The Rap Star [EN]: Chapter 256

< Verse 40. Unknown Factors >

***

The X-Factor, created by the outspoken Simon Cowell, was originally slated to debut in the United States in 2004.

However, American Idol’s production company filed a lawsuit, claiming that Simon Cowell creating a competing program while still under contract with them was a breach of contract. As a result, the British version of The X-Factor was produced first in 2004.

Sanghyun wasn’t aware, but Simon Cowell was originally scheduled to produce The X-Factor US in 2011, after the legal dispute with American Idol was resolved.

But the world is a complex web.

Even if you repeat the same actions, everything doesn’t always proceed the same way.

It’s unclear what impact Sanghyun’s regression had, but thanks to FOX’s mediation, production of The X Factor began in 2007.

And in 2008, The X-Factor became the reality audition program that viewers across the United States eagerly anticipated.

-Simon Cowell’s The X-Factor US, which rejected the $100 million offer from American Idol.

-Who will be the winner of The X-Factor US, taking home $5 million?

-1 in 300 million. Who will be the protagonist of the true American Dream?

The $100 million (120 billion KRW [Korean Won]) that American Idol offered to secure Simon Cowell, undoubtedly the best judge.

The grand prize of $5 million (5.5 billion KRW).

Only one winner out of 300 million Americans.

The numbers $100 million, $5 million, and 300 million swirled around, generating various topics of conversation.

And among these enormous numbers, there was also a minor number that was occasionally mentioned.

That number was 56.

***

Newark, the largest city in New Jersey.

The Prudential Center, the largest and most modern venue in Newark, built in 2007.

This was the location for The X-Factor’s New York auditions.

In fact, Newark was in New Jersey, not New York. However, it was included in the New York arena as part of the ‘Metropolitan Arena,’ which refers to the greater metropolitan cultural area. New York was only 16 kilometers [approximately 10 miles] to the east.

Sanghyun was there.

‘This is huge.’

Sanghyun stood among the massive crowd.

In Compton’s black neighborhood, where Asians were rare, there were quite a few people who found Sanghyun fascinating. However, in the New York metropolitan area, Asians weren’t particularly unusual.

There were quite a few Asians around Sanghyun. Of course, most of them would be American citizens, not foreigners like Sanghyun.

However, even as a foreigner, Sanghyun wasn’t unknown.

“Who is that?”

“I don’t know?”

The X-Factor audition participants around him whispered, looking at Sanghyun. It wasn’t because Sanghyun’s face was familiar. Just as Asians have difficulty distinguishing black people, black people also have difficulty distinguishing Asians unless they are very famous.

Sanghyun’s appearance hadn’t been heavily exposed in the media either.

The reason the participants were whispering about Sanghyun was because of the cameraman who was following him. Having a dedicated cameraman meant that there was merit in appearing on the show.

‘Could he be a famous singer from another country?’

Most of the participants thought that Sanghyun might be a famous singer from Japan. Some occasionally thought he was from China.

It wasn’t entirely wrong. Although the nationality was wrong, Sanghyun was a very famous and unique rapper in another country.

However, it was also wrong. Sanghyun wasn’t only famous in Korea, but also had recognition in the United States. It’s just that his face wasn’t well-known.

As the sounds of chatter, people checking their prepared songs, and playing their respective instruments mingled chaotically, Sanghyun’s line was finally called.

“Group E1, 2, 3, please come in!”

The participants waiting in row E checked the group number on their entry tickets. Sanghyun was in group 3.

About 45 participants began to move in a crowd.

However, Sanghyun didn’t join their group and moved elsewhere. This was because Sanghyun had already received a ‘Golden Ticket.’

When watching The X-Factor on TV, it seems like the participants sing directly in front of the four judges, but in reality, there are two (or three, if the judgment is ambiguous) stages hidden in between.

The first stage is uploading a video of yourself singing. This filters out those with minimal skills.

The second stage is the preliminary screening, which is happening now.

Producers, writers, and PDs [Production Directors] from Sony Music or EMI Music listen to the participants’ songs and decide whether to send them to the judges.

What’s important here are those who have sources to broadcast.

Of course, if you have overwhelming skills, you can pass even without broadcast material. However, even if your singing skills are terrible, you can pass if you have appropriate material. You get in knowing you’re going to be eliminated.

Passing this second stage earns you a Golden Ticket.

Participants who receive a Golden Ticket are finally qualified to sing in front of the four judges, which is the first screening that viewers see on TV.

And Sanghyun had already received a Golden Ticket during the pre-arrangement stage.

Some might think it’s unfair, but in fact, it’s almost natural for a Billboard-level rapper to receive a Golden Ticket.

Also, the participants were roughly aware of this kind of privilege.

It was unusual for a Billboard-level musician like Sanghyun to appear, but it was common for musicians who could generate buzz to appear directly on screen in Pop Idol and American Idol.

And as soon as Sanghyun entered the waiting room, he met two musicians who were waiting with such ‘privileges.’

Both were familiar faces. However, the feeling they gave Sanghyun was completely different.

One was a face he had spent a long time with but wasn’t happy to see at all, and the other was a face he had spent very little time with but was very happy to see.

First, the one who gave a favorable impression was the one he had met in Harlem, New York.

The musician who sang Frank Sinatra’s ‘Theme from New York, New York’ and took first place when Sanghyun ranked 6th with ‘Seoul State of Mind’ at the Apollo Theater’s Amateur Night, which has the title ‘Where Stars are Born and Legends are Made.’

The protagonist of the welcome face was Mallory, who was more familiar with the stage name Melody.

“Melody!”

Sanghyun welcomed the unexpected and pleasant face.

Melody, who had a slightly nervous expression, smiled brightly and stood up as soon as she saw Sanghyun.

“Sanghyun!”

Her reddish-blonde hair and straight eyebrows were the same, but the freckles that made her look lively were gone.

With the freckles gone and sophisticated makeup, her beauty, which he hadn’t properly recognized before, seemed to bloom.

“Wow! When was the last time we exchanged emails?”

“I don’t know? I think it’s been over three months?”

Sanghyun often contacted the musicians he met at the Apollo Theater. However, he hadn’t been able to contact them properly for a while due to participating in Pipi’s tour and creating MTB. There was also the reason that the communication and internet networks in Compton were inconvenient.

“I was surprised when I heard your album. At first, I thought it was a rapper with the same name, but I realized it when I saw the photo in the WorldStarHipHop interview.”

“Did you think there would be another person using the rap name FiveSix among Asian rappers besides me?”

“Still, it doesn’t make sense! Billboard 200 and Hot 100!”

“How have you been? You said you took second place in the Amateur Night finals?”

As Sanghyun said, Melody narrowly took second place in the Amateur Night finals.

However, in some ways, it was a better case than taking first place, as she was scouted by a fairly famous major label through Amateur Night.

“By the way, Melody, why are you participating here? Weren’t you doing well?”

“Actually, the label wasn’t very happy about me participating here, but it’s for the same reason as you.”

“Oh? Do you also want to collaborate with Eminem?”

“No! Not Eminem, but Kelly Clarkson! I’m a huge fan of Kelly Clarkson.”

Kelly Clarkson was the winner of the first season of American Idol, which first aired in 2002.

Kelly Clarkson, who lost her home in a fire and worked as a waitress in her hometown before becoming a pop star through American Idol, was sweeping the Billboard and Grammy Awards, seemingly trying to prove that her popularity wasn’t just due to the reality show.

“Ah… Kelly Clarkson is on the collaboration lineup.”

“Didn’t you know?”

“I think I saw it, but Eminem is the only one I remember.”

“Ugh, I hate Eminem. His lyrics are too trashy. Why do you like Eminem when you don’t write such lyrics?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Eminem’s lyrics have a deep taste like a 30-year-old original bone broth.”

“What did you just say in Korean? Sa… what?”

“If I had to translate it into English, Bone Soup?”

“…What?”

There was someone staring at Sanghyun, who was exchanging pleasant greetings with Melody in the waiting room. It was more like glaring than staring.

Sanghyun had also noticed him as soon as he came in, but didn’t feel the need to greet him.

However, perhaps because there was a camera, he approached Sanghyun and greeted him first.

“Hey, FiveSix. I enjoyed your song.”

A very handsome man smiled and greeted Sanghyun. Sanghyun wasn’t very pleased, but accepted the greeting since the other party had initiated it first.

“How have you been? Pipi?”

That’s right. The protagonist of the unwelcome face was Plan Paper, Pipi, with whom he had spent quite a long time touring.

In fact, in some ways, Plan Paper had even less reason to appear on an audition program like The X-Factor than Sanghyun.

Sanghyun had made it onto the Billboard charts, but his public recognition was close to zero. The public who could match Sanghyun’s appearance with FiveSix of MTB, except for immigrants from East Asian countries, were almost non-existent.

In that sense, people in the American music industry strongly believed that FiveSix was confident in his music and was taking a risk to make his face known.

However, that wasn’t the case for Pipi.

He was already a rapper known to those in the know. He had never been on the Hot 100 singles chart, but he had been on the Billboard 200.

However, it wasn’t because he recorded rapid sales, but because he filled almost a year and went platinum, his high score was a very low 35th place for a platinum album.

Of course, Pipi could use his handsome appearance as a weapon to appear on The X-Factor and gain popularity. However, it wouldn’t be a big advantage commercially or discographically. Audition programs, due to their special nature, value skills more than appearance.

The reason Pipi appeared on The X-Factor was because of his usual behavior.

Sony Music told Pipi that they would not renew his contract if he didn’t appear on The X-Factor, and Pipi had no choice but to decide to appear against his will.

It was a decision made by Sony Music, which co-produced The X-Factor, to maximize advertising revenue. There was also a motion to warn Pipi for his usual behavior.

However, the problem was that all the issues that Pipi should have taken were focused on Sanghyun.

Sanghyun was incomparably superior in the Billboard rankings, and the buzz was better with a Korean rap star than a California rap star. In addition, MTB was a recent album compared to Pipi’s album, which was released two years ago.

Besides, Sanghyun’s WorldStarHipHop interview was too intense.

Even though Pipi was forced to appear against his will, he wanted to get what he could out of it. So he couldn’t like Sanghyun, who was blocking his path.

Of course, there was also musical inferiority in it.

< Verse 40. Unknown Factors > End

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