Chapter 180: Company Theme Song (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 180: Company Theme Song (3)
“Team Leader, it’s been a while.”
“I-wol, how have you been? You’re looking much better, aren’t you?”
“Thank you for the compliment!”
A warm greeting was exchanged with the Planning Team Leader.
“And Cheong-hyeon is here to observe?”
“Yes. He’s here for ideation purposes, so please just ignore him and proceed as usual.”
The meeting Lee Cheong-hyeon and I were attending wasn’t with the Spark dedicated team, but a promotion meeting for the existing UA Planning Team.
Since I had given them a heads-up in advance, the conversation flowed smoothly. Cheong-hyeon took a seat in the corner of the meeting room with a relieved expression.
Thirty minutes later.
“No, I’m telling you, there’s no point in having a meeting like this.”
“How long are we going to keep saying the same thing? We should have reached a conclusion by now!”
“We absolutely have to have a result today. You all know that, right?”
“We know, we know, but… Sigh.”
Ta-da. A typical meeting scene, the kind you can find anywhere, unfolded.
Cheong-hyeon’s eyes darted around, looking flustered.
It was only natural. He had only ever seen meetings where I had already decided everything I was going to say.
He probably had no idea how he was supposed to get inspiration from this. It wasn’t like he could write lyrics like, ‘A conclusion that never comes despite daily meetings, this won’t do anymore.’
I scribbled a few words on the corner of my memo pad.
[Focus on the sound.]
Cheong-hyeon’s eyes widened.
The sound of sighs, voices rising in pitch, the silence that fell when one side spoke, the flow that intensified all at once and then cooled in an instant. The clicking of a ballpoint pen.
Whether he would implement the sound or the atmosphere was up to Cheong-hyeon, but wouldn't it be most effective to decide after actually hearing the field sounds?
Usually, people close their eyes to focus on sound in situations like this, but Cheong-hyeon opened his even wider.
He focused as if trying to memorize everything in the meeting room.
Even movements like setting a wet paper cup down on the desk with a thud.
By the time the sluggish meeting passed the one-hour mark, Cheong-hyeon tapped my memo pad. It was a signal to leave.
We quietly closed the meeting room door and stepped out so as not to be a distraction.
“You don’t need to see more?”
“Yeah, that’s enough.”
Cheong-hyeon gave a wicked grin.
“I’m going to make an OST that they won’t be able to help but use every time a sentimental scene comes up.”
His determination was something else. I should have shown him a raw meeting like this much sooner.
“So that’s why the OST was delivered so quickly. Cheong-hyeon, was it? He must be a real genius.”
“Objectively speaking, I believe so.”
Ha Seo-myeong burst into laughter at my words. She said that for someone who didn't look the part, my love for my members was quite intense.
“I hope the finished version comes out soon. I actually watched ‘My.Singer's.Genre,’ and Seong-bin is a really good singer.”
“Our main vocals are truly talented. I’m the one struggling just to keep up with them.”
“Really? Then I’ll have to watch something with you in it next time, I-wol.”
“Why don’t you spend your precious time on something more beautiful, Senior? Seong-bin has a cover song that he sang absolutely brilliantly.”
Kim I-wol after Jeong Seong-bin? What kind of ignominious end would that be? I didn't want to face Ha Seo-myeong awkwardly avoiding my gaze starting from the next shoot.
I was desperately promoting the best songs from the Spark guys when I heard a familiar voice.
“You entertainers really hit it off, coming from the same background.”
Gu Ja-han, the actor playing the male lead Ji Seong-in, was looking our way. The surroundings instantly went silent.
“Ha…”
Ha Seo-myeong let out a hollow laugh.
It wasn't the first or second time Gu Ja-han had sneered at actors from idol backgrounds.
Personally, I wasn't affected by Gu Ja-han’s words at all. There was no reason for my self-esteem to be hurt just because I was called an entertainer. If anything, he was just broadcasting his own shallow mindset to the whole world.
However, I could see Ha Seo-myeong getting more stressed by Gu Ja-han every day.
The reason was simple. Gu Ja-han, the ‘pure-blood actor,’ was worse at acting than Ha Seo-myeong, the ‘entertainer.’
A guy who was worse at acting than her, forcing her to carry him, was even making snide remarks? And she had to put up with it just because he was one of the leads? From Ha Seo-myeong’s perspective, it must be maddening.
This is why you shouldn't force two suns into the sky. Since one is an incomplete artificial sun, the real sun has to generate twice the energy. It was the height of unfairness.
‘And it’s not like he’s only losing in terms of acting….’
Ha Seo-myeong has an extraordinary sense of responsibility toward the works she takes on. You could tell just by how she ad-libbed with me several times a day.
Her will was to pull out more than what was in the script; to plant many seeds because you never know where something might bloom.
Gu Ja-han was the exact opposite. He wanted to get the maximum effect with the minimum effort. It was the method every large corporation desired.
But there was a difference between a large corporation and Gu Ja-han. A large corporation has technical skills accumulated over a long time, while Gu Ja-han did not.
A script he had only memorized the lines for would be erased from his mind if the movement path got even slightly tangled, and he frequently got the names of supporting actors wrong.
Crucially, Gu Ja-han’s acting was mediocre. To be precise, his acting wasn't great ‘relative to his acting career.’
Think about it. Someone who practiced to death to shed a label versus someone who just worked moderately hard. Who would be better?
As another former idol, I was confident that I wouldn't lose when it came to ‘acting like a reasonably nice person’ and ‘acting like an office worker,’ even if I didn't know about other types of acting. I was also confident in ‘acting like a total boomer department head,’ but since that had nothing to do with Do Yeong-hwan, I’ll leave it out.
Anyway, it was understandable that he’d be uncomfortable with outsiders not only appearing as supporting characters but even snagging lead roles. Still, he shouldn't let his petty feelings show like this.
“I think my voice was too loud. I’ll be careful, Senior.”
“Seo-myeong is your senior, I-wol. Not me.”
Gu Ja-han twisted my words until the very end before leaving.
Ha Seo-myeong ruffled her hair.
“Thinking about filming a romance scene with that man makes me want to throw everything away….”
At that moment, no words could comfort Ha Seo-myeong.
During this week’s meeting.
As usual, Spark was peacefully praising one another and checking if the Dorm 12 Commandments—which had somehow doubled in number—were being followed.
To practice ‘talking a lot’ among those rules, I had brought a topic of my own.
“There’s something I want to ask you guys.”
“Us?”
“What’s the occasion?”
Lee Cheong-hyeon and Kang Gi-yeon gave cocky responses.
Yeah, I’m asking you jerks because I don’t have any other friends.
“I don't think changing jobs… or rather, changing career paths, is necessarily a bonus, but I don't think it's a negative factor either. But in some cases, it seems like people face a lot of backlash during the transition. I was wondering how it was for you guys.”
Aside from Lee Cheong-hyeon, there were many whose primary focus had changed. Choi Je-ho went from street dance to idol dance, and Park Ju-woo went from rock ballads to idol vocals.
“There were guys who looked down on me, but I never really cared, so I don't know. What they say is all pretty much the same anyway.”
“What do they usually say?”
The remarks Choi Je-ho relayed were incredibly foul and dirty. I lamented the fact that I wasn't a Thousand-Armed Avalokitesvara and couldn't cover all the members' ears.
Lee Cheong-hyeon rubbed his arms.
“I think the psychological warfare in that scene is scarier than a diss rap.”
“Aren't diss raps just as bad…?”
“Diss raps often have respect mixed in, you know? But that’s just verbal abuse!”
Coming from someone who wore a large dog muzzle and dissed a senior group, those weren't exactly words you should be saying. I hope you take some time to reflect on yourself soon.
“I think singing is relatively free…. In fact, you get praised if you can handle many genres.”
Park Ju-woo said, tilting his head. It was Jeong Seong-bin who came forward with a dissenting opinion.
“I don't think the reaction is very favorable when a regular singer moves into musicals or classical vocal music. There’s the issue of acting, but I think there’s a rejection response in areas where the vocalization style changes.”
“Hmm… I agree with that part.”
Park Ju-woo cleanly acknowledged Seong-bin’s point. Then Kang Gi-yeon jumped in.
“Isn't it a bit ambiguous to say it's a vocalization issue? People who do metal aren't criticized for singing ballads.”
“Then what about a pansori major becoming an idol trainee? Or an opera singer pivoting to trot?”
“Wait, don't make the conversation more complicated!”
Cheong-hyeon’s collection of ‘what ifs’ poured out like a storm. Kang Gi-yeon clutched his head and suddenly shouted.
‘Still, the one who had the most dynamic change must be Lee Cheong-hyeon.’
As soon as I looked his way, Cheong-hyeon shrugged.
“My family insisted I do a job where I wear a suit. Researcher, judge, prosecutor, professor. If I absolutely had to do music, it had to be piano or conducting.”
“Were orchestra sessions not included?”
“Nope. They have a huge obsession with having their name listed separately. They don't even know how different playing and conducting are. They’re quite funny people.”
Cheong-hyeon sneered with an expression that said he didn't find it funny at all.
“And yet you managed to say you’d be a celebrity?”
Choi Je-ho threw a direct question without hesitation. The pupils of the four of us, excluding Je-ho and Cheong-hyeon, shook violently.
I had heard the gist of the situation before, and Gi-yeon probably knew to some extent, but….
Seong-bin and Ju-woo were literally breaking into cold sweats, just watching the atmosphere.
Cheong-hyeon himself was calm.
“We fought a lot. Or rather than a fight, I just got scolded one-sidedly. They talked about disowning me and whatnot, and back then, I happened to be soft-hearted, so I just cried in my room.”
“Really…?”
Perhaps the younger one looked pitiful; Park Ju-woo’s eyebrows formed an upside-down V.
“But well, what could they do if I said I wouldn't study? So at first, they let me do piano. Once I tried standing up to them, I learned how to do it, so I just made a hard pivot from there.”
“That’s amazing.”
“In exchange, it was on the condition that I maintain a certain grade level. They said they’d really disown me if my grades dropped. Therefore, I-wol Hyung, I’ll be counting on you for my midterms again.”
“Cheong-hyeon, why don't you start by telling me the exam dates before saying something like that?”
I smiled gently.
While Cheong-hyeon’s face darkened rapidly, Seong-bin called out to me.
“I-wol Hyung.”
“Yeah, what is it?”
“Is filming ‘In My Office’ very difficult for you?”
What the.
Are you the one hosting an ancestral spirit, not me?