<Episode 30>
“Next group, please come forward.”
This time, it was three female trainees.
They were the ones I had grouped with Kang Seoah in the previous round.
‘At least these should do properly.’
After all, they had debuted together with Kang Seoah and gained a fair amount of popularity.
“Hello!”
They greeted loudly and took their positions.
‘What song are they going to perform?’
Soon, the intro began.
[HEY]
It was a song by a four-member girl group from a major agency that had debuted not long ago.
It was characterized by a strong beat and continuous rap.
‘This feels like a bad song choice.’
It didn’t suit them at all. The girls who had gained popularity in the previous round with their pure and cute visuals were now performing a hip concept song, which created a sense of dissonance.
[Even if you want to imitate us
You’re different from the core]
The first line was manageable since the trainee in the rapper position handled it.
The real problem started after that.
[You won’t get another chance
So step down yourself]
As soon as the trainee in the sub-vocal position opened her mouth, my lips pressed tightly together on their own.
‘I expected something like this, but this is really not it.’
I glanced to the side and saw the Spade Joker members’ eyes shaking violently.
It seemed they couldn’t manage their expressions in the face of such a disastrous performance.
‘Understandable.’
[WOO HOO
Turning red
Like bursting red wine]
It felt like they were wearing clothes that didn’t fit.
The song choice was completely wrong.
In a previous round, after their debut, they had attempted a concept like this for a special stage. It hadn’t been particularly satisfying then either, but it hadn’t been this bad.
‘Is it because they’re still trainees? Or because Kang Seoah, their core member, is absent?’
But even Kang Seoah wasn’t someone specialized in this type of song.
So I couldn’t figure out the exact reason for this level of collapse.
With the intense beat, the trainees began dancing.
‘If you look closely, their skills aren’t that bad.’
Despite knowing a broadcast crew was filming, choosing this kind of song showed a lack of self-awareness and planning.
And those were important qualities for an idol.
“Thank you.”
The performance ended, but I couldn’t speak easily.
The three of them fidgeted with their fingers and looked at us with desperate eyes.
“…Well. It’s hard to say you did well or poorly. But watching the stage, I didn’t feel any anticipation for what kind of performance you would show next.”
My tone was gentle, but the content wasn’t.
That was the best I could do.
“It felt awkward, like wearing clothes that don’t suit you. Why did you choose this song? You had a color that suited you.”
“We wanted to try a different image. We kept hearing that our image had limits, so we wanted to show that we could do other things too… I think we got greedy.”
One of them answered on behalf of the group.
They lowered their heads, completely dejected.
For a brief moment, I felt a hint of sympathy… but I couldn’t comfort them.
“It would’ve been better to go with a pure or bright concept. Not because of your visuals, but because of your vocal tone.”
The Spade Joker members nodded in agreement with my words.
“I agree with the CEO. Your vocal tones are pretty, so I wondered why you didn’t choose a song that highlights that strength.”
“Even so, if you decided to do this song, it would’ve been better if you tried to roughen your voices a bit. If you chose that song, you should’ve put in the effort to match it… not just study expressions. And having a pretty vocal tone is a big strength, so I think you should try to make use of that.”
“Yes…”
‘It might be better to ask for them not to be aired.’
Fans of the original song might not like this performance. They could say it’s disrespectful to the original artist.
‘After filming, I should have a serious talk with PD Yoo. Unfortunately, there’s no one here fit to go on broadcast. The only thing worth salvaging might be Spade Joker’s reality show.’
Since there was nothing more to say, I moved on to the next group.
After several more performances, it was finally the last one.
Kang Seoah walked out together with three other female trainees.
‘At least these have to do well.’
Without realizing it, I found myself rooting for them.
At this point, I really needed someone good to appear.
If this level of disappointment made it to broadcast, launching a girl group would be impossible.
“Hello.”
They bowed so deeply it looked like their heads might touch the floor.
“We’ll begin.”
The intro started.
‘Oh? This song…?’
It was a famous song that anyone could recognize from just the intro.
It was “In Our Time,” the debut song of the so-called national girl group “Sprinkle.”
A pure yet powerful choreography stood out, and the high notes were demanding.
‘You wouldn’t pick this unless you were confident in your skills.’
The trainees teamed with Kang Seoah were ones I had never debuted before.
Mio has deep double eyelids and a classic Japanese beauty look.
Lim Hyeju has monolids, a pure appearance, and a slender figure.
Park Chaeha, who had a cute face but was tall.
‘Looking at them like this, the balance is pretty good.’
Their teamwork didn’t look bad either.
Even as the choreography intensified and formations changed during the intro, they moved like a group that had trained together for a long time.
[I want to tell you
My feelings]
Mio started first.
Her pronunciation was good for a Japanese member.
[After everything ends
I don’t want to cry]
Lim Hyeju stepped forward, covering her eyes with her hand.
Her skill level wasn’t exceptional, but she had a strangely captivating charm.
‘Maybe the song choice helped too.’
If I had to pick the one who suited this song best, it was definitely Lim Hyeju.
She expressed both purity and a subtle sense of longing perfectly.
[This moment together
You and me
The definition between us]
The next part belonged to Park Chaeha.
Even though four people were performing a song originally sung by eight, it didn’t feel lacking.
[Now tell me your heart
(How long will I wait?)]
Their vocal harmony was solid.
[At the end of my gaze
You’re always there
Why didn’t you realize it?]
Kang Seoah’s clear voice brought out the highlight of the song.
‘No wonder fans say her voice sounds like it’s never inhaled even a speck of dust.’
[I like you
I’m saying I love you
The destination I’ve dreamed of
Before the last bus leaves
Show me your true feelings]
In the chorus, all four voices became one.
It was quite a high note, and it was impressive that they could pull it off while performing such intense choreography.
‘This is on a completely different level from the others today.’
If I graded them, the earlier trainees were around D or C.
This performance was easily an A.
‘Why haven’t I noticed these others until now?’
They could form a group just like this.
The girl group I had planned was a pure and cute concept anyway.
Perfect for them.
[I like you
I’m saying I love you
The destination I’ve dreamed of
Before the last bus leaves
Show me your true feelings]
The chorus repeated.
It seemed they had edited the song themselves.
‘Not bad.’
I had only asked for about one verse, but I didn’t expect them to edit it like this.
[Show me]
Kang Seoah stepped slightly to the right during the choreography and delivered a solid high note.
It wasn’t strained or shaky.
Even the other trainees watching unconsciously let out “Wow.”
[In our time]
They finished cleanly with their ending pose.
I was extremely satisfied.
“Thank you.”
They even finished with a proper closing greeting.
“Were you four originally close?”
“Yes.”
“That explains why your teamwork is so good. It feels like you were always one team. Your vocal harmony is nice, too.”
“Thank you!”
They bowed as intensely as before, almost touching their heads to the floor.
I was almost worried they might get dizzy.
“A 90-degree bow is enough.”
“Yes!”
They answered energetically… but somehow, I felt like they’d keep doing it anyway.
“Spade Joker, why don’t you say something too?”
“Considering they’re trainees, it’s really amazing. It felt like watching a music show.”
At Kain’s words, a smile spread across Kang Seoah’s lips.
“I don’t think I was this good when I was a trainee. You’ll debut soon, won’t you?”
The four of them grabbed each other’s hands and started jumping up and down.
After hearing continuous praise, it was inevitable.
Especially since all the previous teams had received harsh criticism.
“Watching them made me feel a sense of crisis. Like, ‘I need to practice harder. If trainees are this good, what about us?’”
“Did you match all the angles one by one?”
“Yes. Since it’s a song known for synchronized choreography, we thought it’d be better to match it precisely. So we filmed ourselves and adjusted everything one by one.”
I nodded unconsciously.
‘Right. You need that level of passion for the stage.’
It felt like I needed to seriously reconsider the lineup for the new girl group today.
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