Damn Idol Episode 53

To put it in one word, the stage of the take scene was appropriate.

They sang Maroon 5's song <Sugar > in their own way. While the original song had a cheerful pop band feel, the take scene mixed it with hard rock.

However, that does not mean that it was arranged in a completely hard rock style.

The drum texture and guitar riffs were reminiscent of hard rock, but did not significantly change the original song.

Even though the verse was changed to Korean, the feeling of the vocal line was almost similar to the original song.

Even when some audience members hummed and sang along to the lyrics of the original song, it didn't feel out of place.

To evaluate it positively, it raised the tension without damaging the identity of the original song.

If we were to evaluate it negatively, it would be carried along by the power of the original song.

of course… … .

-Waaaa!

-Wow!

Most of the audience members evaluated this stage positively.

It was originally a song self-produced by aspiring idols.

This was so great that it exceeded expectations, and was excellent even in absolute terms.

Perhaps that's why, when the take scene did the group dance in the chorus, people were singing along.

-YOUR SUGAR!

-YES, PLEASE!

In fact, Maroon 5's Suga was a cheat-like song selection only in Korea.

This is a song that ranked 5th on Korea's 2015 annual chart.

Before <Sugar >, a pop song had never made it into the top 10 of Korea's annual charts.

The take scene stage was reaching its peak.

The finale was the lead role, who filled the chorus with her singing ability after the arrangement was removed and the song returned to the original song.

Puff!

With the main character's refrain, pollen explodes, and the Take Scene members begin to run wild on stage without any choreography.

In reality, it was all a calculated move, but to those watching, it looked like the participants were having a lot of fun.

Thanks to this, the moment the stage ended, huge cheers erupted.

To the extent that even those who came to the audience remembered the name Take Scene because of Han Si-on's <Under the Street Light>.

Some audience members were even making a curtain call.

-It was a really cool stage!

While Blue came up to the stage and calmed down the room.

The two most disparate people in today's audience looked at each other.

It was Chris Edwards and his manager Alex.

The two people who were sitting alone on the second floor terrace, which was not scheduled to be open, opened their mouths when the room calmed down.

"Eddie, how did you hear that?"

"Are you okay? "The friend who sang the last chorus is quite talented."

"Excluding the performance, how would you evaluate the arrangement of the song?"

"It really wasn't that bad. It was a bit old-fashioned, though. If there's a problem… … ."

It was Alex who took over.

"It won't work in the airplay market, right?"

"huh. If you only listen to the music without the visual performance, you will get tired of it quickly. "It's noisy."

If strong drums and strong melody riffs are the answer, why do so many musicians worry about choosing an instrument?

Why do mixing engineers spend days thinking about how to set up a compressor?

Finding the balance and blending the numerous sounds that make up music is an extremely delicate task.

In that sense, <Sugar >, written by the boys called Takesin, was a song that failed to control balance.

The drums and guitars changed to create excitement diminish the fluidity of the core melody.

Although they covered it up with a visual performance, it would have been even worse than it is now if it weren't for the incredible halo effect of the original song.

However, Chris Edwards did not criticize this stage.

"Looking at the data screen, it looks like a stage made by those boys themselves, right? This is great. "I was worse than that when I was young."

Alex chuckled.

If you look closely, Eddie has a somewhat naive side.

Is there ever a case where the contestants of a reality show are given full control of the arrangement?

Engineers and supporters prepared by the broadcasting station probably intervened countless times.

Of course, Hansion is an exception.

Alex was suspicious of this, so he asked the Coming Up Next production team how many times they had external support, but the answer was always consistent.

Nothing.

He put all the reputation of the broadcasting station on the line and said that he did not provide any help to Han Si-on's work.

Of course, Alex was not a person who believed in honor, so he even stated it in the contract.

If Eddie appeared on a broadcast and found traces of manipulation by Han Si-on, he would receive a huge penalty.

Considering that a Korean broadcasting station that was picky about other conditions gave the OK to One Shot in this regard, it shows that Han Si-on's talent is real.

'Maybe the next stage will be performed by Han Si-on.'

While Alex was thinking that, it seemed like the take scene's review had concluded.

Chris Edwards and Alex didn't speak any Korean, so I could only guess by feel, but it seems they were well received.

Because the number 92 displayed on the screen seems to be the score.

"If it were you, what score would you have given?"

"hmm. Considering the special nature of the competition stage, I think I would have given it around 80 points if I had to beat the opposing team in one stage."

"How about evaluating the sound source?"

"Without performance? So 50 points? 55 points? "Considering your young age, I can give you 60 points."

"That's harsh."

"And you?"

"If this stage makes a lot of money, it's 100 points, and if it doesn't make money, it's 0 points."

"It's an evaluation worthy of an icon of low-class capitalism."

Then the new VCR started.

This time it was a video related to 'Three Months and 100 Days', which included Han Zion.

"Alex. "You said the name of Zion's team is 3 months 100 days, right?"

"uh."

"What does it mean? "Isn't it about 92 days in 3 months?"

"well?"

As they were having that meaningless conversation, a melody was heard from inside the VCR for the first time.

Alex thought it was a melody he had heard somewhere, but couldn't remember.

This was because they played a modified melody rather than the original song.

However, Chris Edward noticed and made an interesting expression.

"Are you aiming for it?"

"what?"

"Do you know where <Sugar >, sung by the previous team, ranked on the Billboard charts?"

"Isn't it number one? "I understand you made a lot of money."

"no. Second place. "There was a huge truck driving right in front."

"truck?"

I thought about my memories, but I didn't even know the ranking of the Billboard charts at the time.

"What song is number one?"

"<Uptown Funk>. #1 for 14 consecutive weeks."

"ah!"

"I guess that's the song Zion's team will sing."

At that time, people let out a huge roar.

When I turned my gaze, I saw performers wearing colorful and pretty clothes on the stage.

Eddie and Alex didn't know it, but the performers were wearing Hanbok and what they were holding were traditional Korean instruments.

Even the background displayed on the screen was a scene of a low street that appears to have been around the Goryeo Dynasty.

At that moment, the playing started.

"It's not a drum?"

"I know. "It looks like an old instrument, doesn't it?"

Drum, nabal (trumpet), Taepyeongso.

The performance with three traditional instruments was very boring.

The drums only kept the basic beat, and the Nabal and Taepyeongso had no power.

The audience's applause, which had been applauding the familiar melody, gradually loses strength.

Alex and Chris Edward, who were watching this, were curious.

What on earth is Han Si On thinking?

* * *

I've been a singer my whole life, but my mindset is much closer to that of a producer.

It wasn't like that from the beginning, and as I continued to regress, I realized that I couldn't sell 200 million copies by going all in on music.

But that doesn't mean I'm exactly the same as an average producer.

While other producers are constantly discovering new singers, I have to constantly force the singer 'Han Si-on' into new environments.

So here it is.

Idol.

I thought I was definitely a fucking idol, but the moment I took a deep breath under the stage, everything changed.

I want to satisfy the audience and surprise people.

I want to drive people in my industry into despair and make everyone talk about me.

I want to dominate the music charts and fill YouTube with cover videos of my performances.

In an instant, the mindset of a producer disappears and he becomes a singer.

like now.

At that moment, <Uptown Funk> played with traditional instruments is heard in the in-ears.

Very basic, boring performance.

Seeing that the faint sound of applause was no longer audible, the audience's excitement must have already cooled.

It's fast too.

It's starting now.

At that moment, a red light came on in front of the lift where Koo Tae-hwan was standing.

When Koo Tae-hwan's gaze, with a clearly tense expression on his face, passed by me, I nodded.

Koo Tae-hwan will do well.

People will be surprised by this performance.

Belt- Belt- Belt-

The moment the red light blinks three times and turns green, it's time to go! With the sound of lightning, Koo Tae-hwan hurries up onto the stage.

After a moment of silence.

Thump-thump-thud!

The powerful drum sound acts as percussion and creates a strong sense of rhythm.

This time it was Choi Jae-seong and Lee Ion's turn.

The two people also look at me and then go up to the stage.

At the same time, the sound of Taepyeongso and Nabal that resonates creates a strong sense of rhythm.

I think I can hear people applauding again.

Are you excited already?

Not yet.

Onsaemiro heads to the stage.

This time, hi-hat drums, claps, and magnificent brass used in modern music are mixed in with the sounds of traditional instruments.

The last one left is me.

A red light appears in front of my lift.

It blinks three times and goes up when the green light comes on.

Flash.

I was mentally keeping the beat while listening to the music coming from the in-ears and seeing the red lights, but my thoughts were back to the moment when I was planning the stage.

Flash.

"How about the dance club on campus?"

"If it were a club, I think the basketball team would be better."

"I wish it was more unconventional. "What about werewolves?"

"fantasy? "Then aren't vampires the rule?"

The members insisted that our stage needed a concept.

At first I didn't understand their argument, but I tried to accept it.

At that time, Onsaemiro expressed his opinion on 'this concept'.

It was the best opinion out of all of them, so it was unanimously adopted, but strangely enough, I kept thinking about it while composing the song.

So I decided to reflect it in the song.

The result... … .

"You did it like this?"

"You're crazy. "How did you come up with this idea?"

"Are you really a genius?"

It was very satisfying.

It wasn't an easy task, but I thought it was missing a sexy sound.

That wasn't all.

While making music, there were stage performances that naturally came to mind.

"In the movie Back to the Future, there is a scene where the main character goes back 30 years and sings Chuck Berry's <Johny B. Goode>."

"You don't know Chuck Berry? "You can think of him as the person who created rock and roll."

"But there was no rock and roll in that era, and the audience looked at the protagonist like he was crazy."

"Then the main character says this."

"I guess you're not ready to listen to this genre yet. But your kids will love it."

"But this is what I thought while watching that scene."

"If it were a truly famous song, wouldn't old people like it too?"

It was like that.

Our concept, proposed by Onsaemiro and ultimately adopted, was 'time traveler'.

One by one, the Sedal101 members living in 2017 headed to the past.

Flash.

Now, it's my turn.

With the sound of "pop," the lift guides me onto the stage.

The moment I arrive in the past with the effect of a lightning strike.

The sounds of the bass, electric guitar, and electric piano exploded all at once.

That's how <Seoul Town Funk> began.