Become A Music Monster Overnight! [EN]: Chapter 36

Syndrome

“We have arrived.”

It was the road manager who woke Youngchan, who had been mindlessly scrolling through the praise-filled posts. Only then did Youngchan realize that Uncle Park Si-young had already gotten out of the car.

“Uncle, really. He couldn’t wait… What’s the first schedule?”

“It seems we’ll be starting with an interview at S Broadcasting. The director seems to be on good terms with them.”

“That’s a good start.”

‘The Old Guard Doesn’t Die (90’s)’ is over six minutes long. Considering the current average of around three minutes, it was disproportionate.

That’s because in six minutes, top-class singers or idols could perform both their title and sub-tracks.

Music programs are only about an hour long, and with so many people wanting to be on stage, it’s bound to be packed.

It wasn’t for nothing that the next singers rushed onto the stage as soon as the previous performance ended.

Usually, in cases like Black Tiger, the time would be reduced through arrangement.

However, given the unexpectedly enthusiastic response to the previous day’s ‘Legends of Rock’ broadcast, the director seems to be leveraging this point in negotiations.

And as a condition of that negotiation, S Broadcasting would have put forward Black Tiger’s first official interview.

The first interview, arranged in this way, started with Entertainment Top News, a program specializing in entertainment news run by S Broadcasting.

It was quite a big schedule for something arranged so hastily.

More people watched the program than expected.

But what surprised Youngchan was something else.

“We got 12 minutes after negotiations.”

“…That’s like a top idol comeback level. You managed to get that much.”

“Doesn’t that mean they see great potential in us?”

“Well, it seems they have an eye for talent.”

“Hahaha.”

The director smiled pleasantly at Youngchan’s joke.

He also considered it a great achievement to have secured 12 minutes of stage time.

The 12-minute stage time, obtained by doing the first interview with Entertainment Top News, was significant. Other singers could perform three songs, or even four if they pushed it.

It was no exaggeration to call it a special feature.

To put it bluntly, it meant they could make all the other singers appearing that day, including the number one artist, look like supporting acts.

‘It’s a shame it’s not the last slot, though.’

Although it was better to perform later in the show, it was too much to ask for.

Because, in any case, the other act was EX, a top idol promoted by a major entertainment company.

Since EX was an idol group that dominated the music charts before Black Tiger’s comeback, it was remarkable that they had negotiated this much.

With such good news, Black Tiger waited for the interview, each with a smile on their face.

“Huh?!”

Youngchan seemed a little surprised after identifying the reporter who came to interview them.

He knew who it was very well.

The reporter was Sera, the lead vocalist of the girl group ‘Lalaland.’

He wasn’t just surprised because she was a girl group member. One of the teams he cherished during his engineering days was ‘Lalaland.’

‘Lalaland,’ now in their third year, was in the best situation among the teams Youngchan liked.

This was because they belonged to Alex Entertainment, a mid-sized company that had produced several popular singers. Alex Entertainment was a legend among small to medium-sized companies, and their previous girl group, Red Pink, enjoyed great popularity from their debut.

After Red Pink reached the dreaded seven-year mark [a common point for group disbandment or member changes in the K-pop industry], they launched a new girl group, Lalaland. As Red Pink’s sister group, Lalaland initially garnered a lot of attention but unfortunately failed to take off.

There were several reasons for this.

Red Pink’s fandom, seeing Lalaland’s release coinciding with Red Pink’s contract renewal as an obvious ploy, didn’t take kindly to them. Additionally, other major entertainment companies released new girl groups around the same time, shifting the spotlight.

However, the biggest reason Youngchan thought was that their concept was far removed from that of third-generation girl groups.

Whether the person who produced Red Pink was thinking of past glories, Lalaland’s concept was, to put it bluntly, terrible.

It felt like going back five years, and the problem was that the songs were also in that style.

Still, because they were produced by a mid-sized entertainment company, they were visually outstanding, so they had a decent male fanbase.

However, since this market is structured so that you need a large female fanbase to make money, a strong male fanbase wasn’t a good thing.

In any case, Youngchan felt like he was receiving an unexpected gift.

Having been stuck as a provincial engineer, he had only bought albums and never been to a fan meeting.

Youngchan, who hadn’t been nervous even on the ‘Legends of Rock’ stage, couldn’t help but feel nervous now.

Thus, the interview began.

“I’m Sera, a reporter for Entertainment Top News. Today, I’ve come to meet the members of Black Tiger, who are the center of attention.”

“Hello, we are Black Tiger.”

After greeting together and briefly introducing themselves, the members of Black Tiger, especially the man of the hour, Youngchan, took on the interview.

“Hello.”

“…Ah, hello.”

“???”

Sera, who had been momentarily stunned as if she had malfunctioned after seeing Youngchan greet her, belatedly reacted, but there was no NG [No Good – a term used in filming to indicate a mistake] sound.

Sera glanced at the production team, and the writer and PD [Producer-Director] nodded as if understanding her feelings, gesturing for her to proceed.

Thanks to this, she felt a little less nervous and explained to Youngchan in an embarrassed tone why she had made a mistake.

“I’m sorry. You were so charming, just like I saw on the broadcast…”

“Ah, thank you. You are also charming, Sera.”

Only then did Youngchan realize that he had failed to control his aura because he was nervous.

Naturally, the entire set was unable to take their eyes off him because of this.

The PD and writers signaled Sera to move on despite her mistake because they understood her feelings and thought it would be interesting to see this kind of scene unfold.

“T, thank you.”

Sera, who had just turned 20, blushed at Youngchan’s compliment and continued the interview, following the questions on her script.

Black Tiger was different from other major bands, including idols who occasionally came out with a band concept, so there was a lot to interview about.

The fact that their average age was 45 and yet they were practically rookies was enough to spark interest.

In particular, Youngchan’s past, who had built recognition on YouTube under the nickname YC and then garnered the industry’s attention with the song ‘Snow Lady,’ became the focus of this interview.

While the other members of Black Tiger had previous jobs related to music, such as ‘rock cafe owner,’ ‘idol trainer and manager,’ and ‘freelance guitar session and trainer,’ Youngchan did not.

“I worked in a factory. I started when I was 19, so I worked for about 11 years.”

“Pardon?!”

Sera was taken aback by Youngchan’s answer.

She had assumed that, like the other members, he would have been involved in this industry in some way, given that he was currently the hottest figure.

Youngchan, pleased to see Sera’s unique reaction, who was momentarily unsure how to respond, continued his story calmly.

“My family’s situation worsened after my father passed away in a car accident when I was in middle school. I thought I should earn money quickly. Then, recently, as things got a little better, I thought I should try the music I had been doing as a hobby.”

“Ah!”

With Sera’s exclamation, Youngchan continued the story that felt like a lie, which was now almost a year old.

The story of meeting the G1 band, which was also the center of attention these days, was interesting, but especially the story of auditioning at Kesera Sera Hongdae [a district in Seoul known for its indie music scene], run by Jang Taeshik, who runs a domestic rock cafe chain, was enough to spark interest.

That’s because he came to audition solo for a position to pick a band.

“Later, Uncle Taeshik told me that I came when he was half giving up. I was lucky. Usually, they kick you out before you even get on stage. But he thought, since it’s already ruined, he’d let me go on stage and sing a song.”

“That was really the best decision of my life.”

“Hahaha.”

Youngchan burst out laughing at Jang Taeshik’s words and continued.

People were intrigued by the fact that he had been accepted solo for a position to pick a band. In particular, Sera was surprised and curious when she heard that the Kesera Sera president had joined them, creating the current Black Tiger.

“Why did you decide to work with the other members of Black Tiger? There must have been many people who wanted to work with Park Youngchan.”

Since many people were actually wondering about this, Youngchan answered without hesitation, as if it were a good question.

“Because they are the people who best match the band’s color that I envision.”

“Band color?”

“To be precise, I needed people who could paint the color in the form I wanted. And the criteria were quite strict.”

“Could you tell us more about that?”

Youngchan smiled at Sera’s proactive attitude and then glanced at the members before continuing.

“They had to satisfy two things. One was that they had to exceed my desired standards technically. This has nothing to do with talent. It’s something you have to build up with affection over a long period. In that respect, my uncles have been building up for at least 30 years.”

“Wow!”

30 years.

Sera couldn’t help but exclaim at that enormous amount of time.

That’s because they had been steadily honing their skills for a time that far exceeded her own life.

She had also been walking silently for over six years, from her trainee days to becoming a singer, so she could vaguely guess how great that was.

Youngchan could see why she was chosen as a reporter because of Sera’s good reactions.

Alex Entertainment must have pushed her, but the officials must have noticed her natural reactions.

“The other is that they shouldn’t have their own color. And this is a very difficult condition. Anyone who has ever done band activities properly is bound to have a color.”

It had nothing to do with individuality.

He just wanted a blank canvas that had never experienced a band.

In conclusion, what Youngchan wanted was a sturdy and huge canvas that could fully contain his rough and flamboyant brushstrokes.

“In that respect, I was really lucky. I didn’t think I could so easily bring the people I wanted into the band.”

The other members of Black Tiger couldn’t hide their surprise at that.

They had always thought they were lucky, but they had never thought that Youngchan was lucky.

In particular, Jang Taeshik, who had a decisive influence on creating the current Black Tiger, felt that way, so his eyes were already red.

Eventually, he secretly wiped his eyes with his sleeve, which the PD captured with the camera.

Whether he knew this situation or not, Youngchan smiled broadly and continued.

“That’s how I was able to create the sound of the current Black Tiger. Well, I think we still have a long way to go, but I’m satisfied with the first step.”

-Woo-hoo!-

The members protested as if complaining about the words that they still had a long way to go.

They had spent terrible days to achieve that first step that Youngchan was satisfied with.

As if not caring about these members’ jeers, Youngchan shrugged lightly and continued the interview.

“Thank you. It was a hastily arranged interview, but thank you for making it a better interview than I expected.”

“Is that so? I think the result was good because the reporter had such good reactions.”

“Sera definitely has that side. She’s young, but she’s quick-witted and greets well…”

Youngchan felt proud as if he were being praised himself at Sera, whom the production team also praised.

Sera, who had heard the details from the writer after the interview, belatedly approached Black Tiger and greeted them.

“Thank you for the great interview.”

“We are grateful to you, senior [a term of respect for someone with more experience], for doing so well. Here’s our CD.”

Sera, who was embarrassed to hear the word senior from a group with an average age of 45, was surprised by the CD that Youngchan handed her.

“Oh my! Are you really giving this to me?”

“Huh? Yes.”

Youngchan was rather embarrassed by her more intense reaction than he had expected. Seeing his reaction, Sera carefully took the CD and said.

“Black Tiger’s album is already sold out, so it’s not easy to get.”

“Huh? It’s already sold out? We printed a lot.”

Originally, Black Tiger was going to print 10,000 copies.

This was the result of Youngchan pushing ahead despite the opposition of the other members and the manager.

Then, when the reaction to the performance at ‘Legends of Rock’ was better than expected, they decided to print twice as many, 20,000 copies, for the first edition.

20,000 copies was an amount that only second-tier idols could sell.

Now that people are used to listening to music on music sites, it’s hard to buy an album unless you’re a fan.

But Youngchan thought there must be some mistake, since the first edition of 20,000 copies had sold out in less than a day.

Youngchan, who ended up regretting the fan meeting that only he knew about, asked the manager.

“I heard the album is sold out? Is that right?”

“I was going to tell you about that. I thought it was an error, so I inquired, and they said it was sold out an hour ago.”

“…”

Youngchan couldn’t hide his surprise at the news that it wasn’t an error.

He couldn’t believe that a band’s album, not an idol’s, could sell so well.

“The director has decided to order 50,000 more copies for now. He said he thinks we can sell enough with the current reaction.”

“Pardon? 50,000 copies! Will that many really sell?”

“It’s not possible in general, but…”

Youngchan was concerned about the fact that they had ordered 50,000 more copies. Even for first-tier idols, that level of album sales is not easy.

Considering the current reality of the album market, where even first-tier idols’ albums are bought in bulk by fans and then thrown away, he couldn’t help but worry.

However, the manager shrugged as if ridiculing Youngchan’s concerns.

“We may have to print even more. There are a lot more people who are interested in rock through ‘Legends of Rock.’”

To be exact, there were many fans who had returned.

If there is only an opportunity for the revival of rock, fans will return. A significant number of those who returned were sincere about music, so they would not hesitate to buy CDs.

That’s because most digital audio cannot keep up with the sound quality of CDs.

Of course, there are alternatives such as lossless audio like FLAC [Free Lossless Audio Codec], but the problem is that there are many variables in the process of listening to these lossless audio sources.

What will you use as a playback device? A laptop? A PC? Or a Squeezebox or network player, etc. [examples of audio playback devices]?

Once you have decided on the playback device, what power will you use? Battery? Adapter? The sound varies greatly depending on these factors.

On the other hand, CDs have fewer variables. In fact, the matching is virtually complete as long as you choose the right interconnect.

Above all, there are not many places that provide services with FLAC-like sound quality that can be heard like CD sound quality.

No, even if there were, there was no way that a small entertainment rookie like Black Tiger could provide such audio sources.

Considering that the main rock fan base is in an age group with spending power, it was difficult to say that the manager’s judgment was wrong.

“Unfair! How can our oppas [a Korean term used by female fans to refer to male idols or celebrities] be pushed back by these old geezers!”

Before Black Tiger appeared, EX, one of the top male idol groups, was the one lining up on the music charts.

EX had now completely reached a point where they could not regain their top 10 ranking.

They were launching an all-out offensive from their main base and various other places, but there was no way they could overcome the fact that even hoarding companies considered it a loss and had given up.

Lee Dahye, who was from EX’s first fan club, could not understand this nightmarish situation.

“Even if I try to do SNS terror [online harassment], no one is doing it! Does that make sense?”

The only SNS they had was YC Entertainment, which was the company’s name.

Even that was created formally, so no matter how many DMs [Direct Messages] you sent there, it was like punching the air.

“If that’s the case, I’ll target YouTube.”

In the end, she recalled YouTube, which she had been putting off because she didn’t want to increase the number of views.

She had just turned on the YouTube app when she had no choice but to stop.

It was because of the notice that her main base had sent out a few days ago.

She was nervous about the content of her main base’s post, which had come after a long time, as the timing was right, but the content was nothing short of bizarre.

It was a notice that they should never watch the Black Tiger music video, even out of curiosity.

The reason for this was not written, but at the time, she did not think deeply about it because it was an obvious story that did not need to be considered.

But when she tried to terrorize them, she couldn’t help but wonder.

After thinking for a while, she came up with a plausible answer.

“Maybe it’s because there’s a disgusting scene? That’s what people who do strange makeup and outdated music are like. Then isn’t that even better? I can use that as an excuse to curse at them!”

Curses that are not relatable can easily cause great antipathy. But if the curse is even slightly understandable, it is easy to increase the number of people on the same side.

Originally, people are easily influenced by slanderous media, and this tendency is even more pronounced on the Internet, where anonymity is discussed.

With that thought in mind, she decided to ignore the warning in the notice sent by her main base and watch the music video with her eyes wide open.

It was a determination to find something to criticize at all costs.

This decision shook her life, which had been devoted to idols since elementary school.

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Become A Music Monster Overnight! [EN]

Become A Music Monster Overnight! [EN]

하루 아침에 음악괴수!
Status: Completed Author: Native Language: Korean
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[English Translation] Imagine waking up one morning with the power to create music that moves the soul, melodies that ignite passion, and harmonies that transcend the ordinary. That's exactly what happened to our protagonist in 'Become A Music Monster Overnight!' One moment they were just like anyone else, and the next, a musical genius was born. Dive into this extraordinary tale of overnight transformation and discover the exhilarating journey of mastering newfound abilities, navigating the challenges of sudden fame, and exploring the boundless possibilities of a life infused with music. Prepare to be captivated by a world where dreams become reality, and the power of music can change everything.

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