Rockstar Again - Chapter 56



Only Noblemtl

Episode 56. Wipe, tighten, and oil (2)

The practice room we arrived at by truck.

We left our luggage in the truck and headed to the basement practice room.

The days I visit Misari are usually like this.

Anyway, the important thing is why are the hyungs laughing awkwardly… … .

“Every time you do this, it reminds me of the old days, don’t you like it?”

It’s Taeju hyung.

Still making unintelligible noises.

“What do you mean, that is?”

“That woman from earlier. She said she was the idol writer I chose.”

“So why is that?”

“I saw you playing the guitar and singing on site.”

“Oh. Of course. When I first went to Nae-Pak-Dol, that older sister was there.”

“That’s why you didn’t see our performance.”

“Ah… … A voice? Isn’t that possible? That’s why you hid your identity. This guy is so smart. People don’t just hear sounds with their hearing, right? They perceive them with both sight and hearing at the same time? That’s a scientifically proven fact. And I sang on My Pickled Stone, but I only sang it properly two or three times? That’s all. The rest were idol songs, but my vocalization was different. I had to sing while dancing, so my breathing was different. Some people might know it’s me, but like writer Ohana, there are probably more people who don’t know.”

While saying that, Youngpil and Dongsik looked at each other once, but they just kept laughing as if they were the only ones who knew something.

“Kuk kuk… … .”

I turned my head again at the sound of laughter behind me, and saw Tae-joo laughing openly now.

“Why are you laughing?”

“I remember when you brought your acoustic guitar and asked to have a guitar battle.”

“I did that because I didn’t know anything back then.”

“Do you know what surprised me the most when I played the guitar with my left hand?”

“Did you hit it well?”

“No, not that.”

“I don’t know. Stop talking like that and tell me quickly. I feel like I’m going to suffocate.”

“At first, you didn’t even change the strings, you just picked up a right-handed guitar and played it upside down.”

“Why is that?”

“It’s not a left-handed guitar, and I didn’t change the strings to match the order. I just played it upside down. That means I played the guitar by myself without anyone teaching me.”

“Was it? It was somehow difficult. Anyway, my brother changed the strings for me, so I fixed it after that. It’s definitely easier to make sounds, thanks to that. Well, even now, you can just hold it the other way.”

“I thought about it then. Wow, how far would he go if I taught him how to play the guitar properly? He’s no match for me now, so how far would his skills go if he played properly? I can’t even see it. Like that.”

I’m definitely hearing compliments, but I feel strangely uncomfortable.

Feeling like you’re being treated like an idiot?

I squint my eyes and look at Taeju hyung, and he tells me the main point.

“Left-handed guitarist.”

“Why is that?”

“How much do you think it will cost?”

I was lost in thought for a moment after hearing Taeju’s words.

and.

I found the answer.

As always.

“fairly?”

“Hahaha. Well, it’s not like there isn’t anything. But you, as you said, are amazing at playing guitar. How many left-handed guitarists can play like you?”

“No. There is no guitarist who plays like me.”

Tae-joo hyung laughed breathlessly after hearing my shameless answer.

“Hahahaha. That’s right, that’s correct. And what are the chances that a left-handed guitarist as awesome as you can be an awesome vocalist? It’s probably not even close.”

My neck creaks and moves from Taeju hyung to the bear and the honghak.

“… … Did you guys know too?”

“Huh? Uh… … I guess?”

After the bear, the flamingo speaks.

“We’re embarrassed to talk about it. You keep telling us that you’ll hide our identity. You say it’ll be fun if we compete with music… … Also, you keep saying that the band is one and that we’ll make sure the world properly recognize our skills. And… … .”

“Stop! Stop, stop!”

I clearly said that was enough, but the fennec fox insisted on… … adding his words.

“That’s Dong-ha’s charm. You seem smart, but when it comes to making a decision, you’re a bit clueless.”

Wow… …shit. Was I the only one being stupid, really?

“No one knew about the Misari performance?”

“Those people aren’t old enough to watch idol auditions. So cheer up. And just because you auditioned for an idol once, not everyone will recognize you like Dong-ha said. Ohana was the one who should have recognized you, so Tae-joo hyung said that.”

Youngpil’s brother’s words were the final blow.

To paraphrase what Youngpil said… … Those who want to know will know, right?

In short, everything I’ve done so far has been a show of tricks only three-year-olds can pull off.

―Oh my, is that so? Our Dong-ha, did you want to hide your identity? I’ll pretend not to know, that’s not Dong-ha, so don’t call our Dong-ha Dong-ha. Oh my? Did I fool you?

Wouldn’t this be happening only if the fans weren’t nitpickers?

Let’s think… … Let’s think… … What should we do about this?

As my head neared panic, my electronic brain once again came up with the answer.

“Why don’t you just cry?”

“what……?”

“Can’t you just say no? Why do you think there’s no one else in the world who can play guitar as well as I can and have a vocal as good as I can? That’s prejudice… … Huh? Since we can time travel, what else can’t we do? I’ll say no. It’s not me.”

I reached such a satisfactory conclusion and looked at my brothers, who avoided my gaze.

The life of a genius is so lonely and difficult.

They say genius is like a sneeze, no matter how hard you try to hide it, it can’t be hidden.

As my brothers avoided my gaze, my eyes, lost for where to go, fell upon the business card of author Ohana that I had thrown on the table.

Ah… … This older sister is such a nice person, but today I feel a bit resentful.

Because of this older sister, I opened the door to the truth that I could have lived without knowing.

“… … Band competition?”

Now that my head is a little more organized, I remember what author Ohana said earlier.

Um… … I did an audition once, but I was wondering, “Is it really necessary?”

Watching my brothers, I feel like there is no better stage to wake up my rusty senses.

I thought I’d just find out, so I took out my phone.

* * *

TVK’s lights never go out.

That’s what a broadcasting station is like. They grind out people, and with the blood, sweat, and tears of those people, they turn the generator and make it work all night long.

TVK’s production team gathered at the conference table again.

“How much of the recruiting has been done?”

At PD Ahn Chi-seop’s words, FD Na Tae-pyeong flipped through a few sheets of paper marked with a red pen.

“Among the teams that I’ve listed, I’ve almost finished recruiting teams that are active in the Hongdae area. Even though they’re indie scene, they’re definitely thirsty.”

“Right. Because rock is so non-mainstream.”

As PD Ahn Chi-seop said, rock is the non-mainstream of non-mainstream music.

Although music genres cross over and cross boundaries, rock is a unique genre.

If I had to put it into words… … it’s heterogeneous?

Hip-hop and dance music blend very naturally.

As if to prove it, rap has been mixed in between dance songs like seasoning since a long time ago.

Even now, many rappers are releasing ballads or songs in collaboration with dance singers.

Dance and ballad?

When a dance singer sings a dreamy song, it’s a ballad, and when a ballad singer sings a rhythmic song, it’s a dance song.

That’s not even the realm of collaboration.

But you’ve never heard of rock and dance collaborating. The same goes for rock and hip-hop.

Even if they did collaborate like that, they wouldn’t be considered a rock band anymore.

This is because of the genre’s characteristic of having to be played with real instruments, not machine-generated sounds.

“PD-sama. But do we really have to go with this project?”

PD Ahn Chi-seop raised his head as he was checking the list he had received from FD Na Tae-pyeong.

“Why? Are you afraid of failing?”

“Honestly, yes. Whether it was a band audition or a band competition, I failed at everything, so why would I want to go through such a thorny path?”

“Just whatever. It’s a niche market strategy. Just because others failed doesn’t mean I have to fail too. Since it’s a successful time, I can do what I want to do, and I can do both.”

PD Ahn Chi-seop is not a rock fanatic.

No, to begin with, Ahn Chi-seop is a person who specializes in music, but he is not someone who favors a specific genre.

If they favored the viewer ratings, they favored it.

As if trying to nip out the buds of distrust spreading among the production staff, PD Ahn Chi-seop raised his voice.

“Don’t you guys know? Not long ago, when I was doing my pick, I personally got aggro from Lee Dong Ha, but I got a lot of aggro because it’s rock. Rock music has a solid fan base. It’s because I hide away and listen to all the old songs, but when it comes to band music, I come out like a ghost and light a fire.”

That’s not wrong.

When Lee Dong-ha came out and did rock, there were people who called themselves rock enthusiasts who were quite active in the music community, and that helped shape public opinion in the beginning.

After listening to Lee Dong-ha’s performance, everyone gave their own evaluation. Not only were there people who said, “He’s amazing,” but there were also many who looked down on him and said he was a third-rate guy who only knew how to copy.

There were many who wrote articles to show off their knowledge regardless of whether it was right or wrong, and most of them were busy criticizing Lee Dong-ha. The main reason was probably because he wasn’t the singer they knew.

Stagnant people tend to reject new things.

In reaction, some people who appeared to be unfamiliar with community activities also left quite long posts.

―Hello. I am Kwon A-gae, a long-time rock maniac. A while ago, I happened to see a broadcast that my daughter was watching… … (omission)… … Therefore, Jip-sal-gae should be evaluated as a proper guitarist. Accordingly, I strongly request that some self-proclaimed maniacs with humble ears open their ears and hearts as true rock maniacs… … (omission)… … Also, the entire production staff treats artists properly… … .

―I am Taehong Yoon, who runs a raw fish restaurant in Busan. I am writing this because I think it is unfair to underestimate the musicality of Daegeolle, a rocker who sings his soul, just by looking at his shabby appearance. I believe that true music resonates with the soul, not the ears. To some ignorant people who underestimate Daegeolle, who has finally appeared like a comet in the Korean rock genre… … (continued).

An Chi-seop recalled that time and smiled without realizing it.

At that time, I was shocked when I read the writing.

Looking at your writing, I wonder how people of your age can audition for idols. And why are your writings always so long-winded? Where did you learn to introduce yourself briefly at the beginning, such as where you live and who you are?

When he realized that such people were hiding everywhere, the plan that came to Ahn Chi-seop’s mind was a rock band competition.

Appearance as a team, not as an individual.

If we can bring rock fans to the surface with the right sound setup, it will be a primary success.

They may not be the mainstream that drives viewership or buzz, but it is clear as day that they will form an active public opinion in the community.

of course.

Up until that point, it would still be just a topic of conversation that is not mainstream.

“What about the agency?”

“We are reviewing it positively.”

“We’re pushing hard, yes. No matter how well the indie scene kids do, the ones who will rise through viewer participation will be the ones with a fandom, right? We’re emphasizing that.”

“Yes. But before that… … .”

“What before that?”

When An Chi-seop opened his eyes wide, Na Tae-pyeong avoided his gaze.

“Ah… … No.”

Ahn Chi-seop, a man who favors viewer ratings.

While planning a rock band competition, I was worried about how to make up for the lack of firepower, and this is the conclusion I came to.

The first is to have active bands that are active as professionals participate in the competition.

And the evaluation of the competition is made up of 50% mentor scores and 50% viewer participation.

If this happens, active bands that are active as professionals will inevitably move upward.

And some of the active bands that Ahn Chi-seop and the production team are currently working on recruiting are idols in disguise as bands.

I play band music and instruments, but my fandom is more idol-oriented.

Regardless of skill level, these are the bands that have been produced with a concept from a mainstream agency, so they have the highest chance of rising to the top.

They are capturing the attention of rock fans with indie scene kids and laying the groundwork.

There, bands disguised as idols drive viewer ratings and buzz.

The community will be on fire when we see people in the same genre of music at extremes.

broadcast?

I guess we can show it on TV too.

Depending on the situation, we can make it more provocative by adding scenes of indie bands and idol bands clashing.

It could also be used to create a narrative for an idol band that grows up inspired by it.

So it becomes a picture.

A confrontational structure.

A narrative of growth.

Although not to the extent of mainstream idols, they have clear fandom support.

About 7 or 8 years ago, we had a band competition on another broadcasting station and had been quiet since then, so we had enough fuel to ignite a fire at least once.

No matter what, the winner will have to come from a band affiliated with the agency.

Because that’s how it was designed from the beginning.

As if a sudden thought had occurred to him, An Chi-seop looked at Ohana and asked.

“Hanaya. Have you met them?”

“Who is it?”

“Why, you know? Those guys who are getting popular in Misari these days… …what is it? Those guys who go by the name Blue.”

“Ah… … Yes. But there wasn’t really any reaction?”

“I guess they’re the ones with the indie spirit or something, or maybe they’re the ones with the hipster disease. Wait until tomorrow and if they don’t hear from you, then call it quits. They’re the ones who are going to be the underdogs anyway, so don’t delay.”

“Yes. But, PD-nim.”

Ohana, who said that, exchanged glances with FD Na Tae-pyeong.

The most important part is missing, FD is so scared of PD that he can’t even open his mouth.

In the end, the only person who can speak is yourself.

“why?”

“Would you give me the okay for this? Even if you’re a PD, a rock band is a bit like that. And that has to come first before you can properly recruit the agency. You can’t just throw away an empty promise.”

An Chi-seop smiled sinisterly at Ohana’s words.