The Gods of the East Rise
“Two, three! Chairman Yoo Jae-won, hello! Trainee Team A reporting!”
The moment Yoo Jae-won stepped into the conference room, the trainees greeted him in unison, as if they had been waiting for this exact moment. At Dream Entertainment, character was considered the most important quality. They believed that character naturally combined with every positive trait. Because they saw character revealed through greetings, they practiced them diligently until the habit became second nature. It was only natural, then, that the group greeting erupted the instant Yoo Jae-won entered. Group greetings had become something of a signature performance unique to Dream Entertainment. Trainees had no special slogan yet, but once they debuted and formed a group, a custom phrase matching the group’s concept and identity would be created.
Incidentally, being part of Trainee Team A meant you were part of Dream Entertainment’s official debut lineup. The company maintained a trainee farm of over a hundred young men and women. Every month they conducted mid-term evaluations and ranked the trainees. Those who demonstrated debut-ready skill were granted the title of Team A. Even with the title, members could be replaced through future evaluations, so nothing was guaranteed, yet the designation was already the object of every trainee’s envy.
“Hello! I’m Yoo Jae-won.”
Yoo Jae-won bowed politely to the trainees in return, then began shaking hands with each of them one by one. Starting with leader Yoo Yunho, then Choi Changmin, Choi Heechul, Young Jae-joong, and Shim Junsu—the five young men who would debut today as a single group and sign idol contracts befitting that milestone.
The group’s name and identity, however, had not yet been decided. This was not due to any lack of capability on Dream Entertainment’s part. After Yoo Jae-won’s acquisition, the agency possessed resources on an entirely different level from its competitors. In particular, the existence of the AR Team and its qualitatively superior management system set it apart from every other agency. Each debut group was assigned a dedicated team that oversaw everything from concept and title track to b-sides, fashion, and choreography. At first, people had dismissed the system as unnecessary, but after HxT resumed activities following their plagiarism scandal, that perception was completely overturned. The quality gap between their past and present albums was simply too vast to ignore.
The size of an AR Team scaled with a group’s popularity—HxT’s team now exceeded twenty members. By contrast, Trainee Team A currently had only three staff members: a choreographer, a vocal coach, and a fitness trainer. It might have seemed like insufficient support, yet because Team A was Dream Entertainment’s newest debut lineup, the company was far from neglecting them. Yoo Jae-won himself had insisted on personally handling the group name, concept, and debut song, which was why the AR Team had not yet been expanded even though debut day was fast approaching.
After shaking hands with the members, Yoo Jae-won turned to greet the adults present—the parents of Trainee Team A. Because leader Yoo Yunho and several others were still minors, their parents had to be present to finalize the legal contracts. The parents still looked stiff, as though they had not yet fully grasped the reality of the situation.
“Shall we begin with our leader, Yoo Yunho? Parents, this way, please.”
Yoo Jae-won naturally took charge of the atmosphere. Instead of handing out contracts all at once and telling everyone to stamp them, he called each member and their parents into a separate space for individual contract signings.
A short while later.
“Please, have a seat.”
Yoo Jae-won offered seats to Yoo Yunho and his parents as they cautiously entered the president’s office.
“Yes, Chairman!”
Yoo Yunho’s brief reply brimmed with energy and determination. It matched the reports Yoo Jae-won received on a regular basis down to the last detail. Before his regression, Yoo Jae-won had never paid much attention to the entertainment industry, yet Yoo Yunho had become famous enough that even he knew the name. More importantly, in an industry rife with scandals, Yoo Yunho had never once been involved in any. That spotless record made Yoo Jae-won regard him with considerable favor.
“Take your time reading through it. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”
Once Yoo Yunho and his parents were seated, Yoo Jae-won presented the prepared contract.
“Let me highlight the key points first. The contract period is seven years, and the signing bonus is seven hundred million won.”
“Huk! Seven hundred million won?”
Yoo Yunho and his parents were stunned by the number. Coming from an ordinary middle-class family, they rarely encountered sums in the hundreds of millions. Yet here was a signing bonus of seven hundred million won.
“That’s one hundred million per year. Of course, this is only the beginning. Once you properly begin activities, the world will be in for quite a shock.”
Yoo Jae-won spoke as though seven hundred million won was nothing at all. In truth, once these five debuted, the idol landscape would be completely overturned. They would achieve results surpassing even HxT, and reactions would pour in from overseas—starting with Japan, then Southeast Asia and China. This was the true beginning of the Hallyu wave. With overseas demand, earning seven hundred million won would be trivial.
“Next, the revenue split. For concerts, merchandise, and commercials, it’s 7:3. Only album sales are split 5:5.”
Yoo Jae-won went through the important clauses one by one. The contract in front of Yoo Yunho’s parents clearly stated a seven-year term and a seven-hundred-million-won signing bonus. Revenue splits for music, performances, merchandise, and other activities were set at 7:3, with the 7 representing the idols’ share. Since Team A was a five-member group, that 7 would be divided five ways to determine each member’s actual earnings. The sole exception was album sales, which were split 5:5.
Album releases offered the fastest revenue stream once idol activities began. While the digital music market was expanding rapidly and cassette and CD sales were declining elsewhere, the idol market remained remarkably strong for physical albums. Dream Entertainment had elevated the practice by linking album purchases with fan signings, releasing multiple versions of each CD, and including various photo cards and behind-the-scenes photos—innovations that had set a new standard. Though some called it commercialism, fans welcomed the increased merchandise options. The 5:5 split for albums was designed to cover activity costs. Even so, it was far better than before. During the LSM era, HxT members had received only about thirty won per CD sold. Now the situation was entirely different.
A CD album sold for twelve thousand won. After subtracting production and distribution costs, the net profit was six thousand won. Split 5:5 between the company and members, each idol received three thousand won, which divided among five members came to six hundred won per person. The difference between thirty won and six hundred won was enormous. If their debut album sold three hundred thousand copies—the same as in the previous timeline—each member would earn one hundred and eighty million won from album sales alone. That was just from CDs. Adding other revenue streams, even their first album activities would easily exceed the signing bonus in earnings.
“I’ll sign!”
After hearing the explanation, Yoo Yunho immediately declared his intention to sign. Having trained under LSM, he understood exactly how favorable this contract was. He was close with several HxT members and had heard plenty of advice from them—including the story of receiving only thirty won per CD.
“Ah, please check the penalty clauses as well.”
Yoo Jae-won was not simply handing out generous contracts out of kindness. He had no interest in short-term profits from Dream Entertainment. What he wanted was to cultivate cultural power and maximize ID Group’s influence during the coming Hallyu wave. To that end, several binding clauses existed to ensure sincere idol activities.
“Ah, these?”
Yoo Yunho pointed to the penalty section. In summary, dating was permitted, but any involvement in scandalous incidents would not be tolerated. Drug use, drunk driving, tax evasion, and other illegal activities were explicitly listed as grounds for the company to withhold protection.
“If any of these reasons are discovered, you will be immediately removed from the group, and the penalty clause will activate. The penalty is ten times the signing bonus.”
With a seven-hundred-million-won signing bonus, the penalty amounted to seven billion won. If they became as successful as HxT, seven billion won might be manageable, but for current trainees it represented a significant burden. Still, Yoo Yunho merely tilted his head while reading the clauses. To someone who already lived by those principles, it seemed unnecessary to write them into a contract.
“I’ve reviewed everything.”
“Good. Lastly, is there anything you’d like to request? Within reason, I’m happy to accommodate. Or if you feel any clause is too slave-contract-like and want it loosened, speak up. We can negotiate before signing.”
Yoo Jae-won made one final check. At the mention of “slave contract,” Yoo Yunho and his parents looked genuinely shocked. They knew full well that no other agency in the current idol industry offered a contract this favorable. With grateful hearts, they signed. Yoo Jae-won signed as well, and they exchanged copies. The signing bonus was transferred immediately, finalizing the contract.
Four more similar contracts followed. In this way, every member of Trainee Team A successfully completed their idol contracts.
One hour later.
The five members gathered once more. Until moments ago they had been Trainee Team A, but now that the contracts were signed, they were full-fledged idols.
“From this moment on, you are no longer trainees—you are idols. Let’s begin the explanation of your team name, worldview, and first album.”
All eyes turned to Yoo Jae-won.
“Please watch the prepared video.”
Rather than announcing the group name himself, Yoo Jae-won played a pre-made video. Yoo Yunho and the other four members watched the projector screen with shining, expectant eyes.
Darkness filled the screen, accompanied by majestic music. Five colored lights—blue, white, red, black, and gold—converged in one place. The lights repeatedly merged and scattered, producing sounds that began as dissonance but gradually formed a beautiful harmony. The five distinct colors filled the black space beautifully, opening a mysterious world as various phrases appeared on screen.
- A chaotic world.
- For peace and harmony!
- The gods of the East rise.
The members still looked confused. However, some of the older parents in the back row noticed that the colors blue, white, red, black, and gold represented the Four Guardian Deities and the Yellow Dragon.
Soon the Korean text changed to Chinese characters.
- TVXQ
Chinese pronunciation “Tong Fang Shen Qi,” Japanese pronunciation “Tohoshinki,” and Korean pronunciation “Dongbangshin ki” echoed in succession. Taking the first letters of these sounds, the four letters “TVXQ” appeared on screen.
“TVXQ! The name that will create a new wave in the idol world as an a cappella group.”
The members who had been skeptical were stunned when the name TVXQ left Yoo Jae-won’s mouth. Yoo Yunho and the others, along with their families, had prepared various name candidates, but TVXQ was beyond anything they had imagined.
While everyone sat with mouths agape, leader Yoo Yunho alone felt something was missing. When he recalled the words “a cappella group,” even his eyes wavered. Despite all the training he had received as a trainee, he had never once practiced a cappella. Moreover, an a cappella idol group?
Yoo Jae-won noticed the members’ visible turmoil but continued the concept presentation at his own pace. He had expected controversy among them. At the same time, he knew this concept had succeeded in the past. The only changes he had made were replacing the member who would later touch drugs with Heechul, whose skill and professionalism had been thoroughly verified, and advancing the debut schedule by one year. LSM’s old haphazard system had lacked the capacity to launch new idols, delaying debuts, but Dream Entertainment possessed sufficient resources that advancing the schedule by a year posed no problem.
“Now, let’s decide on your stage names as well. The leader has already been set as Yoo Yunho, correct? I’ll call each of you in turn, so listen carefully.”
“Yes!” came the chorus of replies.
Trainee Team A consisted of the most talented trainees. The current members had been fixed for a year, during which Yoo Yunho had naturally become leader.
“Yoo Yunho’s stage name will be U-Know.”
Until that moment, Yoo Yunho’s gaze had been steady, but now it shook violently. When the four-character stage names—Choi Kang-chang-cheon, Young-woong-jae-hoon, Micky Heechul, and Xia Junsu—were announced one after another, everyone was at a loss for words. Even HxT had only changed Ahn Chil-hyun, whose real name didn’t sound like an entertainer’s, to Kangta. Yoo Yunho had joined Dream Entertainment dreaming of becoming the second HxT. He had expected only minor changes to his name, not these flashy four-character stage names.
Signing the contract had felt wonderful, yet from TVXQ to U-Know, it had been one shock after another. Even Han Sang-soo, the CEO watching from a corner of the office, wore an expression similar to the members’. Among everyone present, only one person was certain that the gods of the East would rise and sweep through the idol world—Yoo Jae-won.