Damn Idol, Chapter 127
The friend who made this song, in particular, is incredible.
When I first heard it, I thought it might have been co-composed, or perhaps reliant on sampling, but it wasn’t. It was 100% sequenced, and he had handled the lyrics, composition, and arrangement all by himself.
At only nineteen years old.
It was truly unbelievable.
If he had simply been struck by a powerful burst of inspiration and written a blazing melody in one go, that would have been easier to understand. But that wasn’t what this was, was it?
This was a song created by mixing various genres and calculating everything with precision.
‘He must be a genius.’
Thinking that, Paul approached Han Sion, who was taking the lead in greeting the staff.
“I enjoyed it. I’m Paul, the chief manager.”
“Thank you for giving us the opportunity. I’m Han Sion of Sedalbaegil. You can call me Zion, if you’d like.”
“Zion? Is that your baptismal name?”
“It isn’t, but I wouldn’t say it’s entirely meaningless.”
Han Sion’s name had nothing to do with ZION, a word of great significance in Christianity.
But he knew that, in the West, where Christian culture was central, it was advantageous to keep his mouth shut.
After that, Paul exchanged all sorts of conversation with Han Sion.
And he was quite surprised.
Because Han Sion wasn’t merely excellent at English; he had a perfect understanding of Western culture as well.
He even liked the opinions and vision Han Sion expressed regarding the Color Show.
So the conversation, which he had intended to keep to a light greeting, grew considerably longer.
“So what’s your next goal? Do you have plans to work in the States?”
“No. Not particularly. Our next U.S. activity will probably be filming A Colors Encore, won’t it?”
At Han Sion’s words, Paul burst into laughter.
A Colors Encore.
Just as the word “encore” suggested, it was content that introduced another song by those who had appeared on the Color Show.
Because it carried the meaning of being the reverse side of the Color Show, its key point was video direction that used shadow rather than light.
However, not just anyone could appear on Colors Encore.
First of all, their Color Show video had to be a success.
There was no specific view-count standard, but at the very least, it had to surpass the average.
Not only that, there also had to be a sense that their additional activities could generate buzz.
If the Color Show was content that introduced musicians, Colors Encore had the feel of introducing their activities.
Sedalbaegil’s talent was certain, but they didn’t suit the feel of Encore.
And yet Han Sion was full of confidence.
“When our EP comes out, Colors Media will probably come looking for us first.”
“Is that so?”
“So please keep watching our activities. Before someone else snatches us up first.”
As far as he knew, East Asians didn’t usually talk like this. Interesting.
Lastly, Paul asked Han Sion about his personal tastes.
“Is there a musician you’d like to see on the Color Show? Just for fun.”
“Billie Eilish.”
“Ah, that genius girl? Interscope snagged her a little while ago, didn’t they?”
“Yes. They won’t regret it.”
As far as Han Sion knew, the artist who had recorded the highest view count on the Color Show was Billie Eilish.
* * *
Since we were visiting LA, I went with the members to the amusement park Six Flags Magic Mountain.
The members wanted to go to Disneyland, but, well.
Personally, if you’re going to go to Disneyland, I think Universal Hollywood or Six Flags is better.
Because it’s packed with extremely hardcore rides.
Personally, I thought Lee Ion and Choi Jaeseong would be good at rides, while Gu Taehwan and On Saemiro wouldn’t be able to handle them.
But surprisingly, it was the exact opposite.
On Saemiro and Gu Taehwan were incredibly good at rides.
On Saemiro’s steel nerves, in particular, were dazzling.
“……?”
I was flustered when I saw him ride Goliath (Goliath: Six Flags’ flagship roller coaster) without blinking an eye.
Even I, who had experienced Goliath many times, couldn’t help but be startled.
I wondered if he had fainted with his eyes open, but that wasn’t it either.
“How are you so fine?”
“Compared to the roller coaster of life, this much is nothing…….”
What is he talking about?
Gu Taehwan wasn’t quite at On Saemiro’s level, but he was calm.
“What about you?”
“If you read the signs carefully, you can predict what the next course will be like.”
What is this one talking about now?
Goliath’s top speed approaches 150 kilometers per hour, and its gravitational acceleration is something like 4G or 5G, if I remember correctly.
This isn’t something where you can predict the next course just because you keep your eyes open.
If that’s really possible, then Sedalbaegil has robbed the world of F1 racing talent.
Now that I think about it, I feel like I’ve had a similar thought before.
“Ah.”
When I saw Choi Jaeseong’s absurdly long breath control, I once thought we had stolen talent from the world of swimming.
Then Lee Ion must be a talent from the field of child education, and Gu Taehwan a talent from the culinary world.
Gu Taehwan is good at cooking.
If I, who have experienced all kinds of gourmet food, praise someone for being good at cooking, then they really are good.
Aside from the flaw that, other than dishes featuring mushrooms as the main ingredient, the number of dishes he knows how to make is small, he’s perfect.
With thoughts like that, I experienced the amusement park.
To be honest, in the past, I had found coming to LA painful, and found it painful to visit famous places that held memories.
LA has a large Korean population and is one of the regions with relatively little prejudice toward Asians.
So in the early days of my regressions, I always used it as the starting point for activities in America, and if I had no special plans, I came to LA.
Even with GOTM, our first activities began in LA right away.
Then how many people must I have met here, and how much time must I have spent here?
It can’t be counted.
No, saying it can’t be described would be more fitting.
So when my mental state wasn’t good, my memories would sometimes become jumbled.
There was a time when I was supposed to go with GOTM to an indie band venue, but without realizing it, I drove to a hip-hop club.
I greeted a club guard I had been close with in a familiar way, and the guard kicked me out.
Because he thought I was some crazy guy high on drugs.
At the time, the faces of the GOTM members looking at me were filled with bewilderment.
To tell you something even worse, there was even a time when I confused agencies.
It was a life where I had signed with LA BLUE, but I sent the recording files to King Kong Music’s email.
Then, as naturally as could be, I asked King Kong Music to set the release schedule.
From LA BLUE’s perspective, how dumbfounded must they have been?
They even misunderstood, thinking I had signed another contract with a different company through the back door.
Thanks to that, LA BLUE’s manager pestered me quite a bit, and then one day I opened my eyes and woke up at a crossroads.
That’s why I hated visiting places like this.
Because I would end up holding on alone to memories that would disappear anyway.
Still, well, it should be fine.
It’s better than coming all the way to LA and going straight back.
“Han Sion. Aren’t you coming?”
“I’m going to rest for a bit. Go on without me.”
“Hyung, are you scared?”
I shrugged and let Choi Jaeseong’s provocation roll off me.
Then I sat on a bench and organized my thoughts.
The Colors teaser we had released wasn’t filmed by Colors Media.
Sedalbaegil filmed it, and Colors Media edited it and gave it to us.
When negotiating the terms of our appearance contract, I had accepted everything in one go, but I added just one condition.
That they make the teaser as quickly as possible and release it on the date we wanted.
Colors Media tilted their heads, but since it wasn’t difficult, they agreed.
In other words, it was true that I had uploaded the teaser while aiming at Take Scene.
By this point, Choi Daeho’s heart should be pounding.
He’d be worried about what else I was scheming.
But what filled my head right now wasn’t Choi Daeho or Lion Entertainment.
That side was boring now.
What I was curious about was how much my music had changed.
From Yankos Greenwood came music I had never heard before in my life.
Just yesterday, Eric Scott sent me a song, and this too was something I had never heard before in my life.
The fact that two people had sent new songs meant that the source material of the songs I sent had changed.
They really were masters, after all.
I had sent them the same song sources I always did, yet they had caught the subtle changes caused by the shift in my psychological state.
To be honest, I’m a little afraid.
In order to gain an advantage through regression, you must know the exact equation.
You must believe in the formula that if you input X, Y will come out.
Otherwise, everything inevitably becomes shrouded in unknown variables.
And when those unknown variables increase, you fail at self-objectification, and the early symptoms of schizophrenia may begin to appear.
But to see it that way, my mental state is far too sound.
Then is this change a positive one?
Is my music moving in a better direction?
I need to know that.
And in order to do that…….
By the time I reached a conclusion in my heart, the members who had enjoyed the ride gathered around.
“What are you doing?”
“Hold on, gather here. Ion hyung, you too.”
“Why?”
“I have about five days’ worth of schedule to handle in New Jersey, you see? There’s something you all need to do when you return to Korea.”
“What is it?”
“To be precise, Choi Jaeseong and On Saemiro have the biggest roles. The rest are support.”
“Huh?”
With this plan, I’m going to fling open the doors of Korean broadcasts that have been locked against us.
It was something I had been planning, but I hadn’t told the members.
I don’t know why I hadn’t.
Saying it was to focus on the Color Show would be a lie.
Because by now, the members wouldn’t lose focus over most things.
It was probably just the habit of a lone-wolf regressor who had spent a long time agonizing alone and making plans alone.
I know that, but fixing it isn’t easy.
“First, On Saemiro.”
“Yeah.”
I said what On Saemiro would have to do.
It was simple.
He just had to appear on The Masked Singer, a competition program where contestants perform with their faces covered, and win.
For at least about two weeks.
But the members seemed more puzzled over whether appearing was possible than whether winning was possible.
“Can that happen……?”
“Aren’t we unable to appear on broadcasts?”
“Even if his face is covered, if he loses, he has to reveal it. I don’t think the PD will accept it.”
That was true, but I didn’t think casting him would be impossible either.
“I’ll try to make it happen today.”
“From America? Casting for a Korean broadcast?”
“If it doesn’t work out, we can just cancel the plan, so don’t think too hard about it.”
This is just the appetizer anyway.
It’d be nice to eat, but it doesn’t matter if we can’t.
What I’m truly preparing is something else.
“Choi Jaeseong.”
“Yes?”
“You have to appear on a broadcast too.”
“Where?”
When I named a program, the members’ eyes shook.
“What?”
Their reaction was intense.
* * *
“Huh, well.”
Kang Seokwoo, who had been the producer of Coming Up Next and was now taking a break, let out a hearty laugh.
He really is bold.
So bold that I don’t even know what to say.
This was about Han Sion.
Just yesterday, Kang Seokwoo had received one message and one email from Han Sion.
The content of the message was simple.
[Could you do me just one favor? Let’s settle your debt this time.]
A conversation he had once had with Han Sion.
“But Sion-ssi, you know that, right? A debt of the heart only works on someone you find bothersome enough that ignoring it feels uncomfortable.”
It was a question asking whether they had now risen to a level bothersome enough.
[Didn’t you cash in that debt last time?]
[Then you can put a new debt on the books.]
Han Sion’s way of speaking was truly polished.
And fascinating.
It didn’t feel coercive at all, yet it made you unable to resist hearing what came next.
Was it because of his confidence, or because he was interesting?
In the end, Kang Seokwoo had no choice but to ask.
[What do you want?]
(To be continued)