Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols - Chapter 38
Only Krnovel
| Episode 38. Competitor Analysis
Parte’s teaser began with the stylish group logo.
Soon after, one by one, handsome boys with intense makeup appeared.
The sight of everyone dressed in black and the smoke thickly covering the floor was impressive.
The short teaser ended with the formation lined up under a bright red moon CG.
It was a good performance, except that everyone’s expressions were a little awkward because they were new.
“… … Yes.”
Choi Je-ho said. It was a concise review that was typical of him.
“What is the concept? Since it’s the moon, is it a werewolf?”
“It seems like it’s the underworld. The group name itself is derived from the Parthenon. Maybe they’re going for a Greek mythology concept from the beginning?”
I said, pulling the playback bar forward again.
I didn’t have the energy to look at other idols because I was busy with Spark, but I couldn’t help but know that their concept was this clear.
“We’ll have to wait and see when the next teaser comes out to find out for sure. Is there a release date for the next one?”
“… … It’s coming out next week.”
Next week was the week that Jang Jun-hoo’s music video was released.
This one was released right away without any teaser.
I couldn’t tell if they didn’t have a proper promotional plan or if they were trying to focus all the energy that would be dispersed in the teaser into the music video.
‘Even considering the difference between an idol and a ballad singer, it is still a comparison.’
Even though it was only once, I was able to get a rough idea of the scale of the set just by watching the teaser, perhaps because I had seen the filming site in person.
So I guess that’s why there’s a saying that if you want to be a servant, you should do it in the lord’s house.
I scrolled down and checked the comments.
Half of the comments were in English, as if they had overseas fans even though they hadn’t even debuted yet.
Even just looking at the occasional Korean comments, the atmosphere wasn’t bad.
≫ This taste makes big companies lose their minds
≫ The taste of capital is sweet
≫ Congratulations on your debut, Min Il ♥ May you only walk on a flower path!
≫ How does MYTH always bring in such faces… … New good-looking kids come out every day
Visually, we can be confident that our team will not be pushed aside anywhere.
Another strength of Spark was its appearance that no one could compare to, led by Lee Cheong-hyeon, who was as pure as white jade.
You might wonder if my vision has become clouded after making over twenty Spark cup holders, but I can be proud of this one thing.
Spark has never received any crude, malicious comments about his looks being flawed.
As someone who is more of an ordinary person than anyone else, I felt regretful that this group would not be given that honor.
In that case, the problem would definitely be ‘capital power.’
As trends become more important in the entertainment business and the scale of investment in the idol business changes, the public’s evaluation criteria also rises relatively every year.
It was good that Spark’s debut schedule was brought forward to narrow the gap with the leading runners, including Parte, but comparisons between the groups were unavoidable.
≫ Honestly, the Spark music video… … It looks like UA spent a lot of money on it, but it’s too cheap
≫ I understand that they save money on stage costumes, but I wish they didn’t save money on music videos ㅠㅠ It’s not the first time I’ve trusted the kids’ faces and eaten them raw
≫ It’s just that the company doesn’t want to spend money on useless stuff. Even if they just make shitty videos and put them out, the fans will love them so why spend money? ㅋㅋㅋ This is all something the fandom brought upon themselves.
└ Wow, you’re blaming the fans for this? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ └ㅇ┐
Just the comments I saw while I was making a Spark comment collection video were like this.
Here you are being compared head-on with a big-name rookie?
It was obvious that four or five screenshots of the music video background would be pasted in a row and titled ‘The Reality of Small Businesses’ and would be excitedly spread around the community.
The image of a small company itself wasn’t a bad thing. What can you do if the company is actually small?
Besides, there are cases where people debuted in small and medium-sized businesses and succeeded.
However, it was dangerous to continuously plant the image that ‘the company does not invest in the group’ because that alone would tire the fans.
I’m someone who will be leaving soon, but Spark is a group that will last for 7 years. In times like this, I had to think from a long-term perspective.
To do that, it was important to somehow secure a budget from the company.
I was thinking of begging them to pour all the money saved from Lee Cheong-hyun writing the song and Choi Je-ho and Kang Ki-yeon creating the choreography into the music video.
If you do that, you’ll be able to last at least 7 weeks, even if it’s 7 years.
‘Shit… … Thinking back on disbanding after 7 years, it still sucks.’
Oh. I was thinking too hard about the group’s future and ended up recalling some bad memories.
It was time to take a deep breath and find peace.
When I handed over my phone to calm my mind and body, Kang Ki-yeon and Jeong Seong-bin started looking at the same comment window I was looking at.
The three of them, including Lee Cheong-hyeon who had just joined, read the comments seriously with their faces gradually hardening.
“It’s so cool, but there are still malicious comments… … And it’s still just a teaser.”
“Is this something that people either like or dislike? Was the sound only good for me?”
At the same time, the guys were sharpening their mental strength.
If I left it like this, I would be investigated for going viral if I kept putting on sunscreen instead of parterre all night.
In particular, Kang Ki-yeon’s face was very ashen.
“If there are so many critical comments like this even to those who haven’t even debuted yet… … After debuting… … .”
“Hey, give me your phone.”
“Oh, yes.”
“And from the day you debut, you are prohibited from monitoring or searching for your own names. Got it?”
“yes?”
I almost got into big trouble. I was monitoring someone else’s team and almost got all of our team members into trouble.
I decided to keep the three people I was monitoring closely in mind.
I promise to monitor the comments even if it means getting dry eyes while reading them.
* * *
“Lastly, please give us a word of determination before this stage.”
“I will work hard. Please give me lots of support… …!”
“Cut!”
When I called cut, Kang Ki-yeon, dressed in a tracksuit, sighed and cleared his throat.
The two of us were conducting the ‘Kang Ki-yeon Exclusive Mock Interview’ without fail tonight as well, to great acclaim.
And in just 4 weeks and 3 days, Kang Ki-yeon achieved remarkable results. It was a miracle like a midsummer night’s dream.
“Did you know that today was the first time you completed an interview without shaking your hands even once?”
“Really?”
Kang Ki-yeon looked surprised. I told him to check it out for himself and played the recorded video for him.
Good pronunciation, good voice volume, good comments. To this extent, it is a great improvement.
His gaze was a little uneasy and his answers were mechanical, but that was something that could be solved with practice.
+
[SYSTEM] ‘Hidden task’ has been completed.
▷ Content: Helping members grow
▷ Reward: Experience (10)
▷ Cumulative experience: 95
▷ Accumulated points: 0
+
Look, the system counts it as a success too.
This was clear evidence that Kang Ki-yeon’s abilities had increased.
Kang Ki-yeon himself couldn’t take his eyes off the camera screen, as if he could clearly see the change.
“There are still a lot of things that need to be fixed in the future, you know?”
“Yes. Especially the gaze… … is almost directed to the ground.”
“You just have to practice. Starting tomorrow, let’s try to focus on other things as well.”
After pointing out the next task, I put away the tripod I had set up on the floor.
‘Next time, I should find a broken camera somewhere other than my phone camera and leave it there.’
Even on the set of Jang Jun-hoo’s music video, there were several cameras. The pressure from those lenses was incomparable to that of a smartphone’s fingernail-sized camera.
Just as Chief Nam was about to desperately want to take a commemorative photo in front of the mountain peak stone, Kang Ki-yeon, who was moving the chair behind him, spoke to him.
“Hey, hyung.”
“why?”
“Where did you learn this, hyung?”
“Keuhp, huh?”
Looking back, Kang Ki-yeon had an innocent face that showed no sign of malice.
He didn’t even realize that he had stabbed the regressor’s weak point with a knife that had been sharpened a hundred times.
My heart pounded as if it had been stabbed by an awl.
“Oh, right. I was just thinking about it for a moment, thinking, ‘Wouldn’t it be helpful to practice something that’s similar to the real thing?’”
I learned a lot, by learning from my boss.
But Kang Ki-yeon didn’t give in easily.
“That’s because my brother seems to explain things very thoroughly. The points he points out are different every time.”
“Isn’t it because I have good eyes? Everyone always tells me that I have good eyesight.”
“hmm.”
If you were to accept a few dozen new employees and conduct orientation, their pupils would split.
But since I couldn’t tell you honestly, I went out confidently, as if I was full.
“Why, is my educational policy not satisfactory? Starting tomorrow, should I play the speech training videos on YouTube?”
“sorry.”
Fortunately, Kang Ki-yeon immediately backed down.
Even though my humanity was somewhat corrupted, I couldn’t help it.
What if I get caught knowing what’s going to happen next and get released with all my information leaked?
That can’t be. This one would be stuck to the bottom of your shoes like a leech.
“Do you think it would be possible to do a simple photoshoot other than an interview or a stage? There’s a profile photoshoot coming up soon.”
Yes, that’s right.
After debuting, profile photos to be posted on portal sites were soon to follow.
If it weren’t for that, Kang Ki-yeon, who needs to sleep a lot and grow up quickly, wouldn’t have been held back until this hour.
“I think I can do it to some extent if it’s just taking pictures. It was okay when I took ID pictures at school.”
ah.
Is that a photo where you can’t find that smile even if you gouge out your eyes and wash them?
I thought of Kang Ki-yeon’s high school ID photo, which would later become known as the ‘Northern Air Force shot that would never be repeated in the ID photo world.’
If you like that kind of stiff impression, it doesn’t really matter how the photo turns out.
Fans also liked any kind of photo as long as the facial features were clear.
‘But I didn’t really like those kinds of photos… … .’
I don’t know if it was like that from the beginning, but Kang Ki-yeon didn’t like my impression very much.
This group of guys are all like that, but if they kept their mouths shut, they would be easily misunderstood.
‘Does it hurt? No, Sparkler. I’m feeling good today. … … Does my expression look stiff?’
‘No, Kang-Gyeon! Don’t be discouraged! It’s just that the camera quality isn’t good today! Right, everyone?!’
Kang Ki-yeon, who would become gloomy whenever the subject of impressions came up, and Lee Cheong-hyeon, who was trying hard to appease him, were vivid in front of my eyes.
Of course, I don’t intend to see it as the natural shape of the face.
If you want to get braces, I’ll make you a smile machine by putting rubber bands on the corners of your mouth. I’ll carve the joys and sorrows of social life into your face.
While I was at it, I was trying to tell him to ‘greet the members with a smile every morning’ when Kang Ki-yeon said,
“I’ll practice taking pictures more by myself.”
“Can you do it?”
“Yes. You should go home early today too, hyung.”
I wondered if he was being considerate and letting me go home early, but this guy was ‘that’ Kang Ki-yeon.
There’s no way the guy who made me roll around on the practice room floor until 11 p.m. would suddenly show me such kindness.
‘Well… … Whether you go early or late, there’s always something to do.’
If I stayed in the practice room for a long time, I would practice more, and if I went back to my dorm, I would work, so there was virtually no change in my rest time.
“Okay. Let’s go for today.”
But I couldn’t send the child alone, so I finished practicing there and packed my bags.
A few days later, Kang Ki-yeon would return with a bright smile on her face, little did she know.