The buzz was all about the official second concert we were planning. Everyone’s attention was riveted on the news.
Jiho swallowed hard.
“A concert?”
“Yes. We’ve already secured the venue…”
“Hold on.”
Jiho placed a hand over his chest, taking deep breaths.
We were all doing the same.
Seeing us all with eyes closed, taking deep breaths, the staff couldn’t help but laugh and ask, “Why the sudden deep breathing?”
“We’re getting our bearings before hearing the good news,” I admitted, my heart racing with anticipation.
I had a hunch about the concert venue.We had grown so much since last summer’s concert at the handball stadium, which held 5,000 seats, over three days.
Our latest special album had nearly sold 400,000 copies.
And without any separate activities, we had drawn an audience of 60,000 in Japan.
With such results, it seemed reasonable to have high hopes for this time.
Junhyeon was about to speak.
“Che…”
“Ah!”
We all raised our hands to stop him.
“Huh? Why?”
“Let’s not jinx it by saying it out loud, Junhyeon.”
“Ah, right.”
While Junhyeon was coming to terms with this, Ri Hyeok shook his head.
“But the manager already said the reservation is done. What difference does it make if Junhyeon hyung says it?”
“…You’re right.”
Convinced again, we nodded at Junhyeon to go ahead.
With a warm smile, he asked again, “Is it the gymnastics stadium this time?”
At that moment, as Junhyeon finished speaking, we all clasped our hands together, waiting for the answer. Desperation was evident in the eyes of my brothers and me. ℟ᴀɴő𝔟Εş
Seokhwan hyung put down his pen with a slight grin.
“Yes. It’s the gymnastics stadium.”
At that moment, a collective sigh of relief escaped our lips.
A whooshing feeling.
A wave of happiness washed over us, leaving us limp with relief. We exchanged glances and smiles with each other.
If it weren’t for the staff meeting, we would have all jumped up and down in excitement.
Bijou fiddled with his fingers, smiling.
“It’s really the gymnastics stadium…”
“Yeah. It’s really happening…”
The Olympic Park Gymnastics Stadium.
A large venue that can accommodate over 10,000 people per performance.
The stadium has excellent facilities and many advantages, but it holds a special significance for us.
Jiho scratched the back of his head.
“Wow, we’re actually going to have a concert at the gymnastics stadium. Who would’ve thought?”
“Are we really having our concert at the gymnastics stadium?”
Ri Hyeok asked again, and the other staff members nodded.
While the younger members were each saying their piece, I sat silently amidst them.
It’s really happening at the gymnastics stadium.
For a singer to perform at the gymnastics stadium meant ‘you’ve really made it.’
Attracting over 10,000 fans to an offline venue is no ordinary feat.
And that’s per show.
That’s why when first or second-generation idol seniors finally made it to the top, they held concerts at the gymnastics stadium.
It has such a symbolic meaning that it’s referred to as ‘ascension’ to perform there, unlike any other venue.
I said, feeling a strange mix of emotions.
“…It feels surreal.”
“Why?”
“I had a feeling we might be performing at the gymnastics stadium this time, but now that it’s actually happening…”
Seokhwan hyung just smiled silently.
He was the one who had taken us to see the seniors’ concerts at the gymnastics stadium during our TJ trainee days.
No one could understand how I felt right now better than him.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen them so quiet.”
“This serene feeling. It’s been a long time.”
As the employees began to tease us for our visibly moved expressions, a sniffling sound came from the seat next to me. Rihyuk, with his head bowed, was blowing his nose with a tissue.
His face was so small that a single tissue could cover his features. I asked with a smile, “Is Rihyuk crying?”
There was no answer, but his ears turned a bright red, speaking volumes in his stead.
As everyone laughed at his tissue-covered face, Jiho tilted his head down and looked up at Rihyuk with a pitiful expression, teasing, “Aww, did our Rihyuk start to cry?”
“Ah, stop it!”
“Success in stopping the tears!”
Annoyed, Rihyuk threw the tissue away, and Jiho dodged it, prompting laughter from everyone. Even Rihyuk, who found it funny himself, couldn’t help but join in the laughter after a scowl.
I asked, “Why did you cry?”
“Well, just thinking about the five of us performing there…”
The youngest poked his head out, “Was it moving?”
“Until you interrupted,” he retorted.
The two bickered like Tom and Jerry while the rest of us exchanged knowing looks. Though we didn’t suddenly burst into tears like Rihyuk, we likely all felt the same way.
After sharing our thoughts on the gymnastics stadium, the TF team leader continued, “It might be sudden for you, but we’ve already booked the venue.”
“When did you do that?” we asked.
“Last winter.”
“Did you book it so early because it’s a gymnastics event?”
“No, it’s because the gymnastics stadium is undergoing remodeling starting this September.”
The remodeling was scheduled to last until 2018.
“That’s why the booking schedule was so tight; we barely managed to find an open slot. Everyone wants to hold concerts before the remodeling.”
“I see.”
“Now or not until the summer after next year.”
It seemed we had to book early because of the tight schedule.
Between mid and late May, last year’s summer had us worried, but this time, it was a spring concert in the beautiful weather of May.
“The concert will last three days.”
“Three whole days?”
“Don’t worry too much. It’s all planned out based on the calculation that we can fill the seats.”
“Hmm…”
Three days could mean an audience of 30,000 to 40,000. Only a handful of idol groups in the country could draw such a crowd.
Though uncertain, the manager’s confident expression reassured us.
Seokhwan spoke up, “Everything’s prepared for that part, and we want your opinion on this. The album release overlaps with the current schedule. How should we coordinate it?”
“Do we come back first or hold the concert first?”
“Exactly.”
After exchanging glances with my brothers, I spoke up, “We’d like to hold the concert first.”
“Like last year, revealing the title track at the concert?”
“Yes.”
If we finished the comeback and then held the concert, we’d likely fill the setlist with new album tracks.
Most of the fans, the Soufflés, wanted to see the stages of the tracks from the ‘Nine’ and ‘Winter Sleep’ albums at the concert venue.
There had been a lot of envy from the Japanese Soufflés this time.
It was clear: finish the concert and then go on music shows versus preparing for the concert while doing music shows. The former was the obvious choice.
Seokhwan jotted down notes in his notebook and replied, “Then we’ll coordinate it that way.”
With the concert discussion concluded, the meeting ended.
As everyone dispersed like the ebbing tide, I waved my brothers off, telling them to go ahead.
Then I approached the two who remained, waiting patiently—Director Jo Gyuhwan and Producer Ha Seung-joo.
“Thank you for waiting.”
“No,” I said firmly.
Director Cho laughed, waving his hands dismissively. “So, what’s the matter? It seemed like there were some issues with the album preparation earlier.”
“Ah, that’s…” I hesitated, the curiosity of the two people before me growing.
“I’m having some problems with the track I wrote this time.”
In the second-floor studio, two composers sat around as I played the music file. The track was like a building with only its foundation laid.
As the intro flowed, Director Cho and Ha Seung-ju began to nod their heads in time with the music.
“The intro is good, isn’t it?” Ha Seung-ju asked, puzzled.
“Just keep listening,” I urged.
The music that unfolded was the kind that would make Rihyuk curse over the intense choreography it demanded.
Director Cho chuckled. “If this becomes the title track, we’re going to have a tough time practicing the dance.”
“Director.”
“Alright… I’ll listen carefully.”
He widened his eyes as if to say, ‘See?’
As the intro led into the first verse and then smoothly transitioned into the chorus, the moment the chorus hit…
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
Both composers exclaimed at the same time, seemingly catching on to what I was implying.
Should I stop it here? I wondered, looking at them. They nodded in agreement.
Ha Seung-ju spoke up. “Woojoo, I think I understand what you’re saying.”
“Is it ambiguous?”
“A bit… ambiguous. It’s definitely good, but it’s not quite the ‘This is it!’ feeling.”
It was a song we were working on for the next album’s title track competition. I thought we had nailed it from the intro to the chorus, but listening to it as a whole, it felt uncertain.
It wasn’t bad, but as Ha Seung-ju said, it lacked that definitive ‘This is it!’ quality.
Director Cho added, “The titles you composed before always had a feeling that they had to be the title track.”
“Yes, I don’t feel that with this one either.”
“But it’s such a waste. With just a little change, it could be the perfect title track…”
“That’s the problem; it’s difficult to make those changes.”
“I can see that,” Director Cho agreed.
“It’s risky to touch it. Have you already tried everything?”
“Yes…”
I had tried shaving a bit off here, boosting a bit there. I had tried everything imaginable.
But the track was as fragile as a sheet of paper.
Like a precarious game of Jenga, even the slightest touch could bring the whole balance crashing down.
I had called the A&R and producing teams for advice, but…
“Everyone says that the director or the producer should look at it. There’s nothing we can do.”
“Hmm.”
The two were engulfed in thought.
“Let’s listen to it one more time.”
“Okay.”
As we played it over and over, they both held their heads in frustration.
I prepared two cups of tea with green tea bags and handed them over.
Gulp, gulp.
The quiet sound of tea being sipped filled the room, and then Ha Seung-ju asked, “What about the other tracks?”
“I’ve written a few for consideration as B-side tracks, but they’re just that—candidates for B-sides.”
“Hmm. Hmm. No, I can’t decide.”
“But it would be too much of a waste to discard them, right?”
At my words, they both nodded vigorously.
“What are you talking about? Why would we discard this? If it doesn’t work out, we’ll use it as a B-side track.”
“There’s nothing you’ve written that should be thrown away, Woojoo.”
Like a cow that uses everything from its head to its intestines as ingredients, there were two people who told me that my songs had nothing to waste.
Director Cho asked, “Have you told the members?”
“I was planning to tell them after wrapping things up a bit. I thought about bringing it up at first.”
That day, Bizu came with his self-composed music score.
He said there was a part he was stuck on, but it turned out to be quite simple, so I was able to help him out.
“How do you write songs without ever getting stuck? It’s amazing,” he said.
“Well, I also…”
“I should study more so I can be like you. I can’t even imagine you getting stuck.”
His eyes were sparkling as he looked at me.
I couldn’t say that I was actually really stuck this time.
They both smiled warmly, understanding my explanation.
“What about Junghyun or Jiho? And what about Ryuk?” they asked.
“Ah, him.”
They laughed as my expression soured.
“Ryuk, what would you do if I got stuck while working on a song?”
“Huh, you’re stuck?”
“No, I mean…”
“You need my opinion, don’t you? Are you very stuck? Should I give you some advice?”
I briefly shared my thoughts.
“He was so arrogant that I lost my appetite,” I said.
They burst into laughter.
“I decided I had to finish this no matter what,” I declared.
After laughing together, they said, “Let’s give it a serious listen.”
“Thank you.”
They were the ones who even canceled their personal appointments to stay.
Director Ha Seung-ju and Director Cho took off their coats and sat around the table, playing the song over and over.
Hours passed.
I had listened to the song enough that I could hear it in my head with my eyes closed.
After much discussion, we finally found the problem.
“The song is too perfect,” they said.
“Yes, it is.”
“It’s hard to explain, but you know what I mean, right?”
I nodded at Ha Seung-ju’s words.
The problem was that I tried to make every part too perfect.
“Since it’s my song, I wanted to include a lot. I wanted it to be highly polished.”
“You were too ambitious,” they said.
“Yes…”
When I made the title song with my younger brothers, we set a single theme.
Like a dish with one ingredient.
But this time, since I was the protagonist, I mixed various things I wanted to try.
I had tried too hard to make it perfect.
Director Cho said, “It’s like that. If you combine the most beautiful eyes, nose, and mouth in the world, you get a strange face…”
“I see.”
When I understood what he meant, Director Cho hesitated as he was explaining, looking at me.
“Is that not it?”
“Yes?”
“Never mind.”
Anyway, the problem we identified was simple.
If there are various elements that determine the completion of a song, the issue was that I pursued perfection too much in each part.
But the real problem was…
“The balance is now incredibly good,” they said.
“Exactly.”
It was like combining the most beautiful facial features in the world, which somehow strangely fit together overall.
When we reached that conclusion.
While I was deep in thought, both of them looked quite happy.
“Why are you smiling?” I asked.
“Because we know the solution,” Director Cho replied with a bright smile.
“Really? What is it, Director?”
“That is…”
What was that?
Director Cho flashed a grin and picked up his coat.
“Just handle it.”
“Excuse me?”
“It might be better if you figure this one out on your own.”
Ha Seung-ju said.
“After all, you only improve at tests by solving them without the answer sheet. It’s best to come to understand things on your own.”
“I’m the type who studies with the answer sheet when taking tests.”
“…Hmm. As Kyu-hwan said, try to find the method yourself. It’s surprisingly simple.”
Ha Seung-ju also grabbed his coat and stood up.
“There really is a surprisingly simple solution. Once you know it, you’ll be able to create a great song in no time.”
“We were about two or three years older than you when we faced that problem.”
“There’s still plenty of time before the final submission date.”
Their tone was like that of mother birds urging their young to break out of their shells.
I nodded in agreement with the two, who seemed to want me to solve this part on my own.
“Yes, I’ll look into it myself…”
“No use pretending to be downcast, Woojoo.”
“…”
“Our company is an actor’s agency, after all.”
Director Lee smirked and casually draped his coat over his shoulder.
Then he knocked on the door as he left.
“Why knock…?”
Usually, you knock when entering, not leaving.
As I pondered this, a commotion erupted outside, followed by familiar voices.
-Ah! You scared me!
-Ouch! Who stepped on my foot? Ow!
-Kim Junghyun! Move quietly! We’ve been caught because of your breathing!
-I’m really sorry.
…They must have been eavesdropping with their ears pressed against the door.
After Director Lee opened the door and sauntered out, I saw my younger siblings sprawled on the floor.
“Ah!”
“Ouch! Let go of my arm! Let it go!”
They lay tangled up, like lettuce, ham, and tomatoes waging war inside a sandwich.
Thud.
I closed the door again.
Just as I was about to greet Ha Seung-ju, who was putting on his coat.
“Wait.”
He pulled out a USB drive from his coat pocket.
“Take this.”
“Thank you. But what is this?”
“You’ll know when you open it.”
As I stared blankly at the USB with its cap off, he said.
“On your computer.”
“Oh. Right.”
“The reason I kept asking if you had time was to give you this.”
“I see.”
“There’s a video from the past with Myung-ju hyung. Your mother appears in it too.”
As I looked up at him, he smiled.
“Thank you, PD-nim.”
“Sure.”
“I’ll contact you again.”
I bowed my head with a smile as Ha Seung-ju left.
I gazed at the USB in my hand for a moment before tucking it securely into my pocket.
“…”
I looked at my siblings standing nonchalantly in the hallway.
The pretenders.
“How long have you been here?”
“Not too long. About 30 minutes.”
“You shouldn’t have heard anything outside because of the soundproofing.”
The youngest laughed innocently.
“We could hear a little. Jung-hyun hyung amplified the sound waves for the parts we couldn’t hear.”
“How did he amplify the sound waves… Never mind. I’m not curious.”
Just as I was guessing they knew some of the conversation, another question came to mind.
“Why did you come up here? It’s my personal practice time, you know. Right now.”
“Ah, well, it’s just that…”
As the youngest member made a sly face, the others began to sparkle with anticipation.
“There’s some amazing news.”
“Amazing news?”
“Downstairs, right now…”
Downstairs?
“They say the new trainees have finally arrived.”
“…!”
My eyes widened, and the younger members nodded in confirmation.
New trainees, huh.
The news of fresh juniors joining us sent a thrill through me.
“Let’s go! To the basement!”
“Yes! Brother!”
Together with the younger ones, I bounded down the stairs excitedly.
30 minutes later.
The new trainees of Lemon Entertainment blinked rapidly in the practice room.
“…”
An incredibly intimidating senior singer from the company stood before them.
And then.
“I couldn’t come empty-handed, so I brought some snacks.”
The members of New Black shyly smiled as they offered warm bags.
The trainees hesitantly accepted the snacks, smiling.
The savory smell.
One trainee asked with an excited expression.
“Is it tteokbokki by any chance!”
“No.”
Woojoo smiled warmly.
“I brought some grilled beef instead.”
“…Really?”
The new trainees were taken aback by the extraordinary scale of the snack.