Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols
SS Chapter 18: A Growth Narrative (3)
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TL: FoodieMonster007
≫ The fact that spArk hasn't lost their original spirit even in their 6th year and is still carrying the 'youth' title is what makes them spArk
└ That's power
└ Maintaining everyone's visuals is power. Not a single member has let themselves go.
≫ I missed this flavor…
└ Me tooㅠ I thought we'd only see this kind of perfectly executed refreshing concept at a concert ㅠㅠㅠ
≫ They say rockers don't age, and it's true. Our Joowoo looks the same as he did 5 years ago. The other members do too, but that one Chinchilla is especially glowing.
└ Isn't it because he's in a band?
└ Hahahaha
The Sparklers gave a huge welcome to the fresh and green spArk, who had returned after a long time.
Gritting our teeth to prepare had been a good idea. We had fair skin with transparent makeup that masqueraded as a natural glow and soft, fluffy baby hairs that scattered in the wind. We wore white shirts perfect for a laundry detergent commercial, Converse shoes, and cobalt blue varsity jackets that suited our cool-toned skin. The vivid confetti and blue-themed instruments completed the look.
"Hyung, are you still reading the comments?" Lee Cheonghyeon asked amidst the bustle.
"I'm done reading. Now I'm categorizing them."
Customer monitoring and reaction analysis were essential for this follow-up work. Since I had proposed it, I handled the work myself instead of entrusting it to someone else.
≫ Their grit is insane. Coming back in their 6th year with a concept that's an extension of their debut song, practicing their instruments to death to come back with a band song, they did it all.
└ Our boys were high schoolers, when did they become college students and form a band club ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
└ Back then, more than half of them were really high school students. I can't believe they're all in their 20s now ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
≫ Putting everything else aside, the quality of the song is insane. If Speaker had a rock festival vibe, 'An Unspeakable Story' has a more easy-listening? Mainstream…? feel.
└ Koreans have always loved bands. It's just that the band scene is small.
└ But then again, isn't the band market not really growing?
└ There have always been enthusiasts. It's just that the lineage of mainstream bands was cut off for a while…
≫ Looks like spArk is going two-track now with dance and band, hahahaha. You need this much talent to not be called washed up… Amazing.
└ It's not really two-track, they're releasing a choreography video this time too.
└ Are they dancing on music shows?
└ They're doing live band performances on music shows, but it seems they filmed a performance video too.
The public's evaluation was also positive. The most important thing for a band song was achieving harmony and producing quality without any disappointing parts from a lack of skill. Thanks to the wonderful song and our improved performance, we released the track without compromise.
≫ When it comes to ball sports, Choi Jeho never fails. I'm looking forward to your soccer, table tennis, water polo, and American football, and you were acting all flirty, spinning your sticks while drumming, not knowing the wrath of the public. Tone it down if you don't want to be emperor for life.
└ Looking at what he's been doing lately, Choi Jeho is the fox. Cheonghyeon is a giant harpy eagle.
└ He'll just be sitting and drumming on music shows, but I'm so excited for the fancam. Ready to make a ton of gifs.
≫ Jeong Seongbin gives off such a popular business major/student president vibe, it's tough. If you're not going to come to my school, don't do this kind of concept. It makes me feel deprived.
└ Don't be too hard on Seongbin. Our boy went from being a group project leader to the student president, he's carrying a heavy burden.
└ Hahahahahahaha
└ 2:47 Seongbin was such a mature 'god-baby' leader, when did he become such an adult leader…
≫ There's emotion in Iwol's bass playing..*♡ Kim Iwol Bass Compilation 1 Hour
└ Iwol, when did you play the bass this much? Hahaha
└ This is the exact video I was looking for. Thank you, you'll be blessed…
└ Did Iwol change his bass??
└└ He bought a new one!
└└└ I liked the old one because the members bought it for him ㅠㅠㅠ Does anyone know why he bought a new one…?
└└└└ When you major in an instrument, a lot of people use several different ones ㅎ
≫ He gives reverse-tributes to fans left and right and gets gifts for all the members on their birthdays, but we wouldn't have known the biggest purchase he made for himself was a bass if Kiyeon hadn't told us, this indifferent ahjussi.
└ I was sad thinking we wouldn't see the old bass anymore, and after sending a brick of photos showing off his new bass, he sends ten selfies with the white bass saying the one he's used to is still the best. This guilty ahjussi!!!
≫ The maknaes who had friendship keychains during Flowering. This time, they have matching patches on their varsity jackets + instrument stickers. Looks like the high school friends are keeping their friendship going in college, hahaha.
└ The fact that they went from small keychains to giant doll keychains, tons of patches, and rainbow hologram stickers now that some time has passed is making me crack up, hahaha.
└ I also personally liked that they got a part to sing together. It was an unexpected combination because of their positions, but it became my favorite part.
└└ Just how viciously did those UE bastards train them.
└└└ Hahahahahaha
≫ The saying 'Choi Jeho is in charge of the entrance, Park Joowoo is in charge of blocking the exit' is perfect. Joowoo, I can't quit being a fan because of you.
└ His voice is one of a kind, there's never been one like it and never will be… If I miss out now, I feel like I'll never get to hear it live.
└ He's not in the spotlight so it's not obvious, but there's no one as much of an all-rounder as Joowoo ㅠㅠ
With such excellent results, there was little room for worried voices to emerge. I had anticipated a certain amount of negative evaluation. I expected things like, "Is spArk just a stepping stone for Park Joowoo's band dream?" or "There's a reason older male idols don't do youthful concepts." In reality, such comments were not entirely absent.
≫ This post has been deleted.
└ It's always the XXs who haven't even watched the music video who get excited and spew hate after seeing screenshots others have posted. J.W. only had a solo vocal part once in Speaker, and they released a 6-member vocal version for the repackage, but they're still going on and on about favoritism.
└ Connect was just fan service at a XX concert, hahaha. Anyone would think P.J.W. dragged the members on stage as his session band for a solo performance. From Connect onward, he was stuck in the very back row because of P.J.W.'s huge DJ booth, what favoritism are you talking about?
└ They're still complaining even when the parts are divided up like a pizza. The guitarists were moved to the front and the chorus was split among everyone, what more does he have to do? F*ck, if he moves any further back, he'll fall off the stage.
≫ spArk is just pitiful now. They don't have that same feeling from their debut… Ah, the difference between the reactions when they were at their peak and the reactions now feels huge.
└ These bastards must think getting #1 on the music charts is a joke. It's so obvious you haven't streamed, hahaha.
└ The trolling is insane. No exaggeration, I've seen at least three posts today saying spArk is washed up.
└ And yet they can't even show their own idol's results, album sales, or live performance clips. What makes them so confident to criticize someone else's group? lol.
However, the negativity never escalated to a level worth monitoring and quieted down on its own. We had a need, we delivered a good product, the consumers were satisfied, and the results were good. It was only natural.
It made me realize again how much meaningless, malicious criticism exists in the world. There might be sharp critiques among them, but I could tell the difference. As long as the company's feedback remained objective, I didn't need to search for things to fix in anti-fan posts.
I've grown since the days I made a collection of malicious comments.
A laugh escaped me. I had a mountain of work, so what disaster would happen if I ignored one piece of criticism? Even if their condemnation was true, why did I have to accept every single insult thrown my way?
I couldn't think this way back then. I was impatient and anxious, believing I had to accept all criticism and fix it somehow. It was not a healthy mindset.
Idols are in a profession where they will be evaluated until they retire. The company, the music charts, and the comments on broadcast stations and entertainment channels will all apply countless standards. So why did I bother digging for even worse posts? If I truly needed bitter advice, my manager, colleagues, or fans would have told me.
"If you've looked enough, shouldn't you rest now?"
Lee Cheonghyeon was already cautioning me just for looking at my phone for a bit.
"Alright, I'm turning it off."
"Your tone is so annoying."
Lee Cheonghyeon clicked his tongue in exasperation and left. Just as I was about to close the internet window, a message arrived from my older sister.
Noona: [(Photo has been sent.)]
[[Watched the MV, it was good]
[[You're a real celebrity]
Me: [I was always a celebrity…]
Noona: [Hahahahaha]
In the screenshot of the music video, the 'Like' button was faintly visible. When I thanked her for watching, a thumbs-up reaction came back instead of a reply. It was mundane and nice.
spArk had not changed much, but some things change even when people stay the same. These changes mostly came naturally with time.
A prime example was the spacious waiting room. As rookies, we either shared a waiting room with another team or were assigned a space far too small for us and our staff.
Then, as time passed and junior artists outnumbered seniors on the cast list, we started getting waiting rooms with large sofas and mirrors. It was amazing.
I was proud of our long, scandal-free career, but it was also a burden. This much space was necessary for the spArk members' long legs, but I wondered if it would have been better if two groups could share a room like this.
However, I refrained from calling over people from other rooms to ask, 'Would you like to put some of your things here?' because the very presence of a senior would likely be uncomfortable. In an age where people say you should even get a different hotel floor from your boss on a business trip, asking them to share a waiting room? That's not a favor. It's pressure. In the entertainment industry, where you can be ostracized for a single greeting, it's not easy to relax while breathing the same air as a senior.
So, after greeting the groups we ran into, we stayed cooped up in our waiting room. We used to be the ones going around to all the waiting rooms to say hello, but we stopped. People who were resting comfortably kept jumping to their feet when their seniors arrived.
"At this point, aren't we basically in exile?" Kang Kiyeon asked a reasonable question.
Just as I was about to agree with him, a visitor arrived.
"Hey, guys. The members of Sayder are here to say hello," Manager Chanyoung informed us.
It was Sayder. They were the main group of the fan I had met while waiting in line for eight hours at Imjingak.