The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol

“Seo Hoyun.”

While anxiously looking at Seong Jiwon, I realized one beat late that Lim Hyunsoo was gesturing at me. I obediently went over and sat down, and she whispered to me.

“Hey, your members are better than I thought. They’re nice kids.”

“They’re not bad.”

“Yeah, I thought they’d all be arrogant like you.”

“That’s a compliment, right, Ms. Composer?”

“Of course, this cute and bratty kid here.”

Lim Hyunsoo continued to hum happily.

“It feels fresh after a long time. It’s a bit rough and ready since it’s rushed… I’ve always been used to the big idols, but a newly formed group with a fighting spirit like this is fun for me too.”

I raised my chin and looked at Lim Hyunsoo.

“Ms. Composer, do you know what it means when someone is wishy-washy?”

“You mean they’re nice?”

“Of course, you have no idea how much I like you, Ms. Composer.”

“Thank you very much.”

Lim Hyunsoo seemed thrilled despite the issue of plagiarism and piracy, perhaps thinking of her heyday.

Seong Jiwon was standing stiffly in front of the pop filter. Lim Hyunsoo turned on the microphone that would transmit to the recording studio.

“Main vocal, are you ready?”

“Yes! I’m ready.”

Seong Jiwon nodded his head. The members practicing their parts frantically looked up all at once.

The beat flowed, and Seong Jiwon steadied his breathing. His eyes flickered anxiously. Lim Hyunsoo murmured.

“I hope he does well.”

I smirked.

Seong Jiwon? Hope he does well?

“Give me, Give me, Give me Second Chance.”

The most useless thing to worry about was celebrities in the world.

Seong Jiwon’s voice echoed throughout the recording studio. Lim Hyunsoo lowered her gaze and closed her mouth.

Seong Jiwon’s tension gradually eased as the song progressed, and his immersion in the song increased.

“Say it once more, it’s the beginning for us,

I will come back every time,

Don’t be afraid of this strange feeling.”

Ah, Seong Jiwon’s high note was so comfortable to listen to.

Comfortable.

I relaxed on the back of my chair.

“… Are you okay?”

After he finished his part, Seong Jiwoon kept an eye on Lim Hyunsoo, who turned the microphone towards him.

“Seong Jiwon.”

“Yes, yes?”

“How did it sound to you?”

Lim Hyunsoo asked in a hushed voice. Seong Jiwon’s pupils swirled like waves on a stormy day after hearing those words.

“Um…I think my pitch was okay.”

“Pitch? That’s not the problem right now.”

Lim Hyunsoo laughed.

“Huk!” Jeong Dajun gasped for air. Kim Seonghyeon also tensed up.

Anyway, she’s good at putting people on edge. There’s a reason she’s popular as an audition program judge.

“Your voice is pretty good, isn’t it?”

“T-thank you!”

“Why did you just show up now? You’re doing well. Your ending was clean too… Have you been a trainee for a long time?”

“Uh… I’ve been training for 7 years.”

“No wonder I could tell. Don’t just be nervous. Sometimes being too nervous can affect your tone.”

“Oh, yes…”

Despite the warning not to be nervous, Seong Jiwon became even more nervous.

Huh?

Lim Hyeonsu either didn’t notice or ignored it and directed Seong Jiwon a few more times to get him to come out. Even after leaving the recording studio, Seong Jiwon was still nervous, and his body shook slightly.

Um, his condition is a bit…

“Well, it’ll be fine if you do better next time. Let’s move on to the next rap.”

“Yes! Kang Ichae, you’re up for recording!”

Kang Ichae went in, and Lim Hyeonsu continued to listen, assessing that he was less good than Seong Jiwon but not bad.

Kim Seonghyeon and Jeong Dajun went in one after another.

“Kang Ichae, please pay more attention to your pronunciation. You spit the words out well, but…”

“Mr. Kim has a weak high note, but your voice is good.”

“Jeong Dajun… Your voice is unique and attractive. Not bad. But you need more practice.”

As Lim Hyeonsu directed them step-by-step, the recording progressed smoothly.

At the same time, I re-evaluated the members. They may lack star power, but their skills were mostly good. Their personalities weren’t bad either, to be honest… Well, that’s not something I really know about.

I was sipping quietly on the smoothie the staff had brought me when Jeong Dajun finished recording and came out of the booth.

Lim Hyeonsu turned around and smiled at me.

“Alright, our con artist. Now your turn.”

“Yes, yes.”

I playfully replied and opened the door to the recording studio. The quality was better than expected, so I had to match it.

The members’ worried looks were poking at my back.

After suffering from an illness and becoming a terrible dancer, I didn’t even have time to practice singing alone. I could feel their concern that my singing ability also regressed.

In the game’s setting, “Idol Seo Hoyun” was kicked out of the group due to his illness, so I probably couldn’t even match up with the other members properly before.

“Are you ready?”

Lim Hyeonsu’s voice could be heard in the recording studio as I put on my headphones. Since I’ve been on competition programs before, I’ve been to the recording studio, but this was my first time recording something myself.

I briefly played with the pop filter before gesturing to Lim Hyeonsu.

“Can I have the beat?”

“Are you crazy?”

Lim Hyeonsu cursed at me but chuckled and started the music.

I entered exactly on the beat.

“Oh, pick a card, the future becomes clearer.”

Lim Hyeonsu’s eyes widened.

“Don’t worry about the low chances, there’s no need,

It’s okay, I’ll lead you.”

At this point, just like the other members, I thought the recording would stop, but the beat kept flowing.

I glanced at Lim Hyeonsu for a moment, but she stared back with a glimmer in her eyes and didn’t make any other gestures. It was as if she was telling me to keep going.

Well, it wasn’t a difficult task.

“Come to me, come to me,

Don’t be afraid, come to me,

I have my second chance.”

I was halfway through the first verse when the song finally stopped. It seemed like the recording was over.

“…”

“… Why?”

I glanced at Lim Hyeonsu and the members with puzzled expressions, still wearing my headphones.

“Should we do it again?”

I asked what went wrong, but Lim Hyeonsu turned on the microphone.

“Hey, Seo Hoyun. Who did you learn this song from?”

“No one in particular…”

“Huh, you don’t have any flats. Everything is on beat….”

Ah, I see. It wasn’t really surprising, so I nodded my head. Lim Hyeonsu rubbed her chin.

“Usually, when other people show off, they add a lot of gimmicks, but you don’t have any of that. It’s actually cleaner, and your voice stands out more.”

It couldn’t be helped. I recalled the judges from the previous competition program.

The pouring out of curses and criticism towards the participants!

– “Don’t add unnecessary gimmicks.”

– “Why do you think there’s a beat?”

– “Are you singing off-key?”

And 70% of those curses came from Lim Hyeonsu. When editing, those scenes would be played back dozens of times, so it was inevitable that such habits would stick.

I constantly listened to the judges’ evaluations and the participants’ songs.

To me, a song was defined by the following three things:

Of course, be sure to stay in rhythm.

Sing honestly without trying to show off.

Going off-key is a sin.

“Was that okay?”

When I asked, Lim Hyunsoo nodded her head.

“Oh. But you’re lacking emotion. Try singing with a bit more flow rather than being too honest. That would fit the concept better.”

“Yes, I understand.”

I nodded my head and sang again. This time, I sang through the end and was asked to add harmonies to Seong Jiwon’s part.

“Wow!”

Lim Hyunsoo clapped her hands in excitement.

“Hey! How did you even get the harmony right on this one?”

You could endlessly listen to Lim Hyunsoo talk about music theory for three hours while editing the program. It was an extracurricular lesson on “Easy Music Theory.”

“Your emotion was lacking a bit, but let’s think about it and try recording again. You have a good foundation, so it’s okay.”

Lim Hyunsoo seemed very satisfied and gave a double thumbs up. When they left the recording studio, the other members also gave a standing ovation.

“Our cute one is… really good at singing.”

“Hyung! He was doing so well, right?”

“I thought hyung was a vending machine. The results come out immediately after giving instructions.”

I shrugged my shoulders at the pouring compliments. To be honest, I wasn’t that good at singing.

As I sipped on the smoothie absentmindedly, I observed Kim Seonghyeon with a visibly relieved expression, as if a burden had been lifted off his shoulders. His thoughts were clear.

At least he’s less of a troll…

He must be having such thoughts.

I’m used to it.

After Seong Jiwon went in a few more times to add harmonies, Lim Hyunsoo played the recorded song for everyone to listen to.

“It’s good.”

“It turned out much better than I thought. It’s good.”

Between members sighing in relief, Lim Hyunsoo nodded with satisfaction and murmured quietly.

“Honestly, it’s better than the White Cherry song I’m working on now.”

“Wow, that’s… an honor!”

“Thank you very much, Ms. Composer!”

“Hahaha, praise me, my children.”

She’s just being a sore loser…

Objectively, there’s nothing better than a properly paid White Cherry song.

Although she was just being a sore loser, the members bowed as if they were going to do a ceremony and went along with it.

Nevertheless, it was a better song than White Cherry if it suited one’s taste. The lyrics were not bad, so interpreting them well in the music video will be good.

“Anyway, good job, guys. If there’s anything you don’t like, we’ll sing it again. Go now. I’m busy.”

“Yes! Thank you!”

“Oh, Seo Hoyun. Come over here for a sec.”

“Why?”

As I obediently approached after being called, Lim Hyunsoo asked me quietly.

“Did you threaten Joo Woosung?”

“…”

It looked like Joo Woosung was a rising star. Lim Hyunsu burst into a hollow laugh, and I didn’t bother to deny it.

“Are you really a con artist?”

“Why do you say that? I just wanted to try my best.”

“If you try too hard, you might end up being completely the opposite.”

“Is that all you wanted to say?”

“Oh, wait a minute.”

I shrugged my shoulders. I was about to leave if she continued to talk nonsense, but Lim Hyunsu asked me a question.

“I heard the kids talking earlier, saying you and Director Jeong are filming the music video together?”

“Oh… Yes, that’s right.”

Director Jeong. In fact, I didn’t know much about music videos, so I didn’t know the person at all.

After roughly looking it up, I discovered he specialized in filming idol music videos. But I wondered why she brought him up.

“I know him. He takes music videos very casually and just takes the money, but he should be filming them beautifully.”

“Isn’t that you?”

“Do you want to die?”

This was Lim Hyunsu talking. They said people talk amongst themselves.

As I was contemplating, Lim Hyunsu lightly pushed my forehead with her palm.

“I already told him to take good care of you guys.”

“…”

This was unexpected. Lim Hyeonsu was helping us without me even making a threat.

What’s her intention?

I raised my eyebrows and observed Lim Hyeonsu’s pouting expression. However, Lim Hyeonsu just clicked her tongue when she saw me like that.

“When was the last time you owed someone a big favor? Why can’t you trust people? Well, I guess it’s a good habit in the entertainment industry.”

“… I don’t know why Ms. Composer is being nice to us. I haven’t done anything good.”

When I honestly expressed my thoughts, Lim Hyeonsu burst out laughing.

“It’s just a crazy whim. Let’s just follow along with a madman’s ups and downs.”

“…”

“It’s fun, isn’t it? It must feel rewarding to see a group of nobodies like you get talent donations.”

Ding!

[Relationship with Lim Hyeonsu is friendly.

Completed “First Recording” quest.

300 points will be awarded.]

It was unexpected kindness and luck.

I nodded my head lightly. Lim Hyeonsu, despite being unpredictable and cool, had no hard feelings, which was good.

“Thank you.”

“Seo Hoyun, be good to me.”

“I’ll bring some delicious sake next time.”

Lim Hyeonsu held out her index finger to me. At that moment, laughter spread uncontrollably.

I shrugged and joined the members waiting outside. It seemed like a heartwarming ending, but the faces of the members outside were bruised.

“Did I really… record with Blue Tiger?”

“Is this a dream? Pinch my cheek.”

“Hyung, I really can hit the notes.”

Kang Ichae clenched a fist, and Kim Seonghyeon quickly stepped back. There was a shadow on Seong Jiwon’s face.

I nudged them and urged, “Let’s go practice.”

We still had a long way to go.

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