A Singing Stream
That person should be thanking me.
If I'd left it alone, they would've gone through with an actual stream raid, you know?
Which is exactly why I turned it back on right away — I didn't want that either.
It's still too early for the wiki to get a "Controversy" section, I'm telling you.
[Viewer]: Um... I'm sorry again. Are you not turning your stream back on?
[Viewer]: Did your stream end?
Ah, so a few of the impatient ones already left.
…Well, a few came over to mine too, so let's call it an even exchange.
Um… this shouldn't stir up any controversy, right?
Hm. Should be fine.
Roze: turned it on a bit ago
Roze: it was a re-stream
Having announced that my stream was live, I unmuted the mic I'd muted.
"Aaaah."
Viewer: hey you f—
— This message has been deleted. —
Viewer: I seriously thought you were done for lol
— This message has been deleted. —
Viewer: damn it, the re-stream theory was right
— This message has been deleted. —
Viewer: came over from Sanwol's stream^^
Viewer: I was GENUINELY about to go raid that guy's stream
— This message has been deleted. —
Hm, not bad.
Better than I expected.
Viewer: hey, open donations you—
— This message has been deleted. —
Ah. I forgot to reopen donations.
I'd shut them off while singing so nobody who tipped would get flamed mid-song, and in all the chaos I forgot to turn them back on.
But honestly, isn't that a blessing in disguise right now?
They can just stay off until I end stream.
Roze: if you're sorry, sing a song
My viewers' aggro was already fully pointed at me, so nobody would think poorly of Namgung Sanwol.
But he seemed to be taking it to heart, so making him sing it off was only fair.
And since he was already singing, there was no way we were continuing the game content — so I turned the game audio back on too.
"Alright then! Since you asked so nicely, Noo-nim! I'll pick something upbeat for you!"
"Wow!"
"He's good!"
So while Sanwol sang, I looked up information on him.
YouTube subscribers… one million?!
Whoa… this guy is actually famous.
And his age is—
…Thirty-two.
Twelve years older than me.
…Did he call me Noo-nim knowing how old I am?
To check, I pulled up Sanwol's stream on another computer. The moment I joined, I saw a slightly weathered man singing on a cam broadcast.
Hm… the face actually suits the voice.
But with a face and voice like that, wouldn't a rough, bandit-style surname like Gun or Ho or Hwang fit better than something as refined as Namgung?
As I wasted time on pointless thoughts and glanced at the chat, it was buzzing about my age and what to call me.
Viewer: Roze is 20 lmaoooo
Viewer: she is NOT a noo-nim lololol
Viewer: fr
Viewer: heard it earlier
Viewer: lmaooo calling a 20-year-old baby "noo-nim" lolol
Viewer: he knew and did it anyway lmaooo
So he did know? What a relief.
Curiosity satisfied, I closed his stream.
And conveniently, his song was ending too — perfect timing to wrap up my own broadcast.
Roze: the old-timer can actually sing
NamgungSanwol: an old-timer I am...?
Viewer: lmaoooooooo
Viewer: what's a 20-year-old whippersnapper doing lolololol
Viewer: that guy's in his 30s though lololol
Viewer: is she insane lololol
— This message has been deleted. —
"Aigo! Thank you, Noo-nim!"
He takes it in stride, as expected.
No wonder he's got a million subscribers.
Which means—
Roze: hey old-timer, you uploading this to YouTube?
"Huh? Yes… I think I will…"
Is that so?
Roze: before your Noo-nim does?
Viewer: ???
Viewer: lmaoooo
Viewer: is she insane? lolololol
"WHAT?!"
Viewer: LMAOOOOOOOOO
Viewer: this lunatic lolololololol
— This message has been deleted. —
Viewer: isn't she supposed to be scared of big channels lolololol
Viewer: HOLY lolol I never saw that coming lolol
Viewer: wasn't this supposed to be a "don't you dare upload" moment lololololol
But this is serious business.
Whoever uploads first sucks up all the views.
And having regressed, I know exactly how important the algorithm is.
"Um… as an apology, I'll hold mine until yours goes up, Noo-nim."
Hmm…
Roze: two days later
Viewer: lmaoooooooo
Viewer: are you kidding me lolololololol
You need at least two days to squeeze every last drop of mileage out of your name, after all.
"PFFT—!"
Viewer: she really is a ruthless one lolololol
— This message has been deleted. —
Viewer: no lolol she's even dictating the schedule lololololol
Viewer: couldn't hold it in and snorted lololololol
Viewer: everyone else muted themselves out of tact and this guy unmutes his mic...
— This message has been deleted. —
Viewer: LOLLLLLLLLLL
"Yes… I'll upload two days after you do…"
Roze: ok byee
Confirmation received, I hit Alt + F4 and closed the game.
"Alright, that's it for today's stream."
Viewer: aw
Viewer: whyyy
Viewer: stay a little longer
Viewer: you're just dipping so you don't have to sing more, aren't you
— This message has been deleted. —
…I told you, I hate perceptive viewers.
But as I said before, we'd already gone over an hour.
I don't lose to anyone!
"Thanks for a fun stream today, everyone."
Namgung Ho, streaming under the name Namgung Sanwol, was quietly reaping unexpected rewards from everything that had just happened.
"Aigo! No, no! Thank you, ChoiGangRoze nim, for the hundred thousand won!"
Viewer: KYAAAAA!!!!!!
Viewer: what is with these Roze fans, whoa
Viewer: what kind of stream was Noo-nim running over there lololololol
Viewer: judging by what happened earlier, I can imagine lololololol
"Hahaha! Glad you had fun today! All is forgiven!"
Viewer: wait, she's like this NORMALLY? lololololol
Viewer: she was definitely not normal before either
Viewer: it was fun though lolololol
Viewer: watched for 10 minutes and yeah, definitely not normal lolololol
Viewer: most fun stream you've had recently lolololol
With the donations pouring in right now, the losses from giving up the two-day YouTube head start were covered many times over!
And the viewers were loving it too!
"Aigo! Roze ni—"
…Huh? Roze?
I checked whether it was an impersonator. It was the real Roze.
Viewer: the real one?
Viewer: it's really her?
Viewer: fr?
Viewer: no lololol the contents of this donation lololololol
Only after glancing at the chat did I actually read the donation message that had been hidden behind the name.
1. No refunds.
2. Don't donate on my stream.
3. As your "reaction," please promote my original song.
4. Tell my viewers to stop donating here and pay me back instead.
…That's not a summary. That's the message exactly as it was sent.
Viewer: lololololololol
Viewer: genuinely unhinged lolololololol
Viewer: wow, that is SO cool
Viewer: Noo-nim's charisma is unreal, seriously
Viewer: what's number 4 even supposed to mean lololololololol
Viewer: she has original songs??
I'd been wondering for a while now, but should I call this "cool"…?
Or should I call it "completely insane"…?
Flustered as I was, I figured that with all my years of broadcasting experience, failing to handle this would be an embarrassment — so I pulled myself together quickly and went for the line.
"Alright, everyone! Let's all give our Roze Noo-nim's original song a listen!"
I searched "Roze" on YouTube and played the video that looked like an original release.
"This is 'Our Story' by Solana, Roze Noo-nim's group!"
And as I listened, a thought struck me.
…Why is this song so good?
Honestly, since it came from a streaming idol, I hadn't expected much — but this is genuinely great.
Viewer: whoa, what is this?
Viewer: why is this song good?
Viewer: this is SO my taste?
Viewer: adding this to my playlist, let's gooo
But which part is Roze's?
Everything sounds so different from what I heard earlier that I can't figure out which one she is.
"Um… sorry, but… which one is Roze Noo-nim…?"
Viewer: first verse chorus
Viewer: first verse chorus
Viewer: right now
Viewer: ? THAT'S her?
Viewer: yeah, right now
"WHAT?!"
The yell escaped me before I could stop it.
No, come on! Her voice is completely different!
Right now she sounds pure and crystalline from start to finish!
There's not a trace of that low, razor-sharp tone from earlier!
"Wow…"
Viewer: Noo-nim was an angel all along?
Viewer: why is THIS voice also so good?
Viewer: Noo-nim… ahhh…
Viewer: sorry Sanwol, I'm off to find my new love
Viewer: gotta go look her up separately later
…I should look her up separately later too.
And so Roze, entirely by accident, succeeded in turning a broadcaster with a million YouTube subscribers and over ten thousand live viewers into a fan.
- Honestly it sounds fun though
↳ Author: I hate how the game audio and some random guy's mic get mixed into the song
↳ Reply: ...okay fair, that's true
↳ Author: ARGH I got baited by that Roze girl
↳ Reply: You've been completely seen through lolololololol
- Ah lolol well, money talks I guess lolol
- If you're salty, spend your own money lolol
- I'm actually fine with it
- fr
- genuinely criminal
- Having this level of skill and only singing 3 songs this whole time is absurd
↳ Reply: No, it's 2 songs, she didn't even finish a full verse of one
↳ Reply: It's 3 now
↳ Reply: oh, right
- KYAAAAA!!!!!! The Roze high is kicking in!!!!!!
- But it's killing me that our reactions were basically identical since it was our first time hearing a girl group song too lololol
↳ Author: Now now, facts are banned here
- It really is legendary, isn't it?
- You need a larger sample size before you can call anything "all-time"
↳ Author: You're Roze, dammit, go sing a song
↳ Reply: ? The hell, did you just call me a troll like her? Take that back, I am NOT on that girl's level
↳ Reply: LOLLLLLL getting this triggered is hilarious
- lolololol honestly I'm enjoying this more than I expected, very satisfied
- There was a TON of opposition at first but the listener count just keeps climbing lololol
↳ Reply: Honestly I was against it too, but now I've shut up because it's fun hehe
- Where were the coordinates dropped?
- hi
- Hello there hehe
↳ Author: Who are you people, where did you even come from
- No, this bastard interrupted her song, remember
- This f—er, I waited ALL DAY for today and then he shows up
- TURN OOOOOON THE STREEEEAM
- Ugh, she bailed because of that Namgung bastard, remember
- Oh, dang
- You're right, Namgung was just the decoy... sorry for flaming him...
↳ Reply: No wait, think about it — HE'S the one who gave her the opening!!
↳ Reply: LOLLLLLLL does she have a split personality?
- Wait, it's actually real?
- Came here to flame and now why is it real
- thx
- Any chance she didn't know?
↳ Author: Think about it again
↳ Reply: Aha! Convinced!
- She's Roze, that's why
↳ Reply: And with that, everything makes sense
- But knowing Roze's personality, she definitely would have checked whether he was live first — I just didn't expect her to do that in front of ten thousand people lololololol
↳ Author: fr, that's exactly what shocked me too
- I thought I had Roze pretty much figured out. I reflect on my arrogance. Yep.
↳ Reply: same...
↳ Reply: I think the real mistake was me — a fellow menace — trying to understand that lunatic...
- ?
- Is this the REAL Roze?
↳ Author: yep
- Seriously... today's stream left me speechless... she's pumping out dopamine even after the stream's over...
- LOLLL this is hilarious lololololololol
- Yeah, that was us the first time too...
- Forget the song, her TALKING voice is insanely good
↳ Reply: that part is unreal, yeah
- Hm, that's a pretty standard conversion process, no?
- Standard, yep
- Ah, this is the fan-denial phase
↳ Reply: Denial...?
↳ Reply: Yeah... probably not denial
- Per the woman herself) started college, then dropped out
↳ Author: fr? Phew, we almost had a national talent stolen from productive society by YouTube
- There's a beginner-friendly intro video on her channel, go watch it and come back
↳ Author: thx, gonna go watch it
↳ Author: INSANE lolololol so she's a lunatic in everyday life too lolololol
The reactions were better than I expected…
Well, in pure dopamine terms, today was second only to the chart-in.
I should pester the company's video editor about today's stream.
The faster it comes out, the better for me and for Namgung Sanwol.
Two people benefit, so even if the editor suffers, it's a net gain, isn't it?
With such charitable thoughts in mind, I left the broadcast room at the company.
Why the company and not home, you ask?
Because today's stream had been held at the company in the first place.
Maybe if the weather were cool, but in this heat, singing with the doors closed and no air conditioning would straight-up cook me alive.
And without a soundproof booth, I couldn't even belt out the songs properly.
Plus, my one-room apartment only has the one computer, so splitting the audio would've been a hassle — hence, the company.
Having to head back home afterward was a pain, but the setup more than made up for it, so I was satisfied.
"Oh, Manager-nim."
On my way out of the building, I ran into the Manager.
Had she been waiting for me?
"…You know, right?"
Ah-ha!
I realized exactly why the Manager had been waiting for me.
"I'm sorry."
It was only after enduring a modest lecture that I was released.
As I stepped outside, replaying the scolding in my head, the night air — summer even after dark — swallowed me in a wave of heat.
Oof… it's hot…
Sunset or not, summer is still summer.
But if this is going to happen again anyway, was that lecture even worth anything?
Hm… if the Manager heard me thinking that, she'd probably develop a stress-induced illness, wouldn't she?
…It was summer.