Producer with no Regrets - Chapter 582



Only Noblemtl

Episode 582

Seongpil entered the conference room.

All the members of the Girls’ League were already gathered at the U-shaped table. Seongpil went to the highest seat and looked over the members.

Then he smiled kindly.

“It’s been a while, guys.”

“It’s only been two days!”

“Hey, Rika, don’t accept it.”

Joara stopped Rika.

“If you keep doing that, you’ll end up saying something like, ‘I don’t want to be away from you guys even for a day. Even just one day would be a long wait for me.’”

“Sonanoh (Is that so)?”

Rika stared blankly at Seongpil.

Seongpil unnaturally clasped the documents in his hand, still smiling as before.

“Shall we start the ‘Our Producing’ meeting?”

“Look, I really meant to do that.”

A faint smile spread among the members.

Seongpil smiled unnaturally. After seeing each other face to face for over four years, he could definitely read my mind.

“first…….”

“Team Leader, before we start the meeting, I have something to ask you.”

“Hey, Arami. What is it?”

“We’re moving to our new building.”

The members also seemed curious and focused on Seongpil.

The story that Garo Enter should move to a new building has been around for a long time.

Because Garo Enter’s goal is not to roll out the typical entertainment company cycle of releasing one group every 3.5 years.

In a few years, it will grow into a much larger agency than it is now. If it’s just two or three groups, the current building will probably be enough…

‘Considering Hyomin, WayPercent, and other groups that will be added… … .’

The current building is insufficient, so a proposal was made to move to a larger building.

The new building has long been Garo Enter’s dream.

but.

“Probably not. It would be a waste in the current situation. When new colleagues arrive, they will probably buy a small building or rent a floor or two of a building and live separately. Or, they may use this as a base but rent a separate practice room and use that.”

The Girls’ League occupies the second floor.

Currently, male trainees use the 3rd floor, and when the boy group debuts this year, they will use the same 3rd floor.

If Woo Hyo-min were alone, he could share the second floor, but Way Percent has too many people.

‘If we put it on the third floor, we could take turns using it with our next group.’

However, one practice room per group is not enough. We also need a space for individual training and individual practice for each member.

If you take turns using the practice rooms on the 2nd and 3rd floors, eventually there will be a group that gets hurt.

So, it is more efficient to live in separate buildings, unless you buy a very large building.

“Ugh… … .”

Rika looked visibly disappointed.

That’s right. Just as the executives of Garo Enter dream of a new building, the members are also hoping for a changed Garo Enter…

“I thought I could finally speak informally to Director Park… … .”

Seongpil blinked his eyes.

“Informal speech? To me?”

“Eek?! Did you forget!”

“Ahaha.”

Jang Ha-yang smiled bitterly.

She had made several promises to Sungpil, but Sungpil couldn’t remember most of them. He only remembered them after Jang Ha-yang or other members brought them up.

For example, going to an amusement park with Jang Ha-yang, or carrying her on his back and taking a spin around Garo-Enter.

Seongpil even forgot the promise he made with Rika.

“Hidoi (Too much)! Is the promise you made to me, the lovely Atashi, so frivolous? This is a contract fraud! I gave up the chance to make a lot of money in Japan and followed you to Korea, and this is all I get treated like!”

“Why, why? What promise did I make…?”

“You said that if Garo Enter moves to the new building, you’ll let me call you ‘Seongpil’! Or was I the only one who thought it was true?”

“Oh, you were the only one who was sincere. Even if we move to the new Garo Enter building, there will never be a day when you call me Seongpil.”

“Sonna (that kind of)!”

It was a real contract fraud.

Rika made a gesture of tying her hair tie tightly.

“Atashi (I), I refuse to renew my contract!”

“Yeah, today’s meeting is… … .”

“You’re not even going to catch me?!”

“Ha Yang, the main producer of Season 3, has something to ask of you.”

The members looked at Jang Ha-yang.

Jang Ha-yang sat still. Unable to bear the continued gaze, she laughed ahaha. Then she nodded to Seong-pil.

“The director will explain.”

“What Hayang wants to ask of you is… … .”

The members were nervous.

When producing Baekseolha, all members had to have top-notch vocal skills.

‘Apple Crush’ is not a difficult dance, but the vocal performance is so difficult that it would be burdensome to perform on stage.

When producing Joara, all members had to have top-notch dance skills.

It will soon be the spring festival season. The members’ heads are already spinning at the thought of going to the events with ‘Automata’.

And finally, it’s Jang Ha-yang’s turn.

What does she demand from her members? Top-notch looks? If so, should they get plastic surgery?

“Lyrics.”

“ah…….”

Snow White nodded as if she understood.

Jang Ha-yang’s specialties are rapping and writing lyrics. It wasn’t unusual for him to ask the members to do one of them.

“As you all heard, the theme of this title is ‘Fan Song.’ I want you to express your true feelings towards the people who support the Federation.”

“Sir, I think you made a very political statement.”

“But, team leader.”

Shin Areum expressed her concern.

“Seol-ha learned how to write lyrics, and Hayang has written lyrics many times. But we don’t have any experience, right? But can we write lyrics?”

“hmm.”

Lyrics are the first area that idols touch on when participating in producing, so the barrier to entry is low.

But that doesn’t mean it’s easy at all.

Melody is the face of the song and lyrics are the soul of the song. The task of carving that soul cannot be easy.

Even if the lyrics seem meaningless, they are filled with the lyricist’s worries and efforts.

“This time, are we learning to write lyrics as a group?”

“No, fortunately there is someone who can help you. Please come in!”

The conference room door opened and a familiar face appeared.

“oh!”

Rika recognized her immediately.

It was Lee Su-yeon, a lyricist who had been working with the Girls’ League for a long time. She bowed to the members and stood next to Sung-pil with a somewhat timid attitude.

“Guys, no… … .”

“Ji-eum oppa’s girlfriend!”

Rika revealed the identity of lyricist Lee Su-yeon.

Yes, Lee Soo-yeon and Jeong Ji-eum finally started dating after a long period of searching.

It was a long time indeed. It was a war of exploration that lasted almost four years.

It would probably be quite interesting to weave their story into a romantic comedy. The virtue of a romantic comedy is the conflicting feelings between a man and a woman who like each other.

“… … .”

Lee Soo-yeon was taken aback for a moment by the comment, “Ji-eum’s girlfriend!”

“lol.”

I laughed happily.

After years of being stuck in her room and just writing songs, she finally started dating. It felt good.

How difficult it was to write lyrics about love when my love cells were almost dead.

There is no need for that anymore.

Her abilities have now reached their peak. Her love affair with Jung Ji-eum has completed her.

Seongpil added an additional note.

“For your information, this is not a chance meeting. I hope you don’t misunderstand, because I didn’t give you any work because you were my lover.”

“Who said what?”

No one misunderstands.

Lee Soo-yeon has written lyrics for almost all of Girls’ League’s main songs, starting with ‘Ani’ and ‘Arabesque’.

“Guys, please take care of yourself. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. By the way, here’s my secret recipe for writing lyrics… .”

Lee Su-yeon took out a book from her bag.

“I published a book. If you need it… … .”

“Are you giving it to me?”

“It might help if you buy it at the store.”

“… … .”

“Anyway, it only costs me a few thousand won per book… … Since I brought this, I’ll give it to you as a gift. Who wants it?”

No one raised a hand.

Lyricist Lee Su-yeon’s lips were trembling as if she was about to burst into tears at any moment.

Jang Ha-yang raised his hand.

“Ah, Hayang! Do you want it?”

“thank you.”

Jang Ha-yang took the book and placed it in front of the table.

There was a photo of lyricist Lee Su-yeon on the cover of the book. It was almost like a pictorial.

“And also.”

After the book presentation, Seongpil continued his explanation.

“I’ve prepared an event that might be helpful to you. It’s more like an event or a self-entertainment video.”

The event prepared by Garo Enter was an indirect meeting with fans.

“We’ll invite fans in for an interview and ask them questions like, ‘What does Girls’ League mean to you?’ You know, like an interview questionnaire.”

The format is like this.

He calls the fans to a reception area that has nothing to do with the horizontal enter, and asks them various questions about the Girls’ League, like an interview method in sociology.

“It will help you fill your emotions while you watch it through a camera in another room.”

“And then when the interview is over, we just show up?”

“Well, that wouldn’t be bad. I’ll talk about that separately. But it doesn’t end here. I’ll also have the opportunity to meet with the public, not just fans.”

“masses?”

Literally, as the name suggests, we will interview a random sample of the public.

“Most people probably don’t know you, or even if they do, they’re not fans. So the question would be something like, ‘What is an idol to you?’”

By comparing interviews with the public and fans, Girls’ League members will gain a deeper understanding of the existence of fans.

And you will also learn what the public thinks of you.

To musicians, the term “public” can sometimes feel like a huge lump. However, even if they share the same title of “public,” each person’s scope of thought is different.

Seongpil wants the members to know that.

Sometimes, some celebrities suffer from malicious commenters and end up hating the public itself.

Rather than thinking rationally, ‘There are these people and those people,’ it’s much easier to lump everyone together, excluding fans, as enemies.

In some ways, it is a wise state of mind to not waste energy trying to understand people. However, if you ask whether that is right, it is not right.

‘It takes effort to go the right way.’

Even if the members quit idol activities, Sungpil did not want them to return to being ordinary people with a vague hatred for the public.

“You will each understand the difference between the common people and ordinary people in your own way. That may or may not help you write lyrics. But I think it is a necessary process. Plus, you will also produce your own entertainment video. So, what are the questions?”

Shin A-reum raised her hand.

“Oh, Arami.”

“Lyricist, can you tell me about your love story with your brother?”

Lee Soo-yeon was embarrassed. Then she glanced at Seong-pil.

“Team leader, please step out for a moment.”

“what?”

The members glared at Sungpil with shining eyes. They all wanted to hear the bittersweet romance story between Lee Soo-yeon and Jung Ji-eum.

It seems there are no other questions.

“… … .”

Seongpil left the conference room with a bitter look. Then he looked at the closed conference room door.

‘I wanted to hear that too… … .’

* * *

Kim Deok-pal, head of the overseas business department.

He spent the first few weeks of his tenure just getting to know the company. When he got to work, he just sat at his desk and read papers handed to him from other departments.

Thanks to that, Kwon Ah-in was able to shout at Accounting Director Bolmen.

“Can’t I just receive the file and read it on the monitor… … ?”

Kim Deok-pal printed out all the hundreds of pages of documents. It seems that they are not readable unless they are in physical form.

Garo Enter has computerized all of its work and communications, thanks to the insistence of Han Gu-in. As a result, paper and ink usage has been extremely low. That means less paper and ink reserves.

But that was over in an instant. Kwon Ah-in placed an order for A4 paper and ink for the first time in a long time.

She sighed as she ended up spending more money than she could have saved.

She was becoming like her boss, Han Gu-in, who was obsessed with even the smallest expenses.

“Weekly meeting begins… … .”

Change happened slowly.

Hong Gyu-heon declared the start of the weekly meeting and looked at Kim Deok-pal’s expression.

“… … Let’s begin.”

I used polite language.

Kim Deok-pal didn’t say anything during the meeting. While others were looking at their laptops or smart pads, he looked at the documents he had printed out in advance.

Kim Deok-pal occasionally asked questions.

“What is this ‘International League Congress’… … ?”

“It’s a Girls’ League fan meeting. It’s a term used to differentiate it from a concert-style fan meeting.”

“International… … .”

He seemed to have forgotten the terminology for a moment and put his face close to the desk as if he was going to bury his nose in the papers.

It seemed like his eyesight wasn’t very good.

“The International League Congress? Oh, yes. Okay.”

“… … .”

Kim Deok-pal lacked knowledge about the idol industry.

His adaptation wasn’t just about adjusting to the horizontal entertainment. It also involved a period of figuring out the industry.

After the meeting, Seongpil and Han Guin talked about Deokpal Kim in the break room on the first floor.

Seongpil asked worriedly.

“It’s been quite some time already, but Manager Kim is still obsessed with understanding the industry. When will you finish?”

The person closest to Kim Deok-pal was Han Gu-in. There was even a name attached to the relationship between the two of them, the Garo Enter academic cartel.

“You don’t even give me requests like adding more personnel to the department.”

“… … .”

Han Gu-in had no proper answer. He didn’t want to pressure Kim Deok-pal unnecessarily. So he deliberately didn’t ask questions like, “When are you going to start working?”

I thought I would start foolishly when the time came.

But that ‘time’ did not come easily.

Everyone understood the adjustment period that Kim Deok-pal had to go through. However, everyone felt this regret.

‘At least if there was someone with some knowledge of this industry… … .’

If that had been the case, the overseas business division might have been fully operational by filling its personnel a long time ago.

Garo Enter is still a small company.

If you have some knowledge about the idol industry, it won’t take you that long to figure out the job.

“I would like to have a conversation with you today.”

“Please.”

The person who was most enthusiastic about recruiting Kim Deok-pal was Han Gu-in. If Kim Deok-pal fails to produce satisfactory results, it is Han Gu-in who will be in danger of losing his position.

Han Gu-in set out to find Kim Deok-pal.

Kim Deok-pal was wandering around the second floor hallway, holding a piece of paper in his hand.

“Oh, Director Han.”

Kim Deok-pal slowly approached Han Gu-in.

It was really slow.

Even when he went down the stairs, he went down one step every two seconds. His walking was just as slow.

The Korean man approached him as quickly as possible.

“The fan management team… … .”

What Kim Deok-pal was holding was a diagram of the internal structure of the Garo Enter building.

He still hasn’t completely memorized the company structure. For an ordinary person, a few walks around would be enough, but he even carries a map.

The Korean’s heart sank.

‘Have you experienced a decline in your intellectual abilities due to old age?’

There must be a reason why companies set retirement ages. Could it be that Kim Deok-pal was recommended to resign from his previous company not because of his age, but because his abilities had declined due to his age?

“Which one is it?”

“… … It’s over there. I’ll show you around.”

Han Gu-in walked slowly down the hallway with him.

On the way, Han Gu-in asked cautiously.

“Why are you looking for a fan management team?”

“There are some things that are difficult to understand from documents. That is, it is difficult to know what activities this team is doing. The only things saved are plans and temporary reports.”

“The department is not very systematic. It is fundamentally a place to analyze and manage fans’ desires and reactions.”

“Isn’t that… … something very important?”

Han Gu-in realized that his explanation was inadequate.

“Ah, that’s what I mean. It’s not the fan management team that’s responsible for identifying customer needs, but the production team.”

“Then this team… … .”

“Customer care… … .”

It was difficult for the Korean to explain.

The fan management team was a place that existed so naturally. If I were to explain their main job, it would be to look into the reactions of the people.

Based on that response, the production and management departments review events and schedules planned by the department. This could be called the department closest to the fans’ hearts.

But it was difficult to say exactly, ‘this is their job.’

“haha.”

Kim Deok-pal smiled kindly.

“I will go and ask him myself. That is why I am taking these steps.”

“sorry.”

“I’m sorry. There are departments like that in a normal company. Departments where you can’t tell what they do just by looking at their names. Even after hearing the explanation, there are places where you’re like, ‘It seems like they do some work, but what exactly do they do?’”

Kim Deok-pal arrived in front of the office where the fan management team members were and bowed his head toward Han Gu-in.

Koreans did the same.

Kim Deok-pal went inside the office, and Han Gu-in sighed.

‘I guess I didn’t ask in the end.’

Hanguin waited for a moment in front of the office.

Kim Deok-pal came out right away. He looked surprised to see Han Gu-in waiting.

“Director Han?”

“Um, Manager Kim. I’ve been waiting to ask you something. When will you finish understanding the work?”

Kim Deok-pal blinked slowly and smiled kindly as always.

“By the way, I have something I want to suggest to you soon, sir.”

“Really? What is it? Is there anything I can help you with?”

“It’s still in the conceptual stage, so it’s hard to put into words. I’ll have to look into it more. But it won’t take long. I’ll be able to tell you in a few days at the earliest.”

Kim Deok-pal laughed heartily.

“I’m glad you said you’d help me, but Director Han, our areas of work are completely different. I feel ashamed to ask for your help.”

“No. Please feel free to tell me if you need anything.”

“Yes, I will. Thank you always.”

Han Gu-in was relieved when he heard that Kim Deok-pal would soon finish understanding the work.

The suggestion I would make to President Hong Gyu-heon would be to increase manpower in the overseas business division.

‘How many people do we really need?’

It would be impossible to only accept new recruits.

If you hire one or two people from other departments, there will be less confusion in work even if you hire new employees.

‘If there were only new employees, it would take a few more weeks just to get a grasp of the work like Manager Kim.’

A few weeks would be lucky.

A rookie manager and rookie employees may end up making a mess of things.

‘anyway.’

thank god.

* * *

A week has passed.

Kim Deok-pal asked for a presentation at the executive meeting. The executives naturally felt anticipation.

Han Gu-in turned on the projector and connected it to the laptop. Kim Deok-pal created the PPT himself.

“thank you.”

Kim Deok-pal held up what appeared to be a script and continued to recite it. This was repeated until Hong Gyu-heon and the other executives arrived.

As everyone sat down, Kim Deok-pal gently laid the script down on the table. He probably had to demonstrate it several times before standing up.

“First, I have placed the materials in front of you. Please take a look if you need to. I have marked the pages of the reference materials in the middle of the PPT.”

Kim Deok-pal took a deep breath, picked up the remote control, and started the PPT.

It was written in simple font on a white background: ‘Suggestions for Improving the Global Profitability of the Girls’ League.’

Increasing global profitability.

Hong Gyu-heon trembled with interest as soon as he saw the letters. He was very curious about what kind of suggestion Kim Deok-pal had prepared.

I wanted to hear it directly from his voice, so I deliberately didn’t even read the materials.

“Let me get straight to the point. The Girls’ League needs to join ‘Weirs’.”

The mark ‘Weirs’ appeared on the screen.

‘Weus’ is a global fandom platform.

WTP’s agency went public and became a comprehensive entertainment company. They developed and released their own fandom platform.

That was ‘Weirs’.

It hasn’t been long since we launched the beta version experimentally.

If there is a global fandom platform comparable to ‘Weus’, there is ‘Cosmos’, which was created by a game company. This too was created not long ago.

“The services provided by ‘Weus’ are as follows. For a price of about 30,000 won per year, you can use the closed fandom community of the artist you want. View exclusive content accordingly. Or purchase content and merchandise, etc. As a global platform, it supports foreign languages ​​such as English and Japanese. Idols from WTP’s agencies and agencies acquired by them have already entered or are planning to enter the store. In addition, they are recruiting foreign pop stars to increase their recognition… … .”

“wait a minute.”

A Korean man raised his hand.

Kim Deok-pal stopped explaining as if he had been waiting.

Han Gu-in looked obviously flustered. He looked at Hong Gyu-heon’s expression and asked carefully, very carefully.

“This matter has already been rejected at the previous executive meeting. The Girls’ League will not be entering ‘Weirs’. Even if it is, that will be much later.”

“I know.”

“yes?”

“I know, but I would like Director Han to explain. Why did you make that decision?”

Han Gu-in understood Kim Deok-pal’s intentions.

He looked at the records of the previous executive meeting, thought it was unreasonable, and arranged for another meeting to convince everyone.

Kim Deok-pal would naturally know why Garo Enter refused to accept ‘Weus’.

But the reason I ask again is to break that logic.

“… … .”

Han Gu-in erased the confusion from earlier.

“Because I judged it to be a betrayal to the fans of the Girls’ League. I’ll tell you in advance. If Manager Kim brings up this topic again, it’s like he’s telling us this.”

Let’s betray our fans.

“Is that what you mean?”

“you’re right.”

Kim Deok-pal admitted it coolly.

He looked at Hong Gyu-heon.

“While reading through the previous minutes, I saw what the CEO said. ‘What you should leave behind in business is not money, but people’… … . Those are really great words. I think so too. Betraying your fans means abandoning your fans. It means leaving behind money, not people. That would be the opposite of Garo Entertainment’s ideology and ideals.”

Still.

Kim Deok-pal put a lot of emphasis on ‘nevertheless’. His gentle appearance from before was nowhere to be seen.

“But even so, there are times in business when you have to let go of people, when you can get more people.”

Kim Deok-pal’s eyes lit up brightly.

“I suggest. Yes, as Director Han said, let’s betray our fans. By doing so, we can gain more fans.”

This is a truly clever way of speaking.

If Kim Deok-pal’s goal was simply to persuade, he would not have made such radical remarks as “let’s betray the fans.”

There is no reason to make your argument seem immoral or unethical.

What he did was quite a sophisticated rhetoric.

Han Gu-in could see right through his feelings.

‘Let’s betray our fans. It’s hard and I feel guilty. But I’m still making this argument… ‘

‘Betraying fans’, there is more to gain from doing so than the loss. That is exactly what Kim Deok-pal claimed.

This is a method of highlighting the benefits of taking risks by overemphasizing the risks.

‘Let’s betray the fans.’

The listener cannot help but wonder.

‘why?’

The question naturally follows.

The Korean people were impressed, apart from being embarrassed.

‘Yes. It’s a motion that has already been rejected at the executive meeting.’

In order to overturn that decision, it would have been necessary to open the meeting with such a radical statement.

Even if you cautiously and timidly say, “How about thinking about it again?”, it will have no effect on the suggestion of Kim Deok-pal, who had only recently come in.

The reason Han Gu-in asked him, “Do you mean to betray your fans?” was because he wanted him to give up on this suggestion.

In fact, everyone in this place was against him.

However, he took an even more radical stance, saying, “It means betrayal.”

His aggression was a reflection of his wisdom.

Han Gu-in looked at Hong Gyu-heon with wavering eyes. Then he looked at Seong-pil, Son Hye-bin, and Min Gyeong-seop in that order.

No one opened their mouth.

Hong Gyu-heon tapped the table with his index finger and glanced at Han Gu-in. Then he spoke in a tone of emotionless voice.

“Shall we listen?”

Kim Deok-pal let out a silent sigh of relief.

“Director Han said that it was a betrayal of fans, and I agreed with that. I think that’s a big leap. Let me narrow it down. The only people who are considered betrayals are the existing Korean fans, and even among them, a very small minority.”

“Are you talking about the fan club?”

Kim Deok-pal nodded to Hong Gyu-heon’s question.

“It’s been quite some time since K-pop has become globalized and reached its full potential. The closed community called fan club has fulfilled its cultural mission. Isn’t it a girl group that targets the world, not Korea? So the fan club… … .”

The core fans who have supported and cherished the Girls’ League more than anyone else…

“From a macroscopic perspective, it can’t help but feel like reverse discrimination to other people. Let me put it more directly. To other fans, especially overseas fans, a closed fan community that is superior to them is discriminatory. It goes without saying that it’s a community that is even impossible to join due to the language barrier. Yes, to use an analogy.”

Kim Deok-pal pressed the remote control button.

A picture appeared on the screen.

It was a painting that symbolized the French Revolution.

“This is a revolution. It is a revolution that breaks down vested interests and transfers rights to everyone with equality. This is my proposal.”