Chapter 137
Chapter 137
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 138
Chapter Title: Hadass's Recording Session
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Olivia Snow straightened her posture and looked at Yeonwoo sitting in front of the booth and Hadass inside the booth.
Girl groups existed in America too.
But while the systems in Korea and Japan were similar, America's system was different in many ways.
As a result, the idol culture was gradually fading away.
Bands were another story.
The reason was simple.
There were no agencies in America.
In America, individuals hired their own managers, lawyers, accountants, and so on to form teams without belonging to a company.
So who lined up the work?
They signed contracts with agencies, and the agencies handled finding jobs for them.
Of course, there were cases where producers scouted talent, produced, and released them. But the producer's role was limited to planning and releasing albums—they didn't take responsibility for the artist's overall career.
Would they release a group that had to split profits among many, or release individuals to concentrate profits among a few?
Most would go with raising individuals to minimize profit sharing.
Even when groups did come out occasionally, they were mainly for gaining popularity among teenage audiences to build name recognition, but these days, they barely existed at all.
Unless it was washed-up singers reuniting for nostalgia cash grabs and putting out albums.
Because of that, Olivia Snow found her Hadass to be somewhat of a novel existence.
Five young women as a group in this world.
'Well, is it common in K-POP?'
Thinking of the top Korean idols who shook Melboard, maybe groups like that made more money in Korea than individuals.
It actually seemed that way.
But in Olivia Snow's view, idols were still a step below.
Excluding the legendary group NGS and the first idol to ever enter Melboard before them, it was hard to say their skills were top-notch.
K-POP gave the impression that performance mattered more than the singer's skill or the song itself.
So it was baffling that Yeonwoo was using such idols as guest vocalists on his album.
'Money?'
No, Yeonwoo wasn't hung up on money. If it were about cash, he would've handed over that song he played for her last time.
No matter how great the girl group was, it wouldn't match her digital sales targeting the world.
'They must have skill or charm, then...'
Well, she'd know once she heard them.
Olivia Snow leaned back against the sofa and gazed at the booth.
"Noonas, let's run through it once straight first. We'll do feedback and proper recording after that. Got it?"
-Yes!
"Wakana noona, play the MR."
"Okay."
At Yeonwoo's words, Wakana started the MR.
Olivia Snow straightened her posture again at the sound that filled the air.
"OH...!"
Good.
It was completely different from the song she had to sing.
But it pleased the ears just the same.
Listening closely, even the chord progression was entirely different.
How did he churn out songs like this with completely different chords every time? Just what kind of kid was he?
As Olivia Snow pondered this, Hadass's voices came through.
"......!"
Right from the start, they sang in high keys with difficult harmonies.
Olivia Snow was astonished by Hadass's skill in layering harmonies as if they were one.
She couldn't help but admire how much effort it must have taken to stack harmonies at that level.
'I looked down on them as idols...'
No reason to look down.
Plus, the song constantly shifted between on-beat and off-beat, high and low notes—it was so tough that Olivia Snow wondered if even she could nail it in one go.
And they were pulling it off. Impressive.
That must be why Yeonwoo put them on his album.
As she watched in admiration, the song, just over three minutes long, came to an end.
The moment it finished, Hadass and Ellis held their breath and looked at Yeonwoo.
Yeonwoo, who had been quietly jotting something down, pressed the talkback.
"For starters, everyone's improved a lot since before. Impressive."
-Th-thank you!
Seeing Hadass respond in unison, Yeonwoo continued.
"But there are still a lot of rough spots overall when it comes to singing this song."
Yeonwoo was giving feedback.
Olivia Snow called over Jaehoon.
"Sorry, could you interpret what Yeonwoo's saying?"
"No need for a tip. Just let me know anytime you need it."
With that, Jaehoon quickly began interpreting Yeonwoo's words for Olivia Snow.
-......
"For now, Dahyun noona, you're the main vocal, right? Sing more solidly. And enunciate more precisely."
-Y-yes.
"Ayoung noona and Yunseo noona, your harmonies were good together, but they were subtly off from Dahyun noona's. Tune into Dahyun noona's voice more."
-Yes!
-Yes!
"Somin noona, you keep missing the beat when switching between on-beat and off-beat. Same for you—listen more closely. Chaewon noona, if it's tough, it's fine to drop the key a bit. Your voice is going slightly flat."
-Yes, I'll listen closely!
-Uh, um, it's okay to lower the key?
"Yeah, that's fine."
Olivia Snow, receiving Yeonwoo's feedback through the interpretation, rubbed her ears.
"Did he catch all that?"
She doubted she could've heard it even with headphones—how could he listen so precisely?
"Our Yeonwoo CEO's ears are on a superhuman level."
At Jaehoon's words, Olivia Snow glanced at him before turning back to Yeonwoo's back.
Oblivious to Olivia Snow, Yeonwoo focused solely on the booth and started recording.
They decided to record individual parts in order, starting with Dahyun.
Yeonwoo stopped frequently during Dahyun's takes, giving detailed feedback each time.
Olivia Snow, who kept hearing Yeonwoo's feedback through Jaehoon, tilted her head.
How did a kid who's never sung know about vocalization?
He seemed to know not just the other's vocal cords, but their range, how to sing well.
Was that even possible?
Well, he's a genius, so sure.
Olivia Snow brushed it off lightly and focused on Yeonwoo.
But it wasn't just that.
Yeonwoo was strict about the song itself. He completely disregarded the singers' opinions, demanding precision in on-beat/off-beat, vocalization, pronunciation—everything matched exactly what he wanted.
As if only he had the right answer.
It might bruise a singer's pride, but after hearing him, they'd have nothing to say.
And how do you argue with that genius anyway?
Still...
"How long is this gonna take?"
It had already been over two hours just for one person's part.
It felt educational listening, but two hours in and no end in sight.
"Is he gonna kill the singers like that?"
Did he not care about the singer's voice at all? A cold-blooded type?
"Let's take a break!"
Apparently not.
Yeonwoo stood up, brushing off his seat, and spotted Olivia Snow watching him.
"You still here? Jet lag okay? You must be sleepy."
"A little sleepy, yeah."
"Then head out quick."
With that, Yeonwoo went into the workroom.
"What's that? Why's he suddenly going in there? Does he rest there?"
At Olivia Snow's question, Jaehoon replied.
"It's lunchtime. He's going to eat."
"What? Lunch? Leaving me behind? Yeonwoo! Take me too!!"
"You good with spicy food?"
"Me? I can't eat it 'cause there's none where I'm from!"
"Then you're good. It's not that spicy."
Yeonwoo said that, then looked at Ellis and asked.
"Hadass noonas and Ellis noona, what about your lunch?"
"I ordered porridge so the kids' throats don't strain. I'll eat with them."
"Got it. I'll grab a quick bite and be back!"
With that, Yeonwoo left the studio with Jaehoon and Olivia Snow.
"But where's Jessie?"
"Adapting to jet lag at the hotel."
"How'd you get here then?"
"Taxi was great? But so rude. How could they not recognize me?"
Who in the world would expect Olivia Snow to take a taxi in Korea?
And it's not like everyone knows faces even if they know the songs.
If they're older, they might not even know the songs.
"Could happen."
Truth be told, Yeonwoo knew not every Korean would recognize him either.
"So where we going? Good restaurant nearby?"
"My place!"
"Your place?"
No way he lives in a neighborhood like this?
They were taking the car?
As Olivia Snow followed Yeonwoo in confusion...
"Apartment? You live here?"
Olivia Snow couldn't believe it.
Forget the family—for Yeonwoo alone, he was the owner of a Melboard-charting hit.
No way he was broke, so why live in such a rundown apartment?
"Any debts on the house or something?"
"Nope. Why?"
"Just... weird seeing you in a place this worn out."
Yeonwoo looked at the apartment at her words. It was old, but he wouldn't tolerate her sounding dismissive.
"This place is great."
It was full of good memories for Yeonwoo.
Plus, no one bothered him even if they recognized him here.
It might be old, but there were three playgrounds, and big marts nearby.
"I figured you'd live in a mansion."
"This is where my grandma lives since retiring. It's quiet. I like it."
Yeonwoo said that and opened the front door.
"Huh? What's that smell?"
Olivia Snow wrinkled her nose involuntarily at the tangy scent.
"Come in. Grandma!! I'm home! Oh, and I brought Snow noona too! Told her to go home but she wouldn't, so no choice!"
"Come on in. Oh, didn't expect a guest."
Olivia Snow extended her hand to Heo Ok.
"Long time no see! We met before, right?"
"Yeah, it's been a while. Come in. Nothing fancy prepared, but eat with us."
Olivia Snow followed Yeonwoo to the kitchen.
Jihoon was setting the table in the kitchen.
"Oh! Yeonwoo's dad!"
"Nice to see you. Sit."
With a straightforward greeting, Jihoon pointed to the table, and Olivia Snow looked.
What was that red stew?
It gave off a tangy smell.
"This like... tom yum kung or something?"
"This is kimchi jjigae."
"Kimchi? So kimchi stew?"
Taking her seat, Olivia Snow took a sip when Jihoon ladled some kimchi jjigae for her.
"Ooh...!"
Slightly spicy, tangy, complex—no, deep flavor.
"Tasty?"
"Yeah, really tasty?"
"You don't pick at food, huh?"
At Yeonwoo's words, Olivia Snow gave a wry smile.
"Couldn't afford to be picky."
"Guessed as much. From the lyrics."
Olivia Snow shrugged at Yeonwoo's words and focused on eating.
Truth was, after succeeding, she wouldn't touch commoner food.
Anything plebeian or poor people's food brought back horrific childhood memories.
This kimchi jjigae was obviously commoner fare too.
"But it's so good!"
Maybe because it's foreign food, it was fine.
...Might start liking Korean food?
Olivia Snow thought that as she followed Yeonwoo's lead, mixing the stew into her rice and eating.