Lira’s smile faded as she browsed through her articles. She unintentionally blurted out.
“Seven.”
Jin-a, who was hanging around nearby, responded reflexively.
“Is it Ha-rang? Why?”
Unlike the other members, Jin-a, who wasn’t really paying attention to the mood, remained cheerful.
“The song is nice.”
Of course, it was her personality that helped the team run smoothly.
“Right, right? I knew Ha-rang would do well~ And the other girls are so cute! That Ye-eun is really adorable!”
She wasn’t the type to take care of others, though.
“Yeah, Ha-rang is a solid talent.”
‘She raps well. Does variety well. No flaws in visuals.’
If she were just a bit older, she might have been in that group. But now she’s in Seven.
She had always been skeptical of Seven’s ongoing success.
With the nature of audition programs, a quick spark is common. Didn’t the group from [Bold Season 1] eventually fade away?
[Coral Blue Lira surpasses… Who is the top in individual girl group brand reputation for 2023?]
But being mentioned alongside them after a year was stroking her pride a little too much; after all, she was also the producer of Coral Blue.
“This song might be lacking.”
“Huh? Us? Troika?”
The collaboration production team was lacking.
The AR team’s listening skills could have been better.
“Should’ve used a different demo.”
More than anything, the lack of time prevented her from working on other demos.
“Come on~ Since Lira produced it, it’s bound to be good!”
Ignoring Jin-a, who kept babbling about her disliked nickname ‘Liri,’ she dragged down the article.
[According to big data analysis on individual girl group brand reputation for 2023, 1st place is Seven’s Do-hee, 2nd is Coral Blue’s Lira, and 3rd is Seven’s Eun Se-ra…]
‘1st place…’
—Knock knock
Just then, a knock sounded from outside the waiting room.
The manager reflexively got up from his seat and walked to the door. When he opened it—
—“I’m in seventh heaven. Hello, we are Seven!”
A member filled the screen of the article, managing her expression and slightly lifting the corners of her mouth.
She took off her slippers, put on some heels, and walked toward the Seven members.
*
Clicking sound of heels.
Lira, fiddling with her phone, approached us.
“Hello! I wanted to meet you at least once, but the opportunity never came. I listened to the song; it’s really good. Everyone’s so charming.”
“Oh, thank you!”
Lira took Ha-rang unni’s hand and pulled her toward herself.
“I wonder if our Ha-rang is doing well. Ha-rang isn’t being cheeky, right?”
Then Lira placed a hand on Ha-rang unni’s head and petted her.
‘Are they really close?’
“Ah, first of all, the members make the dorm so lively, they’re really popular!”
“Really? I guess Ha-rang is still as noisy as ever.”
For some reason, Lira’s words were like a gentle gesture soothing a child, while Ha-rang Unni’s expression seemed tense and stiff.
“When Ha-rang was a trainee, she was even worse.”
Something about Lira’s actions felt intentionally condescending.
Just look at how self-righteous she acts.
‘She seems like a narcissistic brat.’
In fact, there were many in the entertainment industry who hadn’t been socialized properly in school, so I wasn’t the only one who was fine.
‘Finding kind-hearted people like me isn’t as easy as I thought.’
The Coral Blue member, Jin-a, approached Lira from behind.
“Why are you bullying our Ha-rang again?”
Ha-rang Unni’s expression brightened as she escaped Lira’s grasp and hugged Jin-a.
“Ha-rang, have you been well?!”
“I missed you, Unni!”
Lira turned her head as if she didn’t care about the squealing duo.
“So… this is Do-hee, right?”
She made eye contact with me.
“Hello! I’m Seven’s Do-hee Lee!”
Lira smiled lightly.
“I obviously know that.”
Then she took my hand and beamed.
“I really want to get close with you, Do-hee. Can we chat just the two of us? I really want to befriend you.”
“Ah…”
Without waiting for my reply, Lira led me away.
“Hey, where are you going! You’re not bullying her, are you? She’s from our agency, you can’t bully her! Of course, just because she’s from our agency doesn’t mean it’s okay to bully her! Obviously, right, Ha-rang?”
“I can’t speak in front of Unni Lira…”
Lira moved silently out the door.
I had no choice but to follow her.
“Do-hee…”
Sara Unni gestured woefully.
Does she really think I’m going to my death?
We arrived at an empty waiting room.
Sitting calmly, Lira said, “By the way, you’re really pretty.”
I was taken aback by her sudden comment, but Lira continued.
“But are you not sitting because of me? Come here and sit.”
I moved to the front seat at her gesture.
“Do you know? Do-hee, you’ve been maintaining the number one brand reputation all this time.”
It was a vaguely awkward question.
After a moment of hesitation, Lira continued.
“But I don’t really care. We’re going to disband anyway.”
“I’m not saying it in a bad way. I’m just stating reality. Popularity from a show can disappear any time.”
“That’s why I’m more curious. Why did you join Topist? Honestly, with your looks, you could have easily joined a big agency even if your skills weren’t great. You must have at least been street cast once.”
I wasn’t really inclined to answer.
“I’m not the type to butter up people I don’t particularly like.”
“Oh, I made another slip of the tongue. I didn’t mean to say that Do-hee’s skills are lacking or that Topist isn’t good enough. But it’s true that the 4 major entertainment agencies have better conditions, right? Overseas fans only seem to show interest in the 4 major companies.”
As I sat there silently listening, Lira introduced a new topic.
“Oh, I’ve been talking too much alone. Have you heard our song?”
“Yeah, I’ve heard it.”
“You don’t have to answer so stiffly. I must have spoken too harshly. I’m sorry. I usually hear that kind of stuff and nobody ever tells me to change. By now, I should be able to live honestly.”
“No.”
“So, what did you think?”
“Huh?”
“The song. Troika.”
“Ah… I thought it was a good track.”
Lira looked somewhat dissatisfied with my answer, wearing a blunt expression.
“I’m quite interested in Do-hee too, so I’ve searched her up several times. They say she’s a piano genius.”
That’s true.
I also often hear I’m a visual genius.
“I don’t want such a simple review from someone with musical talent. Could you elaborate a bit more? As I’m the producer of the team, evaluations from similar industries are important too.”
I’m not sure why she wants my opinion so badly.
I momentarily recalled the melody line of Troika in my head.
The notes taking shape. And the bass line. The uniquely appealing sound of the music.
Since I became interested in composing, I’ve been analyzing and listening to songs from other girl groups.
“First, I felt that the rest of the song was structured to make the chorus shine. For example, the beat of the verse was rhythmic but the melody was entirely led by the vocals.”
She continued to nod, as if urging me to go on.
“In the pre-chorus, the vocal melody became even more prominent…”
Which meant it was a traditional K-pop track.
“You don’t need to beat around the bush. I’m really curious.”
So that meant while trying to cater to mainstream appeal, Coral Blue’s unique flavor was somewhat watered down.
“…In the bridge part, I got a retro vibe because the bass line had sounds you might hear in an arcade game mixed in. It was clear they were aiming for a trendy feel. But with the sudden shift to a guitar riff, it felt like the bass line was lifting the topline off?”
“What do you think should be done instead?”
“I’m not sure yet, but… If it were me, I would have used a sample of a rough mix of drums and bass to create a trendy feel. In a non-traditional way.”
Then you could maintain mainstream appeal while keeping Coral Blue’s recognizable style intact, I envisioned.
“Are you learning composition by any chance?”
Lira stood up from her seat.
“Oh, yes. A little bit from Chae-rin Unni.”
“That’s a shame.”
“Ne?”
Lira moved to sit next to me.
“You’re going back to the agency next year, right? I wish you had done it first, unni.”
And then she handed me her phone.
“So let’s exchange numbers first.”
*
After Seven’s activities wrapped up, Coral Blue was dominating the music charts, clinching the number one spot for two consecutive weeks.
[OMG, Do-hee and Lira selfie duo shot!]
=======================
SAVEN OFFICIAL (@SAVENShock)
[Lira sunbae with Coral Blue!]
(photo) (photo)
=======================
[I follow a few girl group accounts, and they’re all talking about Do-hee and Lira LOL]
[How did Do-hee and Lira get so close?]
[What’s up with their visuals?]
[Who’s the staff that initiated the Do-hee and Lira challenge?]
Do-hee and Lira’s friendship, competing for the top brand reputation with Coral Blue, could not help but generate a strong response.
There was no need to split the sides; the number of fans adoring top-tier idols was overwhelming.
[OMG, jackpot! Do-hee and Lira filmed a challenge together!]
(video)
https://twitter.com/i/status/1612345
Coral Blue and Seven’s friendship is happening!
I thought Ha-rang, who’s in the same agency, would join them LOL
– Insane!
– Even though they’re from different groups, if they really made a unit, the world would go crazy.
– Wow, I’ve only seen their duo shots through fan edits.
– Girl group individual brand values ranked one and two in a duo shot, wow.
– Why are they taking pictures together?
– Did Ha-rang take it since he’s a day entertainer?
– But they actually took photos together without Ha-rang.
[But is Do-hee the kind of person that older sisters really like?]
SDVIMVFoanVzY1YwSVhjamMzUkt1Zk9sYWw5NGNjMUFPdFdRemh4SUxKelFoK2RmTXkzaVhCL2xGS2VJd2RBdA
At last year’s end-of-year special stage, she quickly became friends with the older girl group members and was adored as the youngest of the youngest, but I didn’t expect Lira to also react that way LOL. Lira gives off serious unni vibes.
– They have a 10-year age gap, so she probably feels like a baby ㅠ
– (Do-hee staring at the camera at a fan meeting) How can anyone not find this kid adorable ㅠ
– OMG, 10 years apart LOL. That’s like a two or three-generation age gap;;
– Do-hee is so young LOL.
The meeting of members from the third and fourth generations of girl groups could only create a positive image for Do-hee as the new generation.
But, surprisingly, Do-hee wasn’t feeling good.
[Coral Blue Lira: (file)]
[Coral Blue Lira: Can you listen to this too?]
[Coral Blue Lira: I’ll treat you to something delicious next time. You did well, our Do-hee~]
Do-hee lifted her head and looked ahead.
Hearing the praise, Kim Ye-eun unni grinned.
“Hehe, I did well, right!”
‘This girl, I’m treating her like Kim Ye-eun unni…’
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