A New Career Singer Who Can Read The Future [EN]: Chapter 22

Dohyun ended up on a team with the Sisters, the judges and trainers, in ‘Get the Mentor, Mentee Choice!’

He had been wary of teaming up with Coast, and as a result, he ended up with the Sisters.

Dohyun’s hunches were usually right, so he was satisfied with the outcome.

“Okay, No. 23, we’ll be practicing together for a week starting tomorrow.”

“I’m also curious about the song you said you made with me in mind!”

“I made it thinking about No. 23’s vocals, so I’m eager to let you hear it, but please wait until tomorrow!”

“Thank you!”

* * *

Now only 10 people remained.

Hyoseop, who I had predicted would be in the top 10 with me, passed as expected.

We were already rivals, but with many competitors gone and only 10 of us left, we had no choice but to keep each other in check as true rivals.

It was past 10 PM.

I called Hyoseop, who was relaxing in the dorm, and headed to the practice room.

“Oh, is it already this late? Hyung [older brother or male friend], are you going to practice? You don’t even know the song yet.”

Hyoseop became Sun Hwa-seung’s mentee.

“Hyoseop, shouldn’t you at least refine your voice to some extent? It’s the picky mentor Sun Hwa-seung, not just any mentor….”

“I’m a little worried… but I’m going to practice after I hear the song tomorrow. Don’t tell me you’re already trying to keep me in check….”

I laughed at that.

“Ah, why are you laughing, Hyung? Our roles are similar. We both debuted as idols and appeared here, making it into the top 10, so it’s perfect to pit us against each other as rivals!”

“I know that. I know we have no choice but to keep each other in check, but I brought you here today to practice comfortably because we can’t do that starting tomorrow.”

Hyoseop nodded, agreeing with what I said.

“Hyung, what song should we do?”

“Do you remember any of the songs you sang during the preliminaries? Something with multiple parts.”

“Um, I sang CrushOnYou’s ‘Can’t Take My Eyes.’”

“Ah! That song.”

CrushOnYou—a band whose very name implies being captivated by you, famous for releasing very romantic songs—he chose their song. Kid! He’s got an ear for music!

Moreover, if it’s ‘Can’t Take My Eyes,’ known as CrushOnYou’s signature song… that means he sang a really sweet song.

“I know that song too. You do the first verse, and I’ll do the second. Shall we try it?”

“Okay! Hyung.”

Hyoseop and I matched our tones. After matching tones, we began practicing in earnest.

I can’t help but love you

When I look into your clear eyes

When I see your lovely smile

I can’t help but smile

I can’t help but feel good

I can’t take my eyes off you

I can’t take my feet off you

Wholly, wholly by your side

Only with me, only with me by your side

Hyoseop sang the entire first verse.

I soon began singing the second verse.

The lyrics of the second verse are also incredibly sweet.

Like the song title, ‘I can’t take my eyes off you,’ even the lyrics were sweet.

With a song like this, it seemed like it could also be practice for a duet with the Sisters.

Of course, the same went for Hyoseop.

The mentor Hyoseop chose, Sun Hwa-seung, was also a woman.

Hyoseop seemed to sense that as well.

“Oh? Hyung, I think this is good practice?”

“Right? I’m telling you, this is good practice.”

“The other 8 people are probably just resting without practicing… aren’t we practicing too hard?”

“So what? Don’t you know the saying that a diligent singer gets one more stage even if they already have one?”

The more successful you are, the more opportunities you get to perform, but even if you’re not successful, if you consistently work hard and achieve moderate success on the music charts, you can still tour events and get invited to many places. The music charts reflect the public’s taste.

Suddenly, my past three debuts flashed through my mind.

During those three debuts, I met such tenacious CEOs that I remember touring events relentlessly.

“Hyoseop, did you tour a lot of events when you debuted too?”

“Of course. I even toured minor events for media outlets. You know, the ones they call ‘transportation fees.’ I’ve even performed on stages where they give the team 500,000 won [approximately $400 USD]. About 10 fans would come. I was so grateful for even 10 people that I grabbed each one and held a handshake event… What about you, Hyung?”

It seems the lives of unknown singers are all similar. I sympathized with Hyoseop’s words.

“Me too. It was similar during my three debuts. 500,000 won for transportation fees was relatively good, and I even went without transportation fees in exchange for a good article. But after the event, not a single article was published. A photographer was there, but they didn’t even upload a single photo. I stopped trusting the media after that.”

“That’s right. It’s better to get paid hundreds of thousands for local events. Media events are all terrible.”

“I agree. So, I made a resolution back then while living in the red [struggling financially].”

My inner thoughts that I couldn’t share anywhere else.

I could easily confide in Hyoseop.

No, even if it wasn’t Hyoseop, I could form this kind of bond with any idol who debuted in the music industry and then disappeared.

“Me too. Never go to events with transportation fees below 1 million won [approximately $800 USD].”

“Mine is a little different… Don’t go to events that make you sing less than 2 songs on stage.”

“Ah! I agree with that too. After traveling for hours, waiting in a makeshift tent, going up on stage to sing only one song, coming back to the dorm, and sleeping crammed together. I really cried all the tears I had to cry back then.”

“Me too. My first debut was as a beastly idol [an idol known for their masculine and powerful image], and guess what? When I went to an event, they told me to do a strength show. Of all days, my condition was the best that day, so I did a strength show. Of course, there were no fans. I remember that the only thing that remained in my memory from that stage was the old men passing by saying, ‘Young men, you’re energetic.’”

As Hyoseop and I exchanged stories, it was almost midnight.

Practicing singing in the practice room was a way to relieve how difficult our lives had been.

“Hyoseop, we have to wake up early tomorrow, so let’s go get some sleep.”

“I’m tired too. It feels like a lot happened today.”

“Right? I came here determined not to fail to be in the top 10, but now that I’m in the top 10, I feel dazed.”

“Me too, Hyung. Starting tomorrow, we’re really, really rivals, so please take care of me.”

Hyoseop held out his hand.

I shook Hyoseop’s hand.

After shaking hands, we put our arms around each other’s shoulders and moved to the bedroom.

* * *

The next day.

The meeting between mentors and mentees began at 10 AM.

Two mentees and one mentor.

And there were a total of five practice rooms. The evaluations were conducted separately, but the practice was done together, perhaps to encourage rivalry among the mentees.

The Sisters chose the practice room at the very end, and I was walking there with No. 41, who had become a mentee of the Sisters along with me.

No. 41 was a fairly famous female vocalist. She was said to have dominated Hongdae [a district in Seoul known for its indie music scene] at one time.

Due to various circumstances of the members, she was now working as a YouTuber, but she was also desperately hoping to perform on an offline stage.

“Now that I’m in the top 10, I’m really looking forward to the offline stage!”

“Me too! It’s been so long… I’ve actually only lived as a guide vocalist since the group disbanded.”

“Why didn’t you try doing YouTube?”

“I had debuted several times, so I was a bit prideful… And my real name is also Na Mu-myeong [literally ‘no name’ in Korean]. It really sounds like I’m unknown.”

“Don’t your family tell you to change your name?”

“Rather, my family is against it. Well, there are various reasons, but if I win in this ‘I Want to Be Your First Singer,’ I’m going to change my stage name, Na Do-hyun, to my real name.”

“I envy you. Having such a clear goal.”

“What about No. 41? I think you also challenged yourself because you have a goal….”

At my words, No. 41’s expression darkened.

Did I make a mistake?

“I want to reform the band.”

“Ah?”

“The members I was with won’t come back, but if I win, wouldn’t they all take an interest? If that leads to a band reunion, it would be really great. I want to bring together the members who have now become someone’s father or someone’s mother.”

“As expected of someone who captivated Hongdae… you still have romance in you.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

As we were talking, we arrived at the practice room.

Opening the door, the Sisters were warming up their voices.

“Ahhhhh! Hello!”

The Sisters saw me and No. 41 reflected in the mirror and greeted us happily.

“Hello, Sisters!”

“Nice to meet you!”

No. 41 and I greeted them respectively.

“You know there’s a lot of attention on our stage, right?”

The Sisters suddenly brought it up.

“Yes? A lot of attention?”

“One person is challenging their fourth debut, and the other person came to reunite their band, I heard. It’s somewhat romantic, passionate, and challenging. You can’t help but receive attention.”

Listening to the Sisters’ words, it was true.

The production team would probably pay a lot of attention to us.

Sure enough, there were many cameras installed throughout the practice room.

“We’re not going to start practicing right away, and after the staff comes in a little later, we’ll start filming with the cameras and practice.”

Following the Sisters’ calm guidance, No. 41 and I sat on the sofa in the practice room.

The Sisters smiled at us and asked a question.

“First of all, how was yesterday?”

No. 41 spoke first.

“I was really nervous. Even after the stage, I checked that I was in the top 10, but I couldn’t sleep well. I only slept for an hour or two.”

“You have to get plenty of sleep starting today. No, I’ll make sure you get plenty of sleep. You have to show the best stage on the day you perform. You both know that there will be audience members starting from this week’s stage, right?”

There was no way we wouldn’t know. My longtime fans might come to that place. My parents would come too.

So, I had to put my life on the line for the stage. No, rather than my life, I had to put my name on the line.

To win the name Dohyun instead of being unknown and to succeed.

“Yes. I know it well!”

Knock knock—

A knock was heard, and two staff members came in with cameras.

I thought it was a bit too many people to film three people, but then there was another knock, and this time three more people came in.

Five people filming three people?

I wasn’t the only one surprised.

The Sisters also seemed surprised and said.

“No, why are five people coming to film three people?”

“You know. There will be many viewers who are curious about this team’s future.”