Chapter 45
“This isn’t it.”
Meanwhile, three days before the main competition.
Se-rang was doing the final inspection of the stage. She had dressed them in the actual stage outfits and prepared things so they could perform like it was the real thing with the proper mindset.
Since the actual performance was now truly close, the program staff had also come to film the preparation process.
The staff members were shocked enough to leave their mouths hanging open at how much better the stage had become compared to before.
But….
“W-what exactly isn’t right?”
The three trainees had just finished performing, so they stood before Se-rang while panting heavily.
“I thought everyone did fine this time….”
“We didn’t miss a single note either….”
“And the dancing was almost perfect.”
The three of them had practiced to the point of exhaustion and beyond, so much that they were now completely sick of this stage.
Because of that, they had gained a certain level of confidence, and now, even if they could not guarantee other songs, they were certain they could perform this song perfectly.
However, Se-rang’s expression showed no sign of relaxing. “You guys… why….”
“?”
Se-rang deliberately dragged out her words, causing the three trainees to look only at her nervously.
“You gained confidence, didn’t you?”
“?!”
“What?”
“But didn’t you tell us… to have confidence… Producer…?” Dowon asked in a very rare uncertain voice.
That was how incomprehensible Se-rang’s question sounded to him.
“No. On this stage, you absolutely cannot perform while overflowing with confidence. No. You need confidence, but the audience must not feel it.”
At those words, giant question marks appeared on Yuhyun and Dowon’s faces—
“Ah.”
Only Taeha seemed to understand the situation as he nodded.
“As we gained confidence… our attitude no longer matches the concept.”
“Exactly. From the start, I intended to make this stage completely different in texture from the other teams. To differentiate it. Because if your stage resembles theirs, comparisons happen. And if comparisons happen? You might lose. But if the stage is completely different… then comparison itself becomes impossible. The categories are different to begin with.”
“Uh…!”
Yuhyun and Dowon’s pupils shook violently as though they had never realized that at all.
So that was why she chose this kind of concept?
“The current trend in the music industry can basically be summarized as ‘confidence’ itself. Idols having very bold and confident attitudes is definitely attractive. Idols are beings meant to create fantasies, and in that sense, confident appearances are great for feeding the fantasy of perfection.”
“…!”
“And honestly, those concepts work overseas too.”
Even Taeha, who was fairly analytical by nature, was listening seriously as though this was a perspective he had never considered before.
Which made sense. This was not really the sort of perspective anyone except producers like Se-rang would think about.
“But the very first song you show the world is going in the exact opposite direction of that trend.”
“Whaaat…?”
“What exactly do you mean by ‘the opposite,’ Producer?” Dowon also seemed to be getting a sense of it now, straightening his posture as he looked at Se-rang.
“Before I explain, let me ask just one thing first. Are you really that perfect, that confident, and that full of certainty, like those concepts and songs?”
At those words, the three only looked at one another and fell into thought.
The first to speak was Dowon. “No. I… don’t think so.”
At Dowon’s answer, the other two trainees nodded as well.
“Of course not. Honestly, your age isn’t the age where you’re overflowing with perfect self-confidence. It’s a period where you constantly wander, question yourself, and get confused. Even I keep wondering whether I’m doing things right. So wouldn’t it actually be strange if you were overflowing with certainty?”
“…….”
“But if you stand on stage carrying fake confidence, how could the audience possibly relate to it? That’s just practiced confidence.”
Calmly, Se-rang made eye contact with all three of them one by one.
“If you’re someone trying to persuade people, whether that’s through a stage performance, business, or any method at all… then you need to properly face yourself at least once. Because humans are all fundamentally similar. We’re not as different as we think. If someone truly knows themselves, then they can understand others too.”
It was something Se-rang herself always thought about whenever she composed songs and wrote lyrics.
You had to be honest with yourself.
You also had to boldly look into and acknowledge your ugly sides and weak sides.
“So at this point, you shouldn’t be trying to show how cool or perfect you can look. Instead, you need to think about the struggles you’re carrying while standing on this stage, about how imperfect you are as human beings, and reveal all of that to the public without hiding anything.”
“…But isn’t that really difficult…?” Yuhyun asked with a deeply uncertain face.
To show weak sides they normally never revealed even to the people they trusted most, completely and openly to thousands or tens of thousands of people.
He could not even properly imagine it.
And to put that level of philosophy into a single stage too. Did other idols really all do that?
Yuhyun looked confused.
Only now had he finally started gaining confidence in his singing and dancing, finally feeling certain that he could perform the stage well.
So being told to throw away all of that confidence naturally left him confused.
“It won’t be easy. Truly.” Se-rang fully understood that doubt too. However, in her eyes, this was the most necessary process. “So summarize the strongest question you carry about yourselves into a single sentence and bring it to me by tomorrow morning.”
Because there was no stage more boring than one filled only with superficial style and no thought behind it.
“You aren’t carefully manufactured products. You’re people. Don’t forget that. And constantly questioning and reflecting on yourselves is a privilege only humans possess.”
Se-rang did not bother adding it aloud, but she added one more sentence inwardly.
And only those kinds of people can truly draw other people in.
“At this point, you probably all have doubts too, right?” Se-rang laughed softly as though she already knew. “You’re probably thinking, ‘Senior idols became popular just fine doing confident concepts, so why are we going against the trend? Is this really okay?’ Right?”
“…!”
As though struck directly in the center, none of the three could open their mouths.
“That’s because you didn’t watch that idol group’s narrative from beginning to end. Every idol has a reason for showing those concepts and stages during that period of time. The narrative and concepts they’ve accumulated until then give those stages persuasive power. Fans know. They know why that idol created that kind of stage. Why they chose that concept. Why that concept was necessary during that time.” Se-rang slowly continued her explanation.
“The company and the idols themselves thought through and agonized over all of that before creating those stages.” Only idols like that possess persuasive power for fans. But you aren’t fans. You’re only looking at certain highlights from that idol’s history. So you simply think, ‘That’s cool.’ ‘If I do a stage like that, I’ll become popular too.’ Just like that. Easily.”
Se-rang remembered the girl group she had once created.
Hm. To think she would end up explaining this to someone again.
It felt strangely new.
“But those thoughts only come from not knowing anything. Every idol has their own story, and every stage emerges according to the flow of that story.” After saying that, Se-rang added, “That’s why cover stages have difficulty beating the original stage.”
(Translator’s Note: Cover Stage (커버무대) — A performance where trainees or idols reinterpret and perform another artist’s song or choreography rather than original material.)
“Ah!”
“If you cut away all the countless stories standing behind that stage and only try to steal the highlights, how could the stage possibly have persuasive power?”
Only then did the three let out sounds of realization.
“So you need to create your own narrative. A story only you possess. And a story only you can show.”
“…….”
“But the beginning point is the most important part of every story. And this stage will become your starting point.”
“So it’ll be… the most important.”
“Exactly. It’s essentially what determines your first impression.” Se-rang clapped her hands once. “So think about it. What kind of story can you use to approach people? What kind of protagonists are you going to become?”
“Producer.”
“Yeah.”
“I understand everything… but there’s one thing I’m a little confused about.”
“Those words came with an expression filled with genuine inner conflict.”
Eyes so straightforward they were almost honest to a fault.
Looking into those eyes, Se-rang smiled. “What are you confused about?”
“But why do we need to find our questions? If we’re the protagonists of the story… shouldn’t we focus more on the charms or strengths we can show?”
“Ahh, that.” Se-rang shrugged.
“What story could be more boring than one with a perfect protagonist? Every attractive protagonist has at least one serious problem. Strengths naturally show themselves even if you leave them alone, so you don’t need to consciously focus on them. But weaknesses are things we instinctively hide tightly, so they have to be intentionally revealed somehow.”
And my role as the producer is to package those flaws into charm.
Se-rang did not bother saying that part aloud.