A week since the teaser was released.
The day the music video goes live.
“Hey everyone, you all worked really hard. Let’s catch a quick nap until 12, then we’ll wake up and have lunch.”
Returning to the waiting room after finishing the pre-recording early in the morning, Seo-yoon was a bit tired but was fiddling with her phone, monitoring fans’ SNS.
—”Seriously everyone, you can totally expect this song to be lit. My heart was racing the whole time I was watching the stage… It’s so debonaire!”
—”The dance and the stage had zero chill, hahahaha. Today the members wore ties and jeans on stage, it was seriously awesome. How do they keep being this good?”
—”No, like seriously, this album was written by the same composer who got the famous Billboard 73 ranking… How can they create such amazing tracks? If this is the pre-release, how good will the follow-up be?”
—”The teaser had a sick beat that I loved, and now with the stage and full audio, I’m losing my mind. No joke, I’m losing it!”
—”If this doesn’t blow up, then K-pop is truly dead. I can’t explain it in words, just everyone make sure to watch the music video as soon as it’s out and don’t miss the main broadcast. If the music video comes out quickly, the creator’s a genius for real!”
Usually, she would have checked the reactions from the public through the comments on the music video or the music charts, but since the music video and audio weren’t released yet, that wasn’t an option.
‘I wonder how high this will get on the Billboard. The same one is still climbing, though.’
Releasing at 1 PM on Friday.
The timing would allow for a week’s worth of scores to fully reflect on the American charts.
—Scritch scritch.
Amid all this, the sound of pencil lead scratching.
‘She’s working hard to make it to the top of Billboard even in times like this…’
Seo-yoon quietly stood up to head toward the well-lit vanity, being considerate of the members who had already dozed off from fatigue.
“Are you not tired?”
There sat Do-hee, mechanically solving problems right after finishing the pre-recording.
“Hey, are you not tired?”
“…Huh?”
She was too focused or a bit dazed.
Do-hee finally noticed her voice.
“Ah?”
Honestly, it made Seo-yoon wonder if she was even solving the problems correctly.
Just moments ago, she had marked answers for two questions in the 10 or so seconds she had been watching.
But since it was Do-hee, she probably had a high chance of getting them right.
“Ah… I napped earlier.”
Was she really being serious when she complained about getting three questions wrong that day, now busily solving problems whenever she had a free moment?
“How much sleep can you get at the shop anyway?”
“It’s fine.”
They had switched the makeup order so the members could at least get a bit more sleep, but it wasn’t like she had enough, and dark circles were just hanging under Do-hee’s eyes.
Though they were quite a light gray.
Even that was pretty dark for Do-hee, who normally had barely any skin blemishes.
“Oh, right. How’s the song’s response? You monitored it, didn’t you?”
“You’re quick to ask. As if I wouldn’t monitor a song I wrote.”
Unlike the last album, where Do-hee was busy monitoring in real-time, this time she seemed a bit indifferent.
Seo-yoon answered simply.
“They say it’s really good. What can I say, I killed it on stage. Plus… There are quite a few compliments for you too.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, they’re praising the famous composer. No surprise there.”
Do-hee nodded as if she had expected that.
“It sounded pretty good to my ears too.”
Do-hee, who had a peculiar confidence in herself, believed that if it sounded good to her, it must be generally good for others as well.
“But it probably won’t make it into the top five of this year’s K-pop releases. By my standard, it’s about four fingers’ worth right now.”
Of course, it was true, so there wasn’t much to argue about.
Aera could accurately predict rankings just by watching other groups’ tracks and performances once.
“But you’re not that happy, are you? They say your song is good.”
“Huh? No, it is good. Why wouldn’t it be? Everybody likes it.”
It was clear she wasn’t showing any signs of joy despite that.
“Is it because you might not get first place because of NND’s comeback?”
“No, that’s something we can’t help with. Anyway, those guys could probably snag first place for about two weeks with pre-release tracks before their comeback.”
Whatever it was, it certainly looked like Do-hee had some elements she didn’t like, possibly because she was tired.
“Ha-ah…”
While Do-hee yawned continuously as she spoke, Seo-yoon took a vitamin drink from the box behind her and handed it to Do-hee.
“Drink this.”
The vitamin drink, with Na-eun Unni adorably posing in the label, was distributing on account of Na-eun Unni’s pride in her advertisement shoot, resulting in a stack of dozens of boxes in their dorm. Hence, they were handing them out to staff members.
“Oh, I just momentarily mistook you for being kind, unni.”
“I am kind.”
And as soon as Do-hee took a sip, she collapsed like she was about to pass out.
“What the? Is this a sleeping pill?”
Oh, she’s even drooling.
I have to take a picture right away.
*
“It’s a very simple trick.”
After resting her eyes for a moment, Seo-yoon woke up to the noisy atmosphere in the waiting room.
“A crime using someone you’re familiar with. And the tool is…”
In Seo-yoon’s sight was Do-hee, slumped over on her vanity, drooling on a few strands of hair.
“This annoying vitamin drink.”
“Hey! It’s not annoying; it’s delicious!”
Chiyo, eyes closed and leaning against the wall nearby.
“Right! The culprit is Jiwoo! You took advantage of being an older sister who’s been watching Do-hee for a long time, gradually causing her to overdose on vitamins, and ultimately poison her to death today!”
And Woo-ah, collapsed on the floor, sobbing.
“I-I had no such intentions! If she hadn’t told me to finish two boxes per week as my quota… I wouldn’t have secretly added my share to her box!”
Lastly, there was Na-eun Unni, looking somewhat wronged, promoting the benefits of the vitamin drink as an advertisement model.
“Hey, do you know how good vitamins are for your body? They’re great for aging too! Of course, I’m not taking them because of aging; I’m only 24! And it’s good for antioxidants as well. You all have tried vitamin IVs when you’re tired!”
Meanwhile, Chiyo was busy playing sad Conan music on her phone.
—Woo-woo~ Woo~ Woo-woo~ Woo~ Woo~
“I thought Do-hee would normally catch on to the increased number of drinks in my box! Normally! But lately, she’s been so out of it with whatever’s been on her mind… Ugh!”
“I thought I would notice the number of drinks increased in the box! Normally, I would! But that kid has been so spaced out lately…ugh!”
Of course, Woo-ah happily went along with Chiyo’s strange skit, so it didn’t surprise Seo-yoon too much.
“Guys, can someone wake Do-hee up? If we make her shoot a reaction video with a puffy face, she’ll complain all day.”
“Eh, I was having a lot of fun for a bit.”
Actually, seeing Do-hee lying around like that was an unprecedented abnormality.
“Are you okay? Your eyes look dazed!”
Do-hee, even if she caught a cold and had a high fever, would usually get through her schedule, so this was more concerning.
“Ah? Aah-ah.”
“Your jaw is slackened too?”
Moreover, since this lethargic state had been visible all week, Seo-yoon was worried despite her own irritation.
“Do-hee, do you want to film the reaction later? Just sleep until the broadcast.”
“Ah? Aah-ah.”
“Seriously, is her jaw really relaxed? Manager!”
Despite having her messed-up hair fixed by her teacher and her makeup touched up, Do-hee’s unfocused eyes showed no sign of returning to normal before the reaction shoot.
“This is our first music video for the new activity, ‘Take What’s Mine Back.'”
Of course, that meant her focus returned just in time for the shoot.
Her eyes sparkled back in front of the camera.
Her jaw definitely tightened, her pronunciation clear.
“Um, what is it called? Hwi-gwangbanjo?”
“Shall we all watch together?”
Anyway, Seo-yoon decided to focus on the music video they were seeing for the first time, following the members.
*
And at 12:30 PM KST.
At Warner Records headquarters in LA.
Late in the evening, Grant tossed his graying hair back, took off his glasses, placed them on the desk, and stared at the monitor.
Grant had cleared some time to watch the upcoming music video meticulously.
“What do you think?”
He had even brought along the producer from the agency.
“Well…if we think about just the teaser without the song,”
Pulin, a star producer recognized by Billboard, scratched his head while staring at the screen.
“It was quite unique, with B-grade vibes and horror-comedy elements. It feels like a continuation of ‘Same.’ We need to watch the video and the stage until the end, but there are many elements that could resonate well in America with the same atmosphere.”
Grant nodded.
“Well, we still don’t know. It’s pretty rare in Billboard history for a band member’s original songs to consecutively hit.”
“That’s true. A lot of the singers who hit with original songs are actually collaborations when you look closely. Anyone who knows the game knows that, right?”
“Well, I can’t really argue as a businessman either. What can you do if the album sells?”
Grant gave a wry smile but added one remark.
“However, this girl Do-hee has already written four number-one songs on the Korean charts in her teens. It’s true that some of those were collaborations, but we all know who probably led the work.”
“Yeah, I certainly get that. Just watching her mix comfortably makes it clear. The members also seem to have a good amount of star quality, so that’s probably why you made the trip all the way to Korea.”
“Exactly. Even if this group isn’t centered around self-composed songs, they would likely land smoothly on Billboard.”
“Well, you know.”
Grant was chatting with the producer he adored, Pulin, and felt like a pure musician for a moment, leaving behind the businessman persona, which made him smile.
“So, what do you think about the song?”
Pulin had already listened to Debonaire’s new track, having received the audio from Grant as soon as he arrived, and had made his judgment on the song’s quality.
“Well… it definitely feels like a hit. I don’t think I’ll get tired of it for a few months. What was her name again? Do-hee? That teenage girl. Honestly, her musical sense seems to reach the level of well-known producers. Reminds me of that guy Walter. Though, I guess it’s a bit rude to compare her to a Grammy-winning producer.”
Grant couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
“Ah, of course, I think comparing it to a Grammy-winning producer is a bit much, even for me. I just laughed because of that.”
Grant recalled Do-hee’s last visit.
“It seems like the songwriter for this track considers it a mediocre piece.”
“Really?”
Unlike himself, who clapped for the great song, Do-hee seemed to seek advice, feeling it was somewhat lacking.
“With this quality, it should easily hit at least a decent spot, right? Of course, some promotion is needed… but that’s what Grant’s staff is for. I mean, wasn’t it just not her taste? Or maybe that girl Do-hee, despite her songwriting ability, doesn’t have a good ear for listening?”
Grant lightly shook his head.
“She told me. She thinks the song is good, but after making it, she got tired of it. Perhaps it’s not just about being tired but feeling a bit exhausted by the melody.”
“Is that so? Still, to consider it mediocre…”
Grant just kept repeating the word ‘hit’ and then said,
“A hit is just a hit, but a smash changes a singer’s life.”
It was quite a well-known industry term in the Billboard scene.
“I think saying she got tired of it in just a week means she sees this album as just good enough to be a hit. She probably has her own standards. Maybe she felt it was somewhat lacking compared to the last album, or felt rushed finishing it within a couple of months.”
Unlike a simple hit,
A smash has an immense impact.
“What’s clear is that this girl sets her expectations for herself at that smash level. Maybe it’s because she’s strict with herself.”
“Well, what’s the point of just being strict? Most singers don’t even manage to produce a single smash in their lifetime. They should at least aim for a Billboard #1, right?”
Grant smiled again like a nice old man.
“Well, that’s true, haha.”
After all, just because it’s a smash doesn’t mean it’ll definitely hit number one, and just because it’s a hit doesn’t mean it can’t achieve Billboard #1 either.
“But songs consistently produced by those with high standards are bound to be anticipated.”
Grant took a deep breath, leaned back in his chair, and lifted the remote.
“Alright, it’s time to take a look. Oh, by the way, did you know? Though the concept of this album is set, this music video was also designed by that young producer girl.”
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