Entertainment Life With A Camera

Hey, the next team is no joke.

“Doesn’t this sound familiar?”

“Does it?”

Lee Joo-hyuk, who rested his chin on the desk, entered a music site. He searched for a few songs and played one. It was a familiar melody, similar to the one Kim Hyun had just hummed.

“Ah, crap… It’s that one.”

Kim Hyun wrapped his head and leaned back on the backrest. The chair reclined softly.

“How did you do this, hyung?”

“You’ll get used to it as you do it.”

“Really talented…”

Lee Joo-hyuk made a complicated expression as he heard Kim Hyun’s murmur.

“It’s nothing. You’ll improve your skills if you keep studying.”

“Really?”

“First of all, don’t be bound by the format and just do it freely. You can just hit the floor to make a rhythm, or you can use the frying pan and chopsticks over there to bang them.”

“Really?”

Lee Joo-hyuk suggested a new solution. Kim Hyun still looked puzzled, but Ian, who had something in mind, tapped his thigh.

“Do we have to go all the way to the kitchen?”

“Oh, that was good. Just do it like that and make a rhythm.”

Ian, who mixed clapping and making a rhythm, got up and hit the wall and scratched the bed, adding the sound of the blanket rustling.

“He’s crazy too.”

Kim Hyun said that, but he followed Ian. After hitting a few times, it sounded pretty good to him.

“Like this?”

“Hyun has a sense too. How about we go for a full band sound?”

Lee Joo-hyuk picked up an acoustic guitar and hit the body without plucking the strings. The sound became richer as the cheerful sound was added.

“Are we recording this?”

Ian asked as Lee Joo-hyuk nodded.

‘Isn’t this fun?’

They were hitting something without thinking, and laughter came out.

“Good! One more time!”

Lee Joo-hyuk shouted with excitement, and Kim Hyun, who was playful, took off the fixed drum cymbal and put it on Ian’s head.

“Ah, hyung!”

Ian protested, but he didn’t put down the drum cymbal on his head. They were making a rhythm while laughing at each other when Choi Ji-min came in.

“Hey, hyungs, the mentor is here!”

Ian, who had the drum cymbal in his hand, saw Choi Ji-min standing blankly at the entrance and shouted.

They stood in a row and bowed to Choi Ji-min.

“Hello!”

“Uh… Yeah, hello. You were having fun, huh?”

Choi Ji-min took off his shoes and was about to enter, when Kim Hyun quickly ran over and removed the chopsticks that were rolling near the entrance.

“You all know me, right? I’m Choi Ji-min, the CEO of VI Entertainment. You can speak comfortably, okay?”

“Yes. Please sit here.”

Lee Joo-hyuk pointed to the chair he was sitting on. Choi Ji-min sat down, and the members also brought chairs and sat in front of him.

“Is the work going well? What were you doing just now? You weren’t playing, right?”

“We were making a rhythm.”

Ian answered shamelessly.

‘Crap, what a waste. I should have taken him. Where did Lee Byung-hun find this gem…’

Choi Ji-min admired Ian’s face up close. He kept a poker face, though, and leaned back on the backrest and crossed his arms.

“So, do you have any songs for me to listen to?”

“To be honest, we don’t have any yet.”

Ji-min Choi frowned at Joo-hyuk Lee’s confident answer. He was about to say, ‘How can I judge without a song?’ when Ju-hyuk Lee spoke with a certain expression.

“Can I work on it now if you have time? It won’t take long.”

“Fine, let’s see what you can do.”

He looks like he can do anything. Ji-min Choi pretended to be generous and hid his anticipation.

“Wow, that guy is so bold.”

“Doesn’t he look inspired?”

Ian and Hyun Kim whispered to each other.

“Guys, come here. You have to help me too.”

Hyun Kim and Ian were startled and sat next to Ju-hyuk Lee. He played the recording file, and the rhythm they had tapped joyfully came out.

“Who did this beat-splitting thing?”

“I think Ian did it?”

“Good. Let’s use this and… This is Hyun’s part, right? Let’s make this the main…”

Ju-hyuk Lee made the beat in real time.

“Sing the humming you did earlier.”

Ian rolled his chair to the keyboard.

“I’ll do this part.”

“Okay. Add a melody.”

Hyun Kim didn’t sit still either. He also hummed spontaneously and added a new melody.

“Hyun, that was good, right? The chord…”

“Like this.”

Ian stuttered, and Ju-hyuk Lee rolled his chair to the keyboard and pressed the keys.

‘He can follow the chord right away? He has a good sense.’

Ji-min Choi pretended to rest his chin and hid his gaping mouth.

‘Is this a strategy to show me this performance? No… What’s the point of getting points from me?’

The title selection was largely influenced by the blind votes of the viewers, so the judges’ evaluation was just for reference.

‘It would be good for entertainment. The PD would love this.’

Anyway, it was quite fresh to see them composing in real time.

“Are you done? Let me hear it too.”

“Yes.”

Ju-hyuk Lee played the song. The three of them waited nervously until Ji-min Choi opened his mouth.

The short song they made on the spot ended, and the playback bar went back to the beginning, but he didn’t tell them to stop.

“Stop, guys, you didn’t make this, did you?”

After listening for a while, Ji-min Choi nodded his head slightly and clapped his hands.

“How did you make this so fast?”

“Thank you.”

The three of them sighed in relief. Especially, Ju-hyuk Lee’s expression brightened noticeably.

“It needs more polishing, but it’s good as it is. Disco always works.”

“Thank you.”

“But it’s too mainstream.”

Ji-min Choi’s expression changed from smiling to serious in an instant. The three of them swallowed their saliva.

“Mainstream is good. It’s not easy to follow the public taste… But as a person who enjoyed your music, I feel a bit bored.”

“It sounds like a typical idol song… Is that what you mean?”

“Yeah… That’s the feeling. You’re right.”

Ji-min Choi nodded his head and flicked his finger at Ian’s answer.

“I wish you guys changed the trend a bit.”

There were occasional ballad singers who came back as music chart bullies, or ballad songs that rose with the help of machines, but unfortunately, most of the top songs on the music chart were dance music, that is, idol songs.

“Try different things, but don’t be messy. You guys, the group name AWY should become a genre of its own. Do you know what I mean?”

“Um… I think I know.”

Joo-hyuk Lee nodded his head, but he still looked puzzled and unsure. Ji-min Choi smiled faintly.

“There’s nothing to fix for now. One song is like this, appealing to the masses, and the other one can be experimental. I think it’ll be fine.”

“…”

“Don’t think too hard. You have things you haven’t tried yet, right? Using string instruments or breaking the rhythm or something like that. You can even go completely rock.”

What about our stage then? Kim Hyun thought as Choi Jimin seemed to read his mind and continued.

“I know you guys are famous for your performance. But don’t think about dancing to the song for now. Just do it freely. You must have a lot of things you wanted to do.”

“Yes.”

“That’s it for now. I have to go see the next team. But my opinion is just a reference. Don’t try to change everything at once. Your color is good as it is.”

“Thank you!”

The three of them shouted loudly as they watched Choi Jimin’s back heading to the front door.

He went outside and looked at Lee Jong-soo PD. He raised his thumb at him.

“How was it?”

“Wow… he’s good.”

The PD who had been watching the situation through the monitor also clapped his hands for the performance they created. Choi Jimin pointed to the middle house.

“Which team is this?”

“Park Jin-hyuk, Park Seo-dam team.”

“This team looks interesting. They seem to have a clear color, right?”

His expectations rose after watching Lee Joo-hyuk’s team work. Choi Jimin opened the door of the middle house and a heavy and fast dubstep music filled the living room.

“Oh, dubstep.”

“Uh? Mentor, you’re here, hyung!”

Park Seo-dam, who was writing rap lyrics, quickly hit Park Jin-hyuk’s shoulder.

They both got up and bowed 90 degrees.

“Hello!”

“Wow… you guys are polite.”

Park Seo-dam brought a chair and placed it next to Choi Jimin. He crossed his legs and tapped his feet.

“Are you working on it now?”

“Yes.”

“Just work comfortably. Your team has a clear color, so I like it.”

The upbeat electronic music makes the body bounce. Choi Jimin nodded his head with a satisfied expression.

“It’s good right now.”

“Thank you.”

Park Jin-hyuk and Park Seo-dam smiled with relief.

“Is this dubstep song following Jin-hyuk’s opinion?”

“Yes, I don’t know much about composing… so I’m trying to write lyrics instead.”

“Good. Division of labor is fine.”

Park Seo-dam had a linguistic talent that showed his prowess in language learning. Choi Jimin nodded his head as he looked at the lyrics.

“There’s no provocative lyrics and there’s a lot of meaning, so I like it. Seodam, you have a charming voice, how about jazz or R&B for the other song?”

“Jazz and R&B?”

“Yeah. Jin-hyuk, you’re not going to do hip-hop only, right?”

‘I’m going to do hip-hop only…’ Park Jin-hyuk was about to say, but Park Seo-dam elbowed his side.

“Ow…”

“Just listen, hyung.”

Choi Jimin advised them to try various musical experiments, as he did to Lee Joo-hyuk.

“It’s hard, just keep your hip-hop strength and mix it with other genres.”

“Jazz hip-hop… sounds good…”

Park Jin-hyuk was lost in thought, while Park Seo-dam sneaked up to Choi Jimin and whispered.

“But… mentor.”

“Huh?”

“What did the next team do? Joo-hyuk hyung’s team.”

Choi Jimin smiled playfully. He spread his arms and said in an exaggerated voice.

“Hey, the next team is no joke. They used all kinds of things to make the rhythm. I thought I was watching a movie. Ian was so excited that he even did a somersault.”

“A somersault? Really?”

“You guys should be nervous.”

Where did he find these kids? He suddenly remembered the young Lee Byung-hun who was cocky and felt annoyed. He unnecessarily stirred up their competitive spirit.

Choi Jimin stretched his neck as he left the house.

“This team is good too. This is Kim Ju-young and Jo Tae-woong’s team, right?”

“Yes, you should lower your expectations for this team.”

The PD seasoned it in advance. The previous team was unexpectedly good, so Kim Ju-young’s team seemed relatively ordinary.

“I guess they don’t have anything yet?”

“Yes, it’s probably because it’s Ju-young’s first time composing alone… Please show him the way, CEO Choi.”

“Tsk… I’m not good at that either.”

Choi Jimin opened the door of the last house. Jo Tae-woong, who was thinking of lyrics near the entrance, called Kim Ju-young.

“Hey, he’s here.”

“Hello!”

They also stood side by side and greeted him like the previous team.

“Hi, you know me, right? Let’s talk comfortably. Let’s listen to the song first.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m not done yet…”

“What’s not done yet? It’s okay. I heard everything from the PD. Just play what you’ve been working on.”

Kim Ju-young and Jo Tae-woong went to the monitor and played the song.

Kim Ju-young decided to use his specialty, DJing.

‘In terms of trying something new, these guys are the closest. But…’

Choi Jimin tapped the desk with his finger. He understood that they mixed various genres to try different things, but they didn’t have a center and it was messy.

“How is it…?”

Kim Ju-young looked at Choi Jimin with an anxious expression. Choi Jimin, who had been listening to the song with a serious face, opened his mouth with difficulty.

“I don’t know what kind of concept you guys have.”