The First Button
The day after I heard the company's plan, the YouTube video shoots began in earnest. The one who kicked things off was Yu Hana. She opened the gates by appearing together on Oh Seoa's live broadcast and performing a duet. Even the fans who had come to hear Oh Seoa's singing were completely captivated by Hana's insane vocals and lost their minds with praise. The reaction was so good that even I was a little surprised, but when I thought about it, it made perfect sense. Most of Seoa's personal fans were people who gathered because they genuinely wanted to listen to music seriously.
In truth, Seoa's reaction was even funnier than the fans'. She was doing a duet with Hana, but she was so happy she didn't know what to do with herself. The fans even teased her with laughter, saying she was the senior singer, so that pretty much says it all.
"Hello, Manager-nim."
"Ah, Yeri. Did you... happen to hear that?"
"I did hear it, but..."
"Please don't misunderstand. It's not that Hana is bad or anything. It's just that Seoa is being so shamelessly excited that it's embarrassing for the fans to watch..."
"No, I don't misunderstand at all. It's obvious you care about Senior Seoa, Manager-nim..."
"Thank you for saying that. Seoa has adored Hana since way back. Even so, I never expected her to show all her teeth like that on broadcast, even if it's a personal stream."
"I see."
"This is just between us, but before she retires, Seoa said she really wants to release a duet album with Hana at least once. Ever since Hana joined as a trainee."
"Really? Didn't the other members say anything?"
"The Purple Swan members all know Seoa's personality, so they just figured her vocal obsession had flared up again."
"Ah, I see."
I genuinely acknowledge Hana's singing ability. That's why I came to watch Senior Seoa sing with her, only to find Nam Hyunwoo, Seoa's manager, sighing in the corner. He said an eight-year veteran singer was going full throttle with her junior. Well, given Seoa's personality, it was understandable. She's incredibly serious about singing, and there aren't many active idols who can match Hana's level. A pretty, friendly junior who can also sing? From Seoa's perspective, there was no reason not to adore her. And Seoa isn't the type of person whose character is so poor that she'd feel jealous of a younger junior.
Actually, Purple Swan was a group more famous for their good personalities than even their skills. On top of that, there weren't many people in the company who didn't like that sly Yu Hana. Her acting was so flawless that no one had caught on to her true nature. The two of them would probably keep filming duet videos together from now on, and judging by the fans' reactions, it looked like they'd succeeded in getting their faces known.
Seoa was famous as a top-tier idol vocalist, but in a way, Hana had even more potential as a luxury vocal prospect. And if we're talking purely about looks, our squinty-eyed girl was honestly a bit better than Seoa. Purple Swan hadn't risen to the top tier on visuals alone anyway. The one known for her looks was probably the visual member Kim Jiyoo. Seoa was an idol, so of course she was attractive, but she couldn't quite compare to Hana, who boasted visual center-level beauty. With that face and that voice, and now debuting soon? It would be strange if Seoa's fans didn't get interested.
This might actually work better than I thought.
I had almost given up on receiving any downward love from Purple Swan's fans, but maybe the situation was turning out much better than I'd expected.
"Yu Hana really is uselessly useful."
In the idol world, a main vocal's skill is the team's pride. A solid main vocal was the core element for skill-based promotion. And that wasn't all. It could also throw a 'skill shield' to the core fans, helping the group weather all sorts of worldly storms. It would be nice if a group succeeded from start to finish, but realistically, that's not easy. Even 'Flying Angel' and 'Lucky Star', the global idols who rewrote the history of Korean idols, went through their share of ups and downs at the beginning. The more successful a group is, the more they get criticized—that's common sense. So they need something to rally the fans together internally, and this 'skill shield' serves as a pretty good excuse.
The skill shield is a rather peculiar concept. When you're a fan, if your bias gets dragged everywhere, you end up feeling bad too. You started fan-ing to feel good, so if it makes you feel bad, the priorities get reversed. If that disappointment or annoyance exceeds a certain threshold, you naturally quit being a fan. But if there's a skill shield, that threshold becomes significantly higher. It's like having a reliable backup. 'At least no one can criticize our kid on skill.' Fans comfort themselves this way and stick together even tighter.
That's why, when choosing a group to stan, quite a few fans check the main vocal's skill first. Anyone who's been in this scene for a while knows the physiology of it. There's nothing more infuriating than having nothing to clap back with when outsiders start talking shit. If the skill is real, the 'skill shield' is useful in any situation.
Of course, being a fan isn't that coldly calculated, but it's true that when the main vocal has real skill, people can start stanning a bit more easily, thinking that at least the worst-case scenario is avoided.
"In that sense, Hana is a truly luxurious main vocal. If only her personality were normal, she'd be a five-tool main vocal. It's such a shame."
Unless the reporters are all idiots, the first words that'll pop up when Hana debuts will definitely be something like 'luxury vocalist' or 'skilled vocalist.' The perfect words to hand fans a 'skill shield.' She's a human I really can't afford to throw away, that damn squinty-eyed villain.
Following Yu Hana, who gave me both anticipation and frustration at the same time, the second batter was Tasha.
"Whoa~"
"Was Teacher Ha Yuri's channel always like this?"
"What do you mean 'like this'... There's nothing particularly problematic about the content, is there? It's not that revealing."
"That's not revealing...? Ah, right. This is..."
The personal channel of trainer Ha Yuri that Tasha appeared on was a comprehensive channel covering various content. The main focuses were dance covers and Pilates, and the content Tasha was doing today was Pilates. But Pilates is kind of like that, right? It's an exercise you do in pretty light clothing. A Pilates channel run by a young, pretty woman tends to be more popular with men than women for roughly that reason. Of course, Teacher Yuri wasn't doing Pilates with that intention, but since that's the reality, we have to acknowledge it and move on.
Still, with Teacher Yuri and Tasha doing it together, the destructive power felt like it had gone up several levels from usual. Especially that Tasha. She's fundamentally a different race. She's not 'ex-Asian' but 'not Asian.' Not only does she have the slammer body guys go crazy for, but she's not just slim—she's incredibly toned and slim. On top of that, she's ridiculously flexible, enough to make even Teacher Yuri gasp in surprise every few seconds. She really was a monster who excelled at anything physical.
"That'll definitely get views~"
"It's not just that it'll get views... It's going to be all over the male-dominated communities."
"Male-dominated, huh. I guess so~ With comments like 'ㅓㅜㅑ' and stuff?"
"If it were only that much, it'd be fine... but the top she wore today is way too tight."
Earlier, Seong Jiyeong had said there wasn't much exposure, so what was the big deal, but that was by this world's standards. To my eyes, it was massive exposure. That chrome top was literally only covering her chest. Of course, those firm, seductive abs were one of Tasha's charm points, but starting off like that...
"A video that'll make 'juicy' explode even before debut~?"
"Ugh. It won't be that bad, right? Teacher Yuri's channel isn't just a Pilates channel."
But an aggro level like this wasn't something to worry too much about. It just happened that today was a Pilates day. What Teacher Yuri considered most important was her cover dance content.
Since the transition to the superhuman idol system, the distinction between male and female idol performances had become somewhat blurred, but the difference hadn't disappeared entirely. Female idol performances were still mostly curvaceous and feminine. Tasha's performances, however, had a slightly different flavor. Her dance career wasn't that long, so there were some rough edges, but she could pull off power performances that were more masculine than male idols. That was a definite charm point that could attract female fans.
"Aww~ That's no fun~"
"That damn 'fun' of yours really..."
So while I was a bit flustered, I wasn't worried. When I took it coolly, our squinty-eyed girl got sulky. She must have wanted me to be fidgeting like when I mistook Tasha's night outing for a club visit. In times like these, the best thing is not to feed her. I'll just ignore her appropriately and finish watching Tasha's elegant Pilates that would stir the hearts of countless men. Or rather, their... never mind.
After Yu Hana was assigned to Oh Seoa and Tasha to Ha Yuri, I briefly wondered who I would be paired with. There were three members left on the team, but two spots remained with Purple Swan. The actress Kim Jiyoo would obviously be paired with Ji Seoeun. That meant either me or Seong Jiyeong would be paired with Choi Hyena, and the other would have to handle things alone somehow.
"Alone, huh. It's not like I couldn't do it... but I feel like pairing up with Senior Hyena would be more fun."
Choi Hyena, who had been famous as a fashionista even during her active days, was currently running a beauty channel utilizing her expertise. Her sense was so good that her subscribers' loyalty was incredible. Plus, most of her subscribers were women. In the idol market where female idols need to attract female fans to survive, getting acquainted with potential fans was definitely a good opportunity.
On top of that, this unnie was obsessed with pretty and cute things, so she had been one of the people who thought favorably of me since long ago. The original Na Yeri had found that attitude burdensome and kept avoiding her, but I had no reason to do that. It was unconditionally better to work with someone who already liked me. Besides, I was personally a little tempted by Choi Hyena's magical makeup skills. Both the original and I were complete trash at that sort of thing.
Of course, I'd be relying on the coordinator's power far more often than doing my own makeup, but being able to handle at least basic makeup myself was important too. We weren't superstars from the start, and there would definitely be times when we had to do things without a coordinator.
With that expectation that the company would pair me with Choi Hyena, I quietly waited. About three days passed like that. Finally, the company called both me and Seong Jiyeong into the conference room. It seemed they were planning to inform us of the future plans.