Producer with no Regrets - Chapter 335



Only Noblemtl

Episode 335

Jo Jin-man used a firm tone, as if there was no room for compromise.

The members stopped what they were trying to say and became dumbfounded.

Instead, he turned his gaze to Seongpil to ask for help.

“Yeah, it’s hard.”

The opening medley of No – Tingle – Arabesque will require a tremendous amount of stamina from the members.

Because they are all title-level performances, and the level of difficulty does not allow for moderate dancing.

“But this is normal.”

“This is it?”

Joara looked at the setlist again with eyes of disbelief.

“The history of idol concerts is also close to 30 years.”

Jo Jin-man began to explain.

“It’s the point where the know-how has been accumulated as much as possible. Usually, idol concerts start with two or three hit songs in a row to raise the mood. It’s about making things fire up from the beginning.”

“Have you ever seen an idol concert? How was it?”

“Well, I don’t remember it well because I saw it when I was really young… … .”

“Has anyone ever seen an idol concert?”

No member raised a hand.

Seongpil was deeply shocked by that.

It wasn’t a shock because none of the members had seen the concert.

“Rika and Areum, you guys… … have you seen the For You concert… …?”

“oh!”

“ah.”

Woo Hyo-min, who sent the ticket, cries in the corner of the room.

“But did they have a hit song? I don’t really remember the concert opening.”

Eim Enter CEO Kim Myeong-un, sobbing in pain.

Seongpil swallowed his tears in place of Kim Myeong-un and turned his gaze to others.

Then Jang Ha-yang raised his arms hesitantly.

Everyone looked at her in surprise.

“Have you been to an idol concert, Unnie? You said you weren’t interested in idols before joining our company.”

“No, I watched it on Blu-ray at Director Park’s house.”

When Jo Jin-man heard that Jang Ha-yang had gone to Seong-pil’s house, he looked at him strangely.

Seongpil immediately made an excuse.

“I went to America a long time ago. At that time, I bought musical and play Blu-rays for Hayang as souvenirs. But since there was no Blu-ray player in the hotel, he came to my house once.”

“… …Does the boss know too?”

“Yes? Of course I asked the boss for permission.”

Jo Jin-man was confused.

He had witnessed Sungpil and Hong Gyuheon together at a ballad singer’s concert he directed earlier this year.

I definitely thought the two were dating.

‘But you allowed that?’

As expected of someone who is in the position of CEO, he seems to have tremendous confidence.

Jang Ha-yang allowed to visit Seong-pil’s house alone.

‘Or maybe you trust Director Park’s professionalism.’

Anyway, it’s amazing.

But it seems like no one among the people in Garo Enter finds it strange… … .

“Ha, Hayang went to the director’s house?”

Lee Yui said, “Oh my god.”

It seems like not everyone knew.

After Sungpil and Jang Hayang’s excuse time ended, we returned to the original topic.

“Hayang, what was the feeling of the concert you saw back then?”

“I don’t know much about WTP seniors’ songs, but I was surprised at first. They’re all hit songs, so I know them too.”

“What did you think?”

“If we pour out all our hit songs in the beginning, what kind of songs will we show later… … Is it okay to do this… … Things like that.”

“That’s right. People who don’t know much about it think that way. But as CEO Jo Jin-man said, the right way is to put hit songs in a row in the beginning.”

And that too without any breaks.

“Then what about the second half? If you put out all the songs that people will know in the beginning, won’t the second half be relatively empty?”

Joara reacted like a concert beginner.

“Araya, think about who will come to your concert. Who will pay 100,000 won to see you?”

“……ah.”

I’m a fan of Girls’ League.

He’s also a pretty hardcore fan.

“The public probably only knows your title songs. And even then, it’s probably only one or two. But, anyone who comes to your concert has probably played the entire album at least once. No, most idol fandoms know all the songs on the album.”

“I guess so.”

“You’re not standing on an event stage, a music award ceremony, or a music show stage. Only people who know you well and like you will come to your concert.”

So, there’s no problem with releasing hit songs in the beginning. After all, fans already know all the songs included in Girls’ League, and they’ll probably have their favorites among them.

“Atashi (I) have a question too!”

“Yeah, Rika.”

“Isn’t this the kind of atmosphere a concert should have?”

Rika’s hand went up, drawing a straight line over the diagonal line. Her hand, which had drawn a proportional graph, reached its peak.

“It really gets heated up at the end! But not all of our songs have that kind of vibe! So… … .”

Instead of the neat proportional graph she had just drawn, Rika’s hand drew a few undulating curves.

“Shouldn’t this be wrong?”

“Rika, it must be hard for you guys to perform on stage, right?”

“of course!”

“The audience?”

“to?”

“Won’t it be hard for the audience?”

“… …Is it difficult?”

“It’s hard!”

Seongpil passionately appealed to his fans’ feelings.

“Of course it’s hard to keep waving your cheering stick, cheering, and jumping to the beat of the song! On top of that, you have to stand all the way until you enter the concert hall. That’s hard enough, but standing in a concert hall for two hours is hard labor.”

“Ah, so that’s why you put so much effort into the beginning!”

“That’s right. It’s about having the most fun when you’re at your strongest.”

If a song with an ambiguous rhythm or a ballad starts playing as soon as you enter the concert hall, fans will likely tune in, but they may be a little disappointed.

The fans are here to cheer and have fun, so you have to storm them in the beginning.

“The songs are arranged so that you can have fun in the beginning and feel the lingering feeling as you go towards the latter part.”

“……still.”

Snow White still felt uneasy.

As for the title song medley in the first half, I have a feeling it would be close to impossible, although I haven’t tried it yet.

‘It was incredibly difficult to just practice this and perform it on stage.’

Debut, how hard did everyone work while practicing for ‘Ani’?

How was it matching ‘Tingle’ before your Japanese debut? Although it was less difficult than ‘Ani’, it was difficult to match the feeling of Japan.

And during the practice period for the final boss of the Girls’ League song, ‘Arabesque’, there were numerous conflicts.

‘You’re going to do this continuously without a break?’

Is this something that can be solved just by practicing?

During the Japanese debut showcase, there was a fairly long break between medleys. So, we were able to relax while performing title songs back to back… … .

“We can do this… … .”

“You can do it.”

Seongpil confirmed it.

His confidence was so evident that Snow White couldn’t even say all the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

“Then should we do it right after this meeting is over?”

The members exchanged glances mixed with concern.

I was worried that Sungpil might show something lacking since he was so full of expectations.

‘I think what the teacher said is right.’

Shin A-reum, who is confident in her physical strength and endurance, also expressed concern.

Shin A-reum is determined to do whatever Sungpil tells her to do. Of course, I believe that if she is given enough practice time, she will be able to perform according to this setlist.

But will the other members be like that too?

“Okay, let’s do that. Let’s do it right after the meeting.”

Seongpil first allayed the members’ worries and then began a full-fledged meeting.

Perhaps because of the pressure, the members lacked confidence throughout the meeting.

* * *

“Haa, haa.”

Baek Seol-ha exhaled heavily. The other members looked the same.

He is in an ending pose, his chest rising and falling, yearning for air.

At the same time, sweat is spread all over his face like lotion, and the collar of his shirt is soaked with sweat.

however…….

“This, this, why is this happening… … ?”

As Seongpil said, it really happened.

No – Tingle – Arabesque could be done consecutively without a break.

Of course, it was hard.

My mind was confused and my hands and feet were shaking. But the excitement of having accomplished this difficult task made the pain fly away.

“Good job, guys.”

Seongpil placed a towel on each member’s shoulder as they struck their ending pose.

“No matter how well-trained an idol is, it’s hard to do three intense dance songs in a row. It’s hard to even stand up straight. In other words, it’s okay to do up to three songs.”

30 years of K-pop idol history.

Concert planners have long since realized the limitations of typical idols.

The first know-how they have accumulated is that they start the concert by performing 2-3 hit songs in a row.

The songs that best elicited the audience’s response and were also the limit that the idols themselves could perform were three dance songs.

“Other groups usually do this. You can do it too.”

“No, this is, this is… … .”

Jang Ha-yang looked at the mirror as if she couldn’t believe it. In the mirror, her image of herself dancing to the title song of Girls’ League without stopping continued like an afterimage.

Everyone was as surprised as Jang Ha-yang.

Because they had never performed continuously without a break, they did not know their limits.

“Kids, you guys are different from the old days.”

Seongpil said with great pride.

The members’ gazes, which had been absent-minded, were focused on him.

“I only practiced for 3 months for ‘Ani’ before debuting. I practiced for ‘Tingle’ for a similar amount of time, and for ‘Arabesque’ for a similar amount of time. You guys are the ones who invested 100 days for each song.”

Also, how many broadcast stages have you been on?

How many more stages are there for the event?

The amount of time and effort the members invest in one song exceeds hundreds of days, and the amount of sweat they shed exceeds tens of thousands.

“This is your song.”

This is a song by the Girls’ League.

That’s why the Girls’ League can sing, dance, and perform the best in the world.

“Of course you can do it, since it’s your song.”

Seongpil started patting the shoulders of each member, starting with Baek Seol-ha, who was at the front.

“This isn’t the Girls’ League from when you debuted, from when you made a comeback, from when you were in your first year. This isn’t the you from the past when you lost all your energy for a single performance.”

Seongpil finished encouraging everyone by patting them on the shoulder and smiled proudly at them all.

“This is you now.”

Jang Ha-yang was so moved that he covered his mouth.

This is because the moments I experienced while practicing ‘Ani’ during my debut quickly passed through my mind.

Even after dancing one song, my hands and feet were shaking so much that I couldn’t get up for several minutes.

I drank water mixed with salt and sugar to force myself to gain energy.

I sang and said ‘No’ dozens, hundreds, thousands of times with my legs shaking and complaining of pain.

And finally, I stood on the music show stage and poured out my determination to work hard. And even then, it wasn’t perfect, and my heart was pounding like crazy…

“Okay, I can do it… … .”

The members burst into tears when they saw Jang Ha-yang crying. They huddled together like birds gathered in a nest and hugged Jang Ha-yang.

“I really became an idol… … .”

* * *

As concert planning began in earnest, the members began to think seriously about the concert.

What kind of directing do you want to do?

What kind of stage do you want to create?

What kind of outfit do you want to wear?

What do you want to show your fans?

The answer is… … .

“I have to go to Director Park’s house!”

During a break from practice, Rika gave a passionate speech.

This was right after Jang Ha-yang told Sung Pil that there was a mountain of idol concert Blu-rays and DVDs piled up at his house.

“You have to see the concerts that Director Park earned with his hard work and sweat! You need references to get ideas!”

“Sir, your house is small. Once we all go, there won’t be anywhere to sit.”

The members have been to Sungpil’s house.

When we were recording ‘No’, he had a cold. After recording, I stopped by his house to visit him.

“Why do we have to go to the team leader’s house in the first place? There’s a PlayStation in our dorm too. Why don’t we just rent the concert Blu-ray?”

Tsk tsk.

Rika waved her index finger.

“Director Park’s house has a TV worth millions of won! It covers half of one wall! But the one in our room is probably over 10 years old! Experience is different!”

Certainly, it would be quite an atmosphere to watch an idol concert on the TV in Sungpil’s house.

There is even a surround system that covers all four sides, so the experience will be completely different from being at a hotel.

“hmm…….”

“Does Sister Hayang agree too?”

“hmm?”

Jang Ha-yang was worried because she felt that Rika had other intentions.

No matter how I look at it, it looks like he just wants to go to Seongpil’s house to hang out.

“In that sense, teacher!”

“huh?”

“Teacher, please tell Director Park! As the leader, you must convey the group’s will!”

“……I?”

“But I really want to see it. I think it would be nice to watch the concert on TV like that.”

“Ara-chan is good too! Hurry up, hurry up!”

“You guys are leaders only in times like this… … .”

Since Seongpil had other business anyway, Baekseolha went to see him.

Seongpil was in the office.

Snow White nodded every time she made eye contact with the new employees.

“Director Park.”

“Oh, Seol-ha.”

Seongpil stopped what he was doing and immediately looked at Baek Seol-ha and smiled.

“excuse me…….”

Snow White looked around.

It was absolutely not something I should say here.

“Shall we go outside and talk?”

“Uh, would you please do that?”

Seongpil came out of the office with Baek Seol-ha. After confirming that there was no one nearby, Baek Seol-ha quickly started talking.

“We’re having a hard time coming up with ideas for a concert production. I think it would be better if we had more references.”

“That’s right. Would you like me to lend you the concert Blu-rays and DVDs I have at home?”

“Ah… … We were just talking among ourselves. If we’re going to do it, I thought it might be better to see it in a bigger way at Director Park’s house… … .”

Is it okay for the Girls’ League to visit Seongpil’s house?

The answer is.

“It’s not difficult.”

“ah…….”

“It’s not like we’re the only ones at the company anymore, so wouldn’t it be a bit difficult to have everyone gather at my house?”

I guess so.

Baek Seol-ha also knew very well what it would look like for the idols in charge to visit the producer’s house as a group.

Even if it is not known to others, it would be a violation of Seongpil’s line.

“It’s not like I can only see it at my house.”

The reason Jang Ha-yang was able to come to Seong-pil’s house to watch the Blu-ray was because there was no other way to watch it.

The Girls’ League dormitory has a Blu-ray player, so things like what happened with Jang Ha-yang can’t happen again.

“Sorry.”

“Oh, no. What do you have to be sorry about, sir?”

“Also, if I may make an excuse, my house is small and it would be really crowded. I wouldn’t be able to really appreciate it.”

“Right. Yes, I understand. Thank you for listening.”

“Is that all for now?”

Baek Seol-ha hesitated as if it was not the end.

She asked more cautiously than before.

“We have a concert coming up. Can we get some tickets?”

“Seol-ha, you little brat, you’re already asking for tickets when the venue hasn’t even been decided?”

“Oh, I’m sorry… … .”

“No. I can give you a ticket. How many do you need?”

“Four chapters, no, five chapters.”

“Soohyun and her two younger siblings, and your parents?”

“……yes.”

“Well, then it’s about 500,000 won? Can we deduct it from the snow settlement later?”

“yes?!”

“I’m kidding.”

“… … .”

Snow White smiled faintly.

Seongpil always teases Baek Seol-ha whenever he talks to her. He likes to say something a little embarrassing to get a reaction from her.

Although he was mischievous, Baekseol liked Seongpil’s friendly attitude.

“I’ll tell President Cho and set aside 5 separate invitation tickets. But, asking for separate tickets like this isn’t a very good thing.”

Concert promoters have one battle to fight as a concert approaches.

It’s about rejecting the offers that come from all directions saying, “Can you give me an invitation?”

As a planner, you can create invitation-only seats. But that doesn’t mean you can abuse them. Increasing the number of invitation-only seats leads to decreased revenue.

Of course, since they cannot be sure of a sellout, Jo Jin-man and Garo Enter plan to fill a certain percentage of seats with invitations.

This is done by giving invitations to other companies in exchange for sponsorship, and then the company holds an event with concert tickets.

“But I can’t help it, since it’s a request from the main character, the leader of the Girls’ League, Baek Seol-ha.”

“thank you.”

“Is this really the end of your business?”

“Ah… … That’s not it… … .”

Actually, ever since I came back from Japan, there was something I wanted to ask the people at the company.

She hesitated, then mustered up her courage and spoke.

“By any chance, did Soohyun audition for our company? Or is she already here… … .”

Snow White had always been concerned about that.

When he went to his parents’ house for the holidays, Baek Soo-hyun said that he wanted to become an idol. So it was possible that he came to Garo Enter.

I think you’ve probably auditioned at least once.

‘I couldn’t even ask the company staff because they told me not to talk about the trainee story… … .’

But since it’s related to my younger brother, I can’t learn it without asking.

“What, you don’t know about Soohyun?”

Seongpil raised his voice as if he was genuinely surprised.

“Yes, yes? Su-hyeon… … why… … ?”

“I thought you knew it before. Oh, I see that’s why you’ve been so restless whenever you see me lately. I was going to ask you what happened to Soo-hyun.”

“……yes.”

“You can ask that much, but I didn’t know. Wow, it’s true that you don’t check Seolha’s community or SNS. It’s a bit strange.”

Snow White’s bewilderment grew deeper and deeper.

Seongpil seemed to think that it was natural that he should know the news about Baek Suhyun.

“Soohyun is really famous these days.”

“… … Yes? Soo, Soohyun is famous?”

“Yeah. Can you come in for a minute?”

Seongpil led Baekseolha to his office. He gave her a chair and logged onto iTube.

On the iTube screen that appeared on the monitor, Seongpil searched for a familiar name.

“Soohyun appeared on ‘Project For You Season 2’.”