Chapter 98
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[TRENDING IN SOUTH KOREA]
#BurnAshComeback
#BurnAshTeaser
#BurnAshFirstAlbum
You must be joking.
I sighed.
★
But wasn’t Colors debuting a rookie group right now? Are they overlapping?
Teamkill is real (no subject).
└ Don’t pretend there’s no subject, lol. If you’re going to criticize, just do it openly.
It’s not like they are sabotaging the kids, but having their activities completely overlap like this is seriously too much.
Not even a 2-3 week difference… At this rate, they’re going to be promoting at the same time.
Colors, you don’t have many groups, and you can’t even adjust something like this, lol. Anyone would think you have a hundred idols.
We hate this too. We’re going to get endlessly compared in the charts. Boy groups are naturally weaker in digital sales, and girl groups are weaker in album sales. It’s going to be comparison hell.
Fans of Colors are going to have a field day.
I’m already pissed off just thinking about our idols being compared with theirs.
└ If they start promoting them together on variety shows because they’re from the same agency, it’ll be twice as annoying, lol.
└└ Ugh… I can already see the forced cross-promotion.
If they make us do a joint stage at the end of the year, I’ll lose it.
└ Don’t say things that could come true.
Colors. Are you scared of my anger? Watch out when you walk at night.
Doesn’t Colors care about making Steel Blue’s group number one? Digital sales aside, they’ll be crushed in album sales, lol.
└ Stop pretending to care, just shut up and lower your banner.
The hottest boy group right now, Burn Ash, was making a comeback.
Moreover, it was their first full-length album.
Neither Burn Ash fans nor Steel Blue fans were pleased with this news.
If the promotional periods had only slightly overlapped, it would have been unpleasant but manageable.
However,
One side was releasing their pre-release song while the other was releasing their title track teaser?
This meant their promotional periods were exactly the same.
One side had a debut album.
The other side had their first full-length album.
Neither could afford to lose; both were life-or-death promotions.
Naturally, the competition between the groups became a competition between their fans.
“…”
This was the reason I was facing these two people right now.
“…”
“…”
Dan Ha and Han Jae-i.
Their expressions were as grim as ours.
“First of all.”
It was Lee Sol who spoke first.
Lee Sol was acting as our representative and mediator.
“Before we start talking, let’s establish that there’s no need for anyone to get emotional.”
To be honest, I felt uncomfortable in this situation.
This meeting had been arranged at Lee Sol’s request.
Why was I uncomfortable?
Was it because I was meeting seniors?
No.
It was because I knew this meeting wasn’t practical.
It seemed Lee Sol was here to protest.
Protesting is only meaningful before a problem occurs.
It wasn’t something that could be resolved by protesting.
It’s not like we could say, “Oops, we accidentally released the teaser. We’ll take it back and see you in a month.”
‘You’re the leader, so you need to listen to their situation! Watch and learn. You’ll need to handle this yourself someday.’
I was just following Lee Sol’s lead.
She was so insistent, I couldn’t refuse.
Anyway, Lee Sol had arranged this meeting for our sake, so I came without showing my discomfort.
“Why did you suddenly release the teaser? I’d like to hear your side first. As far as I know, Burn Ash’s comeback was supposed to be next year.”
Burn Ash’s producer was Dan Ha.
Even though they were only in their second year since debut, it was possible because they were currently the most popular idol in Colors and one of the most popular idols overall.
“We specifically scheduled their debut for the end of this year to avoid overlapping with you. We checked the schedules thoroughly, so this sudden release puts us in a tough spot too.”
Lee Sol’s feelings mirrored mine.
Honestly, I couldn’t say anything because I was the junior. If we were in the same year, I would have cursed right away.
“You know both groups will suffer significant losses like this, right? Why did you do it, Dan Ha?”
Fortunately, it seemed Lee Sol and Dan Ha were at least acquaintances.
“First of all.”
But it was Han Jae-i who spoke up.
Both of their expressions were bad, but Dan Ha looked worse.
“It’s not our doing, senior.”
“!”
Han Jae-i sounded genuinely aggrieved.
He looked not just aggrieved but somewhat angry.
“Then?”
“We were just as shocked as you when the teaser was suddenly released.”
Han Jae-i was forcing a smile, but it was clear he wasn’t actually smiling.
His usually cheerful face was filled with anger.
“So it was just a company mistake?”
“I don’t think it was a mistake.”
What was this?
Lee Sol and I raised our eyebrows at his incomprehensible words.
“It was Director Sung’s order.”
“…What?”
“Since it’s our first full-length album, Director Sung got involved. Because of the huge investment, and it being our first full-length, he participated.”
It meant it wasn’t a solo production.
But I hadn’t expected Director Sung to be involved.
Director Sung was a relative of CEO Hong and one of the top executives at Colors.
He mainly handled boy groups.
“He said he’d only be involved in the promotions and wouldn’t touch the album or activities, so we didn’t refuse. Director Sung is good at that stuff.”
“…Right.”
Director Sung was a capable person, though a bit greedy.
The problem was his communication skills were poor, and he was very stubborn.
“But we didn’t expect him to suddenly release the teaser without telling us.”
“Did you protest?”
“Of course we did.”
“What did he say?”
“Director Sung mentioned that our label will be split next year. Did you know about this, senior?”
Lee Sol was at a loss for words.
Did we know?
Of course, Lee Sol and I knew.
It was more surprising that Burn Ash didn’t know until now.
“You knew. Well, with your experience, it would be odd if you didn’t.”
Han Jae-i gave a bitter smile.
Burn Ash was only in their second year.
It would be hard for them to be familiar with the company’s internal affairs.
They were just barely past being rookies.
“Anyway, while talking about that, Director Sung said there’s no point in us low-ranked people complaining. He wouldn’t listen to anything we said.”
Considering the teaser was already out, what could we do?
“You know, senior… Director Sung wants to take us when the label splits next year. But Director Kim also wants to take us.”
Of course.
Burn Ash was the most promising group in Colors right now.
Their seniors were approaching their contract renewals, so it wouldn’t be surprising if they left the company anytime soon.
But Burn Ash still had plenty of time left on their contract.
“I think Director Sung wants to hinder Director Kim’s success as much as possible. Starting from the fourth quarter this year, their performance will be evaluated, and if Director Kim successfully debuts a rookie group, it will negatively impact Director Sung’s year-end performance.”
Hearing their situation, I had nothing more to say.
The only fault of Burn Ash was having a terrible superior.
Considering we also had Director Kim as a villain, we could deeply empathize with their situation.
“So… you’re victims too.”
“…Yes. Sorry.”
“We really had no choice. We’re sorry, senior. We know how much you’re concerned… And to you, too. It must have been really hard with your debut album.”
Dan Ha and Han Jae-i bowed their heads and apologized to us.
Neither Lee Sol nor I could say anything more.
We understood why their expressions were so grim.
They must have been as unhappy with Director Sung’s unilateral decision as we were.
Releasing the teaser without any consultation.
But at the same time, they had no choice but to comply.
Their situation must be just as frustrating.
The problem was.
This was a game we had no chance of winning.
As for digital sales… We might be able to compete.
Burn Ash was strong in digital sales for a boy group, thanks to Dan Ha.
If our song was really good… then it might be possible.
But
There was no comparison in album sales.
It would be at least ten times higher for them.
A rookie girl group against a top boy group.
Album sales were no match.
Knowing this, Director Sung pushed Burn Ash forward.
If he thought there was any chance of losing to us, he wouldn’t have released them.
No matter how urgent, he couldn’t have done it.
Ultimately, this happened because we were weak.
It was unfortunate that it happened within the same company, but it wasn’t anyone’s fault.
“Thank you for explaining.”
“!”
In a competitive society, talking about who should yield is ridiculous.
If Burn Ash weren’t from the same company, we wouldn’t even have this meeting.
We would just accept the misfortune.
“Honestly, you don’t need to apologize to us. You’re victims too. Just explaining things is enough.”
“!”
Why were they so surprised?
I felt awkward seeing their shocked faces.
Isn’t this obvious?
What kind of deep relationship do we have for them to ruin their future for us?
We’re practically strangers.
To be honest, their apology was probably just because of Lee Sol. If it were just me, they wouldn’t have apologized.
It’s not something they need to apologize for. They’re victims too.
“So now, the only thing left to do is…”
“We’ll work hard.”
Just grind.
“Uh… We’ll work hard too.”
“You can take it easy, seniors…”
I was serious.
They might be desperate for their first full-length, but I was even more desperate.
I only had one year.
Leaving the bewildered duo behind, I signaled to Lee Sol that it was time to leave.
“Cheong, aren’t you angry?”
As soon as we exited the meeting room, Lee Sol blinked at me.
“Well, getting angry won’t change anything. Practicing one more time would be more productive.”
I checked the time.
“Don’t worry, senior. We might miss out on a music show win, but…”
I tried to reassure the worried Lee Sol.
“In the long run, this might not be such a bad thing.”