Ever since acquiring the Trait “Catching Ear,” which amplified my ability to recognize good songs, I didn’t think I’d failed at song selection very often.
And with that in mind, I’ll say this:
The chorus Goldie #1 had sent me, saying it was their new title track…
Was genuinely good.
I wasn’t talking about its completeness or artistic value.
I simply meant that even after hearing it once in passing, it stayed in your head.
It had extreme mass appeal.
Damn it.
Of course, there was still no possibility that TeSTAR would lose to them in overall results.
The problem was that I could already see people spouting nonsense.
And right now, I can’t afford to let that happen.
First…
The current atmosphere around TeSTAR’s new album, Chakho Gapsa (捉嘷甲士), was like this.
To begin with, it had received four stars from a critic on the most famous music-review site in Korea.
It was the first four-star idol release of the year.
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The aesthetics of balance.
To create harmony, things must first be different.
From the moombahton of <Rhythm> to the synth-pop of <Breathing>, it binds a variety of dishes together through the shared ingredient of traditional Korean instruments, then places the final punctuation with the title track <Procession>, elevating the whole into a full-course meal.
Amid the recent trend dominated by singles and mini albums, the boldness of attempting consecutive full-length albums at intervals of less than half a year is supported by a tightly structured rationale.
…….
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The only real criticism came in the latter half, where the critic added that “the craftsmanship feels obsessive and the title track’s structure is conventional.”
It was a far more favorable review than I’d imagined.
Naturally, that helped the group’s standing.
And the overseas response was clear as well.
As obvious achievements appeared in the music video views, album sales, and global music platforms, overseas offers began arriving.
We already had performance schedules arranged for a fairly major English-language talk show and a Japanese morning program.
Even though the title track was an intensely performance-focused song and far removed from easy listening, its domestic digital performance was good too.
It was fourth place right now.
From what I’d overheard at the company, official fandom memberships were increasing even faster than during the previous album.
That was probably helping considerably.
So, to summarize all those indicators, this promotion was the perfect opportunity to capture both commercial success and artistic recognition and soar into a secure top-tier position.
In short, we were just about to throw open the door to the beginning of an insane peak period.
Now imagine Golden Age—Goldie #1’s group—promoting at the exact same time, latching onto TeSTAR, and on top of that bringing out a disgustingly good song.
People are definitely going to say things like, “Golden Age’s song was better, TeSTAR only won because of fandom power.”
In other words, some of the high would wear off in the perception of both fans and the general public.
The image TeSTAR was just about to gain—a trendy group succeeding in every area—was already in danger of being reduced to a boy group with a large fandom.
With top-tier status right in front of us, I had no intention of letting someone grab our ankle here.
We need to do a large-scale tour.
If I wanted to avoid suddenly dropping dead from the Status Abnormality, TeSTAR couldn’t lose momentum before the next comeback.
We need to keep public opinion highly favorable toward this album.
I thought it over and quickly reached a conclusion.
The answer is national pride.
I’d have to make the things TeSTAR shared with the Korean public feel like something to be proud of.
Only to a degree that didn’t feel so artificial or excessive that it inspired rejection.
I sighed briefly, then belatedly replied to Goldie #1’s message.
Several others had already responded.
[It’s an easy song to listen to, and it’s good. Congratulations, hyung.]
I sent it cleanly and without unnecessary decoration so their company couldn’t twist it into anything strange.
Goldie #1 simply thanked us.
[Ha Iljoon (hyung): ㅠㅠThanks, guys!]
[Ha Iljoon (hyung): Ha, I hope the response is good… We’ll have to work hard]
Goldie #1 chatted for a few more messages, apparently feeling a little nervous, then ended the conversation with a joke.
[Ha Iljoon (hyung): If we meet at a music show next week, could you sign a CD for me…? My younger sibling is trying to kill me]
But an hour or two later, the group chat sounded again.
[Ha Iljoon (hyung): Guys, I really have no shame asking this, but would it be okay if I mention in interviews this week or something that you guys complimented the song?]
[Ha Iljoon (hyung): They keep asking questions trying to make us fight and it’s scary]
[Ha Iljoon (hyung): Ah, the difference between god-TeSTAR’s level and ours is huge, but they keep doing this so I’m shaking… save me]
Well, well.
That won’t do.
He might be sincere, but there was no telling how his company would use it.
They could easily spin it into media play like, “Golden Age’s new song, praised even by rivals TeSTAR.”
Before the others could reply, I quickly typed a message.
[Would that be okay? Hyung, I’m worried they might twist it into something like you leaked another group’s title track through Idol Inc. connections.]
Immediately afterward, I received a private message.
[Big Sejin: hehe good]
So he really had been deliberately holding back from replying.
And before Big Sejin even needed to jump in and help set the tone, Goldie #1’s horrified response arrived.
[Ha Iljoon (hyung): Holy shit, they could do that too; Thanks, Moondae. This insane company almost sold me out]
So the company really did suggest it.
As expected, they weren’t ordinary bastards.
Given the enormous gap in scale between our groups, Goldie #1 didn’t seem to harbor any competitive feelings toward TeSTAR at all.
But he clearly trusted his company.
I’m jealous.
It really did invite comparison with this place.
Suppressing a sigh, I called the company.
I need to specify the exact date too.
At this point…
Checking every single thing myself was the only way not to get stabbed in the back by my own company.
The following week, after Park Moondae had checked Golden Age’s title track.
A reaction video appeared on a large WeTube channel.
The channel was known for creating unusual situations to draw out entertaining reactions, and lately celebrities had appeared on it frequently.
But this was the first time people from this field had been featured.
[Traditional Musicians Watch the Latest K-pop (feat. TeSTAR) | NAYA]
The guests were people who worked in traditional Korean music.
Each participant was filmed separately, then the footage was cut together.
[Hello. I’m traditional vocalist Baek Jubin.]
[I held a solo gayageum recital at the National Gugak Center last year.]
[The most recent thing I performed was… Cheoyongmu?]
The video briefly introduced each artist’s career with accompanying reference footage, then began with a simple question-and-answer segment.
[NAYA: Do you listen to K-pop?]
[I roughly know the famous ones.]
[No.]
[Yes. I like it.]
Their reactions varied, but the comment emphasized by the video was this.
[It’s inevitably very different from the music I usually perform.]
Then the channel staff opened a laptop and had the traditional musicians watch a music video.
More precisely, a teaser.
[NAYA: We’re going to show you a K-pop music video that’s currently ranked among the real-time trending videos.]
[Hmm… do I just watch it?]
[One, ten, hundred, thousand… Wait, that’s tens of millions. Wow.]
[Three, two, one. I’m clicking.]
Click.
The video soon appeared in a small window alongside them.
It was TeSTAR’s teaser for their latest song.
[Oh, this?]
And the traditional musicians…
Started smiling from the moment Seon Ahyeon’s solo song played.
[So this is why you showed us!]
[That’s a gayageum.]
Of course, aside from the main instrument, the rest of the elements were extremely close to ordinary K-pop.
Still, the traditional musicians seemed to find it quite entertaining.
[They used it very cleverly.]
[They even mixed some of that into the movement… There’s an arm movement used in Taepyeongmu.]
[Wow, he’s really handsome! Someone like him should’ve come over to our side(?).]
But when Cha Eugene’s solo song played immediately afterward, the reaction grew somewhat stronger.
[It wasn’t over??]
[Oh, this person is very cool too! The kkwaenggwari fits extremely well!]
[…Wait, how long is this video… Hold on.]
[NAYA: Please keep watching. (laughs)]
The traditional musicians ended up watching the first verse of every TeSTAR member’s solo song.
Along with cinematography overflowing with money.
[Oh…….]
What had started as reactions given simply out of politeness grew steadily stronger as they became immersed in the video.
Especially when the traditional instruments from each solo track began piling up to create the title track.
That drew the strongest reactions of all.
[Wow!!]
[Ah, so all of these were pieces of it!]
[How on earth did they come up with an idea like this??]
[These instruments are normally used in different contexts, so I don’t think they’d usually be played together… Oh, this is very fresh.]
[NAYA: Apparently these were ideas the members came up with themselves while working on the songs.]
[That’s really incredible!]
And when Ryu Chungwoo appeared, they eventually became invested even in the story.
[Are they yokai? Earlier, the book had yokai in it….]
[Hmm~ I get it. Look. First of all, this one is a gumiho.]
[Really? …Ah, then could the one at the very beginning be Cheoyong? I think he is.]
Then the channel staff dropped a bombshell.
[NAYA: Why don’t you ask them yourselves?]
[What??]
And the TeSTAR members appeared from off-screen.
[Park Moondae: Hello. I’m Park Moondae of TeSTAR.]
[Cha Eugene: Hello! I am Cha Eugene. This is TeSTAR!]
[Oh my goodness!]
One or two TeSTAR members appeared in each video and sat across from the traditional musician.
Then they created funny, heartwarming scenes with the shocked artists.
[Ah, I had so much fun watching the video!]
[You were totally… like geniuses. The best.]
[You’re even more handsome in person.]
[Um, excuse me… are your eyes actually somewhat impaired….]
[Bae Sejin: ???? N-No…. I, um, was a child actor….]
[Aaaaah! Oh no, I’m so sorry! Your acting with your eyes covered looked so realistic!]
The raw reactions that came out as both sides became flustered created a long stretch of familiarity and humor.
Toward the end, the conversation leaned slightly more serious and moving.
[Honestly, when you keep doing this work, sometimes you feel like we’re growing farther away from the general public. Thank you for showing such an amazing fusion.]
[Park Moondae: We should be the ones thanking you. Thanks to traditional Korean music, we learned that these instruments can make such incredible sounds and were able to use them. Thank you very much.]
[Let’s both keep working hard!]
[Cha Eugene: Good! Let’s hug!]
Then they added a little comedy so the lingering mood wouldn’t become too heavy, and wrapped things up.
[Cha Eugene: But actually, I’m American! I like kkaengkkari!]
[????]
The traditional musician looked confused.
[G-Good…… Even foreigners like it(?)]
That was how the video ended.
And as though it were the most natural thing in the world, it rapidly gained hundreds of thousands, then millions of views the moment it was uploaded, settling comfortably among Korea’s trending videos.
And it wasn’t only that video.
On a WeTube channel specializing in choreography videos, TeSTAR went so far as to perform in full hanbok, while in the preview for a terrestrial variety show, the members appeared playing the traditional instruments assigned to each of them.
They emphasized the album’s appeal points at a level that fit naturally into each piece of content without becoming excessive.
And after diligently laying down the groundwork for the impression that TeSTAR is introducing our country’s traditional Korean music…
The agency began blasting articles about TeSTAR’s overseas schedules onto the main pages of portal sites.
It was a bomb dropped just as Goldie #1’s group had barely begun its first week of promotions.
The operation succeeded.
And it wasn’t as though doing this much could place us in some terrifying position like the symbolic group representing Korea anyway.
VTIC existed.
Still, not everything went according to plan.
Read only on MUGEX
TeSTAR’s first overseas filming schedule of this promotion.
The backstage area, which under normal circumstances would have been busy with various checks, had become complete chaos with urgency and worry.
“Kim Raebin!”
“Are you okay??”
“I-I don’t know……”
Kim Raebin, his face drained completely white, reached toward his right foot and then hurriedly pulled his hand back.
It was obvious the pain was severe.
“Raebin, don’t touch your foot.”
“Do we have a kit??”
“Let me see!”
The staff hurriedly removed his shoe and carefully checked his condition.
The top of his foot was visibly swollen and bleeding.
Damn it.
I nearly bit my tongue.