HYPNOSIS THERAPY wants to bring riches to Korea's underground music scene

“You can become rich through subculture.” Rapper Jjangyou delivered the line with the unvarnished confidence that has become central to HYPNOSYS THERAPY’s music: abrasive and determinedly unafraid of excess.

For the Seoul-based duo of Jjangyou and producer Jflow, the claim is not a rejection of underground ideals in favor of commercial calculation.

It is an argument for the survival of musicians whose work falls outside Korea’s pop mainstream and for building an ecosystem in which they can keep making music without being pushed out by financial insecurity. “We want to prove that you can make a living — even become successful and wealthy — through subculture,” Jjangyou said during an interview with The Korea Times at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. “If we can do that through this kind of music, I think it could give other people hope.” HYPNOSYS THERAPY will close Sejong Center’s contemporary performance season, Sync Next, with “Mushroom House: Techno” on Sept. 4 and “Mushroom House: Live” on Sept. 5 at the Sejong S Theater.

The duo sees the two-night p