Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols
SS Chapter 14: Winds of Change (2)
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TL: FoodieMonster007
Male idols commonly contract several diseases.
First is the Man-Disease. This type suddenly becomes obsessed with manliness. He disregards the image his fans love and chases only his own aesthetic. He focuses solely on building muscle and ignores his proportions. A key symptom is frequently wearing black tank tops with deep necklines and large armholes.
Second is the Hip-Hop Disease. This type desperately complains about suffering the most and staying up until 4 AM. He does this even though managers and staff have three more hours before going home, and agency employees work all day at their desks. If he had outstanding musical talent, this could produce masterpieces. Unfortunately, it's more common for him to tragically express his ego only through outfits, rap lyrics, or Instagram.
Third is the Artist-Disease. This happens when an idol who built his career on idol music starts bashing K-Pop culture. He will stubbornly push a song anyone can tell is bad as the title track. He might also choose genres that don't suit his voice at all. Then, when the song fails on the charts, he tends to blame the listeners.
Objectively, Park Joowoo had long, pure practice hours. While other members were busy composing or creating choreography, Park Joowoo practiced the entire time. He was already a top-tier vocalist among male idols and continued to receive training. It was safe to say his musical knowledge was overflowing.
Park Joowoo wasn't ashamed of spArk's songs either. If he had been, I wouldn't have just stood by. Even with his black album art, spArk's songs were always on Park Joowoo's playlist. Before every concert meeting, he would bring a different song and pester us to perform it. That meant he was motivated.
However! You never know when or where a male idol's mentality might go astray. They are weak and lack conviction. Unless they are a fiercely determined pro with strong beliefs, they wander easily. When those moments accumulate, they become a cringey past you want to erase from the internet three years later!
Simply enjoying various genres is not a problem. The story changes, however, when signals appear from multiple directions.
The fans are so sharp. Do you think they'd tolerate a black t-shirt with some unsavory English word on it? Even a single word on BubblePop can reveal a person's mindset.
"This can't be… How could such a disaster befall the pride of Korea, spArk…"
A wave of dizziness hit me, and I collapsed onto the sofa.
Oh, SYSTEM, why do you give me such trials? Did the kids' interest stray from their performance scores just because I introduced OKRs once? If this was going to happen, why did I even bother designing a performance management system?!
Park Joowoo tried to support me as I collapsed.
Feeling resentful, I refused his kindness and flopped onto the sofa.
"So now we're going to have t-shirts with skull drawings delivered to the dorm every day, right? You're going to say you don't want to do cheek hearts, and you're going to make a personal Instagram and post black and white photos, right?"
"Hyung, do you really think I'd become that hopeless…?"
"So you do know that's a hopeless state."
Lee Cheonghyeon, who had been watching, handed me a bottle of plain water. The water tasted bitter.
"It's a misunderstanding. I just wanted to try a new challenge…"
"Really? I do trust you, Joowoo, but are you confident you won't betray my trust?"
"It feels more like you're the one who doesn't trust me, hyung…"
Park Joowoo made a sour face. That wasn't my problem. Neglect is not love. Proper guidance is essential if you want your family to grow well. This could be a critical moment for the dutiful son Park Joowoo, who had never run away or suffered from low self-esteem!
"I won't stop you from listening to rock music and enjoying a harmonious band life with the members. In fact, I encourage it."
"But rebellion is not allowed! Don't look down on being an idol! Remember that even Cheonghyeon, who could have been a classical genius, only did sampling and never composed a spArk symphony!"
"Is that a high-level compliment for Cheonghyeon, hyung?"
"You told me I've become stingy with my compliments!"
"How kind of you!"
Lee Cheonghyeon cackled. My head started to ache from screaming. As I lay my head on a cushion and fumed, Park Joowoo laughed hollowly.
"I'm not buying black t-shirts… and I'm not going to rebel. Being an idol is… my job, so why would I look down on it?"
"Then why did you pick up hard rock?"
A solo album can cater to personal taste more than a group album, but there are limits when your main job is being an idol. Without strong confidence in its commercial success, it was obvious he would face opposition from the company.
"I'm just… trying it out."
"Just that? Really?"
"Hyung, when you first started writing songs, did you work on them thinking they absolutely had to be on an album?"
No. I was just trying to pick up a hobby and ended up being dishonorably put on display…
"When you know how to do more things… you can contribute more to the team, right? Like how you help Cheonghyeon with his songwriting, and how Seongbin finds references for Jeho-hyung and Kiyeon…"
"Ah."
It turned out Park Joowoo was just taking Lee Cheonghyeon's class after learning DJing. I knew because I had experienced Lee Cheonghyeon's teaching method firsthand. He raised concentration by mixing in things the student liked before continuing the lesson. The second student was simply following the same guided process.
"Besides, I'm going through a lot of trial and error, so I don't think I'll have results right away like you did, hyung… you can rest assured."
"Iwol-hyung, why are you discouraging Joowoo-hyung!"
"No, I…!"
My excuses didn't work. No spArk member could act coldly toward Park Joowoo when he made that pitiful face. Even Choi Jeho was soft on Park Joowoo. It was impossible for me to act so shamelessly, since I had returned of my own free will because our lives were intertwined.
"It's because Joowoo-hyung is firm about what he wants and has a lot of things he likes. Iwol-hyung was the complete opposite. If you guide him well, he'll eventually be able to make the exact kind of song you want, hyung!"
"Cheonghyeon, all the songs you made were exactly to my liking…"
"Really?!"
While I lay on the sofa, Park Joowoo and Lee Cheonghyeon created a heartwarming friendship scene. I was the only one left looking like trash, shoved into a corner. It was a truly complicated and subtle feeling.
"Park Joowoo started composing?"
"That's what I'm saying. There are too many talented people on the team. It's hard to keep up."
While I lamented, Choi Jeho didn't even pretend to listen. The punk was busy playing with his drumsticks.
"Does that mean our next title track will be a band song too?" Choi Jeho asked.
The comeback date was rapidly approaching, and the reason Choi Jeho held drumsticks was simple. The title track for this comeback was a band song.
"This time is an exception. We won't be using a band title track again."
"Didn't you say the same thing about 『speaker』 being a one-time event B-side?"
"That's because I thought it would be difficult for the members to handle vocals while playing instruments. It also felt like a waste to perform a song of that caliber on the IDC stage just once."
When we first performed 『speaker』 at IDC, everyone except me and Lee Cheonghyeon was a beginner. After long, grueling practice, we could perform it live, but just playing without mistakes was the best we could do.
A peculiar thing happened. Nobody told them to, but the members didn't put down their instruments. It was understandable for Kang Kiyeon, who always sees things through, or Seongbin, who already had the basics. However, even Choi Jeho would pick up his instrument when he was bored.
That's why the 『Connect』 band live was also possible.
After honing their skills, spArk grew enough to handle both playing instruments and singing at the same time.
Now that our group's range of content had expanded, it felt like a waste to let it rot. There was always a demand for band music, and the fans' reactions were quite good, which was another reason.
If spArk had officially promoted as a band, some might have been bored. However, our only band stages were on a survival program and at a few limited concerts. We pushed for it because we judged it was worth using for official promotions, not because we intended to become a "band-dol". Therefore, the chances of another band title track were slim.
"We only planned it because it fits the album concept and the comeback season. We're not going to milk it, so don't worry."
"Who said I was worried about you milking it?"
"Weren't you worried I'd make you play the drums 365 days a year?"
"What a headache."
"You don't have to have a headache. I'll give myself one worrying so that our dear Choi Jeho will be remembered forever as the best center."
"My nickname is already Center Emperor. What's so important about being remembered as the best center?"
"True, you've got a point. Then just be the Center Emperor."
Choi Jeho muttered something under his breath. His fierce expression told me it was definitely a curse. As his hyung by nine months, I decided to be the bigger person and endure it.
"When did they say we're filming the music video?"
"Next week."
"Mm…"
After asking, Choi Jeho seemed unimpressed. It was probably because he didn't have to go through the hell of getting a slim fit.
I looked at Choi Jeho's sharply defined shoulders. "Hey!"
"What?"
"Do you ever feel embarrassed when you do a cheek heart, or feel the urge to post a mirror selfie on social media right after a workout?"
At my words, Choi Jeho scrunched up his face with all his might. He didn't yield even when I told him to stop before he got wrinkles. The guy shot me the most contemptuous look a human could muster, then spoke.
"If life's getting you down, just go to sleep, and stop talking nonsense."
"I'm telling you in advance, I won't tolerate a case like that in spArk."
"You've been saying the same thing for a million years, and all the guys know you won't tolerate it. Grab anyone and ask them. Ask if they think you'd let them live if they pulled a stunt like that."
"Glad to hear they know."
I sighed in genuine relief and swept a hand over my chest. It was a relief that spArk's lifespan was long.