” Seven people, huh? ”
” Wow… that’s over the top. ”
” We’re doomed… ”
The atmosphere among the participants was such that if it weren’t for the microphones, they would have been cursing like sailors.
” Just as you said, there are only 7 of us. ”
” Gone are the days of a large cast in Seasons 1 and 2. ”
” Since Season 3 started with high ambitions to be the best season ever, the number of members is different as well. ”
” Accordingly, the members must also change, right? ”
” Only 7 members who can not only fit into their team’s concept but also create their own concept will survive to debut. ”
” Season 3 is about to get even more intense. ”
” Now, let me introduce the trainers who will help showcase your individuality! ”
At the MC’s call, 6 trainers came out one after another.
*
The trainer introductions wrapped up, and the ranking evaluation began.
On the screen at the front of the set, the KGC logo appeared, and a trainee who had been waiting behind the set climbed onto the stage.
” Hello! I’m Gu Eun-hee, a trainee from KGC Entertainment! ”
The trainee started chatting casually with the judges, who were the trainers, before beginning her performance.
All the trainees watched the stage intently.
They also reacted vigorously, hoping to get more screen time.
” Wow, she’s good! ”
” Jackpot… ”
I, too, reacted in kind, trying to get more screen time.
” Whoa~ ”
After the performance ended.
” Great job!~ ”
The judges, after discussing, decided on a rank for the trainee.
” Trainee Gu Eun-hee is… ”
And the rank announcement began.
The trainer making the announcement dragged out the suspense.
” … ”
The reason for dragging it out was not just for amusement.
But a bigger reason was that the cameras needed to catch every participant’s and judge’s reaction in the small gaps of suspense.
” …it’s 2nd tier. ”
And came the reactions from the trainees.
” Wow… is that really 2nd tier? ”
” Didn’t she deserve 1st tier? ”
” Whoa~ ”
But as time passed.
Before I realized it, it was past 3 AM, more than 13 hours into filming.
Most trainees’ eyes were glazed over, and they were all dozing off.
It seemed that at the rate things were going, we wouldn’t finish until the morning.
Beside me, the sleepy Kim Na-eun Unni looked at me, still wide awake, and said,
” Do-hee, aren’t you sleepy…? ”
” I’m holding up just fine. ”
I thought I just have to hang in there until our evaluations are done.
Honestly, this was better than the sleepless training sessions I had in my past life during military service.
And the judges are truly amazing.
It must be exhausting to keep talking and evaluating, even more so than for the trainees.
Seeing them endure, I guess money really talks.
I wonder how much they were paid for this.
The other trainees were still dozing off.
The writer yelled at the sleepy trainees.
” Are you guys just going to look like that on screen? Wake up! You should at least hold your head up for even a single shot! ”
“Get up quickly! At least hold your face up for one more shot!”
I grabbed the cheek of Seo-yoon Unni, who was hanging her head.
“Huh…?”
“They say if you react now, you’ll definitely show up.”
“Huh…?”
I started reacting again while looking at the stage in front of me.
But after trying every possible reaction since noon, I was completely out of ideas.
Guess I’ll just repeat what I did at the beginning.
“Wooow~”
Time flew by, and it was now 5 AM.
It was our turn.
*
“Bae Jin-hee trainee, An Eun-seo trainee is…”
“…tier 3. And Yeon Bo-jeong trainee is…”
“…tier 2.”
The participants who had been evaluated bowed their heads and went off the stage.
The judges commented on the departing participants.
“Still, there’s potential.”
“It’s definitely a major agency…”
On the other hand, the notoriously critical dance trainer, Ko Yoon-jeong, thought differently.
“If this is all a major agency can produce, isn’t that a bit disappointing compared to expectations?”
So far, only one trainee with the star quality she sought had emerged.
Sitting next to her, Sua, a vocal trainer and famous singer, stretched her stiff body and said,
“Ah~ Not much longer now.”
“Yeah. Only the top three agencies and Topist kids are left.”
“Well, at least one of the top three agencies or Topist is bound to show up.”
Ko Yoon-jeong flipped the page to look at the Topist trainees.
There were no special notes about Do-hee Lee except that she was 15 years old.
Meanwhile, the Topist trainees stepped onto the stage.
Ko Yoon-jeong grabbed the microphone and said,
“First, please introduce yourselves.”
“Hello! We are Topist trainees!”
“I’m Do-hee!” “I’m Kim Seo-yoon!” “I’m Kim Na-eun!”
They all had stunning looks.
Especially the trainee Do-hee caught the eye.
Despite being only 15, she was tall and had promising visuals.
She seemed to be the prettiest among all the kids I had seen today.
“So she’s the visual center of Topist. If her skills are even half as good as her looks, that would be great.”
“Let’s start the stage right away.”
The accompaniment started playing.
“Oh. This song.”
An electronic dance hip-hop that moderately hit the Billboard charts at number 70.
It was a song occasionally used for auditions.
However, the overall difficulty level in vocals, rap, and dance made it tough to showcase it all at once.
So they had been dividing into dance or vocal auditions, but…
Can you guys handle this?
The introduction full of dance kicked off.
Three-person choreography that clicked like a blade.
Their dance lines were refreshing.
Tight abs peeked through their outfits.
They had bodies that had undergone long periods of training just to dance.
It was a body.
She liked the three of them from the start.
Song introduction.
Kim Seo-yoon burst out from the back, spitting out the lyrics.
– I went to the club on my own –
– choose one’s own friends and compose one’s own songs –
Clear tone.
Even while dancing, she maintained a stable lead.
It was a clean vocal delivery that could only be achieved with solid core strength.
‘Looks like she’s the main vocal.’
And then came Kim Na-eun’s vocals.
– I’m not interested in the rules of the scene. –
– Music only, music only, someone’s nonsense –
– If you can’t accept it, that’s it –
‘Wow, she’s good too!’
Kim Na-eun also had strong vocal skills.
If Kim Seo-yoon’s tone was clear, Kim Na-eun’s was more resonant.
It was hard to determine who was better vocally.
‘What about Do-hee Lee?’
Finally, as their song ended and the rap part started, Do-hee stepped into the center.
– The guy I believed in, far away –
– simplicity, clarity, personality –
– I believed your mind, even if it’s a small bowl –
– now I knew is what it looked like. –
First, her native-like clean English pronunciation pierced the ears.
And the rhythm felt through her impeccable timing.
‘They could’ve debuted already!’
.
.
“””I’m not interested in the rules of the scene.”””
After the stage ended, the judges gathered to discuss.
“These guys are good.”
“I think we can give them all tier 1!”
“But I want to hear her vocals once.”
“Yeah, I wanted to try too. I didn’t hear her sing.”
Judge Sua grabbed the microphone and looked at Do-hee.
“Do-hee Lee, can you sing something?”
“Yep!”
Do-hee replied confidently, warmed up her voice, and began to sing.
– things that I couldn’t say –
‘Huh? Not bad!’
– would I have felt sorry for myself then?
‘Her breathing is natural too.’
– remembering my mom’s song. I know. –
Her tone was rough, but she showed solid fundamentals.
– now I’m trying to make it clearer –
“Okay, that’s enough.”
Sua cut off Do-hee’s song and the judges began their meeting again.
“Let’s give her tier 2.”
“Her tone is a bit rough, which is a shame.”
“It’s easy, right?”
“Still, I think I’m good at rapping and dancing… I should definitely get a tier one.”
“Yeah, you can really feel the basics; they’re rock solid.”
“So, everyone just gets tier one?”
“Yes, let’s do that.”
Sua grabbed the microphone and spoke.
“Alright, Topist Entertainment trainees Lee Do-hee, Kim Seo-yoon, and Kim Na-eun…”
“Tier one is… all three of you.”
The three trainees hugged each other.
In the midst of it, Sua said,
“Lee Do-hee trainee. Do you know your voice tone is a bit lacking?”
Do-hee replied with a slightly gloomy face.
“Yes, I know.”
“Of course, tone is mostly innate, but it can definitely be improved. Look at me; I worked hard and changed a lot. Let’s make sure you work hard too, and next time, you’ll definitely be tier one.”
“Yes! Thank you!”
As the three contestants finished their greetings and were about to step off the stage,
“Hold on! Contestants, please don’t go down just yet! Wait a moment!”
The main writer shouted from below the stage.
Then a staff member came up to the stage and handed a piece of paper to Ko Yoon-jeong.
The paper had Lee Do-hee’s photo attached to it.
There was a Post-it covering some specific notes on the document.
– “To ensure a fair assessment, specific notes will be disclosed later! ^.^ -”
“What’s this?”
“What is it?”
Even the judges, curious about this unusual situation, stood up and approached Ko Yoon-jeong to look at the document.
As Yoon-jeong removed the Post-it, the specific notes were densely written.
“Uh?”
“What is this?”
“Is this for real?”
Ko Yoon-jeong took the microphone, looking at the production staff.
“Producer, is this for real?”
Receiving a nod from the production team, the judges let out a defeated laugh.
“This is real?!”
“Hah… I can’t believe it. Damn.”
“Wow… I’m at a loss for words…”
Ko Yoon-jeong grabbed the microphone again, looking at Lee Do-hee, and said,
“Lee Do-hee trainee, do you have a lot in the special notes column?”
“Model for Ion Sweat commercials and the main character in music videos… and… I can’t…”
“Nine-time grand prize winner in the Korean Student Music Association Piano Competition and ten-time overall winner in major piano competitions? I’m losing my mind. Hahaha.”
The set erupted with noise at Ko Yoon-jeong’s words.
Even the trainees who had been dozing off woke up from the commotion and asked those around them what was happening.
Meanwhile, Lee Do-hee was smiling happily at the situation.
‘Even amidst all this, she’s pretty.’
Ko Yoon-jeong held back her laughter and said,
“Lee Do-hee trainee, why on earth are you doing this idol thing?”
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