The Road to Glory Chapter 159 - If the World Ends Tomorrow

“Hello, are you his bassist?”

“I know you, Moon! I saw your excellent performance.”

“Hi, cute drummer?”

“Hi. But I’m not cute. Call me sexy.”

Coachella’s impact wasn’t fragmentary.

Although no one received more attention than the singer Halo, interest spread like spilled ink on paper.

To Halo’s session musicians, that is.

No one could deny that they were the session musicians who recorded with Halo for his 6th album “Dancing in the Rain”.

The timing matched perfectly, and they ultimately proved at Coachella that they were Halo’s session musicians.

Just as they received numerous inquiries and offers in Korea afterward, quite a few people recognized them at a home party in LA.

Some even approached them.

It’s unexpected if anything.

Everyone thought people would flock to Halo. Didn’t everyone initially look at them with cold eyes?

Actually, it’s not strange at all.

They’re already receiving worldwide attention just for being Halo’s session musicians, and even if they weren’t, there would be people everywhere who need their skills proven on such a big stage.

Even if not needed right away, it’s good to know capable session musicians for recording or performances.

Of course, the status of ‘Halo’s session musicians’ can’t be ignored. They thought so implicitly. But that doesn’t become jealousy or inferiority.

“What do you usually do when you’re bored?”

“You must be tired too. Having to follow him wherever he goes. I know those hardships well. The vocalist I used to work with-“

After all, even they are big fans of Halo.

“Well, I’ve never been bored.”

“That’s unfortunate. I hope you meet a good singer like I did. May I go first?”

“…What are you saying? Speak Korean to Koreans.”

Although their fandom might be a bit different from other fans, they like and respect him. That bond might be a rare one not seen in other bands.

“It’s fun, but I hope no one’s forcing Haeil to drink?”

“Oh no. Surely not to boss… I think he was going with Jason… Hey, Nam Gyuhwan, don’t just eat anything carelessly. It might contain marijuana.”

“Marijuana? They put marijuana in food?”

“Haven’t you heard of marijuana brownies? They really like putting weird things in food here. Weed and toothpaste… pineapple and stuff. They’re really strange people.”

“The last two are delicious though.”

When they came to brainstorm at a typical American home party, a place they’d only seen in teen dramas, they were bewildered but quickly adapted and enjoyed themselves moderately until it was time to look for Halo.

Halo was looking around the cramped room.

“Hey, Halo, what do you think of this?”

“…It’s not bad, but I’d prefer something a bit more-“

“Okay, I get exactly what you mean.”

It was fun to have people who shared the same opinions even when speaking vaguely.

It was interesting how they all kept producing melodies without stopping, and he liked their unnecessary attempts.

For instance, the attempt to create a melody while listening to the cuckoo of a clock suddenly.

However, Halo hadn’t achieved his purpose yet.

The reason he came to a party after a long time.

Of course, just having fun would be nice, but there was another reason for coming here.

Halo lightly brought up the main point.

“So, when were you planning to tell me about your thing together?”

“Oh.”

At that moment, the guys who were strumming their guitars while producing melodies looked at him. They stared at him with surprised faces.

“How did you know this wasn’t that project?”

There were people he already knew at this gathering and people he met here. If we broaden the meaning of ‘know’, everyone knew each other to some extent.

After all, weren’t these guys who made unnecessary music pop stars who frequented the Billboard charts? Halo, who doesn’t watch others’ broadcasts much but listens to others’ music well, had heard their music at least once each.

But if ‘know’ means interaction, most of them were meeting for the first time. If he had seen Jason or another one during the Coachella rehearsal, the rest were people he was talking to for the first time.

“If it was that, I would have been disappointed.”

“Why! How! We made it fun, didn’t we? This is what brainstorming is all about, friend.”

“It was fun. Though your taste seems a bit older than mine – ” As Halo, called the essence of Britpop, mentioned ‘old’, most burst into laughter. “- can’t help it. Can’t expect young things from old folks.”

“Ugh, old folks!”

The young singers in their 20s and 30s couldn’t deny it to the sixteen-year-old Halo.

Although it might look like they’ve known each other for years, that’s not the case.

Halo responded calmly in a place where most were meeting for the first time. It’s not like he’s shy by nature, and originally, Halo had a bit of shamelessness and sociability that allowed him to get along with people he just met like old friends.

“Okay, I don’t know how you noticed, but I’ll stop.”

Frau, who had discovered a teenage-like expression, wiped away tears as he spoke. He was the first person to suggest a collaboration at Augustus Records.

“But I won’t tell you. This is like a secret we’ll share only among our team. However, there is one way for you to know.”

“What is it?”

Halo asked, though he seemed to know the answer.

Jason added with a look that said why are you even asking.

“It’s for you to collaborate with us too.”

“Ah, of course, we need to make an ‘adult promise’ too.”

It meant they wouldn’t tell him unless he formally agreed to collaborate.

Expressing it as an ‘adult promise’ was probably to tease him about his age.

Halo pondered.

There weren’t any special plans until the tour, but

When looked at with eyes that seemed to say ‘Do you want to?’, he didn’t really want to.

If he had a song to work on,

-If I had to say, love?

Or,

-It’s about trying a genre you haven’t done before.

If someone’s trivial advice hadn’t come to mind unnecessarily, there would have been no reason to get involved.

“I heard it was a boring love song.”

“Who said that? Jason? Is it about… love? It’s correct in a broad sense.”

“But it won’t be the simple love song you’re thinking of.”

“That’s right, we old-timers with old-fashioned tastes can’t stand boring love songs.”

As if to brief, several people start to speak but close their mouths.

Whatever the subject was, it was clearly a topic that easily excited them. What kind of interesting love song would be made by guys who make music with a cuckoo clock and create melodies when their stomachs suddenly growl?

But he’s not the type to easily say he wants to do it either.

Halo looked around and smiled faintly.

“I don’t want to do it. It doesn’t seem fun.”

“!”

The guys who had welcomed Halo as soon as they saw him were startled.

This answer seemed unexpected, and Frau, sitting on the bed, responded.

“One thing’s for sure, it’s definitely not a boring topic.”

“That’s right, you’ll like it too.”

Halo remembered that they hadn’t said they absolutely wouldn’t tell him, but had set a condition for him.

And seeing them continue to persuade him, he thought they might want to work with him.

There weren’t just one or two artists in the world who wanted to work with him, and even if they didn’t show it, it was impossible not to see.

Jason gestures as if to just let him go, but can’t say anything to him, while the rest seem to implicitly hope to work with him.

“If it was such an interesting topic, you would have told me earlier.”

When he realized this, Halo was no longer in an inferior position.

“!”

“You want to hear my answer first because you’re not confident in persuading me, right?”

“This, this is a secret project and…”

“If it’s not interesting, I won’t do it, but if it is, I’ll definitely do it.”

Of course, they might think he’ll steal the topic.

But then again, it’s unlikely to be a topic so unique that no one has ever tried it.

That would mean it’s extremely niche.

Pop singers living in the mainstream are unlikely to bring up an extremely niche topic.

Even if he liked it enough to want to steal it, he had no intention of doing so. As he’s said before, he’s not the type to get pleasure from stealing others’ things, and through Rendezvous in Korea, he learned the joy of collaboration.

Halo added for their sake.

“I can promise this. If it’s interesting, I’ll do it with you guys. If you want, I can even make an ‘adult promise’.”

Actually, they don’t need to be obsessed with Halo. They’re already recognized pop singers, and whether Halo joins the collaboration or not, they should be confident in its success.

However, it’s not like he’s attaching difficult conditions, and since it’s uncertain when they’ll be able to collaborate again. Is there any need to refuse?

Well, unless it’s really a special topic that no one else has ever tried.

People look at each other.

Then, soon Frau shook his head as if he had lost.

Jason, who understood the signal

“Alright, we need to work now, so can everyone leave?”

started to chase out those who wouldn’t be part of the project.

“See, I told you Halo wouldn’t agree right away. Hand over ten dollars.”

“Are you serious?”

Don’t know when they made the bet, but two other guys had made a bet, and Frau spoke after everyone left.

“If the world ends tomorrow.”

“!”

“That’s the topic.”

“Oh.”

“What do you think?”

Halo honestly admired it.

A topic and concept he hadn’t tried before.

He immediately thought it would be fun.

For him, and for others too.

It wasn’t the love song he had thought of, but he could understand why the topic was love.

“Sounds fun.”

“Right? I knew you’d say that.”

Frau, who had first brought up this topic, nodded with a smile.

“Now, let’s get into it seriously, gentlemen.”

“Now that we have young, fresh blood, let’s throw out ideas without showing our age. The more useless, the better.”

“Let’s not start with nonsense about planting an apple tree.”

At the unconsciously uttered words, Frau and the others laughed together.

“An American would start the day with a McMorning, right?”

“Why? My mom would make pancakes.”

“Then write that in the lyrics, you mama’s boy.”

“Fuck, do you know how delicious my mom’s pancakes are?”

The opening salvo was nonsense.

However, Frau pulled out a whiteboard from somewhere and wrote down McMorning, pancakes, and mama’s boy, waving both palms upwards to encourage more opinions.

Halo thought about the topic while listening to the nonsense.

If the world ends tomorrow.

There were people who said the world would end in 1999.

He had ignored it because it was something far in the future whether it ended or not, but thinking about it now, it was no different from nonsense.

After all, isn’t it 2032 now? 33 years have passed since the supposed doomsday, but this world is still going on well.

So, if the world were to end.

“So why is the world ending tomorrow anyway?”

“Oh, um. Because we used too much plastic?”

“How about an asteroid?”

“In the 21st century, wouldn’t it be a nuclear explosion after all?”

“These days, the trend is a gate, you know.”

“That was a good idea, Halo. But as a teenager, why don’t you try to be a bit more imaginative? You just sounded a bit like you’re in your 30s.”

Halo chuckled and admired Frau’s insight.

“Just, in other words, humanity, specifically we, only have 24 hours left. Let’s think of it as if everyone has become terminally ill.”

Terminally ill.

Halo suddenly realized that it wasn’t much different from his situation. The world might not end tomorrow, but couldn’t his time end tomorrow?

And at the word ‘terminally ill’, the people in this room seemed to think more seriously.

“I think I’d just spend it like any other day.”

“Wow, that’s cliché.”

“Call it classic. The classics are eternal, right? I’d wake up listening to the music I like, have the brunch I like with the people I love. I think I’d say all the things I couldn’t say before.”

“Is there anything you couldn’t say?”

“Well, oh Lucy. Honestly, your cod dish really sucks.”

“Wow, I’ll tell her later.”

“Oh, please don’t.”

The one who made the joke said he would lie on the beach all day, listening to the sound of waves crashing, seagulls crying, and seeing how beautiful the night sky is. Of course, with the people he loves.

“Since it’s the last day anyway, wouldn’t it be dangerous? We might unleash violence we’ve been holding back, or want to curse at people we don’t like.”

“Oh, well. Wouldn’t that be a waste of time? There’s not enough time even to say all the good things.”

“I’ll drive at top speed and scatter all my wealth across the city, like a cliché.”

“How romantic.”

Halo pondered what he would do as he watched the growing opinions and memos on the whiteboard.

If he knew Roh Haeil would return tomorrow, what would he be doing?

The retirement he’s been longing for?

No way. That doesn’t seem likely.

After all, he’d automatically retire when he dies.

“My last-“

At those words, everyone’s eyes focused on the boy.

“I’d be singing.”

“That’s the most textbook answer.”

“Why? It’s a very Halo-like answer. But add some details. You’re not saying you’d sing in the shower, right?”

Of course not.

Details, huh.

Halo added, as if it was obvious.

“In front of people.”

“Oh, still typical so far.”

“In front of people who love me.”

“Oh, not in front of people you love?”

“They’d obviously love me too, wouldn’t they?”

“!…Okay, that’s a profound answer to a simple question.”

Then they all fell silent.

As if still wanting Halo’s answer.

“I’d sing all the songs I want to sing before I go. Even if my voice breaks.”

“Oh ho, and then?”

“I hope it rains.”

“Why?”

“Just. It’s cooler to sing while getting rained on, right?”

“That’s an answer befitting a teenager who doesn’t understand the importance of joints.”

“Still, it is cool. With thunder and lightning in the background.”

“It does feel like the day before the world ends.”

No one had a serious face.

It might have been said without much thought.

Actually, there was no need to tell the real honest story in this place. Isn’t this world where the outside and inside are different?

However, no one asked if it was a lie, and they thought of it as a truthful story.

“And?”

Frau asked with a smile.

“Of course, I’d have to dive off the stage.”

Diving into people was the image of his last day that he wanted. He would see the sky like a jellyfish drifting in the sea, pushed by the wave of people, and beautiful stars would adorn the sky. You say the sky would be cloudy if it rains? Let’s say it cleared up.

“What do you think you’d be thinking then?”

Actually, the theme of ‘world’s end’ has been dealt with quite a lot here and there. Not only in media like movies and dramas, but also in things like writing contests. And in the end, that theme tends to lead to a few conclusions.

The first is love.

Most people said they would spend time with the people they love. Not many said they would seek revenge.

The second is daily life.

Surprisingly, not many people say they would do something unusual. They might look back on what they’ve been missing all this time.

Like this, this song would eventually have the same conclusion.

A day spent with loved ones.

Conveying beautiful words they couldn’t say before,

Regretting why they couldn’t say them normally,

Being grateful that they can do it now.

And in the end-.

“I’d feel regret even though I lived without regrets.”

“Regret?”

“I’d want to experience a day like this tomorrow too.”

Those who heard Halo’s answer smiled slightly.

Tomorrow.

The whiteboard was already full of keywords.

“It’s complete.”

They had just thrown out words that could become lyrics, but there was still a lot left to do. From composition to part distribution, session recording, and unlike Halo’s previous albums, there would be numerous procedures to go through, not just simple ones.

However, they all thought it was complete.

To reiterate, these are people who enter the Billboard charts as if it’s their daily bread.

Only people who are called or were called geniuses are here, and most of them even know how to compose.

From composition to lyrics, parts, recording.

The production of the song might actually be finished within a week.

No, it might even be finished before this party ends.

At least, no one wanted to end it here.

Rather, as if to say let’s start now, or as if feeling ticklish, they touched their guitar strings to test them.

As if inspiration was gushing from their heads.

Frau also had no intention of ending it now.

However, it seemed necessary to organize the schedule.

Everyone else knows, but one person doesn’t know.

“Halo, when did you say your world tour was?”

“November.”

“Do you have any other schedules?”

“Not yet.”

“Then that’s fortunate.”

“Why?”

When Halo asked back, people looked at each other instead.

They wondered if they hadn’t told him earlier. They were sure they had.

“We need to shoot a music video, you know.”

“!”

He had heard about the music video, but he had completely forgotten about it.

Right, there was such a thing.

It would be the first music video as Roh Haeil, but Halo nodded without much excitement. How to shoot it hasn’t been decided yet, but he’s not interested right now. What he wants to do right now is to bring out the music that’s ringing in his ears.

And there seem to be at least five guys here who want to do that.

And a week from that day.

The internet, which had been noisy about announcing the schedule for Halo’s LP album and World Tour ticketing, would be dominated by one article.

[Exclusive] HALO · Jason Dyke · … and rapper Frau Dwen’s Hollywood-style super-luxurious collaboration