Show Me The Money Episode 5 : 2 Round (Part 2) + Lee Hyori Special Stage

Mnet’s hip-hop variety Show Me The Money continues at a fast pace. The fifth episode aired on July 20th and not just completed the second round but also saw the start of the third round. In addition to myself Youngmi of Helloooo Motherland! Reset and Sangha of strangeseasons have shared their opinions on this episode.


 

45RPM

Preparations

Anna: Korean 80’s pop for the win! I can totally see this become an awesome hip-hop track. And that summer feeling they’re talking about should. Lee Jae Hoon seems to be having some problems in the studio.

Youngmi: Uh oh 45RPM seems to be disappointed in Lee Jae Hoon’s performance in the studio. He definitely needs to step up his game!

Sangha: Lee Jae Hoon has the cutest smile though, at least he has that going for him…

Performance – “아름다워” (Yun Soo Il cover)

Anna: They’re really going all out with the summer theme, having dancing girls on sunloungers. Zion.T gets introduced as a super rookie before delivering some smooth vocals. 45RPM are doing it really well and have the summer feel down. Lee Jae Hoon doesn’t seem as comfortable on stage as he should be. And wait? Is that Lee Byung Ryong flying onto the stage? So that’s what they were planning! 45RPM has become a trio again! Good for him!

Youngmi: This cover is really energetic just like 45RPM! I can really appreciate the lightheartedness as it suits well with the summer theme and– whoh whoh whoh what’s Lee Byung Ryong doing there?! Did not see that coming! It must’ve been a surprise to Lee Jae Hoon as well because he looks more than a little uncomfortable. In fact, I think he failed to shine either because he didn’t get a chance to (with three other rappers on stage) or he just wasn’t cutting it. His part definitely wasn’t memorable for me. Fun performance overall.

Sangha: I liked this performance a lot! Definitely more memorable than last week. Zion.T sounds good! And Lee Byung Ryong…! That was such a surprise. Lee Jae Hoon did pretty well, I liked his rap.

New Member

Anna: I thought they’d pick him as their rookie and then after the show let him get back in the group, but this was a very nice surprise. Good for Lee Jae Hoon too, as he got a chance to show his worth on the show. No episode of Show Me The Money is complete without Lee Byung Ryong crying, it seems.

Youngmi: Looks like Lee Jae Hoon had no idea that Lee Byung Ryong would be performing alongside with them. What a tough and awkward position to be in! You get chosen over someone and then that guy becomes an official member of the pro hip hop group that you’re working with. Weird. Well, I commend 45RPM for giving Lee Byung Ryong another chance though.

Sangha: This is such a surprise! 45RPM says that they’ve been planning this all along. Such a plot twist, whoa. I still can’t get over it… I wonder how the other ‘pro’ rappers will take this?

Money: ₩ 1,250,000

Anna: I’m cracking up when Lee Hyun Bae tells Lee Byung Ryong “Don’t cry!” after Eun Ji Won asks him something on stage. That’s a decent enough score, I think. Now Park Jae Jin fakes crying instead. “45-cry-PM”. I love it!

Sangha: Haha yeah, that bit was really funny.

 

Verbal Jint

Preparations

Anna: The “romantic rapper” looks like he needs some help cleaning up around the house. “Breathe” is one of my favorite K-pop songs in recent years so I’m really excited to see him take it on. Rhymer asks why he sings. Because that’s what Verbal Jint does when covering K-pop? I see Rhymer’s point though, this being a show for rappers and all. And Ko Young Bin actually seems to be doing well. I knew I could trust Verbal!

Youngmi: I was a little surprised with this song choice! And I’m a little worried that VJ isn’t planning on rapping at all even though it’s a rap competition. Leaving it all to Ko Young Bin doesn’t seem like the best idea.

Sangha: Ooh, not sure how well this will go. Unfortunately I’m not a big fan of this song, and VJ choosing to sing instead of rap? Not sure how well that will go with the crowd. And Ko Young Bin seems confident, but I’m not sure how much he’ll help…

Performance – “Breathe” (miss A cover)

Anna: I love the original which usually means I’m disapproving of any remakes, but I think Verbal Jint has been doing quite well here. I also like that he’s singing himself, until miss A’s Min get on stage that is so he can get started with his rapper duties. Ko Young Bin has taken the alias WEB and he gets to do a bit of beatboxing before rapping. He seems so much better than last week. Is Miryo regretting her decision to let him go now? Although I suspect he wouldn’t have improved this much if he’d still been with her.

Youngmi: I was really disappointed with VJ and this performance. There wasn’t any rapping until halfway into the performance. I felt it was just Min and VJ attempting to sing the song properly. Even when Ko Young Bin entered and started rapping I felt it wasn’t strong enough to be memorable. Rap wasn’t the main focus of this performance and that was unfortunate.

Sangha: Not impressed at all with this performance. The arrangement seemed messy, VJ really should’ve left the singing to Min (although she doesn’t sound all that great, either…) and rapped instead because this performance felt so dead to me. Ko Young Bin didn’t impress me much either. Overall, disappointing…

Money: ₩ ?

Anna: It can’t be that bad? The money meter was ticking up to 350,000 just before Ko Young Bin entered the stage.

Sangha: Verbal Jint looks crushed! I wonder how bad it is?

 

Audience Vote

Anna: So that’s what’s added to the score? The audience gets to vote for who should get eliminated? Or is the elimination vote the only one that counts?

Sangha: The audiences get to vote their one favourite, and the crew to get the least votes is eliminated. The ‘scores’ (the money) is just the amount of actual money the crews get for that performance, and has no impact on who gets eliminated or not. Right? The format of this show can be confusing sometimes…

 

Personal Picks

Anna: 1) MC Sniper, 2) Verbal Jint, 3) 45RPM, 4) Garion, 5) Double K, 6) Joosuc, 7) Miryo

Youngmi: 1) MC Sniper 2) Double K 3) Garion 4) 45 RPM 5) Joosuc 6) Verbal Jint 7) Miryo

Sangha: 1) MC Sniper 2) Garion 3) 45RPM 4) Joosuc 5) Double K 6) Verbal Jint 7) Miryo

 

The Results

Crew
Miryo 1,850,000
Double K 1,800,000
Joosuc 1,100,000
MC Sniper 2,050,000
Garion 550,000
45RPM 1,250,000
Verbal Jint 650,000

Anna: That much for Miryo? I thought for sure she’d get the lowest score after messing up so bad last week. Verbal Jint deserved so much more than that.

Youngmi: REALLY surprised that Miyro got as much as she did and still upset that Garion got less than VJ.

Sangha: Still can’t get over how low Garion’s score is and how high Miryo’s is. Unacceptable that Miryo got so much, when she messed up so badly during her performance…

Restart Rule

Anna: So apparently if you restart your performance only 50% of what you get actually counts? Seems sorta fair to me. At least it’s not as harsh as I Am A Singer’s brutal disqualification in the same situation. Or is it an open discussion? Garion’s Lee Hyun Bae seems to be arguing for direct elimination. Verbal Jint talks about a handicap in the next performance.

Youngmi: I think they just made this rule specifically because of Miryo’s performance. It seems fair for Miryo to take responsibility but they didn’t know how to give such a penalty which is why they asked for opinions. In the end, Miryo decides how to punish herself thus cutting down her votes by 50%.

 

First Place: MC Sniper

Anna: Well deserved!

Youngmi: MC Sniper and MC Loco are on a roll! I love these two together!

Sangha: I love this crew and I loved the performance, well-deserved! I’m so excited to see more from Kwon Hyuk Woo.

 

Bottom Two: Joosuc & Verbal Jint

Anna: Joosuc up for elimination two weeks in a row? If he gets to stay he needs to rethink what he’s doing. I had hoped to see Miryo here in place of Verbal Jint. Not so much for the messup as for putting on a bad performance, although I am glad we’ll get to see more of her on the show. Although I would like to see Joosuc go, I don’t think Kim Jung Hoon deserves it.

Youngmi: I can’t believe Joosuc is up for elimination again. How bad must Kim Jung Hoon feel. Joosuc even admits that he believes that it’s his fault and not Jung Hoon’s. I hope he doesn’t lose confidence because in my opinion he’s one of the strongest rookie rappers on the show (and my favorite if that counts for anything :P). I was expecting VJ to be in the bottom although I really do want him to stay in the competition.

Sangha: Where is Miryo here?? She got 50%  of her score cut down and still managed to avoid the bottom two? And surprised that Joosuc is there again, because Kim Jung Hoon did so well during their performance.

 

Eliminated: Verbal Jint

Anna: No!!!!! I wanted to see him win this and he’s out already after the second episode? Not fair. Maybe the audience thought he experimented too much with the arrangement.

Youngmi: I’m sad to see VJ go but the performance he gave wasn’t doing it for me. A lot of missing pieces (and bars) but he gave it his all so much love to him!

Sangha: Not surprised that he got eliminated out of the two, but still sad to see him go. I thought he had a lot to offer to the show (more variety in style is always nice)… But let’s be real, I’m kind of glad that Ko Young Bin is eliminated.

 

New Rapper Teams

Anna: More twists? This time the rookie rappers will get to wish for a pro rapper to work with. I wonder how they decided who goes first.

Youngmi: The pro rappers get to vote on which rookie rapper they like the best and the most popular one gets to go first. So, the most popular rookie rapper among the pros is….. Illtong?????

 

Illtong picks Joosuc

Anna: Neither Miryo nor Joosuc are very fond of Illtong and his style of rap. This should make sure to get both of them eliminated, and with Illtong being the rookie rapper I’m the least impressed with and Joosuc being the pro rapper I dislike the most they somehow make the perfect team for me.

Youngmi: Illtong is a definite no-no for Joosuc but alas we can’t always get what we want huh? Joosuc’s face when Illtong chooses him though LOL.

Sangha: ouch, not sure how this will go. Glad that Kim Jung Hoon’s finally free from the danger zone that is Joosuc’s crew though…

 

Kim Jung Hoon picks Double K

Anna: He gave Joosuc a second chance, now he’s able to move on. Good for him.

Youngmi: The second most popular rookie rapper is indeed Kim Jung Hoon! I’m so glad he chose Double K! I’m really excited for what’s to come next week. It’s time for Jung Hoon to work with someone new and get that confidence back! I trust Double K can bring a lot out of him!

Sangha: Yes! I like this combination. They both have a lot of swagger and I’m so pumped for their performance! Hopefully Kim Jung Hoon will be able to score better now that he’s with Double K.

 

Lee Jae Hoon picks Garion

Anna: Garion did not want Lee Jae Hoon, but Lee Jae Hoon really wanted to work with them.

Youngmi: Lee Jae Hoon says from the start that he knows that none of the pro rappers want him. Gotta appreciate the honesty lol. Although, MC Sniper is nice enough to compliment on his passion Garion is very clear that they do not want to work with him. Ah…. Garion’s disappointed faces :(

Sangha: Another dangerous combination here, Garion doesn’t seem pleased at all.

 

Cheeta picks Miryo

Anna: Now this is something I’m very happy to see!

Youngmi: It’s about time they work together! I’m definitely curious!

Sangha: Fantastic. Miryo seems thrilled as well, I can already see this being an awesome stage.

 

Kwon Hyuk Woo picks 45RPM

Anna: Wait, what is this? Why does he not want to continue working with MC Sniper after they’ve been doing so well? Or does he see a better chance develop his skill under 45RPM, now that he’s already done the MC Sniper thing a couple of times? With three rappers already in 45RPM I don’t see how he’ll get a lot of own stage time.

Youngmi: Eh?? MC Sniper’s surprised that’s for sure. Maybe Kwon Hyuk Woo thinks he has enough room to play around a bit and seize the opportunity to work with someone new. 45 RPM has a very different vibe from MC Sniper so I’m curious as to see how it will work out. It seems like it’ll be difficult for Kwon Hyuk Woo to really stand out as there are 3 other rappers to perform with. What is this kid doing? Hmmmm

Sangha: Ah my boy Loco! Not sure how this will work out for him, but I’m not too sad about it. MC Sniper did wonders to bring out Kwon’s charm but it’s about time he moves onto different challenges. Hopefully this will be a worthy challenge for him, though.

 

TakeOne ends up with MC Sniper

Anna: I’m expecting this to work about as well as MC Sniper and Kwon Hyuk Woo.

Youngmi: First of all, TakeOne is definitely hur because he was chosen last LOL. In fact, Kwon Hyuk Woo and TakeOne didn’t get any votes at all! Very surprising to say the least. I think he will do well with MC Sniper.

Sangha: Interesting combination. TakeOne and his ego though, is this going to become routine on the show?

 

Ahead of 3 Round

Anna: I’m surprised at how they’ve edited this show. I’d thought it would make sense to keep the rounds separated and wasn’t expecting to see anything of the third round until the next episode. Why the rush?

Youngmi: I’m really surprised by the pacing too. It all seems really thrown together without much thought.

 

Lee Hyori Mission


Lee Hyori is a fan of Show Me The Money and will now make a special stage together with the rookie rappers on the show. After training their own rap the rookie rappers all get to show their skills in front of her.

Anna: TakeOne does not seem very happy about the mission. Rap training in front of a mirror? Never thought that’s the way to do it, but I suppose it helps to bring out the right attitude. Clever! All seem to be doing well in front of Lee Hyori.

Youngmi: I think this mission is so random. To be honest, I love Lee Hyori except as a singer/entertainer. And I most definitely don’t see her as a hip hop artist thus confusing me even more as to why she’s featured on the show. However, the rookie rappers seem over the moon about it! Don’t be too nervous boys!

Sangha: Fascinating. I guess this will keep the show in the news for a while, and I’m sure that’s what they targeted too. Lee Hyori says that she’s not a hip-hop artist but she’s always been fond of the genre and thought this could be a great experience. She seems like such a lovely individual.

 

Lee Hyori Songs

Lee Hyori pairs all the rookie rappers with one of her songs and they get to audition again before rapping together with Lee Hyori as they work on the choreography:

  • Kim Jung Hoon: “Love Sign”
  • Illtong: “Hey Girl”
  • Kwon Hyuk Woo: “Want Me Back”
  • Cheeta: “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”
  • TakeOne: “Scandal”
  • Lee Jae Hoon: “Unusual”

Anna: I like this. Especially when they got in the room with Lee Hyori and the dancers there were many funny moments. Illtong seems so cute all of a sudden.

Youngmi: Oh Kim Jung Hoon! He’s too adorable acting all shy like that in front of Hyori.

Sangha: Kim Jung Hoon is hilarious, I was actually laughing out loud when he just stands there nodding at Lee Hyori.

 

“100 Percent” + “Want Me Back” + “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”

Anna: Wow! Kwon Hyuk Woo is doing “Want Me Back” so well with her, both rap and stage wise. There’s not the same dynamics between Lee Hyori and Cheeta on “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”, but then it might not be the song for it either. Oh, and Cheeta gets to do some Hyori style dancing and even pulls it off! She will so get picked up by some management company by the end of this!

Youngmi: Hyori always manages to look good! I just can’t get into her music so please excuse my bias. However, I think Kwon Hyuk Woo and Hyori work really well together! Pleasantly surprised!

Sangha: Lee Hyori might not be the best singer or the best rapper (definitely not the best rapper…) but you can’t deny that she has phenomenal stage presence! Kwon Hyuk Woo was fantastic in their collaboration, they had such great chemistry despite the short length of the performance. And I’m really beginning to like him as a lyricst. And Cheeta was fabulous! She was perfect for this arrangement and did so well. She also has a great stage presence, I’m really beginning to like her as a performer.

 

Lee Hyori: “Scandal” + “Unusual”

Anna: It took a while before TakeOne got to join in on “Scandal” and when he does he doesn’t sound as good as usual with the rap being on the slower side. He doesn’t look very good together with Lee Hyori either. Lee Jae Hoon doesn’t do much better with “Unusual”

Youngmi: I felt both performances were a miss. There wasn’t as good of a chemistry as the other rappers. I felt these two are just really forgettable.

Sangha: TakeOne was definitely not into it. Not impressed by both performances, with Lee Jae Hoon being forgettable like usual…

 

Lee Hyori: “Love Sign” + “Hey Girl”

Anna: There he is, Kim Jung Hoon, her favorite beforehand and picked for “Love Sign” because of his sexiness. Lee Hyori even messes up a bit when he puts his arm over her shoulder. For a while I thought Kim Jung Hoon looked a bit awkward on stage, but by the end of it I loved what I saw. And Illtong in “Hey Girl”? This is the first time we hear him sound this good!

Youngmi: Aw this was cute. I liked the interactions between the two and Kim Jung Hoon seems nervous at first but ends up just enjoying himself! He needs to bring it like this more often! Pleasantly surprised by Illtong as well.

Sangha: Kim Jung Hoon’s voice suits this song so well! Kim Jung Hoon is so awkward in the beginning of the performance, but ah, he’s so cute. He slowly warms up though, and does a fantastic job during his rap solo. Lee Hyori seems like he can’t take him seriously at all. Illtong sounds better here, but I still feel like he doesn’t have much flow to his rap.

 

Lee Hyori: “10 Minutes”

Anna: All the rookie rappers get to share the stage with Lee Hyori at the same time for “10 Minutes”. Seeing the trailers for Lee Hyori’s appearance on the show I was very skeptical, but in retrospect it was a genius move. I’m not at all as familiar with her repertoire as I should be, but she really brought out the best in some of the rookie rappers.

Youngmi: It was a fun way to end everything, bringing everyone together. I’m sure the rookie rappers really appreciated Hyori taking the time to work with them. I admit I was surprised to see how well some rookie rappers fit so well with Hyori on stage.

Sangha: I lliked this Lee Hyori special, too! Added a bit more dynamic to the show, and also gave the rookie rappers more chance to shine, which is always good.

 

Special Stage Mission Results

Lee Hyori together with 199 members of the audience votes for who did the best. The results determine the order in which the rappers get to decide starting numbers for the next round.

1. Kwon Hyuk Woo
2. Illtong
3. Cheeta
4. Kim Jung Hoon
5. TakeOne
6. Lee Jae Hoon

Anna: The results resonate very well with what I thought of their performances. Kwon Hyuk Woo and Lee Hyori were so good together they need to make an official collaboration.

 

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