The Idol Training Simulation I Messed Up

Chapter 16

The first original song to be released was one where the members took charge as much as possible to highlight their individuality.

This was based on the opinion that it would be more meaningful if the members were actively involved, not only in composing and writing lyrics but also in leading the process.

In the recording studio, besides the Monochrome members, there was only one engineer present. Woohyung and Han-yi were in charge of directing.

Woohyung, as the composer, provided feedback to match the overall mood of the song, while Han-yi, the main vocalist, gave advice on the vocal parts.

Jun-hae, who had initially recorded the guide, finished his recording session.

“Were you always this good at singing?”

“Jun-hae has always been good.”

Jae Min also listened to Jun-hae’s guide version in advance.

He thought it sounded good back then, but hearing it live, he could clearly notice the improvements. Jun-hae’s voice sounded more stable than Jae Min remembered.

Originally, Jun-hae was the lead vocalist, so he always sang well. But it was also true that he had improved while Jae Min was absent.

Jae Min lowered his gaze to the lyrics sheet, looking slightly worried about his part.

“Don’t worry. Even Haerang hasn’t improved in singing.”

Jun-hae sent unhelpful encouragement.

Jae Min’s original position was the main dancer and sub-vocalist. Conversely, Haerang didn’t even have a vocal position.

Woohyung, the lead rapper, was also a sub-vocalist, but Haerang mostly handled the rap parts.

“There was a guy in the dance team I was in who rapped too.”

As Jae Min mentioned his time in the dance team during his hiatus, Haerang looked at him with a ‘what is he going to say now?’ expression.

“So I learned rap over his shoulder. How about we have a rap battle, and the winner gets the rap part?”

“What’s in it for me?”

“You’re also the main dancer, so hand over the main rapper position to me. Yo! When you take one step, I take two~.”

Jae Min waved the lyrics sheet and made an exaggerated gesture.

It was clear to anyone that he wasn’t being serious.

“Is rap a joke to you?”

“Ooh~. ‘Is rap a joke to you?’ I lost. You’re the true main rapper.”

“Ugh…….”

Haerang bent forward and covered his ears.

Woohyung, who was sitting in front of the recording equipment, turned his chair around to join the conversation.

“Puhaha. This guy gets tormented by Han-yi in the dorm and by Jae Min when he’s out. It must be exhausting.”

Haerang was the type who needed to rest with all his might when he had the chance.

However, since he was roommates with Han-yi, who loved to talk, and now with Jae Min joining in on the fun, his quiet rest time had significantly decreased.

Woohyung, who had been his roommate until recently, found it amusing. He felt sorry for Haerang, but still.

While everyone else was having fun, someone visited the recording studio.

“How’s it going?”

“Oh! Team leader.”

The unannounced visitor was a middle-aged man. It was Producer Song Joon-oh, the former head of the production team who had moved to Newrain.

Recognizing their former boss, even the engineer greeted him like the members.

Woohyung, curious about his sudden appearance, asked,

“What brings you here?”

“You kept bothering me with calls, so I came to see how well you’re doing.”

As a composer himself, he was considered Woohyung’s composition mentor.

As he said, Woohyung had frequently sought his advice ever since he was asked to showcase his song, driven by a desire to do even better.

Woohyung just smiled sheepishly, and Joon-oh took in the atmosphere of the recording studio with that expression.

‘It’s definitely different from before.’

Everyone looked happy. Even Jae Min, who had returned after a long time, naturally blended into this cheerful atmosphere.

“Is she treating you well?”

“Who?”

“The new director.”

“Director Joo-in?”

“What? Director?”

“Hey! What do you mean, director? It’s Director Shin Joo-in.”

Jae Min countered the blunt mention with an equally blunt title.

The members, hearing the title ‘director’ for the first time, were taken aback, and Woohyung gave a warning.

“Come to think of it, she is the director.”

“Not you too…….”

When Han-yi accepted it seriously, Woohyung held his forehead.

Seeing all this, Joon-oh felt he understood even without asking.

‘How peculiar.’

He had come to offer encouragement, thinking they were in a difficult situation with the label separation and member withdrawals. But the atmosphere was good, even better than before.

While observing the members, the director, Joo-in, entered.

“Everyone’s doing well…… Who is this?”

Holding drinks, she paused, noticing the unfamiliar face.

Though he was a former employee, he was an outsider to her.

While Woohyung pondered how to introduce him, Joon-oh extended his hand to Joo-in.

“I’m Producer Song Joon-oh.”

“Hello. What brings you here……?”

“I have no work at Newrain, so I came here looking for something to do.”

“Excuse me?”

Joo-in, bewildered, shook his hand.

It was hard to identify him with just ‘producer,’ so Woohyung added an introduction.

“He was the team leader who handled our production before.”

Only then did Joo-in realize he was a former employee of Newma.

‘Ah. He’s one of those who moved to Newrain…….’

A label under Newma, which is Iris’ agency and the one that stole Yunhwan.

She wished them well but also felt a lingering unease.

After greeting him, Joo-in stepped back to watch the recording session.

Woohyung sought Joon-oh’s advice on some concerns.

Though capable on his own, he seemed to need the reassurance of an expert’s opinion due to his lack of confidence.

‘Producer…….’

The current production team seemed unstable after many members left. It felt like they lacked a focal point.

“Can you keep watching us?”

“Is that something to ask the guy who kept saying ‘just one more’ and held on?”

“No, because you’re still here…….”

When Woohyung asked belatedly, Joon-oh playfully scolded him.

But it was understandable since Joon-oh, who had stopped by briefly, was now seated and helping with the recording work.

“If I’m kicked out, I’ll leave…….”

Joon-oh looked at Joo-in, who held the highest position in this space.

“No, please don’t mind me……. I’m grateful if you can stay, if you have the time, PD-nim.”

“This job is quite flexible with time.”

Professions like composers, even if affiliated with a company, often worked on a contract basis rather than adhering to regular hours.

“You’re still with Newrain, right?”

“For now. But if my presence here is uncomfortable…….”

“No, I want to scout you if you’re a freelancer.”

Joo-in’s sudden remark drew everyone’s attention to her.

“Scout me, you say?”

“……I think it would be great to have an experienced producer join the company.”

“Then scout me.”

With Joon-oh’s light-hearted response, the members’ eyes turned to him again.

“Would you join if we offered?”

“If the conditions are right, sure.”

A straightforward director met an equally straightforward team leader.

Joo-in, who wouldn’t miss out on a needed talent, left with him to discuss further.

While the remaining members were all left speechless, Jae Min spoke up.

“……I wasn’t brought in like that, right?”

“I don’t think so……?”

Although Joo-in herself had admitted she lacked industry experience, no one expected it to be this haphazard.

‘……She’ll manage somehow.’

But the members soon refocused on their work.

They had unconsciously grown accustomed to Joo-in’s management style.

***

Seeing the experienced mentor offering appropriate advice to Woohyung made her realize the importance of having such a person around.

Such help wasn’t something Joo-in could provide, and it was difficult to rely on the production team members for it either.

‘Most of them hadn’t even heard Woohyung’s original compositions.’

They knew Woohyung was holed up in his studio, but they didn’t care enough to find out what he was creating.

The unmotivated atmosphere she felt when she first visited the production team made sense now. Employees who only followed the existing company operations.

It wasn’t an issue with individual employees but a chronic problem of a structure that ran solely on the CEO’s opinions.

“It hasn’t been long since you moved to Newrain.”

“They seem to have a lot of money; they’ve recruited famous producers and directors from abroad.”

She was curious why he was immediately open to being scouted after moving companies, and Joon-oh mentioned Newrain’s current state.

‘Does he want to work at a company that invests even more than that?’

But that wasn’t what he meant.

“So much that they don’t even need me.”

His earlier comment about having no work at Newrain wasn’t entirely a joke.

Although it wasn’t that he had no work at all, it was true that his usual responsibilities had changed significantly as the label started focusing on international expansion.

“I’m also a musician, so I have things I want to do. Is Newrain the place for that? Not really.”

If global brand value was more needed than someone who had built their career with artists, then he wouldn’t be necessary.

He left Newma for a similar reason; the atmosphere made it incredibly difficult for subordinates to express their opinions.

However, he sensed a change in the atmosphere in the short time he had been away.

“Sorry, but I don’t know what projects you’ve worked on so far.”

Since she wasn’t familiar with his previous work, Joo-in couldn’t understand what he meant by ‘things I want to do.’

The unexpected nature of this quasi-interview left no time for preparing a resume.

“Just talking about my work here…… I planned or participated in most of Iris’ albums.”

“Oh. Iris!”

That was a highly credible background for Joo-in.

“Before that, I was responsible for Monochrome’s debut album.”

“Monofilm?”

Joo-in’s eyes sparkled instantly.

It was the debut album and the most signature-like album of Monochrome.

‘……Thinking about it now, all those albums were ones I meticulously created.’

As a game user who had played ‘properly,’ it meant that Joon-oh had conducted and produced the results.

These were the albums Joo-in had most carefully planned to match the artists’ colors. Perhaps her musical ambition lay in such areas.

Planning tailored to the artist rather than forcing the artist to fit the plan.

“Hold on.”

An idea struck her suddenly.

She asked for a moment and started jotting down notes in her diary, trying not to forget anything.

Though it might seem odd to take notes suddenly in front of someone, to Joon-oh, she somewhat resembled Woohyung when he first started composing.

After finishing her short notes, Joo-in looked up at Joon-oh with satisfaction.

“If you come back, there’s a project I’d love to work on together. I believe you’re the best person to bring it to life…….”

Have Monochrome members, including Woohyung, ever seen this side of her?

Despite the brief conversation, Joon-oh began to understand why the atmosphere here had changed.

“Will you join us?”

Joo-in hoped that what she had in mind aligned with Joon-oh’s desires.

Joon-oh met her gaze. It was a determined look rarely seen in this company.

“As a responsible leader, are you okay with it?”

“You know we had a team leader move over too, right?”

Ah. The management team leader who moved with Yunhwan.

Joon-oh quickly grasped what she was implying.

“Let’s call it even then.”

Her expression looked somewhat relieved.

***

Live clip shooting day.

A music video would take too long to film, and more importantly, an unembellished video seemed to match the song’s meaning better.

Since the song featured a gentle piano melody, they decided to include separate scenes of the piano performance along with the members singing.

As the lights and cameras were being set up around the piano at the shooting location, I went to check if the performer was ready.

“Woohyung. Are you ready…….”

“Let’s do well, Woohyung. Don’t make mistakes, no mistakes. Do well. I can do it…….”

Woohyung stood in front of the makeup mirror, muttering to himself.