Chapter 530
Chapter 530
Backstage at the American Music Awards, just after the ceremony began.
"Phew."
The frontman of a certain band took a deep breath.
Set to perform a segment of an upcoming group stage, he was a member of a local band. A stage on such a massive, major broadcast was essentially a first for him.
However, he had unwavering faith in his own skills.
I need to stay calm. I can do this.
He repeated the mantra to himself, trying his best to look relaxed as he scanned his surroundings.
That was when he noticed a boy waiting right next to him.
Oh.
The Asian boy, with black hair and an indifferent expression, had left an impression during rehearsals with his impressive skills.
His calm yet powerful voice seemed to reveal exactly what kind of singer he was.
Hoping to shake off his own nerves, the frontman tapped the kid on the shoulder and struck up a conversation.
"Hey, how are you feeling?"
"Good."
The reply was short and the tone composed.
However, seeing the lack of a smile and the somewhat unsociable attitude, the frontman inferred that the boy was feeling the pressure.
Of course he is.
The frontman decided to be considerate.
"You know, there’s no shame in being nervous before a stage this big."
"Of course not."
The boy nodded readily. Then he added, "You don't look nervous at all."
"Naturally."
The frontman felt a surge of pride.
"It’s a matter of experience. I’ve stood before quite a few crowds myself..."
"I can tell."
The boy nodded calmly, and the frontman felt that this small talk was truly helping the kid relax.
He began to offer advice, sharing stories of stages he had performed on, and the boy seemed to listen intently, nodding slightly throughout.
He’s a decent kid.
To show that he was an open-minded person, the frontman graciously asked another question.
"So... where do you usually base your activities in this country? I’m from the South."
"If I had to pick, Cali."
"Oh, is that your hometown?"
"A member of my band is from San Diego."
To be honest, it was unexpected.
Don't people from that state usually not know the meaning of the word 'serious'?
It was a thought riddled with stereotypes, but the suspicion itself hit the mark.
There's no way this guy was born on the Pacific coast.
Regardless, it would be rude to bicker over origins, so the frontman wrapped up the conversation there.
"Hey, how about we take a photo?"
"Sure."
The boy agreed surprisingly readily, and they snapped a few selfies.
"I guess you have a lot of experience taking photos with your fans?"
"Quite a bit."
"Haha!"
The kid seemed pretty sincere.
He’s got guts, the frontman concluded.
In reality, the person he was calling a "boy" was simply thinking, There’s no reason to drag out a conversation with this guy, but he figured it was better to be polite.
Regardless of what the boy was thinking, the frontman continued the pleasant conversation until he reached this topic.
"By the way, do you like tacos? I mean, I’m half-Latino."
It was a polite way of probing into the other's heritage.
The response was straightforward.
"I'm Korean."
The frontman reflexively thought of a Netplus drama, but fortunately, a string of music-related topics suitable for the situation came to mind.
"Oh, do you listen to K-pop by any chance?"
The boy didn't answer for a moment.
"Quite a lot."
And then, he smiled for the first time.
Park Moon-dae—whom the frontman had mistaken for a boy due to his styling—followed a staff member away after that answer.
It was time to prepare for the stage.
*
The awards hall.
The host’s clear voice filled the extravagant venue.
[...And so, we shall remember them forever!]
It was the introduction for the tribute stage.
This performance was dedicated to an American rock band that had taken the 70s by storm.
This year, the band's vocalist, who had been embroiled in controversy until his final years, became a hot topic when he suddenly donated his entire fortune to charity upon his passing.
As a result, this awards ceremony had organized a tribute stage for the deceased.
One of the band's most emotional, slow-tempo hits had been selected.
Taking inspiration from the late singer's past interviews, vocalists from various rising bands—specifically rookies with strong local flavor—were chosen to sing the parts in succession.
Maximizing the storytelling!
The goal of the stage was to maximize emotion and resonance, which was why these rookies, excluding a few who got in through connections, were truly talented.
And everyone was thinking the same thing.
This is the opportunity I’ve been waiting for.
In American awards ceremonies, where tribute stages are usually performed by famous contemporary singers, this was a rare chance that almost never came around.
They were singing a song the whole world had heard, not as a simple cover, but on a massive broadcast at an official event!
The vocalists were all burning with passion and determination.
I have to prove my talent.
With that shared thought, the vocalists stepped onto the stage with firm resolves.
Vroooooom—!
Waaaaah!
The stage, reached via a clattering lift, was overflowing with sensory stimulation.
Applause, lights, backing tracks, and sound effects boomed, shaking their sight and hearing.
But there was no consideration given to let them adjust to the massive stage; the music began immediately.
Thump.
A heated accompaniment began with a drum beat.
The vocalist standing on the stage equipment skillfully kicked off the first part despite the pressure.
[Not everyone wants
The memories of love]
A refreshing voice raced forward, utilizing off-beats so brilliantly it was hard to believe this was his first time on such a big stage.
When he added an ad-lib during the interlude, a roar of approval erupted from the audience.
Oh, damn.
The frontman who had been talking to Park Moon-dae almost bit his tongue while waiting.
Because his turn was next.
Now!
He saw the light on the camera in front of him turn on, gripped the mic, and sang.
[I wake at dawn to see a damp bed
It looks like traces of raindrops
Or salt like the sea]
His pleasant voice filled the verse.
[It feels like the waves are crashing in
I’m barely holding on]
I did it!
The frontman finished his part in a state of euphoria, having nailed the high notes with his own unique vibe.
As the camera light went out, the next person appeared on the electronic display.
[I spent the past days crying
Thinking of the good old days
I don't want to do that anymore]
Cheers erupted again at the rough rocker's voice.
Every subsequent part was filled with unique and talented vocalists, each shining with their own color.
Furthermore, because the parts had been arranged with harmony in mind, the song sounded wonderful even when listened to in its entirety.
How well did I do?
He couldn't tell.
Quickly concluding that it was better to hope for the stage itself to become famous, the frontman decided to just enjoy the moment.
With his nerves eased, he noticed a figure standing by on the side stage next to him.
It was the boy he had spoken to earlier.
The frontman remembered that the kid's part was toward the end.
Does he come in around 2 minutes and 40 seconds?
However, he recalled that it wasn't a climax part, but rather an awkward chorus section before it.
Good luck, friend!
Having already finished his own part successfully, he enjoyed the moment while hyping up the crowd. When the time came, he turned his gaze slightly to check on the boy.
And finally, the singing began.
[Not everyone wants
The memories of love]
A strong, clear voice.
Followed by a brilliant transition and a pleasant, growling vocal technique that dropped off sharply.
A piercing high note.
Huh?
It was a vocal style distinctly different from the calm sound during rehearsals.
But the reason for the surprise wasn't just that the boy was singing the song in a completely different way than in rehearsal.
It wasn't just the flair and technique, either.
[The world says
Love is everything
I’m not saying that’s wrong
Oh
But I don’t want to remember]
On stage.
The boy who had come up from the side stage was singing exactly like the original artist.
*
I'll be honest.
From the start, I hadn't considered blending harmoniously into this tribute stage to raise the overall quality at all.
Isn't that the job of the person who planned the stage?
They didn't give me any authority over anything from the arrangement to the part distribution, so what did they expect?
And I'm sorry, but I had no intention of following the planning intent of "a stage where the voices of various unique local bands harmonize."
Not when there was such an effective method available.
[Oh!]
I checked my image singing on the screen and then checked the number of comments below it.
[Comments: 12,721]
Just one hour.
It meant that in the short time—less than an hour—since the video was uploaded, this many people had started talking.
Of course, it’s even more if you consider the unofficial videos that started circulating on SNS as soon as the stage ended.
Overall, there was no better bait for attention than this.
Replicating the original singer all by myself during a tribute stage.
—(2:46) Seriously, who the f*ck is this guy?
I know, right?
I smiled and tapped my smartphone.
However, let me be clear.
Simply imitating the voice wouldn't produce the effect I wanted.
Vocal styles change with the trends as time passes.
Have you ever listened to a song you loved about ten years ago for the first time in a long while?
Everyone has had the experience of being surprised by how awkward or unfamiliar the singer sounded.
It’s because your brain has already refined the vocals you heard in the past into a modern, cool version.
I can't let them feel that disconnect when they watch my stage.
That would actually lessen the impact.
I didn't want to hear that I "imitated" him; I wanted to hear that the moment they heard the song, the original singer immediately came to mind.
"The image people have of the original singer's performance."
The impression they would have felt back then.
Evoking that was my goal.
Therefore, it was important to find a "way of singing" that was appropriately adjusted for modern ears, matching what was in people's heads.
It took a hell of a long time.
—Nope.
—Noooope.
—Sing it stronger! More!
I’d like to take this moment to thank Professor Cha Yu-jin of America.
His honest reactions from a local's perspective were a huge help. Though I did feel a bit of a reality check after being rejected about ten times.
Thanks to that, I pushed the quality as high as I possibly could.
Given my vocal rank, the result was satisfying.
—Seriously, Park Moon-dae is so damn good at singing and so smart.
—Wow, I never imagined he’d come out here and tear it up lol.
—Can’t he just keep singing like this? This style is so much cooler.
The domestic reaction was also good among the general public. I did get a bit of a "national pride" buff as well.
Of course, the risks exploded as expected.
—???? Moon-dae, why are you there?
—This is crazy. Please, if he’s appearing, just announce it, agency! Ahhh, I bet no one was able to film a fancam.
Starting from the disappointed reactions of fans...
—Am I the only one who didn't like it? I didn't expect him to appear like that, completely ignoring his own group's color during a comeback period.
└ I feel the same... He looks like someone desperate to stand out alone.
└ Seriously, I don't know why he chose that as his first schedule for the promotion period lol. He should have just appeared on a talk show as a group like usual.
└ FYI, they are scheduled to appear. Stop pretending to be a fan and meddling when you don't know anything.
...to these types of attention-seeking reactions.
But it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. I mean, there are plenty of bastards who use TeSTAR to bait people.
It was a small price to pay.
It would be buried anyway once the comeback activities progressed further.
Besides, the company was planning to release the fancam soon, so the fans' disappointment could be sufficiently soothed.
There was also a perfectly valid reason for fans to latch onto so they wouldn't get stressed about why I sang that way.
It was a tribute stage, so I sang while thinking of the original artist. What are they going to do about it?
This wasn't just a simple cover stage.
Of course, I couldn't stop the mixed reactions in the US.
First, the criticism regarding my eligibility.
—K-pop isn't a real band. He was inappropriately selected.
—He’s a fake.
└ Oh please, his band writes their own songs! Your "factory-made" K-pop band idea is just an ignorant stereotype!
Next was the criticism of the stage itself.
That it lacked individuality.
—What exactly is his individuality or what's "K-pop" about this?
└ Fck off, his singing was fcking perfect! I don't want that "K-pop-ness." He was the only vocalist who knew how to properly respect the original!
—It’s like Rosie came back to life... He’s a truly amazing singer.
└ This is nothing more than an imitation.
└ He was just being polite and humble—recreating a legend as a legend, you idiot.
What was my take on all this chaos?
I actually welcome it.
My skills or character weren't being disparaged, and the controversy over the stage itself only increased the view count, so I was just grateful.
If anything, I hoped this pro-and-con debate would last a bit longer.
Good.
I rubbed my chin.
And while it wasn't exactly intentional...
The other vocalists on this stage will probably benefit from this too.
Because of the attention drawn, it was definitely more of a hot topic than if it had proceeded according to the original plan.
Furthermore, since I served as a point of comparison, there were quite a few videos comparing how much of a different flavor others brought compared to the original.
—I think that Asian boy's part became the standard for this stage. Interesting.
—Rosie was a great vocalist, but I like the 3rd rocker better (smiling emoji).
Well, it’s not bad.
I shrugged, remembering the guy who had insisted on rambling to me before the stage.
He posted a review on Inheart with all sorts of fuss.
Something about a K-pop star this and that.
I hoped he’d post more of the photos we took. To increase the buzz a bit more.
With that thought, I began to dig further into the American internet reactions.
Slowly, the reactions I had been expecting started to appear one by one.
—Wait a minute, is that the crazy alien band from the movie <Cosmic Gunner>?
Finally.
Here it is.
The TeSTAR memes that had previously been trending sporadically on the American internet.
└ Oh my god, it is.
└ This is actually hilarious lol.
└ In a way, they really are a group with a strong local flavor (smiling emoji).
They were starting to connect.
Of course, if I just left it here, there was a high probability that the interest would fizzle out again instead of pulling it all toward TeSTAR.
Just like the few times before when I had been satisfied with drawing in viewers through music videos.
But this time, I wouldn't be satisfied with just that.
I smiled and changed the page on my smartphone.
Shall I egg them on a bit more?
In a slightly more fun way.
I began to slowly draft a post in English.
And at this point, the comeback promotional variety shows filmed in Korea began to pour out as well.
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