Translator: MarcTempest
Editor: Rxel
Chapter 215
Lemon Entertainment PR Team.
As the first broadcast of PBS’s Challenge, Legendary Song Discovery Team! was approaching, Assistant Manager Hong Seoyoung, who was monitoring the internet, frowned.
‘What the hell.’
It was because of the posts that popped up on the idol community.
-New Black, who is scheduled to appear on the competition show, recent live.youtube
-New Black’s vocal skills that are being criticized now
-Newbie idol who is accused of slacking off on practiceThere were negative posts everywhere.
She was incredulous.
‘How dare they question our kids’ live performance?’
There was no way they could say they couldn’t do it, even as a joke.
But the internet atmosphere was different.
-Wow… Didn’t they promote themselves with their singing skills at first?
-They used too much AR
-Their skills are exposed in the live performance
-I thought they were good at singing because they were in a competition this time…? They sound like they would crack if that was their usual levelㅋ
It was as if they were saying that they had slacked off in practice and lost their skills. Or they were doubting if they had the talent to compete in the first place.
It was a ridiculous story.
But it was the video of the event on Saturday, when the members had bad throat conditions and had to rely on a lot of AR.
And because the sound system was uneven, they ended up doing a live performance on Sunday, and it looked plausible when they posted the fancam as evidence.
“What are you looking at?”
Nam Seokwoo, the deputy, stuck his head out from behind the partition.
Assistant Manager Hong answered briefly.
“Someone’s writing a bad article about our kids.”
“What’s there to criticize about New Black? I might understand if it’s about plagiarism. But there’s really nothing.”
“Look at this.”
“Oh, it’s really about plagiarism.”
Deputy Nam chuckled.
“A controversy over their singing skills. That’s the most absurd and funny thing I’ve heard recently.”
Deputy Nam spoke admiringly as he skimmed through the article and the comments.
“The Soufflés are really something else. Look at them fighting back with their comments. But…”
“The other side is too strong.”
In the real-time controversy posts, the fans of New Black were showing their fighting spirit.
-They’ve been famous for their vocal skills since their debut, what nonsense are they talking about
-Don’t they see how the other idols are in bad condition after the Dolympics? They keep trying to rig it
-((((New Black))))
-Why do I have to waste my precious weekend on this kind of forced controversy… I’m so angry I’m rolling back and forth
Soufflé was the rookie group with the largest scale and much more fans than any third-year idol group.
But it was not enough to stop all those who had been looking down on New Black until now.
It was because the other side was stubborn and ignorant.
No matter how much they explained and uploaded the fancams, the other fans acted like they didn’t know and left comments as if they were ordinary people.
Deputy Nam bit his tongue.
“New Black is really hot. When they entered the top tier with Scarlet, the Girls on Top fans went crazy. Most of the rumors about them came out then.”
“But back then, the fight was more even. Now we’re losing too much.”
“That means there were a lot of people who had been waiting for them all this time.”
Assistant Manager Hong nodded silently.
The purpose of the post that was circulating in the idol community was to check New Black.
The Rookie Award grand slam.
The rookie idol group that beat the top boy group TNT and won first place in the last week of the month.
They became a hot topic every time they appeared on major variety shows, and now they were about to become regulars on a weekend terrestrial broadcast competition program.
It was the result of what they had achieved in less than nine months since their debut last June.
But as the light was brighter, the shadows were bigger. Those who had been jealous of them all along were hiding here and there, and slowly coming out one by one.
Just like now.
Deputy Nam asked, “Who do you think is writing those comments right now? TNT? Or other rookie idol fans?”
“I think it’s both.”
TNT fans had a stake in it, too, after losing the first place to New Black and hearing the decline rant. But they were joined by those who had been sending jealous glances at them.
It was a festive atmosphere, more than the truth of the matter, because they had something to tease them about.
Honestly, among those who wrote the comments, there was no one who really thought New Black was bad. They were a group that made headlines with their skills at last year’s awards and year-end stages.
“Well, it’s not necessarily a bad thing to see it…”
“Right. It’s proof that our kids have entered the mainstream for real.”
The truth was, they could always make something to tease them. Just one capture of their expression can cause a controversy in nanoseconds.
But until now, there was no need for that.
New Black’s recognition and popularity were rather low.
The reason why it came out at this time was because New Black is on the rise and becoming mainstream.
Meanwhile, unlike the Soufflés who were fighting in the comments, the promotion team staff were laughing.
“I don’t get it…”
Assistant Manager Hong snorted.
“Why are they promoting us?”
“Exactly. This is free publicity.”
The more they provoke them like this, the more other idol fans would watch the show to see how good they were.
And when the first round results come out, all the work they were doing in the idol community would backfire.
They were genuinely curious about the expressions of those who were writing comments with excitement when New Black beat Cha Woohyun and Jo Yuri Band and became first.
“Well, I get it.”
Deputy Nam chuckled.
“They write these posts because they don’t think New Black will do well in the competition. If they knew we would be first, they would never write them.”
They were known as talented rookie idols, but their skills were not as highly rated as their performance in the Song Discovery Team.
This would change their image once and for all.
“How’s the general public’s reaction?”
“It seems like only the idol community is talking. It’s a storm in a teacup, you know. The public doesn’t have any expectations anyway.”
The general public was quiet, contrary to the idol community where the bashing was going on.
It was because they had no expectations for their skills.
Of course, there were some who were unhappy with the fact that idols were appearing, but that would change after the first round.
Nam smiled and said, “You should prepare too. It’s going to be busy when the kids go on air.”
“Of course.” She smiled and said, “The problem is time…”
The first broadcast this Sunday was the story of New Black members finding Teacher Noh Jaehyun and discovering a masterpiece.
The first round broadcast was the next Sunday.
It was a pity that they had to wait a week until then.
‘I’m worried about the kids’ mental state.’
She heard that the members saw the post and wondered if they were okay.
Click.
The office door opened and Director Yoon Seokhwan came in. The man with his usual calm face came straight to them.
“I got a call. Nothing happened, right?”
“Yes, we’re being polite, but it doesn’t seem like a problem that needs a special response. Just a day or two of noise.” She asked, “By the way, how are the kids? Are they okay?”
“Yes.” Director Yoon smiled and said, “They were a bit dumbfounded, but they didn’t seem to care much. They were only worried about the fans.”
“I’m glad. I was worried.”
“But…”
But?
“After that, the kids seemed to be a bit feverish…”
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“They worked harder…”
“More than usual?”
She was momentarily stunned by the words that they worked harder than usual, when they already gave their all to every schedule.
“…”
“…”
She flipped through the calendar and asked, “Today is that, right? The emoticon shooting.”
“Yes, the shooting site atmosphere was no joke until a while ago.”
“…”
She had a vague idea of what the shooting site was like.
***
“Shall we go one more time, Director?”
“Uh, that…”
“Shall we try a different pose this time? Like this.”
“Uh… um… haven’t we taken more than ten shots already?”
Woojoo voiced his opinion as he monitored the video with the director.
At first, the director was pleased with their enthusiasm, saying ‘You’re so passionate!’ But now, he looked at them with a slightly bored eye.
Woojoo turned his head to the four minions.
“What do you guys think?”
His siblings answered right away.
“Hyung, you need to put more soul into it when you say ‘I love you’. Think of the camera as your lover.”
“Hyung, you have to remember the size of the emoticon. Your movements should be smaller to look prettier. How about narrowing your arm angle a bit when you do the hand kiss?”
Woojoo listened to their opinions once and then looked at the director.
“How about this?”
“Uh, sure…”
The director agreed, thinking that most of the feedback was acceptable, and then they did a retake.
Today’s shooting was for making messenger emoticons.
They posed without hesitation in front of the green screen set up in the center of the studio, prepared for the emoticons.
“Woojoo Hyung, your heart is thumping!”
“Thump!”
As his siblings cheered, he posed in front of the camera, pretending that his heart was thumping… no, pounding.
According to the script, the text ‘My heart is racing…!’ would be added to this emoticon.
They planned to release their emoticons in two ways.
First, they would release the ones with poses like this.
Then, they would edit and release the funny scenes that happened in the reality show. The second one was planned to be released around this summer, but he wasn’t sure exactly.
They just did their best for the given task.
“Rihyuk!”
“Our red-eared chief is doing great!”
As Woojoo reminded him of the time when he wore the Stone Age costume, Rihyuk gave them a tingling look.
He would also come out as an emoticon with a ‘tingle’ and a wink.
The rest of the siblings also did their shooting.
Junghyun took a shot of him clapping with a stern face, and Bijoo made a ‘sob’ face.
Whenever one of them took a shot, the other four gathered and monitored it diligently.
Woojoo stretched with a satisfied smile.
“Ah, it feels good to work and relieve some stress.”
“Right? Now, let’s go eat some spicy rice cakes or something after we finish. Spicy food, anyone?”
“No.” Woojoo shook his head. “Let’s eat spicy rice cakes after we finish our schedule in Shanghai tomorrow. If you want something spicy, I’ll buy you hot pot.”
“Hot pot…!”
Their youngest spread his wings of happy imagination in his head. Then he put his hand on Woojoo’s shoulder and rubbed it.
“Ah…”
“Hyung. How about we eat spicy rice cakes today and hot pot tomorrow?”
“No. …Hey, are you trying to cheat me with your rubbing?”
Woojoo frowned as the youngest started to squeeze him hard.
But what could he do?
His shoulders were already as tense as Kim Deoksoon’s. He wanted to brag to his grandmother… No, she would scold him if he told her.
Woojoo was stressed too, and he craved something spicy, but they had to leave the country early tomorrow morning.
They couldn’t go to the airport with a swollen face like a steamed bun.
The guy who failed to get his permission flashed his eyes at Bijoo.
“Bijoo Hyung, can I have just one piece of tteokbokki…?”
“Do you want me to make you royal court tteokbokki for dinner?”
“…”
Woojoo laughed at the sight of their youngest closing his mouth.
Meanwhile, in the center of the studio, Junghyun was doing a great job with the emoticons.
He was good. Their beetle.
“Puhaha!”
They all burst into laughter at Junghyun’s ‘serious’ expression as he made a V sign.
The weekend schedule was an overseas showcase.
It was the second time they presented our New Black to the foreign audience, following Taiwan.
This time, the stage was Shanghai.
“Wow!”
They took a plane at dawn and arrived in the morning, and hundreds of people were waiting for them at Pudong International Airport.
“Hello!”
They greeted the overseas Soufflés with joy.
“Ah!”
“Be careful!”
…It was hard.
Some people suddenly grabbed their bags or luggage. Woojoo almost had his arm caught by someone too.
Like in Taiwan, they were distracted by the hands that flew from everywhere as they greeted them.
Thankfully, they were able to get out safely with the help of the local security.
“Wow…”
Woojoo was amazed by the heat that he felt from the airport.
Taiwan was like that too. And here, they had more fans than they thought.
It wasn’t strange to have hundreds of people gather considering the population, but it was nice to get such a response even without any special overseas activities.
With that in mind, they busily went through the schedule on Saturday and Sunday.
They did a photo shoot and an interview for a fashion magazine.
They met with an entertainment news program from Shanghai TV and did an interview, and on another regional broadcast, they went around and ate the famous foods here with the guests.
There were quite a few appearances and events that were usually possible only with Chinese members, but they were possible because of Woojoo’s fluent Chinese.
“Did you live in China, Woojoo? You’re so good at it…?”
“You look like a Chinese, too.”
“Why did you learn Chinese?”
Woojoo said he had learned Chinese because he wanted to work in the world, and they nodded, saying, ‘Chinese is essential after all.’
Woojoo just smiled silently.
His younger brothers were also able to have simple conversations, so they were able to get a lot of content from the local broadcast.
After finishing the busy events on Saturday, they had a showcase with the Chinese fans at a fairly large concert hall on Sunday afternoon.
It was similar to the one in Taiwan.
They had a Q&A time and an event, and after Junghyun’s prepared rap performance and Bijoo’s solo dance, Woojoo sang Starlight, arranged in the local version, as the finale.
“…Wow.”
In the hotel room, Woojoo was busy working on the songs with his laptop or practicing the competition songs with his brothers.
“When did we get here?”
Woojoo came to his senses and he was on the plane.
He shared a strange feeling with his brothers.
“I feel like my sense of time is really weird, Hyung.” Bijoo said, “It feels like it was yesterday. But it’s today.”
“And when we open our eyes, it’ll be tomorrow, right?”
“…That’s why, you know. I feel like my head is all messed up.”
But on the other hand, he felt good.
It was the life that most celebrities dreamed of, spending the day in a rush with the schedules that piled up.
They were the kind of people who got sad when they had nothing to do.
-Ladies and gentlemen, hello. Thank you for using Cloud Air today…
Woojoo clenched his armrest as he listened to the captain’s pre-takeoff announcement.
He couldn’t get used to this damn plane no matter how many times he experienced it.
It was fine once they took off, but every time they landed or took off, his chest was anxious and cold sweat ran down.
Woojoo could still see the scene of the plane crash that his parents were on.
Considering that most of the plane crashes happened during takeoff or landing…
No.
He shouldn’t think about that.
He closed his eyes slightly and took a deep breath.
This life…
“Hyung, we’ve arrived.”
“…?”
What, what was this?
“And Rihyuk Hyung said you should wipe your mouth. You look horrible.”
“Shh… okay.”
Woojoo must have been so tired that he drooled in his sleep.
He wiped his mouth with a blurry vision and looked at the scenery of Incheon Airport under the gloomy evening sky.
…They really arrived.
It was a chance to experience how powerful the sleepiness was.
This was not bad…
Bijoo put a sunflower pillow around his neck as he got up and said, “Hyung.”
“Hmm?”
“You’re not going to stay up for days before taking a plane from now on, right?”
He must have read Woojoo’s expression. He felt embarrassed by Bijoo’s words, but he pretended to ignore them and managed his expression.
“Yawn…”
Everyone looked fresh after sleeping well, but Woojoo couldn’t help wearing a mask with a face like a boiled cabbage.
Now, if they went to the immigration hall, as usual…
“Huh?”
They stopped walking as we passed through the immigration gate. Something different caught their eye.
“Reporters…?”
There were several times more reporters with cameras than they usually saw.
Woojoo didn’t understand at first.
Why did there look like there were so many…?
They just came back from their overseas schedule as usual. Woojoo wondered if there was anything special to report.
“…?”
Something flashed in his mind.
It was Sunday evening.
It was the day of the first broadcast of ‘Challenge, Legendary Song Discovery Team!’.