Rockstar Again - Chapter 51



Only Noblemtl

Episode 51. Rapunzel (5)

When I told Tae-joo that I had decided to sign an exclusive contract with the Salvation Army’s company, Tae-joo laughed and said that he knew it.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Because I felt like I had lasted a long time.”

“… … .”

“Is Seolyeong better than you thought?”

Lately, in the recording studio, it’s mostly just Taeju hyung and I.

The other two hyungs are like masters who practice in the basement practice room and never come out. It’s not like Taeju hyung neglects his practice. He just mostly practices in the recording studio because he has to work on a song and I have to talk about business or music.

I lay on the sofa at one end of the recording studio and looked at Taeju hyung.

“That woman. What is she? What is her identity?”

“You know a lot now, don’t you? The youngest sibling of the chairman of the Cheong-Ah Salvation Army, a celebrity, and the executive director of a media group, but in reality he’s the representative. He likes rock. He likes you.”

“No. Not like that. What is her real identity? That girl really seemed to like rock? She took me there and asked what I wanted. She said, “More than a third.” Wow… I got goosebumps, really.”

Taeju hyung spun around in his chair and met my eyes.

“One-third? What’s that?”

“Do you know, hyung? Live Aid.”

“Live Aid… … Oh. I know. But why is that?”

“I told you before. Don’t you remember? When it was broadcast on TV, they said that one third of the world’s population watched it? So I saw it and thought, I’ll stand on a stage like that someday. And I’ll make more people watch me perform. That’s what that lady said.”

At my words, Taeju hyung closed his eyes slightly as if he was lost in old memories for a moment.

“That’s right. Woodstock too. You’d get a tape of that performance and every time you came back, you’d stand on that stage. Let’s go there. That’s what you said. Even back then, you had big dreams.”

“Did your brother tell you that?”

“Me? What are you doing?”

“Right? My brother isn’t the kind of person who would do that… … So anyway… … I let it go. It would just be annoying if I got hurt more.”

“It’s not because I find it annoying, it’s because I like it.”

“If a company president wants to bring someone of my level, he has to have that much ambition. It’s not that I like him… … It’s just that, well, that’s it. He acknowledged me.”

“You said you got goosebumps earlier.”

“Hey. I don’t know.”

I turned towards the back of the sofa.

And then, I added a word to Tae-joo, who was probably laughing out loud.

“That lady came to sign a contract.”

“Seolyeong? When?”

“now.”

“dripping.”

The voice of the Savior is heard from behind.

Even though it was only two syllables, it was clearly distinct. That strange and monstrous voice.

“Why are you knocking on the door when you’ve already come in?”

As if responding to my grumbling, the Savior responds in a sticky, high tone.

“manners?”

* * *

“hmm…….”

“… … .”

“Hmm… … .”

“why?”

“… … Huh… … .”

Still groaning, the old man looks back and forth between his brothers and me.

Since we are in a contract situation, it is natural to look at our members.

So, the two Taoists who were in the basement practice room came up to the recording studio with Secretary Kwak Moon-ki, and they have been doing that ever since.

“If you want to step down now, you can. Just don’t call our members old or trash. Oh, and don’t call them trash or luggage either.”

My brothers are awkwardly kicking the floor at my words.

Why are you digging the ground when it’s not even sand?

anyway.

Finally, the Savior began to speak.

“I thought the members were old, but I didn’t think of them as trash, waste, or a burden. You did that.”

“I can do it, so I can do it.”

At my words, the old man shook his head, locking eyes with the secretary-like woman standing behind him.

And then look at me again.

“Is this correct?”

“that’s right.”

“Taeju oppa was a member of the team, not your father? The mask and sunglasses you performed with in Misari?”

“Those guys are here, hyungs. And what about dad? How can my face be seen in Taeju hyung’s face? It’s absurd.”

“What does Taeju oppa look like? He’s handsome for his age.”

“I’m saying that because I haven’t seen your old face. Back in the old days, there were only bones, so all the neighborhood dogs would chase after Taeju hyung. I thought he was a bone.”

At my words, the Savior slowly adjusted his sitting posture and crossed his legs.

That lady is definitely a bit dangerous.

When I glance at my brothers, Tae-joo just smiles like he’s looking at his cute little brother. Young-pil and Dong-sik cough for no reason and look off into the air.

“You’re talking like you saw Taejoo oppa a long time ago… a long time ago… you?”

“… … You know when you see the picture. You saw the picture, the picture.”

“okay?”

“Of course. Then what? Did I ride a time machine or something? Okay. Whether you’re going to do it or not, just answer quickly. You’re here to sign a contract and evaluate the members. If you said you trust me, I’ll trust you.”

“Yeah, well. You’re right.”

The Savior answered like that and looked back.

and.

“The conditions are as agreed upon by Director Kwak Moon-ki and Director Hong. No changes. Just sign and you’re done.”

“Is it true?”

“Yeah. It’s unusual, so I like it. It’s a bit weird that Taeju Oppa tricked me, though. We can settle that separately. Right, Taeju Oppa?”

“Let’s have a meal together. I’ll eat something delicious.”

“Why do you keep buying me food whenever you see me? That’s enough. I’ll charge you more.”

Then, Director Hong Seon-ah received the documents and Secretary Kwak Moon-ki reviewed them again.

The four of us each received a contract in front of us.

I am reading it as well, and it is exactly what I have already confirmed with Secretary Kwak Moon-ki.

The information I added as special provisions is also written accurately.

Whirlyrick.

I quickly signed it and gave it to Mr. Kwak Moon-ki.

It definitely helps to have Taejoo hyung around.

They say that in the past, people who were in the music business were often scammed because of contracts, but there is no risk of that happening at all.

Even if I get scammed, I have a firm belief that Tae-joo hyung will solve it.

I know now that that lady isn’t the type of person who only cares about her own greed.

It’s true that I don’t like dealing with people, but I guess I should say that the feeling of disliking people themselves has pretty much disappeared?

As the contract ended, the old man smiled.

“Are you my family now?”

“Not to that extent, just a company affiliation? A business relationship?”

“That’s what you call family.”

“Do whatever you want. It doesn’t matter.”

I guess what really isn’t important is my story.

The old man started asking questions while maintaining a smile as if nothing had happened.

“When are you planning on debuting? A band that hides its identity. Hmm… … A masked band? You’re going to debut with that concept like Raven, right? Are you working on the songs? Are you recruiting composers? I heard that’s the trend these days. Write the bass line separately. Work on the melody separately. As a group.”

“The concept will remain this way. You can tell just by looking at Tae-joo hyung signing a contract with that side. If he wasn’t going to hide his identity, he would have created an entertainment company, even if it was small, from Tae-joo hyung’s company. I’ll go with this concept until I’m recognized for my music. And I don’t need someone to write songs. I don’t have a soul. Group work? That kind of thing.”

“Okay. How about working on the song?”

“In the process of doing it.”

“How much? Single? Or full-length?”

“What do you mean a rock band has a single? No matter how much times have changed, a rock band’s debut album is always a full-length album.”

“Okay. How many songs do you have ready?”

I briefly organized my thoughts in my mind after hearing the Savior’s words.

In five songs.

Two songs that haven’t been titled yet, themed on the lives of Tae-ju and Dong-sik, who just finished working on them. Oh, by the way, Tae-ju and Dong-sik can’t handle the vocals, so I’ll be singing them. The only song where my brothers directly participated in the vocals is Young-pil’s .

There is a song called that I am currently writing, but it is still unfinished, so I will leave that out.

“Seven songs.”

At my words, my brothers all looked at me.

Youngpil was the first to speak.

“What? Seven songs already?”

“If we were going to make it in a jiffy, we’d already written 70 songs. It’s not enough yet.”

“Wow… … As expected, our Dong-ha… … .”

And again, the Savior opened his mouth.

“If I make the remaining three songs, put them in my hands, and record them… … it’ll probably take three or four months even if I hurry.”

It’s October now… … In three or four months, the new year will pass.

He opened his mouth calmly, looking at the Savior.

“I’m not sure about my debut yet. Working on songs and setting up the hyungs are separate things.”

“Settings?”

“I’m not ready yet. I need to improve my skills a bit more.”

At my words, the brothers exchanged glances among themselves again.

What do you do when you see the mood?

People who make music talk through music.

If I were to judge the current skills of my brothers by my standards… … they’re at the level of newborns.

It’s not that my standards are strict and high, I know how good my hyungs were in the past.

How can you compare it to that skill?

The only good thing is that I’m gradually gaining a sense of reality while performing at Misari. In any case, I have to keep pushing forward.

I’m still young so I have a lot of time, but my brothers don’t.

Knowing when I’m going to die.

The old man, who had heard my story, smiled warmly.

“I’ll prepare. I’ve confirmed the concept. Our Dong-ha said he’ll prepare it. Oh, but instead, the song that our Dong-ha made. I have to confirm that in advance. The idol I chose? I checked your composing skills there, but I have to confirm it. Instead, I’ll block the information so that there’s no problem. If there’s anything I can support, I’ll do it.”

“Who is our brother?”

“Are you going to play me a song in advance, Dong-ha?”

“… … .”

I didn’t respond and just turned my head away. I felt like I was being fooled if I kept trying to deal with him…

“I’ll go. Oh. And I’ll assign two managers. People you can trust.”

“Manager? What are you doing when you haven’t even debuted yet?”

“First of all, you’re performing, right? You can’t have an artist drive all the time, right?”

“… … Yes, well. Okay. As long as it’s secure.”

And the next day… or the day after that?

Being locked in the recording studio made my sense of time blurry.

anyway.

Not long after the Savior left, two people arrived at the practice room.

In a big van.

ah.

And then a girl group with the funny name of Bitna Girls, featuring Kim Mi-so and Salgyeong, debuted.

Although Jo In-chang started out as a star producer and successfully launched several idols, he is now the CEO of an independent small business.

It’s still a world where dragons emerge from streams, but like I remember 30 years ago, there’s no longer anything like an unknown singer from an unknown company suddenly becoming number one.

It is certainly a good thing that the Korean music industry has grown, but the size of the industry has also grown along with it.

We have entered a world where capital power is the difference in skill.

More marketing costs.

A good song made with more money, a fancy music video, and elaborate choreography by an expensive choreographer.

In order to overcome such differences in capital power, skills must ultimately make up for the difference, and those with good skills end up gathering at good companies.

The fact that I took Tae-ju hyung’s advice and signed a contract with Gu Se-ryeong’s company was a decision that took all of those factors into consideration.

I think I can overcome the difference in capital with my skills, but I can’t make that kind of decision when I don’t know how long my brothers will be alive.

The choice to return was sufficient simply by rejecting Tae-joo Hyung’s direct support.

Anyway.

The important fact is.

-Thank you, Dong-ha. I will truly repay your kindness.

Jo In-chang and Jo In-chang’s future wife, his sister-in-law.

And the Shining Girls, carrying the fate of many people including my soon-to-be-born niece, took flight.