell it to make money to live by, sell another song. Like that. I'd be thankful to be able to live like that.

Senior Reporter : Kang Myoung-Seok two@10asia.co.kr
Photographer : Chae ki-won ten@10asia.co.kr
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr, Jang Kyung-Jin three@10asia.co.kr