boyutpedia Chapter 174: Music Show (4)
Chapter 174: Music Show (4)
The way 'Neos' looked was something Kang Rojun often experienced during his grotesque days. While some people openly cursed or treated him like a monster, there were also many who subtly avoided him or gave him uncomfortable glances.And that was exactly how 'Neos' was now.
Not blatantly, but with subtle eyes that looked down on or dismissed others. Kang Rojun wasn’t the only one who immediately picked up on that atmosphere.
‘Well, they’re already known for having nasty personalities.’
Manager Kim Ki-baek felt the same. Avoiding them wasn’t difficult, but regardless of current influence, 'Vanguard' was a freshly debuted rookie group. Skipping a senior group like 'Neos' would leave a bad impression. On top of that,
‘There’s no reason to avoid them. It could come across as running away for no reason. It’s better to face them confidently.’
'Vanguard' standing tall in front of them painted a much smoother picture.
Here, Kang Rojun briefly hesitated in thought.
‘Let’s just let it slide. It’s not a big deal anyway.’
He almost reverted to his old personality.
It wouldn’t be hard to bluntly speak his mind like when he did while negotiating with the writers company. But Rojun suppressed that urge. Though Rojun seemed like the most celebrity-like among 'Vanguard', surprisingly, he was actually the most grounded when compared to the other members.
How should one put it, maybe the hardships and adversity he’d endured were like night and day?
Not that anyone knew about Rojun’s past, and as he slowly scanned over the members of 'Neos', he handed an album to the man standing in front.
“This is our album, sunbae-nim.”
“Oh, thank you.”
The one who received the album was 'Neos'’s leader. He had a dinosaur-like face with defined facial lines.
“We should’ve given you our album too, but we forgot to bring it. What should we do?”
“It’s okay.”
“Yeah. But wow, seeing you in person, you really are handsome, Rojun.”
“Thank you. You’re handsome too, sunbae-nim.”
“......Ah, yeah. Thanks.”
Even as he replied, the 'Neos' leader glanced over at Si-hoo, Kang-min, and Do-kyung behind, then turned his gaze back to Kang Rojun.
He had sensed something strange.
‘What’s with this guy’s vibe? The other kids look nervous, but Rojun here is standing upright in this oddly composed way. It’s like he’s arrogant, but not really. And damn, he’s taller than I expected. How tall is he?’
After passing the album he received to the member standing beside him, he spoke to 'Vanguard' again.
“You guys are doing well these days. Congrats on selling 2 million copies of your debut album in the first week. I was really shocked when I saw that.”
“Thank you.”
“But how tall are you, Rojun?? I’m 185 cm? You seem taller than me.”
“I’m a bit taller.”
“Ah... yeah, you are.”
The 'Neos' leader then looked around at his members. Starting from the one with gray hair, the 'Neos' members were still sitting down, and the leader, who had been smiling lightly, spoke to Kang Rojun again.
“Shall we end it here? The guys look a bit tired since it’s right before the live show. They’ll say hi properly next time we meet.”
“Yes, that’s fine.”
It was then.
“Hey now, that’s not right, is it??”
A man’s voice suddenly cut in from the side. Thanks to that, not only Kang Rojun and the members, but even the 'Neos' leader turned their heads. They saw a man with deep dark circles approaching, and Rojun, slightly surprised, spoke his name.
“PD Woo Han-suk?”
It was still PD Woo Han-suk, looking exhausted. The funny thing was that a legendary domestic singer was right behind him.
“That’s right, that’s right. ‘Neos', what’s this? You’re not even greeting the new guys?”
The singer of over 20 years, a big-name artist who had received lyrics from Kang Rojun, Park Hyun-jung, was with him. Seeing PD Woo Han-suk and Park Hyun-jung, the eyes of the 'Neos' leader grew huge. But regardless, PD Woo Han-suk placed a hand on Kang Rojun’s shoulder and then.
-Swoosh.
Stepped in front of Rojun and peeked into 'Neos'’s waiting room.
“Oh wow?”
Park Hyun-jung followed behind PD Woo Han-suk.
“Oh my?”
At this point, the 'Neos' leader came to his senses and scrunched up his face at the members. He was speaking with his expression.
‘Get up now, you idiots!!!’
The 'Neos' members reacted the same way. In their panic, they quickly helped up the dazed members. Finally understanding the situation, the five members of 'Neos' rushed to stand beside their leader.
“Ah, hello! PD-nim! Sunbae-nim!!”
With an awkward smile, the leader quickly spat out an excuse.
"We're sorry. We, we were a bit flustered because you came so suddenly."
PD Woo Han-suk, pushing up his glasses, looked at the leader and members of 'Neos' and laughed.
“Right? You were flustered, huh?”
Veteran singer Park Hyun-jung chimed in.
“I thought ‘Neos’ was trying to throw their weight around or something.”
The managers of 'Neos' quickly intervened.
“Hahaha, of course not. It’s just that they never imagined they’d run into PD Woo and Park Hyun-jung-nim here!”
'Neos' now looked completely different from how they had been with 'Vanguard'. Hesitant, restless. It was natural. No matter how successful 'Neos' was, PD Woo Han-suk and Park Hyun-jung were industry heavyweights. Of course, one of the 'Neos' members, the one with gray hair, still wore a slightly annoyed expression.
Then, Park Hyun-jung narrowed her eyes at 'Neos'.
"Are you guys having fun?"
Faced with this unexpected situation, Manager Kim Ki-baek stepped in to wrap things up.
“Mm- ‘Neos’ has to get ready for their stage, so we’ll be heading out now.”
“Shall we?”
PD Woo Han-suk and Park Hyun-jung responded and moved along with 'Vanguard', and as 'Vanguard' walked away, 'Neos' let out a collective sigh.
“That scared me! What the hell was that just now?!”
Their main manager growled next.
"They're connected to quite a few big shots, so don't mess with them for no reason, got it?"
After that.
Kang Rojun and the members had a conversation with PD Woo Han-suk and Park Hyun-jung for the first time in a while. PD Woo Han-suk started.
“I don’t even know what to say. First, everyone in for a group hug and a spin.”
With his arms around Rojun, Si-hoo, Kang-min, and Do-kyung, Woo Han-suk bounced up and down, spinning them around a few times. It felt like a celebration ceremony. Watching that with satisfaction, Manager Kim Ki-baek asked Park Hyun-jung, who was also smiling warmly, in a tired tone.
“Hyun-jung-nim, what brings you here?”
“Well, I was here for something else, and then PD Woo said he was going to see ‘Vanguard', so I tagged along. Wanted to see your faces too. You’re about to go on stage, right?”
Manager Kim Ki-baek, who knew about the connection between Kang Rojun and Park Hyun-jung, replied appropriately.
“Mm- not yet, we haven’t gotten the call, so we’re fine.”
“But Manager Ki-baek, you still seem drained. I was surprised when I heard you took on ‘Vanguard’.”
“Why?”
“I heard rumors you were going overseas.”
“Well, things turned out like this.”
“I’m really looking forward to ‘Vanguard’ now that you’re on board.”
Meanwhile, PD Woo Han-suk and the 'Vanguard' members were busy chatting.
“You’re all finally starting to smell like real idols, huh? How’s your health?”
They shared short but lively updates for about ten minutes before PD Woo Han-suk and Park Hyun-jung took their leave. PD Woo Han-suk promised to reconnect later.
“If I start a new variety show, heat up the stage for me once. Let’s stay in touch!”
Watching him move away, the mood of Rojun and the members lifted.
“He hasn’t changed at all.”
“But did he not sleep after finishing ‘Produce That 100!’? Why are his dark circles still there?”
“He said he’s got a lot of flesh under his eyes, so it makes them look shadowed.”
“Who said that?”
“PD-nim did.”
“......That’s weird.”
Thirty minutes later, the live broadcast of 'Music Beat' officially began. Normally, in music shows, if you’re not that popular, your slot is early in the lineup, and the more popular you are, the later you appear. So the early stages were mostly filled with rookies.
-♬♪
But despite being rookies, 'Vanguard' wasn’t placed in the beginning but rather in the middle-to-later part. Unlike the pre-recording, the live show of 'Music Beat' moved at a rapid pace, and after a series of quick rookie performances, it was finally 'Vanguard'’s turn.
Though 'Vanguard' had already recorded their performance during pre-recording, they still had to appear on the live broadcast.
“They’re a really hot group these days, right?”
“That’s right. Let’s welcome them! ‘Vanguard’!!”
They needed to include interview cuts for the live camera. After that, the pre-recorded performance would be aired.
“Two, three!”
“Hello! We are ‘Vanguard’!!”
'Vanguard' completed a short interview with the senior idol MCs. On TV, their 'GreenBee' performance began to air. The live viewer chat almost crashed the open chat due to the flood of messages. Meanwhile, Rojun and the members bowed politely to the MCs, paid attention to the fans in the audience, and only then exited the stage.
From here on, it was waiting time.
They still had to appear for the No. 1 winner announcement, the final segment of 'Music Beat'.
Inside the waiting room, the members of 'Vanguard' took the chance to eat some kimbap during a free moment, and Kang Rojun also popped a piece into his mouth.
-Swoosh.
He sat in one corner of the waiting room and powered on the laptop he had brought with him.
‘They say music show waiting time is hell, but this feels like a total win to me.’
He was doing it for his side jobs.
In that way, the live broadcast of 'Music Beat' reached its near end. 'Neos' had the ending performance, and 'Vanguard', who had been on standby, was finally called. Before they knew it, the stage was packed with male and female idols. Kang Rojun was silently amazed.
‘Wow, there are sooo many people.’
It was his first time seeing something like this. He had felt it earlier while walking through the waiting rooms, but seeing them all gathered in one place was a spectacle. Then came the screams of hundreds of audience members hitting his ears.
“Kyaaaaaaaa!!”
The idols were busy waving to fans, and so was 'Vanguard'. Especially Si-hoo, Kang-min, and Do-kyung, they had huge smiles on their faces as if they were living a dream. Just then, the two MCs stepped out in front of the idols.
“And this week’s No. 1 is-!”
They were about to announce the No. 1 spot for 'Music Beat'. The camera quickly panned over 'Neos' and 'Vanguard'. They were the top nominees. Then the MC shouted loudly.
“Congratulations! No. 1 is Vanguard’s ‘GreenBee’!!”
-Shaaah!
Confetti exploded as the camera zoomed in on 'Vanguard' for a solo shot. The trophy and bouquet were handed over, nearby idols clapped in celebration, and fans screamed at high decibels. 'Neos', who had taken No. 1 the previous week, also applauded for 'Vanguard'. The trophy landed in the hands of Rojun, whose eyes were full of surprise.
“......”
No. 1? Us? On our first live broadcast? It had already been surprising enough to be nominated for No. 1, but winning it immediately left Kang Rojun.
“Wow-”
He let out an involuntary exclamation as he looked down at the trophy. Kang-min and Do-kyung clung to him.
“No way, is this really our trophy??”
Si-hoo, holding the bouquet in one hand, had tears welling in his eyes. Soon, one by one, the other idols congratulated 'Vanguard' and began to leave the stage. The MC gave the closing line.
“Congratulations to ‘Vanguard’! Please perform the encore stage!”
On the stage now covered in confetti, 'Vanguard' bowed 90 degrees toward the cameras and fans.
“Thank you so much!!!”
Right on cue, 'GreenBee' started playing.
-♬♪
But Vanguard’s encore stage didn’t go smoothly.
Starting with Si-hoo.
“Sniff- thank you, really!”
Kang-min ended up crying as well.
Several dozen minutes later.
After somehow completing the encore stage, 'Vanguard' returned to the waiting room. Si-hoo and Kang-min, who had burst into tears, kept expressing concern to Manager Kim Ki-baek.
“S-sorry.”
“Me too... I just couldn’t stop the tears all of a sudden.”
“Phew, I barely held it in during the debut showcase and when we hit No. 1 on the charts. I didn’t think it’d come out here.”
Meanwhile, Kim Ki-baek looked totally unfazed.
“Mm- it’s okay. It happens all the time, and the fans will love it.”
At this point, the youngest, Do-kyung, chimed in.
“I held it in for you hyungs.”
“Do-kyung, your eyes are red right now.”
“It’s the wind.”
As the leader, Kang Rojun took care of the members.
“Let’s gather up. We need to take a proof shot.”
“Rojun, your eyes are kinda red too.”
“...It’s the wind.”
In the end, winning No. 1 on 'Music Beat' made all of 'Vanguard', including Kang Rojun, emotional. The next step was to share this happy news with fans via Instagram and other social media. Holding the trophy and bouquet, 'Vanguard' needed to take a proof shot, but then Si-hoo carefully raised his hand.
“Uh... I’m gonna run to the bathroom real quick.”
"Ah then me too."
Kang-min joined in. Do-kyung said he was fine and stayed seated, while Kang Rojun told the others he’d go with them and stepped out of the waiting room. They didn’t have much time, so they had to hurry.
“Ugh, so embarrassing. I really tried to hold it in, but the tears just kept coming.”
“It’s okay, it looked natural, hyung.”
“But Rojun, I think it’s the first time I’ve seen you that emotional.”
“I told you, it was just the wind.”
At that moment.
“Ah.”
Si-hoo, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped. Rojun and Kang-min naturally came to a halt too. Looking ahead, Kang Rojun understood why Si-hoo had stopped. The 'Neos' team was approaching in a group. As 'Neos' came closer, Rojun and the members greeted them again. The 'Neos' leader smiled as if to say they didn’t need to.
“We already greeted earlier. Congrats on the win-”
However, the other 'Neos' members merely gave a slight nod to 'Vanguard' and said nothing. Of course, it wasn’t like they’d be in a good mood. They’d already been beaten in the charts and first-week sales, and now even the music show win had been taken from them.
Then, just as the gray-haired member at the end of the 'Neos' group passed by Rojun and the others.
-Thud.
He bumped shoulders with Si-hoo in a vague way and kept walking. The impact wasn’t that hard, but it made Si-hoo flinch. Regardless, the 'Neos' group kept walking away, and Si-hoo remained silent.
At that moment.
“Excuse me, sunbae-nim.”
Kang Rojun called out to the gray-haired member of 'Neos'. Immediately, most of the 'Neos' team, including the gray-haired member, turned to look at him. But Kang Rojun only met eyes with the gray-haired one and calmly asked,
“Did you do that on purpose just now?”
For a moment, Si-hoo and Kang-min’s jaws dropped.
At the same time.
A post appeared on an online community.
-[Isn’t Neos’s new title track ‘Bloom Me’ kind of similar to this foreign song? (link)]