Entertainment Life With A Camera - Chapter 20

At Station K’s year-end stage on the 29th, Awy will broadcast live without a separate pre-recording.

Like the once-a-week music show, they go to work at dawn, do dry rehearsals, and wait indefinitely.

Jo Tae Woong opened the door.

“Ooh. Will we also use places like this when we eat time?”1

Waiting Room

Awy / MyKit

The broadcasting station also felt sorry for the urgent casting, so they considered having two groups use one waiting room, not the partition waiting room. In the center of the waiting room, the space was separated by a tarpaulin.

“We’re first.”

“Dong Soo hyung! What time do we go out again?”

Members in training suits plopped down on chairs. The chair cushion is hard, so it’s not possible to sit on the chair for a long time.

‘But, it’s my first time hearing MyKit?’

[Debuted about 6 months earlier than you. They get small reactions in Korea, I think? Probably will go to Japan next year?]

‘It’s the same everywhere, going to Japan after promoting a few times.’

[If you work well, you can make money there. They also lived as an underground idol there and touched some money.]

Most Korean idols always go to Japan to promote. This is because they buy a lot of albums, and most fans like a group for a long time.

Seeing that Ian’s agency is also educating them in Japanese from now on, Awy will also promote in Japan next year or the year after.

‘Their personality?’

[Everyone’s just nice. Since idols’ character education is done well these days. Although one guy is a bit wasted…]

‘How do you know their personalities? I guess you used to be their Homma too, huh?’

[Uh?]

Due to Jin’s personality, who wants to show off what it knows, he thought it would get caught if he asked such an unexpected question. Ian looked at Jin with suspicious eyes.

‘You weren’t just a Homma, right?’

[…Ah, I heard it from their Homma. If you’re playing on this floor, you’ll meet and talk to other groups’ Homma too.]

‘But isn’t it coming out so smoothly for that? As if you’ve talked to the singer in person?’

It was Jin who didn’t answer even though Ian asked back. What’s holding you back to hiding your past?

Jin clicked the shutter a few times and disappeared. Where are you running away? Ian tried to call Jin again, but the waiting room door opened faster.

“Uh? You’re here first?”

“Hello, sunbaenim!”

A man with pale yellow hair spoke to them in a friendly way. Awy members stood up quickly and gave a folder greeting2.

MyKit received the greeting pleasantly despite the awkwardness of being treated as a senior.

“What sunbae, the experience years must be similar anyway.”

At the same time, they didn’t ask to speak comfortably3. When they finished greeting each other, MyKit went into the opposite space like flowing water at the awkward atmosphere unique to the first-time meeting.

The sleep-lacking Ian and the members put the chairs in the corner and spread a mat on the floor to make up for the lack of sleep.

“Guys, get up!”

The members who slept well for 4 hours woke up one by one at the manager’s voice. They folded the mat under the manager’s instructions and set up the chairs and even tables. Then the company staff came in one by one and placed a bulky box in front of each member.

“What is this?”

“Your meal support is here?”

The manager was elated as if he had prepared the meal. On top of the styrofoam box, there was a sticker with their names printed each along with the phrase ‘Congratulations On The First Year-End Stage!’.

“Really?”

“Yeah. They also prepared for the staff separately, so don’t care about us, you guys eat a lot.”

The members opened the styrofoam box almost like tearing it apart. When Ian also opened the box, a postcard with pretty flower decoration and a short phrase along welcomed him first.

‘May there be only flowery paths in your future.’

-Awy Home Master Union.

At the bottom, each Home name was written in small letters. Among them, ‘Iron Heart’ which stood out in Ian’s eyes was the first fan who received his autograph.

“Woah, look at the abalone. I really like abalone.”

“Abalone? I’m allergic to shellfish, though… Huh? I don’t have it?”

Not only that, there were parts with different menus in consideration of each members’ preferences. Somehow, they asked what we liked or couldn’t eat at the fan signing event. It must have been because of this.

The lunch boxes consisted of main dishes such as braised short ribs, karaage, fresh spring rolls, and many kinds of foods such as fruits, yogurt, desserts, and fresh fruit juice.

“Woah, it’s precious so how can I eat this?”

“Me too.”

Other members also agreed with Ian’s self-talk. A small dry flower was also carefully attached to the lid of each food container inside the disposable container.

“Guys, take out all of these first then shall we take a group photo once and hold these flowers once?”

Because fans want to get their gifts to be verified that they received them. Everyone gathered at Lee Joo Hyuk’s sensible suggestion and took pictures.

“The food must have cooled down. Let’s hurry up and eat.”

“Thank you for the food!”

Ian and the members, who took a group photo, finished a lot of food at once in a short time.

After listening to Ian, the members tried to be nice to all the fans they met, whether they relate a lot.

And with that effort through the fans, the total sales also increased as fan signing cuts gradually increased after the first fan signing event.

Fans told the so-called ‘Great Value Response’4 story as they went to the fan signing events, so the influx of fans increased on their own.

[Isn’t these much priced more than a million won?]

Disappeared Jin reappeared and flew around Ian. Ian, who was taking photos with the tablet as he was impressed by the fans’ sincerity, glared at Jin in front of him.

Jin’s lens turned to the side as if avoiding his gaze. The situation was not appropriate to nitpick again. Ian sighed deeply, thinking that there would be a situation to talk about later.

‘That expensive?’

[Staff are usually given simple sandwiches for meals, but they prepared similar things to you when I saw earlier. Then the price gets more expensive. The fans used a bit more strength.]

‘Oh yeah?’

Ian took a mouthful of the macaron that came out as a dessert. The taste of the macaron in the mouth was exceptionally sweet.

***

After having lunch, Awy dozed off due to the food coma for a while and then went to the interim rehearsal. They waited with rookies performing other 1st Gen idol cover stages.

“Everyone just covering as it is?”

“Aren’t we doing it too much?”

The rookies performing cover stage earlier only had different voices and came with the songs from back then as it was.

They were also only assigned cover stages, not their own songs, so it gave off the feeling that they had been practicing out of courtesy.

“It’s not too much, it’s a lot of preparation. And is there anyone who hates that?”

Ian smiled meaningfully. From what he heard from Jin, this year-end stage PD is a so-called kkondae5 and really likes young people who work hard.

And that PD will go up to the station director later, so it would be good to get a good score from now on.

Awy came with a remixed song with verse 1 as it is and verse 2 onwards are interpreted in a modern way. They also practiced the choreography that was changed little by little accordingly.

“Awy, please come up.”

At the words of the staff, Awy went up on the stage.

Kim Hyun Sik, the PD of this broadcast, frowned upon hearing the AR they had prepared in advance.

They did their best during rehearsals like the main broadcast on the music show, so he cast them but…

‘They’re also the same.’

No matter how urgent they were cast, none of the teams set up a distinctive stage. And some teams danced moderately in rehearsals unlike what rookies should do.

Kim Hyun Sik drew an X on the paper with Awy on it.

‘Kids these days don’t have the spirit. When I was their age…’

Just when Kim Hyun Sik summoned his old memories, the music suddenly stops from the beginning of the second verse. At the moment’s silence, Kim Hyun Sik raised his head and looked at the stage.

The members’ movements suddenly changed and the beat quickly transitioned.

The M.U.N.’s cover song they did was ‘My Own’, a song with the concept of two men fighting over a woman.

“Oh? They’re a bit different?”

Kim Hyun Sik was slightly admired.

The members were divided into 4 to 3 and engaged in a short dance battle with each other. At the end, the two main dancers put their faces close to each other and acted as if they were having a nerve fight. Then they pushed each other’s shoulders, stepped back, and all the members danced in the same movement.

Even when performing a powerful dance, the swaying tempting gestures in the middle seems to be wooing by saying ‘Choose me’.

Even if they fight over a woman for a hundred days, the woman makes the choice. They added sadness to the existing choreography.

“They’re good.”

Not only that, it sounds lighter and more cheerful by reducing the techno music unique to the end of the century and mixing the song with future house feeling.

And Ian’s high notes, which sounded delicious in-between, made it feel like it was not just a cover song but a new re-creation of the song.

“Thank you!”

While Kim Hyun Sik was staring blankly, their rehearsal ended. Kim Hyun Sik put down the bundle of paper he was holding and clapped.

The Assistant Director next to him was surprised and looked at Kim Hyun Sik. Applause from the kkondae PD who is stingy with compliments?

“Good job, I enjoyed it a lot. Please do the same during the main broadcast, too.”

The faces of the members, who were sweating, turned bright at PD’s compliment. It was worth practicing while reducing sleep.

The PD circled Awy’s names several times as he watched their back descending from the stage.

***

It was ‘excellent in main job’, the philosophy of BHL Ent. which Black Rush and the singers before them also go through.

It was their principle to make all singers have an attachment to the stage, so perhaps Awy did not sloppily do rehearsal stage because of that spirit.

“Eugh, it’s hard.”

The members, who had undergone rehearsals like the main broadcast, dangled like laundry on the chairs. It had been a long time since sleep ran away due to the intense choreography.

“How many hours do we have until the last rehearsal?”

“It is 5 hours.”

Park Seo Dam looked at the clock and sighed. They can’t sleep and they don’t have handphones. Even if they leave in the middle, there’s nowhere to go.

“Shall we play a game?”

Park Jin Hyuk got up suddenly. However, there are no board games or trump cards at all to play. In rock-paper-scissors for finger flick6, only each other’s bloodshed occurs if the desire to win intensifies.

‘That one is good at times like this.’

Ian was thinking while stroking his chin and he made eye contact with Jo Tae Woong on the other side.

‘You too?’

‘Hey, me two.’

They pointed at each other with their fingers and exchanged signs. The period of practicing together was short, but Ian and Jo Tae Woong communicated ideas well with each other.

Just in time, MyKit was also making noise over the tarpaulin. Ian and Jo Tae Woong got up abruptly and shook the tarpaulin gently.

“Excuse me~ Sunbaenims. For a minute.”

“Yeah?”

Ian and Jo Tae Woong peeked out their faces out of the tarpaulin. MyKit also had the same situation as Awy, so they had no handphone in their hand and were just chattering.

“Perhaps if you’re bored…”

“Would you like to play a mafia game together?”

The more people play together, the more fun it is. The eyes of the five MyKit members, who were staring at them blankly, gleamed. They rolled up the tarpaulin in the middle of the waiting room as if they had promised together in advance.

***

“From my point of view, Cheol Min-i is a hundred percent the mafia.”

“Ah no! It’s really not!”

Ian’s eyes became sharp. MyKit’s Kim Cheol Min raised his body halfway and waved his hands. However, some people instigated by Ian turned their thumbs down.

“It can’t be! Let’s shoot!”

“Let’s kill Cheol Min.”

“Are you sure you want to kill Kim Cheol Min-ssi?”

Awy’s Park Jin Hyuk, who served as the moderator, spoke resolutely. While everyone nodded, Kim Cheol Min shouted repeatedly that it was not him.

“Kim Cheol Min-ssi is dead. He was a citizen.”

“Ah, I definitely said no, right!”

“Seriously not?”

Kim Cheol Min got up and jumped. Everyone who was gathered laughed at the shortest Kim Cheol Min’s flapping. The already dead doctor, Lee Joo Hyuk, put his arm on Kim Cheol Min’s shoulders.

“It is morning. The mafia killed the police overnight. It is a victory for the mafia.”

“Who’s mafia!”

“Hihi, it is us! Pardon!”

“Woah. Isn’t the moderator corrupted! If you use the actors as mafias, we’ll all fall for it!”

“Impeach the moderator! Open a candlelight protest!”

“Photo! I demand the truth from the moderator!”

And it’s been 40 minutes since they played the mafia game. They took off the titles of seniors and juniors and became best friends with each other.