Chapter 87
Chapter 87
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Episode 29: Radio Appearance (2)
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Feeling once again the power of a girl group to unite even the ajusshis, Kang Han-do recalled the events from the VS Together shoot.
“The thing that sticks out most is from episode 1. We did a hidden camera bit back then, but it didn’t make it to air. Eun-young was the first to catch on.”
“Oh, Eun-young?”
“Yeah. Compared to the other members, she has a really wide field of vision. So I think she recognized me right away. But if she acted like she knew, it would ruin the fun of the show. She played it cool all the way through, even calculating that far ahead. Watching her, I thought, ‘Eun-young has that broadcast temperament.’”
“I had no idea there was that backstory.”
“I’ve never talked about it anywhere.”
When appearing as a guest on a program, pulling out these unknown behind-the-scenes stories one by one helps.
Kang Han-do gets another camera shot, and the program gains buzz. Win-win for everyone.
“Shall we talk about Music Festa too? Was it planned from the start?”
“Not from the beginning. It felt a bit rushed. When I heard about it, I agonized over it internally. But thinking it was a rare opportunity, I decided to take it.”
Recalling those times, Kang Han-do turned the question back on Bae Sang-yeol.
“Didn’t you MC Music Festa back in the day, sunbae-nim?”
“That was a long time ago. About… 12 years? It wasn’t called Music Festa back then. I did it very briefly. Maybe a month.”
Kang Han-do let out an exclamation of admiration at Bae Sang-yeol’s remark that spanned generations, reacting appropriately.
Since it was radio, sound mattered more than expressions or gestures.
“If I’d known, I should’ve asked for some advice from you before going on, Bae Sang-yeol sunbae-nim.”
“Hahaha! I probably couldn’t have given you anything helpful. Alright! Next question. On Audio Star, you sang, right?”
“Yeah, I did.”
“I remember the Game World members all went out together. What made Han-do grab the mic ahead of the others?”
“The sunbaes said they weren’t confident in their singing, so I took it. I don’t think I sang particularly well, but the response was good, so I was secretly relieved.”
As they brought up his Audio Star singing performance,
Bae Sang-yeol, monitoring the listeners’ reactions, mentioned the incoming comments.
“Seems like the listeners here want to hear Han-do’s singing too.”
Kang Han-do gave a small laugh.
It was expected.
“So, can you pick a song for us?”
Kang Han-do already had his answer ready.
“Sure, of course.”
The question was the song.
What to sing? After pondering, Kang Han-do decided to pull out his secret weapon.
“I’ll sing Movement’s ‘Shine.’”
“Oh! What a nostalgic song.”
“Yeah, right? It was huge as a CF background track when I was in middle school. Even people who don’t know the artist or title will go, ‘Oh, this song!’ after hearing a few bars.”
It was the one pop song Kang Han-do knew.
Being quite famous in Korea, the MR was easy to find quickly.
Kang Han-do signaled he was ready. He took a sip of water to moisten his throat. Meanwhile, Bae Sang-yeol spoke up.
“We’ll do just the first verse short. Alright, let’s hear Han-do’s song. Movement’s Shine.”
The upbeat acoustic guitar intro lifted the mood.
Kang Han-do leaned into the mic and began.
His voice filled the booth.
Bae Sang-yeol thought that if he had an acoustic guitar nearby, he’d want to play it for Kang Han-do.
He nailed the high notes in the highlight perfectly.
The short first verse ended.
“Thank you.”
Bae Sang-yeol gave unstinting applause to Kang Han-do, who had finished singing.
“Bravo! As expected, your singing is amazing, just like I’ve heard!”
“Coming from you, sunbae-nim, I don’t know where to put myself.”
“You could switch to being a singer full-time later.”
“Nah, not that good. Haha.”
No wonder the PDs coveted Kang Han-do.
He fulfilled his role perfectly on any program.
That’s why they couldn’t help but covet him.
* * *
Kang Han-do’s passionate singing on the radio program once again stirred the public’s hearts.
His name popped up in search trends.
Ranked 12th. Not super high, but climbing the searches just from a radio performance was an astonishing feat.
2 PM Date with Bae Sang-yeol wasn’t a radio show with that level of influence. It was a long-running program, sure, but not one where something you did shot straight to trending.
That made the result even more surprising.
Whenever he guested, he hit the search rankings without fail. That was Kang Han-do’s power.
After the closing remarks, Bae Sang-yeol expressed his gratitude to Kang Han-do.
“Thanks so much for indulging my reckless request. And I was shocked—no one’s ever come on here and sung a pop song before, I bet. Do you usually like pop songs?”
“Not really to that extent. How should I put it… I thought a pop song would fit 2 PM Date with Bae Sang-yeol better, so I picked one on purpose.”
A man who even considered the program’s vibe.
That was Kang Han-do.
The more Bae Sang-yeol heard, the more amazed he was.
“How long have you been debuting?”
“Heading into my second year.”
A rookie with this kind of insight after just two years was rare.
“Han-do, you’ll be a top star soon. No doubt.”
“Thank you. Your words give me a lot of courage, sunbae-nim.”
Kang Han-do felt good from Bae Sang-yeol’s praise.
* * *
He ended the radio program on a high note, but that didn’t mean all of Kang Han-do’s worries were over.
Finishing up and preparing to head back,
A sigh suddenly escaped his lips.
“Haa.”
Seeing Kang Han-do sigh out of the blue, Bae Sang-yeol, who happened to pass by, asked.
“What’s up?”
“Actually, I have one worry.”
“Relationship trouble?”
“Nah. I have to come up with a new corner for Pobokjeoldo, but no ideas are coming.”
“The pain of creation. Tough, huh.”
Bae Sang-yeol set his bag down for a moment.
He couldn’t just ignore a junior he’d gotten close to who was wrapped in worries.
Plus, Kang Han-do had hard-carried his program today. Now it was Bae Sang-yeol’s turn to help.
But Bae Sang-yeol had no talent for comedy.
As a born musician, all he could offer were bits of advice he’d picked up around.
“I have a comedian friend. You probably know him. Park Chang-sik.”
“Yeah, I know him. A senior big shot.”
Park Chang-sik, from BLT’s 3rd public recruitment class.
Kang Han-do wouldn’t not know him.
“Chang-sik said comedy isn’t from afar.”
“‘Not from afar’—what does that mean?”
“Dunno. Probably don’t think too far ahead or too complicated. Look close and think simply.”
“Close… simply…”
Sometimes, the simpler you think about complex things, the more helpful it is.
It was sound advice.
Thinking as simply as possible might yield an answer.
Kang Han-do thanked Bae Sang-yeol for the good advice and headed to the parking lot where Nemid was waiting.
Even riding in the car, Kang Han-do kept repeating Bae Sang-yeol’s words.
That’s when it happened.
Screeech!
Nemid suddenly slammed on the brakes.
Kang Han-do asked, startled.
“What? What’s going on?”
“The car ahead stopped abruptly.”
Just in case, they decided to check the car in front.
Kang Han-do got out alongside Nemid.
The people in the front car disembarked too.
It wasn’t a regular sedan.
‘They were doing road training.’
It was a driving license training vehicle.
The instructor apologized to Kang Han-do and Nemid right away.
“Sorry. The student’s such a bad driver… Hey, what did I tell you! Don’t drive while talking politics—you can’t focus and almost caused an accident!”
“You brought it up first, instructor! And what’s with your stubbornness!”
“What? Stubborn? You’re way more stubborn! When an adult speaks, you listen quick!”
“Do you know what we call that these days? Boomer! Boomer!”
“What, you punk?! Let’s settle this—you die, I live!”
Out of nowhere, a civil war(?) erupted in the car ahead.
Kang Han-do and Nemid had to unwillingly intervene in the two’s fight.
They sure could talk. They went at it tooth and nail, refusing to yield a word.
‘Somehow they ended up doing road training together.’
They were polar opposites; calling them sworn enemies wouldn’t be off.
‘…Wait!’
A thought flashed through Kang Han-do’s mind.
Think simply. Look close.
And the path shall open.
“Yeah, this is it!”
“Huh? This?”
Nemid asked Kang Han-do, but got no reply.
They were too busy breaking up the instructor and student.
“H-Han-do, help out! Don’t just stand there!”
Nemid’s plaintive voice echoed in the middle of the road.
* * *
That same evening after the radio shoot,
Kang Han-do called Oh Min-tae to his favorite café.
Oh Min-tae asked as soon as he saw Kang Han-do.
“You’re not tired?”
“Tired? Why?”
“You were just on radio.”
“You listened?”
“Yeah. Heard that pop song you always sing at karaoke. You’re getting better and better. Gonna become a real singer at this rate.”
“No singing for me. I’m doing MC. Anyway, got a good idea.”
“A corner?”
“Yeah.”
“As expected of Kang Han-do-nim! Prodigy of comedy! Rising star! Just like my friend!”
Oh Min-tae switched right back to praise mode.
“So, what is it?”
“Thinking of basing it on road training.”
“Road training?”
“Yeah. The driving instructor and trainee doing situational comedy.”
“Simple. But… I like it.”
Oh Min-tae’s smile deepened.
Seeing his reaction, Kang Han-do spoke faster.
“It’s just the concept so far. We’ll flesh out the details in meetings. Keep pitching ideas if you get any.”
“Got it. I’ll cooperate fully.”
The two steeled their resolve.
Their chemistry was already proven on HSL.
It’d work on Pobokjeoldo too.
Kang Han-do had no doubt.