"Umni, You're Awesome"... Average 85-Year-Old Chilgok Grandmas Hold Rap Battle Competition

Rapper Sleepy Appointed as Public Relations Ambassador for Chilgok Halmae Rapper

For the first time in Korea, a battle showcasing the skills of grandmother rapper groups took place in Chilgok-gun, Gyeongbuk.

On the 4th, Chilgok-gun held an appointment ceremony for the Chilgok Grandma Rapper Ambassadors, naming rapper Sleepy as the ambassador to promote the Chilgok Grandma Rapper groups ‘Boram Grandma Theater Troupe’ and ‘Suni and Chilgongju,’ and held a battle competition. The grandmother rappers then continued with a freestyle rap battle under the theme “When I was young in Waegwan.”

The Boram Grandma Theater Troupe and the rappers Suni and Chilgongju are battling at the Chilgok Grandma Rapper Group Battle Competition.
[Photo by Chilgok-gun]

Both groups are composed of eight-member grandmother rappers who learned Hangul late in life through adult literacy education and challenged themselves with rap.

‘Suni and 7 Gongju’ consists of grandmothers living in Sin4-ri, Jicheon-myeon, Chilgok-gun, Gyeongbuk. The grandmother rappers have an average age of 85, with the youngest at 75 and the oldest at 92. They are undoubtedly the oldest rappers in the world.

Before the competition, Chilgok-gun appointed rapper Sleepy, who had formed a bond with the grandmothers while teaching them rap, as the Chilgok Grandma Rapper Ambassador.

On the day, Sleepy even demonstrated raps containing the grandmothers’ life stories, bringing tears to his eyes. He also handed over a hat he received on an audition program to Kim Jae-wook, the mayor of Chilgok, to support the grandmothers.

Kim Jae-wook, the governor of Chilgok County, is appointing rapper Sleepy as the promotional ambassador for Chilgok Grandma Rapper and taking a commemorative photo. [Photo by Chilgok County]

Sleepy said, “From the Chilgok grandmothers, I was able to see my former self who appeared on the audition program,” and added, “I will do my best to help the grandmothers’ raps, which contain their lives and stories, be loved by many people.”

The battle between the grandmothers ended in a draw.

After the competition, Sleepy and the Chilgok Grandma Rappers performed together at the 0.5 Alley Festival held in the Waegwan old downtown area, delivering deep emotions to the many visitors at the festival.

On that day, the grandmothers transformed from cultural beneficiaries to providers, offering profound inspiration and resonance to the festival attendees.

Mayor Kim Jae-wook said, “The grandmother groups’ battle was held for the first time in Korea,” and added, “Through this competition, I hope Chilgok will be promoted and that the message of hope, that ‘you can do it’ like the elderly rapping past ninety, will be conveyed to the people.”

‘Suni and Chilgongju’ produced a music video wishing for the successful bid of the 2030 World Expo in Busan, contributing to the hosting campaign.
[Photo by Han Deok-su, Prime Minister, Facebook]

Earlier, ‘Suni and Chilgongju’ produced a music video wishing for the hosting of the 2030 World Expo in Busan, contributing to the bid. The approximately one-minute music video featured the village as the background and included lyrics praying for the Busan Expo bid. Wearing black and white sweatshirts, hats, headscarves, sunglasses, necklaces, and hip bags (small bags worn around the waist toward the hip), they fully embodied the atmosphere of ‘hip-hop musicians.’

‘Suni and Chilgongju’ comforted Saudi Arabia, a competing country for the Expo bid, saying, “Hey Saudi, not this time but next time.”

Netizens who watched the music video responded with comments such as “Grandma, you’re awesome,” “K (Korean) grandmas are so cool,” and “Youth is beautiful.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.