Unplugged Setbacks
"Let's get into the details... As for producing this Unplugged album, I see it more as an experiment than something we're aiming for immediate success with."
Go Kyung-min's words left everyone except Marketing Manager Jeong Yu-young furrowing their brows in confusion. An experiment rather than a bid for success? Did a band that had just released their debut full-length even have the leeway for that kind of risk? But the questions didn't come right away—thanks to Yu-young's follow-up explanation.
"First off! As Team Leader Go mentioned earlier, our main fanbase is in the 10s to 20s! And that demographic doesn't have a ton of buying power. So, what strategy should we take to boost sales?"
With that, Yu-young pulled up a PPT slide comparing the "Idol Industry" and the "Band Industry."
"Idols leverage their fanbase with stuff like gacha pulls. We've dabbled in that ourselves! But as you all probably know, it works great for album sales but not so much for live show revenue. One fan might buy a hundred albums, but they can't buy a hundred tickets or bring a hundred people through the door! And that's even more true for regional gigs."
"That's why we need to expand beyond our current core audience. Idol-style album drops might rake in cash short-term, but they're not healthy long-term. Personally, I think the best way is to make bank from live shows rather than albums—but that's just my opinion, so whatever. The key point is..."
Go Kyung-min jumped in, flashing some numbers on screen. Data from YouTube on the Kim Jiyeon's Music Letter unplugged performance, provided by the broadcaster. He'd griped about how much hassle it took to get even this.
"As you can see, our main audience right now... look here. Sky Garden, Becoming a Star. Both videos are dominated by 10-20s viewers. But the unplugged version? It's split right down the middle. Plus, a lot of those viewers came via indirect traffic and stuck around—unlike our main channel's Sky Garden. Taking all that into account..."
"Our conclusion is! The Unplugged show is definitely effective at pulling in non-target consumers—folks outside our core demo! For this album, think of it as testing whether it's just a temporary broadcast bump or a real stepping stone to broadening our fanbase!"
The two wrapped up with a hint of tension in the air. Lee Hyein watched them, jotted something in her notebook, then spoke up.
"Got it. I understand what you're saying. So, bottom line: grow the audience. But these 'non-target' fans aren't the ones shelling out for multiple albums like our current base. They're just streaming, so we might get good digital numbers but lousy physical sales. No guaranteed short-term wins or revenue. Right?"
"...Yes! Exactly!"
"And on top of that, the unplugged show ties into..."
The projector slid to the next slide. Plan 3: Live Tour. Go Kyung-min pointed to a section and continued.
"It'll help with the live tour too. In my view, we might not be able to haul full rigs to every tour spot. Think tiny live cafes, street stages, senior centers..."
"Senior centers?"
Choi Iseo couldn't hold back, blurting it out in disbelief. But Go Kyung-min nodded like it was obvious.
"Out in the sticks, sometimes that's all there is. Exaggerating a bit, sure—we won't go that far."
As Iseo and the others pictured themselves unpacking gear in a senior center, Go Kyung-min handed documents to Hyein and wrapped up.
"Anyway, priority one is getting this Unplugged album made. We need to keep the momentum. Since we're here, let's all commit and make it happen."
But unexpectedly, Unplugged production hit a wall. In the most unforeseen way.
"It's gone?"
"Yeah. That's what I heard."
Gone? Not just any old thing—if that was missing, the whole album was dead in the water. He couldn't believe it and asked again, even knowing Go Kyung-min wasn't one to lie about stuff like this.
"For real?"
"Yeah. They say there's no separate audio recording from our broadcast."
He clutched his head. Go Kyung-min looked grave too—and for good reason. He'd been a sound engineer once; he knew how critical this was.
That morning.
"Hello, PD."
"Oh! Long time. Things going well? You guys blew up!"
"Thanks to your support."
Go Kyung-min had shown up at the Kim Jiyeon's Music Letter PD's office with gifts, hoping to snag the audio data for the Unplugged album. But the PD just looked puzzled.
"Audio files? Nah, we don't do that."
"Uh... what?"
"You've been deep in sound engineering, so maybe you don't know. Our final output's video—why record separate audio? That's my understanding, anyway. Details are above my paygrade. But why do you need it?"
"Well, the response was great, so we're thinking live album. Need the source material..."
"Cool idea! Like old-school MTV, right? But I don't recall recording audio separately. Here's our music director's contact—ask them."
The music director confirmed: no such data. Even if there was, it'd just be the pre-master final mix, not multitrack channels.
The problem? They'd planned to buy the original data legally, clear copyrights, remix, and master it into a live sound release. Now that avenue was toast.
"If you really need it, they said we could get the mastered audio after copyright clearance."
"That's just the unedited broadcast, right?"
"Yep."
He squeezed his eyes shut. For an album? Maybe if someone held a knife to his throat. But without that pressure, it was a no-go. This was an album predicated on not succeeding big—still, he didn't want to half-ass it.
"So... what now?"
"Re-record?"
"I've thought about it."
He ruffled his hair as he said it. His initial instinct, before hearing about the data: with 6 or 7 tracks—not 4—why not re-record instead of live audio? The live stuff was only 4 tracks; the other 3 would be fresh anyway, so styles might clash.
But he'd scrapped that quick. Why re-record when fans loved the existing source? Just add new tracks and release felt right... until now, when it became a whole new headache.
"We could, but we won't recapture that vibe."
The biggest issue. The kids' half-desperate, do-or-die energy—"prove ourselves" or "just end it already." His own ghostly guitar solo. The Music Letter live was packed with irreproducible magic—and that's why people loved it.
"True..."
"The girls are finally chilling. Drag 'em back and push for 'that exact feel!'? We'll get sulky mush. Fans'll skip the audio for the live clips—or worse, complain about the recording."
Tough call. He glanced at the brooding Go Kyung-min, then swept back his hair.
Time to talk to the girls.
"Sounds rough..."
"Ugh... yeah, figured."
Ha Suyeon sighed deeply. Even though Choi Iseo hadn't done anything wrong, a pang of guilt hit her anyway—like she should've helped more but couldn't.
"Big trouble. Can't just scrap the EP."
"Broadcast audio won't cut it?"
"Technically yes... but I don't wanna. Feels like no point to an EP then."
Watching Suyeon stew, Iseo's mind raced: She's working too hard. I wanna help. She needs a break. Karma for all that drilling us. And more.
But damn, she looks slammed.
Iseo hadn't dared suggest hanging out lately. School, food, sleep—everything else went to work. How could she even ask? With a conscience, she couldn't. But yeah, she wanted Suyeon to breathe, really unwind—not this "aggressively resting" crap, but actual mood-lifting downtime.
"What if we go totally fresh?"
"Huh?"
Iseo tossed it out casually. Suyeon eyed her, waiting.
A bit flustered but gesturing wildly, Iseo pressed on. "Treat it like a palate cleanser! Live was super intense, right? Like, do-or-die. Victory or bust. We went in blades sharpened. But now we know it works—why not loosen up and have fun with it?"
Iseo froze. Suyeon's eyes lit up, staring—not at her, but past.
"That... could work..."
Suyeon muttered, then turned.
"Hyeona. Got a favor."
"Uh... yeah?"
"Hello~!"
"Whoa, spacious!"
"Isn't it kinda cramped?"
"This is huge! Hey, where you going? Say hi too."
"But... I'm... a member..."
The group piled into the studio. Jeong Hyeona, dragged in last, bowed 90 degrees to her own bandmates. The college girls giggled, pinching her cheeks—"so cute!"—or gawking at the gear.
"Choi Iseo! Bassist, right? And you're Yoo Seoha! Drums!"
"Yep."
"Love your bass. That accessory—this one? I'm obsessed. Hey, you seen this?"
"What?"
"Super cute, right? She wears it everywhere."
"Love it. Where'd you get it? What's it called? Any markets for this stuff? Your style's on point—shop at edit shops? That pattern next to you is fire. Brand?"
As Iseo got buried in chit-chat—thinking her "people skills" were holding up—Suyeon entered the studio.
"Hello. Ha Suyeon."
"Whoa! The leader! Hi!"
"Gorgeous~"
"Stunner."
"Total idol."
The swarm switched targets from Iseo and Seoha—chattering away innocently, of course. Iseo let out a quiet sigh of relief.
"You too."
"Not that bad?"
Iseo smirked, watching Suyeon endure: hair products, "so pretty," "adorable," "Can I touch your cheek?"
How'd she round up total strangers like this?
Didn't seem Hyeona's type at all. Or maybe that's why they clicked. Anyway, Iseo eyed their bags: violin, contrabass, classical guitar.
Hyeona's friends, here to re-record the Unplugged album. With a fresh twist.