Sky Garden's Viral Ignition
The pre-release single Sky Garden kicked off with what was supposed to be a perfectly ordinary music video. The kind of MV idols churn out all the time, crafted to flaunt the group's charms to the hilt. It played up one of Group Sound's undeniable assets (even if some folks desperately wanted to deny it)—their looks—aiming for that "Whoa, these stunning girls are doing a band? And their skills are straight fire? Go watch now!" vibe. To go all-in on captivating fans and schmooze the boss by filming his daughter like a goddess... we were gearing up to drop an eight-figure budget on the production.
But that whole trajectory flipped on a single remark.
"Isn't it a bit too ordinary?"
It came up during the meeting where we'd gathered the band members to pitch the MV concept. Ha Suyeon, chin propped on her hand as she eyed the sample footage, dropped the line.
"Huh?? Why?? Why do you think that??"
"Well... it's not anything specific."
Suyeon's face carried a faint hesitation, like she was wondering if she should even wade into this professional territory. But Jeong Yu-young listened quietly. Gems like this could pop up out of nowhere.
"We're basically planning a traditional music video here."
"Right, yeah!"
"But big corps and everyone else pumps those out too. Won't it lack differentiation? The production values alone set them apart."
With that, Suyeon wrapped up: "Like, what if we went anime-style or something? Seems trendy these days, and the girls would dig it."
While Choi Iseo griped, "Hey! Not every otaku loves every anime!", Yu-young mulled it over silently. Then it hit her like a lightning bolt.
Suyeon's idea wasn't some flawless revolution or wildly original stroke of genius. Plenty of musicians were already leaning that way, especially in Japan where it felt like half of them did. And many had succeeded big. But it was enough—more than enough—to shatter the shackles weighing down Yu-young's feet. Shackles forged from the pressure of her first big gig as team lead, chaining her to the tried-and-true playbook from her old agency.
She pulled an all-nighter right there in the office. Go Kyung-min even quipped, "Do idol companies always grind like this?"
The result of those sleepless nights, scouting top animators and throwing cash at them (still cheaper than live-action), was the music video for Sky Garden.
Jeong Yu-young's gambit was multifaceted. Korea's deep dive into short-form video (Shorts, Reels, TikTok, etc.) and its ensuing 'challenge' culture. The half-mainstream Japanese anime aesthetic. The city pop and retro vibes that showed no signs of fading—in fact, they were ramping up—along with B-movie sentimentality and a grab-bag of other trends. The MV was engineered to snag them all at once.
Her other designs clicked brilliantly too. But the killer move? The signature dance tailored for challenges.
A super simple bit: waving your hands this way and that while grooving. Anyone could mimic it. But hooked to that addictive chorus, it packed a punch. It didn't take long for someone to post a #SkyGardenChallenge spin on it, and even less time for TikTok to explode with them.
That was the MV Yu-young had bled for in planning. Bolstered by the buzz we'd built, the public's thirst for fresh sounds, and a dozen other factors, Group Sound's video racked up...
...results way beyond expectations.
"...And now it's broken 3 million! We expect it to climb higher too—foreign-language comments are spiking lately!"
"For real? Three million people actually watched our video?"
Lee Hyein echoed in disbelief. He shook his head.
"Not three million unique viewers—three million views. Real watchers? Maybe a few hundred thousand, tops a million. Short clips like that get repeat plays."
"Still..."
Hyein looked a bit shell-shocked. He got it completely. Even he couldn't quite wrap his head around it. Three million views was wild enough, but landing only #4 on rising popular music charts? What the hell were the top ones?
"And views alone don't capture Sky Garden's full impact! Most are on short-form platforms anyway!"
With that, Jeong Yu-young pulled up a barrage of clips. TikToks, Reels, Shorts—all cracking at least a million views. She even ID'd some: "That's a member of that idol group," or "Check this celeb."
Most were folks nailing the MV's dance.
"Which brings me to this!"
She slammed the table. Go Kyung-min shot her a what's with her? look, but she barreled on.
"The fire's lit—it'll keep burning! But like any blaze, fan the flames and it'll roar even hotter!"
He felt a chill. Obvious, sure, but why were her eyes locking on him?
"So... if the girl who wrote the challenge song, leads the charge, and fronts the band—Ha Suyeon herself—jumps in? Tags like #IDancedIt or #TryingItMyself? We could hit ten million, twenty easy!!"
"Absolutely not."
His refusal landed firm this time, unlike recent flops. A perfect alternative had stepped up.
"This'd be fun. Why not?"
"Why the hell would I?"
Choi Iseo, volunteering like a champ that she could nail it. Thanks to her, he dodged a national embarrassment of flailing awkwardly for "cute" points. He sipped his coffee gratefully.
"More importantly, what was that premium thing earlier?"
"You weren't listening."
"I was. Kinda."
He'd strained to catch every word. Just hadn't clicked.
Something about pre-sales, tickets, limited merch, exclusive goodies.
"Simply put... it's like... subscriptions... or something..."
"Striking while the iron's hot with sales, right? Not our department."
"Yeah."
Iseo unfolded the handout Yu-young had passed around, breaking it down for him. Behind her, the other girls chattered. He watched Iseo bare her teeth in a grin, mind drifting to the road ahead.
Surprise busking or whatever. YouTube appearances. Collabs with celebs.
Top priority was the full album recording, of course. Strike while the iron's hot, but prep new oars in downtime too.
He ran a hand through his hair. Plenty on the plate.
"Urghhh..."
Slipping out of the crowded lecture hall, Jeong Hyeona slumped in a quiet spot. Crowds were par for the course as a Seoulite, but these folks recognizing her? Whole different beast.
Is it always this bad...?
Even after working on Sky Garden, shooting the MV, and release—she'd barely left home. Graduation ceremony, maybe? Kids had spotted her sporadically then, but she'd chalked it up to high schoolers' nosiness.
College life hit her introverted soul like hell.
Too many people know me...
Music department? Or just freshmen with endless time? Crossing campus meant constant "Hey, aren't you the Sky Garden girl...?"
Say yes and risk it. Autographs, pics—fine. But TikTok pleas? She bolted every time.
If I'd stuck to plan... would it be better?
Nah—she'd have bombed the entrance exam. Band dreams? Toast.
Mixed feelings swirling, her pocket buzzed.
"H-hello...?"
"Unnie! You in class right now?"
"N-no..."
"Cool, can we swing by? Got a break!"
"Y-yeah...?"
They didn't draw celebrity-level mobs. But Hyeona clocked it: the swarm trailing Suyeon and Iseo had crossed from annoying to obstructive.
"Y-you okay...?"
"Pfft, why wouldn't we be? Fans spotting us, cheering us on."
"Speak for yourself."
Iseo swatted Suyeon playfully—"Don't say that!"—as Suyeon glared back. Iseo plopped down and launched in.
"How's college? Living that wild youth? MTs, drinking games...?"
"N-not at all... We were recording... till last week..."
"Fair."
Suyeon had boasted pre-entrance ceremony: wrap it quick. But mixing dragged to last week. Every non-school hour poured into it.
Still...
"Might need re-records though. Track 4's sound is off..."
"Hey! You ordered track 7 seventy times...!"
"I could do it a hundred and it'd still need perfect sound."
Suyeon's ironclad logic. Hyeona eyed her wearily. Suyeon's album obsession bordered on madness—micromanaging every detail.
"Kidding. Mixing and mastering are underway—no redoes."
"Quit joking like that!! We nearly died. Hyeona-unnie, class soon anyway."
Iseo flailed—"Jokes have limits!"—then bolted at an approaching "You sang Sky Garden, right?" with "Yeah! Nice to meet ya!" Pics, videos—TikTok?
Their table drew lenses too; Hyeona shyly V-signed.
"Suyeon... help out...?"
Suyeon soul-lessly flashed a finger-heart. Iseo returned: "Do it right!" Suyeon ignored her.
"You girls are done now. Just me, label staff, and content shoots left."
Those wouldn't take long, she muttered. Mixing, mastering. Final tracklist. All audio tweaks the band couldn't touch.
"Anyway, full album drops soon. Hyeona, brace yourself. Could get way more famous."
Hyeona pondered: More than now? Do I hide forever? Online classes?