Idols Around the World 231

Chapter 231 – #33. Amazing Star (1)

“Pie! Are you really going to cast them?”
“You went and saw it. Your skills are not bad.”
“Anyway, it’s a performance group. These kids are nothing but the puppets of the agency. You can’t even rap, so what do you believe in?”
“Can’t you think of why Season 10 failed? I won’t be able to get out of the old sensibility forever. As in the past, what we need now is change.”

Last season 10 failed to live up to its reputation.
Even though it prevented the worst viewer ratings from coming out because there were die-hard fans of “A Star,” Which was shortened to “Amazing Star,” It did collect the lowest viewer ratings and topicality compared to other seasons.
If it becomes the worst season until season 11, die-hard fans will slowly turn their backs on A-Star.

“We’ve been through this kind of crisis once in the past, and we’ve done great. Know?”

When we bring up the story of Season 6, the atmosphere of the staff becomes solemn.
Season 6, which was prepared effortlessly.
When I think of that time, I will never be able to smile.
It was nothing short of a miracle that they overcame that crisis and reached Season 11.
It was season 6 when we were facing a much bigger crisis than we are now.

“I felt it while doing season 10. If we keep going like this, season 11 will be like season 6.”
“The fans still cheer for our program?”
“Is it really time to change…”
“But the change doesn’t have to involve adding a contestant who doesn’t even look like that singer. There must be another way.”
“I’ve been thinking about everything. This is the best Broadening the genre.”

In the first, only the best stars were invited to compete, and in the second, masters buried in the field were brought out and made to rise as stars, maintaining topicality.
However, the contestants who became stars after being buried like that did not hold up the topic of A-Star for long.
The contestants who became stars thanks to the program were at a loss for what to do with the attention pouring in from all sides.

‘It’s a difficult environment for ordinary people to stay sane.’

This is where the need for a record label that manages celebrities comes from.
The program did not even connect me to a good record label.
There were many requests, but it was obvious that the program would go bankrupt once the record label started to breathe in, so they thoroughly blocked their access.
Therefore, after the program ends, the record label’s approach begins.
Some contestants are really lucky to land on decent record labels and maintain their popularity with proper promotion, but most start to go downhill from the top.
Most of them were flashy and then forgotten, accidental and blamed as scandals and disappearing.
This happened because the participants were selected solely based on their skills, not their personality.

‘Even decent people change their personality when they suddenly gain popularity.’

It doesn’t feel good for her to see the contestants she’s been putting on top get into accidents one by one and disappear from her entertainment world.

“Even if you broaden the genre, you broaden it too much.”
“This is the reaction I want. Are you broadening the genre? I’m going to expand it wide enough to get a reaction.”
“They are popular idols. The fans are amazing.”
“You’ve brought up a lot of kids who are buried in Jaeya. Now, regardless of popularity or genre, I will cast them.”
“Are you going to do classical music?”
“What can you not do? People can do anything they want.”

When season 11 started, the goal was to hear that the PD was crazy.

“It’s ridiculous that being criticized is the goal. Do we have to go that far?”
“What are we? What a great person No matter what, you are a slave to viewership ratings. What can a slave do I can do anything for the ratings, my master. They’ll watch it while swearing at them, asking why the PD is doing this, is he crazy, or is he trying to ruin the program? Why? Because I’m curious. You’ll wonder if the program that did this is working!”
“… Are you going to turn the people who curse at you into viewers?”
“I am confident this season.”
“Okay. All good. Okay. I understand. Since you are our captain, we as sailors must follow. Let’s try it. Just remember I’m obviously dry.”

If there are many sailors on the boat, the boat goes to the mountain.
If they did not want to go to the mountains, the sailors had no choice but to obey the captain’s orders.
Having succeeded in convincing her staff, she quickly finalized her recruitment.
And as soon as her casting was finalized, full-fledged promotion for season 11 of A Star began.

♧ ♧ ♧

“Hello.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Hello.”
“I look forward to.”

Before filming for season 11 of A Star began, she arrived at the airplane for a pre-meeting.
Even the staff, who opposed their casting, couldn’t hide their smiles when the male idols boasting their warm beauty appeared.

‘It’s definitely refreshing.’
‘Sniff, sniff, it smells good too.’
‘Since I’m an Asian, I thought it would be cool to see the real thing…’
‘It seems like we’re a completely different species.’
‘Are all Asians originally this good-looking? Or is it a collection of handsome boys?’

When a fresh male idol entered the space that smelled like a queer lady, the space they usually lived in seemed different.

“Nice to meet you. I saw it when I was on stage and it’s really nice to see it up close like this.”
“Have you ever come to see our stage?”
“Sure. It’s not just anyone casting, so it’s essential to verify your skills. By the way, do you speak Korean fluently?”
“Not everyone speaks fluently, but enough that Jackie and I can communicate.”

The other members only knew how to infer the nuances of conversation with ‘words’.

“It’s good. At least it won’t be a problem with communication. Do you know anything about our program?”
“Sure. You can’t not know Asta. Moreover, among our members, there are Asta fans. Kyung-tae hyung watched every season.”

As I pointed and spoke to Kyung-tae, who was filled with emotion, the director’s gaze turned to Kyung-tae.

“Woah, it’s an honor! PD! Can I take a picture with you just once?”

Kyeong-tae hyung was a fan of Asta, even the producer who made the program.
When I saw PD, he made a fuss saying that he would definitely take a picture, and eventually he did it.
From that appearance, PD-nim smiled heartily, as if he had noticed that Kyung-tae hyung was a true fan of Astar.

“Sure.”

The success of the program made Pi a star producer.
She is proving her ability just by continuing to be in charge of the program without changing producers until Asta season 11 in a huge capitalist society.
After having a photo session with P.I.
The pre-meeting has begun.

“During the program, I will stand on stage a total of 5 times. Under the premise of winning, of course. Participants will play 4 rounds of the tournament with a total of 16 teams. I can only give you two weeks of preparation time per round.”

For two weeks, you have to show a stage that is complete enough to satisfy viewers.
No matter how professional you are, it was very difficult to show a stage that was completed in two weeks.
Of course, the quality of a stage performed in a state where there is ample practice period and a stage in a time-limited situation are inevitably different.
Even if you are a professional singer, it is not easy to show a good image in Astar.

“Even if you make a mistake, there are no second chances. There is only one stage.”
“Yes.”

Gulp-

The members who heard PD’s words from the interpreter started to get very nervous.
If you are in a situation where you have to show a high-quality stage in two weeks, no matter how professional you are, you can’t help but be nervous.
Everyone on the pro stage has the basics.
The difference in detail makes the difference on stage, and the detail changes depending on how much you change your body during the practice period.

“Did we scare you too much?”

PD-nim jokingly asked if we could see that we were nervous.

“I am more excited than scared. It is a very honorable situation for us just to appear on this program.”
“Appearing isn’t the end of your goal, right?”
“Sure. I will work hard with the thought of getting first place. Oh, and can’t we know the cast in advance?”
“What about the cast?”
“I know that there has never been a male idol group cast in Amazing Star. There’s no way we’re the only ones who get special treatment, so I’m sure other contestants were recruited in various fields like us, but I thought it would be helpful to prepare for the stage if we knew in advance.”

When he heard the news that we were appearing on Astar, Kyung-tae hyung was happy, but he would say that he didn’t understand why we were invited.
This is because the criteria for participants that Astar has recruited so far and our group’s circumstances are very different, even if they are different.
And Kyungtae-hyung speculated that the PD would make a drastic change that viewers would not expect in Season 11.
If it was true that they would make drastic changes, it was clear that knowing in advance would be of great help.
She will be able to guess the mean theme of season 11 she is planning.

“Well, I’m sure it is. But I can’t tell you the cast in advance. Because the cast is the most top-secret information among us. You guys promise you’ll never tell it, but every time there’s one more person who knows the secret, there’s bound to be a big hole in the security.”
“Understand.”
“Thank you for your understanding. So now it’s our turn to tell you what we can do for you. We plan to take care of all the help that arises in the process of preparing for the stage. Whatever you want, just tell me and I’ll get it ready.”
“All of them?”
“Yes. All we want is to show a perfect stage. And it is our staff who can do anything for such a stage.”

It was a very unconventional statement.

“But even if we promise to do everything, I want you to refrain from being too greedy. We’re human too, so it’s bound to be difficult if you set too many requirements for us. Even if you want to do everything in your heart, there are definitely limits.”

In a word, they sell everything except the missing ones.
They can use anything they can do.
However, it is not possible to do something that cannot be done, so please look forward to it in moderation.

‘I can use the production staff as much as I want, what more could I ask for?’
“In addition, you prepared hard, but you can’t digest it properly? Cooperation will be difficult in the next stage. We discriminate heavily based on skill. They are all friends with pride.”

It was a part where I could see how important it is to build a good relationship with the staff while playing Astar.
If you want to get their help, you have to build a relationship that deserves it, and you have to be able to prove your skills.
As Kyung-tae hyung warned, Amazing Star was not an easy program.
I was imagining what kind of time the 2 weeks we had to prepare for the stage would be for us.