Chapter 167
Chapter 167
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 167
Chapter Title: Pandora's Box
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Episode 167.
“As you know, PD-nim, you have to strike while the iron is hot. Our group, Answer, struggled for years, and we’re only just now starting to make a living. From the way you’re talking, it doesn’t sound like a one-time appearance.”
I said, feigning a bit of difficulty.
“I’ll do my best to accommodate you. If you let us know two weeks in advance, we can adjust the filming schedule, and as for the appearance fee, we’ll try our best…”
“I know all too well how production budgets work. If Answer takes a large cut, that just means a smaller piece of the pie for the production crew. I don’t want to go that far.”
Like any program, there was a pre-determined budget within which everything had to be produced. If a famous celebrity received a massive appearance fee, it was only natural that the money for other cast members or writers would decrease.
“…It’s a cooking show, so there will be PPL for various kitchen utensils and ingredients, and if the ratings are good, the advertising rates will go up. It’s also a chance for Seul-bi to appeal to a different side of her image. I’m sure it will be a positive experience. I’ll take responsibility and make sure it’s a meaningful appearance.”
“…This is your first project as lead director, isn’t it?”
PD Im Ji-hoon’s expression stiffened slightly.
Every producer wants their debut project to be a success. That way, they can secure a better budget and more support for their next project, paving the way for even greater success.
To achieve that, a fresh and entertaining concept, along with a cast lineup that could promote it and secure a baseline viewership, was crucial.
Seul-bi had now reached that level of recognition.
“Yes. Please, I’m asking for a favor.”
Director Lee Joo-won, whose eyes met mine, offered a slight smile and returned to our table.
“It’s thanks to Director Lee Joo-won that Answer has been able to come this far. Since you’re recommending it so strongly, of course we have to do it.”
“Thank you.”
At my respectful words, PD Im Ji-hoon bowed his head with a dignified posture.
“Hahaha. That’s all due to your skill, Min-jun, and Answer’s talent. What did I even do?”
Most people would have been smug hearing that, but Director Lee Joo-won was nothing of the sort. Instead, he seemed to be genuinely giving the credit to me and Answer. Even in the same words, there was a clear distinction between him and an ordinary person.
“In that case, I’ll coordinate her departure from the current dance program and get back to you.”
“Thank you, Min-jun.”
I took out my business card and handed it to the PD, and the director watched the exchange with an unusual intensity.
“Well, well… It seems Min-jun uses the same card case as I do.”
The director pulled out a luxury business card case from his jacket, identical to mine.
“This is a 50th-anniversary limited edition. Only 500 were made…”
The director’s eyes seemed to be assessing whether my card case was a fake, and the PD also looked on in surprise.
“Is it that expensive?”
“…Was it a gift?”
“Yes. A member of Ro-si gave it to me last year.”
“Ah, yes. Ro-si was the one in that photoshoot for Elegang snacks, right?”
It was surprising how much Director Lee Joo-won knew about Answer.
“It was about 2.5 million won when it came out, but since it’s a limited edition, the resale price is probably a bit higher, right?”
I had a feeling Ro-si went through a lot of trouble to get it when she gave it to me, but I had no idea a simple-looking card case could be so expensive.
I knew Ro-si’s parents were professionals, but maybe they were even wealthier than I thought.
* * *
After the meeting, I headed back to the waiting room where Answer was.
In front of the waiting room, I saw members of a dance team sleeping on the cold floor or looking at their phones.
While choreographers and dancers were gaining popularity and getting more opportunities to appear on broadcasts, that was only true for a select few famous individuals. Even for those who became famous through television, if they participated as part of a dance team, they were often still relegated to the cold floor without a waiting room.
I remembered the promise I made to myself a year ago when I first came to a music show. A promise that, at least in the industry I was in, people would be treated like people, not like luggage.
It might be baseless confidence, but I felt like it would be possible in just a little more time.
Answer’s performance began, and the fans’ cheers were louder than for any other performer.
♪♬
My shoes will soon break
My heart will break
♪♬
“Yi-na!”
♪♬
You smile at me
Time will never come back
♪♬
“Ro-si!”
♪♬
You smile at me
My heart is waiting for you
♪♬
“Seul-bi!”
♪♬
Tick-tock, tick-tock
A crack forms in my shoe
♪♬
“Seol-ah!”
♪♬
Before the shoes break.
♪♬
“We’ve! Reached! Answer!”
♪♬
My love is waiting for you
In this short darkness
Hold me
My heart is beating for you
From this long wait
Save me
♪♬
“Your answer to us!”
The sight of the fans’ massive chants erupting in the middle of the song was a spectacle, no matter how many times I saw it.
The faces of the Answer members as they moved across the stage looked incredibly happy.
Watching the sea of question mark-shaped light sticks, Choi Yoo-jun, who had created the fan chants, grinned from ear to ear.
“Do you get teary-eyed with emotion every time you hear the chants you made?”
“The fans are shouting the chants I created for our artists. Of course, it’s genuinely moving.”
Choi Yoo-jun said as he wiped the corner of his eye with his index finger.
He had a direct and impulsive personality, but at times, he could be as sentimental as a child. The thought that Choi Yoo-jun was a perfect fit as an A&R talent crossed my mind once again.
The moving performance ended, and we headed out.
“Seol-aaaaah!”
“Pfft!”
At the familiar voice of what seemed to be Seol-ah’s most ardent fan, the waiting fans and all of us couldn’t hold back our laughter.
“Thank you!”
“Woooah!”
“Sleep well!”
“Good work!”
The Answer members made eye contact with the fans who had waited until late at night, expressing their gratitude before getting into the van.
“Wow. The popularity of our artists, Answer, is growing day by day. It feels like I’m the one who’s succeeded.”
When Choi Yoo-jun spoke with teary eyes again, the Answer members tried to suppress their laughter, and Choi Yoo-jun’s lips jutted out in a pout.
“…Hey, I’m being serious, but the artists are…”
“Yoo-jun oppa always gets like that whenever our fan chants start.”
Finally unable to hold it in, Yi-na’s words made everyone burst into laughter.
So the Answer members were thinking the same thing as me.
“First, hyung was teasing me. Now the artists are teasing me… Still, I will steadfastly maintain my emotional mode.”
Choi Yoo-jun started the van with a determined look on his face.
“Seul-bi, I was thinking of having you leave the dance program and join a new cooking show. What do you think?”
“Oh! Cooking?”
“Of course, they’ve agreed to adjust the schedule, and there will likely be some good opportunities. Mukbangs are popular these days, so I think it’ll be a good gig.”
Seul-bi’s face lit up.
“Do I get to cook myself?”
“They said they’d send over the proposal later, so we’ll know then, but since the title is ‘Idol of Cooking,’ I would assume so?”
“My goodness, our unni is so lucky when it comes to food.”
“I need to study cooking!”
Yi-na said with a hint of envy, while Seul-bi looked genuinely delighted.
* * *
“Hey, Producer Min-jun.”
“Hello, Siljang-nim.”
“Coffee?”
“I’d appreciate it.”
As soon as I arrived at the company, Manager Ji, who was in the break room, handed me the fresh coffee he was about to drink.
“You had Yoo-ah do an English version on Stage On, right?”
“Yes. Did you watch it yesterday?”
“Of course, I did. I saw this morning that the reaction is incredible, especially from the international fans.”
Not even a day had passed, but the response from foreigners who enjoyed a different, non-mainstream style of K-pop was unusual.
The fire was finally starting to catch.
“Ah…”
“What, what is it?”
But there was something I had overlooked.
“How should we proceed with Yoo-ah’s overseas activities?”
“…What are you talking about right now?”
Manager Ji said with a look of disbelief.
“It’s just a lot of foreigners leaving comments. Aren’t you getting way ahead of yourself?”
“From the very beginning, Yoo-ah’s album was planned with overseas activities in mind.”
“……”
Perhaps because of the achievements I had made so far, he didn’t outright dismiss me, but Manager Ji’s face still showed a hint of incredulity.
“Are the director and the CEO inside?”
“Yeah… Don’t tell me you’re going to talk about Yoo-ah’s overseas activities?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t. It’s a Pandora’s box.”
Manager Ji tried to stop me earnestly, but it was an urgent matter.
I was about to knock on the CEO’s office door but, conscious of the surrounding employees, I sent a text to the director instead. No one knew I was a major shareholder, so there was no need to emphasize that I was receiving special treatment.
A few seconds later, the door to the CEO’s office opened, and the director appeared.
“You could have just knocked and come in. What’s with the text?”
Was I the only one conscious of our surroundings?
“Min-jun, welcome.”
CEO Park Jae-yong greeted me.
“Manager Ji, let’s have a meeting.”
The director called in Manager Ji as well, and a small meeting began in the CEO’s office.
“Still smells like kimchi, right?”
“I don’t smell anything.”
“I don’t either.”
“See? I told you it doesn’t, but you keep insisting.”
Manager Ji, myself, and the director took turns telling the CEO. To be honest, I thought I could still smell it a little, but I instinctively felt it would be less troublesome to say I didn’t.
“Hooo… That’s strange. I could swear I smell it.”
The CEO repeatedly sniffed and exhaled.
For a moment, the CEO’s image overlapped with Sung-hoon hyung’s from the past—that day he was hyperventilating and had to breathe into a plastic bag filled with the smell of his own stinky feet.
“Pfft… Hkk.”
A laugh I could barely contain bubbled up, choking me.
“What’s wrong with Min-jun? Why are you crying without saying anything? Did something bad happen?”
“I think he’s laughing, not crying.”
Manager Ji replied to the CEO, who was asking with genuine concern.
I took a few deep breaths and barely managed to calm down.
“No. Anyway, I don’t think it smells.”
“Really? I must have smelled so much kimchi that the scent is stuck in my nose.”
The facial muscles of the director and Manager Ji twitched slightly, but it wasn’t very noticeable.
“Anyway, Min-jun, what’s up?”
“It’s nothing major, but I think we need to start planning a strategy for Yoo-ah’s overseas activities…”
The director’s face instantly hardened. It was an expression she had never shown me before.
“See! Min-jun is saying it too. Yoo-ah’s song is working overseas! Anyone can hear it’s a sweet British pop song.”
It seemed they had already been discussing Yoo-ah before I came in.
“Oppa, please, just stop now.”
“Yes, Daepyo-nim… The Isa-nim is absolutely right about this.”
Manager Ji, looking flustered, also sided with the director. I understood their reactions all too well. It was because JD Enter, once a promising contender for the next major agency, had nearly hit rock bottom due to the failure of the overseas market expansion led by the CEO.
“Things are different now. Back then, we were literally paving a new road. Now, the path is already…”
“Let the hardship end with me.”
The director said softly, and the CEO stopped mid-sentence, looking taken aback.
“This song was made with overseas activities in mind from the start. If there’s demand, we should obviously pursue them.”
“……”
The director looked at me with a slightly worried expression, and the CEO, seizing the opportunity, spoke again.
“I agree with Min-jun. We’re not starting from scratch. We can just proceed based on the demand. We don’t even need to send anyone else. I have experience. I can go with her…”
“No. We should use a local promoter.”
At my words, everyone’s expression changed.
“I’ve already been down that road, so I know it well.”
“You struggled and didn’t succeed, though.”
“No, you don’t understand, Min-jun. Besides, if we hire a local promoter and set up a management team, there won’t be much profit left.”
“That depends on the terms of the deal.”
As the CEO and I discussed it seriously as if it were a done deal, Manager Ji let out a bitter laugh and spoke up.
“No, hahaha. I think we’re missing the point here. It’s not like a promoter will just appear because we want one. And Producer Min-jun isn’t even in charge of Yoo-ah.”
“Manager Ji, that’s not right. Min-jun may be in charge of Answer, but he also arranged Yoo-ah’s song and was quite involved.”
“That’s true.”
Manager Ji and the director seemed to be dismissing my conversation with the CEO as just a pointless worry.
Finally, the director let out a sigh and opened her mouth.
“I know you’re capable, Min-jun, but domestic and international markets are different. Of course, it would be great if it works out, but let’s not get our hopes up for something we weren’t even expecting.”
I felt sorry for the director, but I was the kind of person who couldn’t help but get my hopes up.