‘What Do You Do When You Play?’ has announced the start of a music festival that revives the spirit of the 1980s.
On the 26th, the MBC entertainment program ‘What Do You Do When You Play?’ featured PD Yoo Jae-suk and writer Haha promoting the ‘80s MBC Seoul Music Festival’. The first blind audition preliminary round showcased a lineup from major stars whose voices are their fingerprints to hidden talents that captivated the audience, eliciting enthusiastic responses.
On this day, ‘What Do You Do When You Play?’ recorded a viewership rating of 4.2% in the metropolitan area. The key indicator of channel competitiveness and topicality, the 2049 viewership rating, recorded 2.5%, securing the top spot among all Saturday entertainment shows. The highest one-minute rating was during the scene where Yoo Jae-suk and Haha wrapped up the first preliminary round and called for additional applicants, peaking at 5.8% (Nielsen Korea metropolitan area standard).
Yoo Jae-suk and Haha transformed into a PD and writer, respectively, returning to the 80s to plan a new music festival that connects the college song festival, the Han River song festival, and the beach song festival that swept the television screens at that time. This music festival will only allow participation with songs from the 1980s and will proceed in a format that continues from the competition to the awards. Yoo Jae-suk and Haha stated, “We are looking for those who resonate with the 80s spirit. It has to have that 80s flavor,” eagerly searching for voices that can convey emotions that are hard to feel in 2025.
The audition preliminaries followed immediately. ‘Rolling Boy’ selected the iconic song ‘That’s My World (Deulgukhwa)’ that heralded the renaissance of Korean rock music, signaling the arrival of a talented contestant right from the start. Captivated by the solid vocalization and handsome silhouette reminiscent of a musical actor, Yoo Jae-suk exclaimed, “He looks handsome,” and declared him accepted. ‘Third Han River Bridge’ presented a reinterpretation of ‘Short Hair (Jo Yong-pil)’ and ‘To a Lady (Byun Jin-seop)’ with a female vocal. The gem-like timbre completely overturned concerns about the song choice, evoking admiration. Yoo Jae-suk remarked, “This is why I do music festivals. I wanted to find a voice like this,” while Haha shouted, “What a character!” and declared acceptance.
‘Nakwon Shopping Center’ selected ‘The Stars Are Falling (Travel Sketch)’, showcasing a poignant voice that led back to the 80s and received acceptance. ‘Submerged Bridge’, with a captivating timbre singing ‘Don’t Leave (Jeon Won-seok)’, prompted Yoo Jae-suk to say, “He captured the 80s spirit very well. He doesn’t seem like someone from these days,” while Haha speculated that the singer might be Jannabi’s Choi Jeong-hoon, raising curiosity. ‘New York Bakery’ sang ‘Spinning (Nami)’ and ‘Girl (Lee Moon-sae)’ with a soft and sweet voice like castella, earning acceptance.
‘Olympic Boulevard’ sang ‘To You Again (Byun Jin-seop)’ with a wide vocal range fitting the nickname, while ‘Sundori’ achieved acceptance by singing ‘Like Music Like Rain (Kim Hyun-sik)’ in an unusual position lying on the floor. ‘Midopa Department Store’, participating in a princess-style dress and white gloves, sang ‘Love is Like Rain Outside the Window (Yang Soo-kyung)’ tenderly and received acceptance. Yoo Jae-suk and Haha speculated that ‘Midopa Department Store’ had a healthy arm and guessed they might be an athlete, piquing their curiosity.
In particular, ‘Pimatgol’ showcased a presence known to all Koreans, embodying the phrase ‘voice is the genre’, raising expectations for the music festival. Yoo Jae-suk and Haha exclaimed, “This brother is coming here? What an honor,” as they accepted ‘Pimatgol’s’ refreshing voice singing ‘Wind Wind Wind (Kim Beom-ryong)’. ‘Daehan Theater’, which sang the first trot selection ‘No Government Blues (Kang Seung-mo)’, was revealed to be the legendary singer Jinseong and was eliminated for being a legend that could not be judged.
Familiar voices also appeared, bringing laughter and joy. ‘Namsan Tower’ sang ‘Gwanghwamun Love Song (Lee Moon-sae)’ with a voice that showed the passage of time, leading Yoo Jae-suk and Haha to guess it was actor Park Young-kyu, known as ‘Midari’s Dad’, and they withheld judgment. ‘Gongjak Shopping Center’ was recognized immediately with its familiar nasal voice and vibrato after just the first line. Yoo Jae-suk and Haha remarked, “Why cover your face, it’s Park Myung-soo,” and “I never imagined he would work this hard,” expressing their surprise at his passionate participation and also withheld judgment. Joo Woo-jae applied under the nickname ‘Pony’, and Lee Yi-kyung under ‘63 Building’, but Yoo Jae-suk and Haha evaluated, “Why is it so lacking?” and “The song is too depressing,” respectively, leading to their elimination.
The ‘80s MBC Seoul Music Festival’ evoked the 80s spirit that is hard to feel in 2025, providing the fun of deducing and finding the unique voices of the music festival. Applicants sent cassette tapes with recorded voices from 2025 to participate in the auditions, and their nicknames were also reminiscent of famous places or neighborhood names in Seoul, evoking nostalgia. The detailed direction that captured the emotions of the time, from subtitle fonts to audition screens, heightened viewer immersion.
As Yoo Jae-suk remarked, “There are really many great songs from the 80s,” the enjoyment of listening was abundant. Viewers responded with various comments such as, “It was nice to watch together with family on Saturday. Mom and Dad want to go to karaoke,” “Why do I feel nostalgia even though I’m not from the 80s?”, “A music festival hosted by Yoo Jae-suk, I trust it as always,” and “I feel like I discovered a hidden gem of a song.”
Meanwhile, the preview for the next broadcast showed Joo Woo-jae and Lee Yi-kyung, who were eliminated in the auditions, joining as junior writers, and conducting in-depth interviews with the preliminary holdovers ‘Namsan Tower’ and ‘Gongjak Shopping Center’, raising expectations and curiosity. MBC’s ‘What Do You Do When You Play?’ airs every Saturday at 6:30 PM.
[Kim So-yeon, Star Today Reporter]
