Chapter 213
Chapter 213
The stage built on the set was modeled after an open-air amphitheater with circular tiered seating, the kind you might find in an American park.
In short, because the small stage was completely open 360 degrees, the audience was right in front of me on all sides.
‘It’ll certainly be a fresh experience.’
While the local residents invited as the audience arrived one by one and went through security, I sat in the waiting room with a camera pointed at me and received an envelope.
The gaudy glitter on it felt very American.
Along with an English explanation from the AI MC, a translation came through my in-ear monitor.
[Inside this envelope are the signature songs chosen by the participants!]
[Our K-POP mentor will learn all three of these songs within one hour.]
[Shall we see how it goes?]
There was nothing to see.
The production crew had already informed me beforehand which songs were candidates.
‘Of course, they didn't narrow it down to just these three.’
They gave me about a dozen songs and hinted that the selection would come from that list. Since they were pop songs, there was a chance I wouldn't know them at all.
The participants probably selected these three through some kind of race or a fight.
Well, I could already see a participant shouting something like, "This damn song isn't what I wanted!" on the broadcast.
[Are you nervous?]
[Well, a little.]
I gave a cliché answer to the cliché question and tore open the envelope.
“Hmm.”
It was exactly as I expected.
‘I won’t even need an hour.’
I might as well just use the time to recover from my jet lag.
The set was buzzing with people.
Holding bags of wine or cosmetics—all sponsored by T1—the residents stood with their arms crossed, waiting for the stage without much expectation.
It wasn't a famous show, and they knew nothing about it other than the fact that it was a Netplus production.
[I heard they’re going to sing.]
[I’d rather see a magic show!]
A father and daughter shrugged as they chatted.
Behind the stage, cameras were also rolling, capturing the participants listening to the murmurs of the crowd.
A total of eight people had chosen "singing" as their talent to become a celebrity in this "Intro Stage."
And the audience members were each given a button.
[When the audience presses the button, a light will momentarily flash in their seat!]
[They will press the button if they feel it’s ‘good.’]
[And… a warning! They believe everyone coming out is a participant and are unaware of the existence of our secret K-Pop mentor!]
[Now then, our ‘K-POP’ camp participants, please take the stage!]
The audience gave a reflexive cheer as nine people appeared on stage via a lift.
[Whoo!]
The participants also reflexively waved their hands or jumped around. There was no telling how those excited appearances would be edited—perhaps as a type of arrogance or immaturity—for the broadcast.
And in the corner, there was an Asian youth with a large hood pulled over his head.
However, unlike the other boisterous participants, he barely moved and went almost unnoticed.
Naturally, it was Park Moon-dae.
[Now, the first song is… Oh! It’s ‘Drive It’ by Phil Garcia! Shall we get moving!?]
It was a song that had been popular a few years ago, a skillful blend of R&B and pop that was easy on the ears. It was also a staple for men on audition programs in this country.
[Oh~]
The audience gave a polite, standard response to the conventional song choice.
However, once the next rule was explained, their admiration began to turn sincere.
[The participants on stage will sing whenever they are randomly designated.]
[If you like it, press the button mercilessly! The more lights that stay on for longer, the longer you will be able to hear that participant’s song!]
[If there aren't many lights… well, next!]
Laughter erupted from the audience at the AI’s playful tone.
[Hahaha!]
If the reaction was good, you could sing more; if it was bad, it was over.
It was a rule that was easy to understand, visually striking, and cruelly provocative enough to be entertaining!
[Alright, starting from number one… Begin!]
Music echoed through the air as the participants took deep breaths or spun their microphones, trying to act like they weren't nervous.
Participant number one blinked and raised the microphone.
A trembling voice produced a fairly decent melody.
—Drive the car without hesitation~ I have a big engine and shiny head-headlights~
[Oh….]
The people who had been pressing their buttons moderately hesitated as soon as the participant stuttered.
[Now, next!]
The moment the lights dimmed, the AI ruthlessly pointed to number five.
—I’m not a steady man, but I’m wild. That’s my charm….
In that manner, the song began to pass from person to person.
Most could barely handle a single line, and those who went further only managed two or three.
It couldn't be helped.
With the AI’s designations coming out of nowhere and the visual reminder right in front of them that "one mistake and it's over," they ended up making blunders they wouldn't normally make.
—My eyes are see-seei… Damn it!
[Ne-xt!]
The participant who couldn't even finish a single sentence was now met with boos from the audience, who were getting into the spirit of things.
Just as the audience was becoming more merciless in their familiarity with the game—
[Number seven!]
The call appeared on the electronic board for number seven, who had been standing blankly in the corner.
[…….]
The youth in the hood glanced at the light indicating his turn, immediately opened his mouth, and raised the microphone.
The song began exactly where it was supposed to.
Naturally, as if it had been his part all along.
—That sight keeps me alive
Even today, the city lights
Drive, drive, between the stars and the light
[Oh!!]
A pleasant voice rang out solidly through the speakers.
It was a clear difference in tone and volume, as if he alone were using a different quality of equipment.
Click-click-click! Click! Click-click-click-click!
In an instant, the sound of buttons being rapidly pressed erupted from the audience, and lights of all colors began to flash.
The song soared.
—Drive, drive.
Between the stars and the light
Tonight.
Even in the high notes of the chorus, his voice remained steady.
No, rather, the melodic parts that brought out the flavor of the song stood out even more.
[Yeah!]
The rapid button-pressing didn't slow down. The lights continued to flash, and number seven’s run continued.
However, the problem was… they were now entering the instrumental break.
If the singing stopped, the lights would inevitably decrease. It would be the natural moment to move on to the next person.
[Mmm!]
Just as a few audience members, quickly realizing the situation as the lyrics disappeared from the screen, began to look disappointed—
—DDU DDU DDururu
DDU DDU DDU
[—!]
Number seven began to hum over the instrumental.
It wasn't just simple humming; it was done with an incredible vocal range and technique, almost at the level of a concert ad-lib.
[Wow!!]
At that feat of skill, the buttons were hammered again, and number seven’s lifespan was extended once more.
Flash-flash-flash! Flash!
Lights flickered from all directions.
By this point, some of the other participants were watching what number seven was doing with their mouths agape.
But Park Moon-dae didn't continue the display.
Instead, a line or two before the second verse began, he stopped the ad-lib and politely lowered his microphone.
[In that case, next!]
The audience was disappointed by the AI MC’s cheerful shout, but there was a reason for it.
‘I’ll pull back once at this timing.’
Number seven, Park Moon-dae, knew the loophole in this rule.
‘People get used to stimulation.’
It was more important to sing better than the previous line than to just keep singing well.
If you just sang straight through without thinking, people's reactions would inevitably wither after the climax.
Since it wasn't better than the climax they just heard, cases where people didn't bother pressing the button would crop up.
Therefore, you had to keep providing new stimulation and elements of surprise, whether through high notes, ad-libs, or variations.
This was also why those who had been singing decently before couldn't last more than two or three lines.
That was why Park Moon-dae skipped the start of the second verse, where the tempo of the song reset.
‘Well, I also need to make sure it looks like I’m giving the participants a chance.’
As a mentor, I had to show myself yielding to the participants so that nonsense like "Is it just me, or is he a bit much?" wouldn't pop up on the domestic internet.
And Park Moon-dae had already finished his calculations.
‘Considering the number of participants… they’ll give it to me at least once more at the end anyway.’
Looking at the timing, it seemed his turn would come again after a full rotation of the participants.
[Too bad, next!]
Because Park Moon-dae had performed so well earlier, the audience's standards had become harsh, and most of the intimidated participants were knocked out after a single line.
And just as Park Moon-dae planned, he was designated again during the pre-chorus, right before the final chorus.
[Oohhh!]
Amidst the anticipatory cheers of the already biased audience, Park Moon-dae took hold of the song from the very first line and didn't let go.
—Drive, drive
Hit the horn and crush the light
Tonight
Park Moon-dae’s final song occupancy time was 1 minute and 3 seconds.
And so, the shockingly overwhelming first "Intro Stage," which wasn't even a contest, came to an end.
[The winner is… Number seven!]
[Waaaaah!!]
‘I’ve earned my keep.’
Instead of bowing his head, Park Moon-dae waved his hand in a way that suited the audience's sentiment and gave a small smirk.
Beside the stage, he could already hear the production crew salivating behind the cameras.
‘If things go well, they might even use this for the trailer.’
And that prediction was correct.
[K-Pop? I don't listen to that kind of stuff.]
[Calling that music is… no, don't misunderstand. I don't consider the boy bands in this country to be music either.]
[My younger sister is completely obsessed, but honestly, she’s out of her mind.]
“Oh, a trailer?”
“That’s right!”
Inside the car, Cha Yu-jin, who was playing Netplus on his smartphone, excitedly shook the screen to show the members.
The members immediately focused their attention on the short preview video.
After the typical interview cuts of participants saying things like "I'm not interested in loser subculture K-Pop," short clips of the actual filming passed by.
[This summer.]
[Reality participants thirsty for fame]
[Will be showered with K-Pop!]
“Wow, look at the captions.”
“The translation is good.”
[Aaaaah!!]
[What the X is this….]
Participants screaming and K-Pop idols laughing.
Then, a side profile of me singing and the image of a participant next to me with their mouth hanging open flashed by.
“Two other vocal teams did it besides you, right?”
“Yeah.”
I suppose they used my footage well because it was the first stage and the participants' reactions were the rawest.
“I heard everyone won.”
“Hey, of course. Everyone’s a pro with a position~ You think they would’ve lost?”
Seeing him grinning like that, it seemed he had also won quite overwhelmingly on the dance stage.
[Do you know K-Pop?]
[Do you like it?]
[Want to try it?]
[K-NOW]
Immediately after the title appeared, "Episode 1 Coming Soon" popped up along with the date.
Usually, programs released on Netplus dropped four or five episodes at once, but it seemed they had agreed with the studio to release them one by one.
“Cha Yu-jin, you must press the notification button for the release so you can watch it immediately without forgetting….”
“I know!”
“What’s the point of knowing if you haven't done it!”
‘Anyway, the broadcast isn't far off.’
Perhaps because the filming ended successfully, I was quite curious to see what the reaction to the first episode would be.
And around the time we watch that, there’s another event.
As if he had also realized after looking at the date, Seon A-hyun shouted.
“A-Ah, th-this day… is our moving day…!”
“Oh, is it?”
“It seems our decision to order a new large TV after much discussion will pay off!”
“I love it!”
It was the move.
We were finally moving to a new dorm.