Chapter 73
That’s right.
Starting the voting process after the individual interviews and performances of the trainees.
And not selecting four trainees through live voting and one through the judges’ votes, but selecting all five solely through live voting.
These changes were demands from Yoon Cheong.
And CEO Hong had agreed to them.
In fact, Yoon Cheong wanted many more things beyond those two.
Increasing Yeon Juhong’s individual interview time or reducing Kim Ryeo-yu’s excuses, and so on.
However, all those minor requests were denied.
It seemed like Yoon Cheong didn’t really expect much and just threw them out there.
The most important thing was the ‘voting’.
CEO Hong didn’t think Yoon Cheong’s demands were that difficult.
In the first place, the judges’ pick rule was implemented by Director Kim as a safeguard in case Kim Ryeo-yu didn’t make it through the live voting.
For CEO Hong, it wasn’t a necessary rule.
Of course, the reduction of voting time was not a pleasing demand.
Reducing the voting time risked decreasing the revenue generated from the votes.
However, it wasn’t an impossible request to grant.
If handled well, it could actually explode the voting rate.
So, now there was only one thing left.
Who would debut?
No,
Who would they debut?
“…Do you have any trainees in mind?”
Of course, there must be.
PD Oh asked the question himself and immediately regretted it.
“What do you think of trainee Yoon Cheong, PD Oh?”
“….”
PD Oh chose his words carefully.
Yoon Cheong.
In fact, PD Oh neither particularly liked nor disliked Yoon Cheong.
However, compared to the other trainees, he wanted Yoon Cheong to debut.
He had already ‘connected’ with her.
In PD Oh’s eyes, Yoon Cheong had the potential to shine.
It wasn’t just because she could sing well or had a lot of charisma.
Yoon Cheong had a talent more important than singing.
Quick thinking.
PD Oh had seen many times that only idols who could think quickly could survive until the end.
And Yoon Cheong was a trainee who knew how to use her brain quite well.
The fact that she was willing to make deals with him without hesitation showed that.
However, there was no need to express his opinion.
The connection was better kept hidden.
“Well, I think she’ll be popular if she debuts. After all, she’s going to get a lot of narrative this time.”
“Right. She crafted that narrative well herself.”
“…And CEO Hong allowed that narrative too.”
“It’s a narrative that seems like it would sell well. Good versus evil. There’s no narrative people like more than that. The trainee who sacrificed for others, defeating the evil villain and debuting. Not bad.”
CEO Hong smiled.
“Then… what’s the problem?”
“If there is a problem.”
CEO Hong sighed.
“Idols who rise with a good image can also fall easily because of it.”
Trainees who gained favor because they appeared good-natured were a double-edged sword.
A good image helped in securing advertisements and fixed schedules.
But.
Even the smallest mistake, flaw, or rumor.
“Everyone will be waiting for that idol’s downfall.”
“…”
“If they rose because they were kind but turn out not to be? The moment that label sticks… the impact is far greater than for a celebrity who never had a good image.”
“Because they disappoint people.”
“Exactly. If you make money off an image and then disappoint by revealing that image was false… the sense of betrayal is enormous.”
That’s why CEO Hong didn’t like the title of ‘good’ or ‘kind’ idol or celebrity.
An idol should rise purely by their charm.
As long as they managed their charm and talent well, they would never cause betrayal.
They would build a solid core fan base.
Even if a personality scandal broke out, it might even solidify their fans further.
“So, I’m a bit worried. Should we let her debut? If she makes even a single mistake… it could affect the entire team.”
“Have you thoroughly checked her past?”
“We’ve done our background check. Fortunately, her past is not just clean, it’s almost pitiable.”
Despite a tough environment, she had persevered.
She endured trainee life alone without family and always treated others kindly.
She had never bullied anyone.
If anything, she was the one who got bullied.
“Then, shouldn’t you be fine as long as you manage her well?”
“Have you ever managed people?”
“Just my subordinates.”
“Does it go as you wish?”
“No. It doesn’t.”
“Managing fully grown adults for 8 hours a day is not easy. How do you think it is to manage teenagers for 10 years, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year? Including their private lives?”
“You must do it. Because you make that much money. If I earned that much, I’d find a way to manage.”
CEO Hong laughed instead of answering.
That was also true.
“Anyway, so the conclusion is.”
“Do you want to exclude Yoon Cheong?”
“No. That’s not possible.”
She would be a goose that lays golden eggs.
Of course, that goose was on an incredibly scary cliff.
But there were plenty of reasons to raise her.
“However, I hope you don’t give her too much narrative.”
“Hmm.”
“Especially reduce the emphasis on her good character. Don’t make her look like a victim either. Just, give some explanations for Kim Ryeo-yu too. Make it seem like just a small incident among the kids.”
PD Oh thought for a moment and shook his head.
“I will try, but it definitely won’t work. The public is not that foolish.”
“I know. It won’t work at all. But.”
CEO Hong massaged the back of his neck as she continued speaking.
Her neck had been aching a lot lately.
“Isn’t it possible to divert the focus away from those two… and spread it to the other kids?”
PD Oh thought for a moment.
It wouldn’t be easy, but he thought he could divert some of the attention.
“Which trainees are you referring to specifically?”
CEO Hong looked at the whiteboard in the corner of the meeting room.
Photos of eleven trainees were posted on the whiteboard.
“Probably to the ones Colors wants to debut.”
“Oh dear. It’s difficult if you openly ask for manipulation like this.”
“I never said that, PD Oh.”
As CEO Hong spoke, she quietly removed a few of the eleven photos.
He placed those photos on the table.
One was of Yoon Cheong.
PD Oh checked the other four photos and widened his eyes.
“Are you serious?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“No, aside from the others. This one seems to be a mistake.”
PD Oh pointed to one of the photos.
“No, it’s not a mistake.”
“But…”
You really want to debut this one?
Are you crazy, or are you losing your mind?
“Please focus on the filming. You’ll probably receive detailed instructions soon.”
CEO Hong smiled faintly and left the meeting room.
Now, only the astonished PD Oh remained inside.
“…It won’t be easy, Yoon Cheong.”
***
Then, after a minute of commercials.
The broadcast resumed, starting with the team mission preparation process.
Caption: Team Winners in a meeting, centered around trainee Kim Ryeo-yu.
Caption: Team Winners decided on a ‘Little Devils’ concept.
“Our positions.”
Kim Ryeo-yu looked much calmer on screen than anyone else.
“I think Kyunga unnie should be the main vocalist.”
Lee Kyunga, who had already come to an agreement beforehand, felt indifferent.
But for those watching, it was another shock.
Why is Kim Ryeo-yu suddenly pretending to be nice..?
Trying to redeem yourself at the end of the show… just go your own way now.
At that moment, an individual interview was inserted.
Production Team: Why did you recommend trainee Lee Kyunga as the main vocalist? Didn’t you want to be the main vocalist too?
[Ryeo-yu: For the sake of teamwork.]
[Ryeo-yu: Rather than standing out myself right now, I think teamwork is the most important. At first, I thought I was the best and that showing my charm was the top priority. I was too young.]
Production Team: Was there any particular reason for your change of heart?
[Ryeo-yu: Actually, Cheong was the biggest motivation.]
The production team immediately showed past broadcast footage of Kim Ryeo-yu and Yoon Cheong talking pleasantly.
Of course, the internet’s reaction was cold.
Ha, look at them trying to link them now.
Stop force selling, Colors.
Is Mnet trash or is Colors trash…?
└Both.
Regardless, Kim Ryeo-yu’s interview continued.
[Ryeo-yu: Actually, Cheong joined Colors the latest. So I didn’t know much about her. I just thought she was a newcomer who could sing well.]
[Kyunga: Cheong? She was like a seismic shift among us trainees. A new girl who sings well joined. She was so good that she made it into the debut candidate group. We were all very nervous. I was aiming for the main vocalist position too.]
[Yu-hyun: The fact that someone who just joined immediately made it into the debut group unsettled everyone. Plus, since Cheong unnie is such a quiet person, she didn’t stand out much. So we didn’t know what kind of person she was. We were wary, but there was nothing we could do. We all struggled.]
Caption: Misunderstandings that piled up in an inevitable situation…
Ah, but I get it too. It’s not like she did anything wrong, I know it’s just my jealousy… but it still really sucks.
└Right. When a newcomer joins and they’re better at work than you and get promoted faster… it really stings.
└└Yeah… especially if Cheong was quiet and introverted, communication issues would cause a lot of misunderstandings.
They’re all so young… at most 19, 20, 21 years old… It’s like entrance exams, a really sensitive period.
And so,
The shift in public opinion began very slowly.