ALL NOVEL Chapter 295
Even though he’s working as a professional producer, he’s also a YouTuber specializing in K-pop reviews.
“We’ll say goodbye here. This is Double-G Noah.”
“This was Double-G Rio.”
Team Double-G recently surpassed 300,000 subscribers and was reaping quite a decent income.
It seemed to be thanks to the various idol fandoms tuning in regularly.
“Should we just record the next one right now?”
“What are you talking about? Do we have something to review now?”
Just talking about the song while clearing his mind and sharing thoughts brought in revenue, which was way easier than producing songs.
“I heard Rev dropped a new song.”
“Eh, they don’t really bring in much revenue. I’d rather work on a track during that time…”
But editing videos could be pretty annoying, so he wasn’t just working on anything.
Only popular groups or genuinely good songs he wanted to introduce to his subscribers.
Those were the only two cases.
“By the way, have you heard? Debonaire is making a comeback next week.”
And Debonaire was a must-review course.
“Oh, right. They said they’re coming back in February, didn’t they?”
All their songs so far had been great.
They were one of the top popular groups, after all.
“They must’ve worked on at least one song with Do-hee this time.”
“Not sure? The song they did during the year-end stage is probably gonna be a track.”
Especially when reviewing songs that Do-hee composed, it was practically a views cheat code.
“How do you even know it’s next week? Did you hear something?”
“No, it’s just that the fans are going wild on the entertainment forum right now.”
“Really? Why?”
“Well, they suddenly announced the pre-order for Debonaire’s mini-album last night. Plus, they said shipping starts next week.”
Producer Noah couldn’t help but raise a question even while listening to his junior.
“Wait, so they’re starting shipping next week but just announced the pre-order yesterday? They haven’t even released concept photos.”
“Yeah, forget about concept photos, but it looks like they’re not worried about starting low on first-week sales.”
“What are you talking about? What kind of entertainment company does that? That’s poor management!”
“I’m serious, it’s true.”
And a little while later, as he saw the announcement from Debonaire on the screen, Noah felt a rush of confusion.
“Wait, is it really? Hang on, so it’s a single album, right? There’s a bunch of groups that do surprise music video releases for disco singles.”
“Would they be doing pre-orders then? Look, it says mini-album.”
…It really was. And there were four different versions.
But what was funny was that despite selling the album, it said they wouldn’t reveal the contents or concept photos.
Moreover, they even announced they’d reveal everything gradually over a week.
“Wow, these guys… what is going on? The fandom must be in chaos.”
“Of course, it’s noisy. But their previous performance was good, so there’s a vibe of holding back criticism.”
And to him, as the producer, that felt like a kind of half-threat.
If the album is bought during the tallying period but shipped after the first-week period, it wouldn’t count in the first-week tally.
If you’re a fan and you want to help Debonaire’s first-week record, it felt like they were saying you must pre-order without worrying about the product value within that remaining week.
“But if you think about it, unknown singers or ballad singers sometimes do this.”
“Hey, that’s a different playing field. These guys are guaranteed to hit a million copies easily in the first week! No one can predict how high they’ll soar during the awards with Do-hee fever still going around.”
“That… is true.”
This guy was thinking too lightly about it, but it wasn’t something that could just end as “yeah, that’s how it is.”
“Think about it. They must be paying attention to first-week demand, so there must be crazy pre-orders at the factory. But if they do pre-sales like this and can’t sell? That all goes to surplus and debt, you know?”
“Well… maybe they’re confident in their song. Or there might be enough fans to buy if they do a fan sign event.”
No matter how he looked at it, it seemed this guy was thinking too simply about company management.
Even though Topist wasn’t a huge entertainment agency, they could easily exceed a market capitalization of 300 billion won once they went public, making it a promising entity.
“These guys should be handling risk management…”
“Uh, wait a minute, did something pop up?”
He was planning to educate this guy, who only knew the code.
“What’s coming up—”
And once again, as he looked at the screen, Noah was taken aback.
Noah was flustered.
“What is this, a music video?”
“…Hey, today is Friday.”
“Yes. So does that mean a song release at 1 PM on Friday? Are we aiming for Billboard here?”
“No, they said album sales are next week.”
“…What the heck?”
That’s exactly what I’m saying.
I have no idea what the intention is.
[DEBONAIR ‘Same’ MV]
But anyway, the music video is out.
In the thumbnail, Do-hee Lee was sitting at the piano, turned away.
“Should I play it?”
No matter what anyone says, they are producers.
When the music played, they were the listeners.
“Okay, let’s just listen first.”
Without hesitation, I clicked on the music video.
Then…
A thunderous sound echoed with a black screen.
Flash!
What appeared was exactly as in the thumbnail, Do-hee’s back sitting at the piano in an attic reflected in the mirror.
Except her impression was slightly different from the thumbnail.
I thought seeing Do-hee playing the piano was a bit cliché by now.
But the screen was mesmerizingly wavy, like a mirage, and fog obscured the view.
I couldn’t quite tell who that back figure was.
In that moment.
She raised her hand and struck the keys.
[Lost in shadows
Whispers fading
In the depths, my fears entwine and grow]
And while the one playing the piano was definitely Do-hee, the voice that rang out was Na-eun’s.
Very clear and soft, yet tranquil.
A perfect tone to express loneliness.
But the screen switched again, showing Na-eun sitting at a desk, working hard on a letter instead of the piano.
Again, the owner of the voice was Do-hee.
[Eyes wide
Heart racing fast
because wrong was made, for me to be]
Unlike at the awards ceremony, her voice was clear yet held a roughness somewhere within.
Probably an intentional timbre.
─Bang!
Then the door swung open violently with some beast’s howl and organ music echoing.
In that brief moment, producer Noah thought.
That organ sound wasn’t MIDI; it was a real pipe organ, and Do-hee must’ve played it herself.
Of course, you might think it’s a minor detail, but that simple choice was sensory.
Because the difference in sound between a MIDI organ and a real pipe organ was definitely distinct.
‘…The composer is perceptive.’
And along with that, the screens of the two began to cross over frequently.
That was probably when the door burst open.
The moment Do-hee lifted her hands from the piano.
A cold, chilling wind blew, scattering Na-eun’s stationery, and Na-eun stood up, looking into the mirror.
And where Na-eun was looking.
‘…Whoa, what the?’
Woo-ah appeared, smiling brightly, right up close to the camera.
In a totally distorted reflection in a funhouse mirror.
[Oh, I am sane
Why do you flee from me in disdain?
Plz meet my eyes
My essence still remains]
The camera angle shifted, now showing Woo-ah’s smiling side profile in front of the funhouse mirror.
In the beautiful sunlight outdoors, Woo-ah was singing and laughing.
[So take my hand
Don’t let our love be in vain
we’re not so far
I’m just the same]
Not like that
I am just as I am)
But now, having escaped the warped mirror, my reflection became even more bizarre.
Woo-ah’s hands were thrashing in the void, unable to grasp anything, and her face was just beautiful.
Then, it seemed that Woo-ah’s hand finally collided with the mirror.
For a brief moment.
A silence where all codes were severed, and only Woo-ah’s voice resonated.
─!
Once again, the sound of instruments emerges, and the shock is distinctly felt.
Truly, from silence, into a textbook-style musical contrast. But that’s what makes it so high-level.
‘Could it be that Do-hee Lee composed this?’
Somehow, that feeling felt right from this moment onwards.
And that contrasting sound was also reflected in the music video.
This time, Woo-ah and Seo-yoon intersected in an instant.
Seo-yoon was truly the mirror image of Woo-ah, but entirely the opposite.
[Oh, I am sane
Why do you flee from me in disdain?
Plz meet my eyes
My essence still remains]
(I’m perfectly okay
Why do you despise and evade me?
Please meet my eyes
My essence is still the same)
The lyrics felt similar, but unlike Woo-ah basking in the bright sunlight.
In the bedroom, the only space without any distortion of the screen, the lights flickered countless times.
Seo-yoon, instead of meaningless gestures, was expressionlessly dancing what seemed to be the chorus part’s choreography all alone.
From start to finish.
And the point of that choreography was undoubtedly bizarre.
If you think of spooky dance routines common in America, you must have the ghost-inspired dance in mind.
The dance where you twist your arms out and shake them side to side.
[So take my hand
Don’t let me lose refrain
we’re not so far.
But you made this insane]
(Take my hand
Don’t let me lose my self-control
We’re not that far away
But you made this situation crazy)
However, as the dance becomes increasingly lively and idol-like…
No, now that I see it, it seems that the lyrics have changed.
Although the chorus introduction was the same.
The following words subtly transformed into a colder, chilling sentiment.
Those pleading voices remain the same.
And in the piano attic, where letter papers flutter and sunlight shines outdoors, with flickering lights in the bedroom.
The camera connects cuts of the four members dancing the same choreography in various conceptual locations without a breath.
But once again, bang!
As thunder crashes.
When the second verse begins.
On a sunny day, Chiyo is captured suddenly sitting up wearing a flower crown.
Her face is pale and tidy, but her dress is covered in dust.
[I like to hold you still
Until the nightmare goes
Caught in this maze, unsure how long I’ll go]
(I like to hold you still
Until this nightmare passes
In this maze, I’m unsure how long I can remain whole)
Chiyo wakes up somewhere in a maze filled with crosses in a graveyard.
And someone holding Chiyo’s swaying hands as she barely rises.
Seo-yoon and Woo-ah.
Both were smiling brightly.
Existences met in the maze.
[But it laughs inside
our worlds collide, Let me out
it’s the time for me]
(But it laughs inside
Our worlds collide. Let me out
It’s my time)
That laughter is so pure that it captivates Chiyo.
[So just say]
But it didn’t take long for her to realize those two hands weren’t well-intentioned.
Through Chiyo’s gaze, the two appeared with an ominous expression as the sky darkened.
[Why don’t you wanna say?
You just wanna make me shade
Why don’t you wanna say?]
(Why won’t you speak?
You want to cast me into shadow
Why won’t you speak?)
“Hey, is it okay?”
And at this point, producer Noah was captivated by the video while enjoying the song.
Every time a textbook musical contrast appeared, the scene transition made it clear that the producer had a well-thought-out concept for the music video while writing the track.
‘…Wait, did the producer get involved in the music video too?’
Lyrics, melody, progression, accompaniment, music video – everything perfectly weaves together a single theme.
Of course, I haven’t quite grasped the theme yet, but in cases like this, the producer’s involvement was unmistakable.
‘…Anyway.’
As we entered the second chorus, both were currently monitoring Chiyo to ensure she wouldn’t escape.
The character that reappeared on screen was Na-eun.
Na-eun rescued Chiyo, and from that moment, the tempo of the video began to pick up again.
[Just say
(ooh-ooh)]
Chiyo, caught in Na-eun’s hands, escaped back into the maze.
[I’m same
just say]
Both raced off again to catch Chiyo.
Thus, they found themselves navigating countless dead ends.
As they pushed through the foliage deep within the maze.
A place where no sunlight reached.
[what say?]
(What do you say?)
The space they faced was disturbingly ominous.
Now, producer Noah felt certain.
‘This… the main composer this time is definitely Do-hee Lee. No doubt.’
At this moment, the melody and accompaniment completely shifted, and the funky bass groove exuded the sophisticated vibe seen in Sweet Demon.
But there was no time to think about such things.
Analyzing later would be fine.
[I’m same]
(I’m the same)
All five, wearing the debonaire’s trademark, stylishly cropped suits, dressed in colorful patterns, finally came together in one frame centered around Do-hee.
And Do-hee now wore a strangely enchanting smile, placing a hand on her chest and taking a deep breath.
That itself was the members’ captivating performance.
But it didn’t stop there; that breath sound was seamlessly integrated into the accompaniment.
In other words, breath sampling.
This was probably what would be released as the track.
No doubt. The breath noise aligned with the heartbeat, producing a basic disco-esque 4/4 percussion rhythm.
Bouncing in time with that rhythm didn’t require much effort, but it felt immensely fulfilling.
A dance everyone could follow.
Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind.
This album could be a compilation of everything Do-hee learned from the debut album and previous ones.
If categorized by genre, it leaned towards disco funk.
[insane-]
(Crazy)
And oh, so refined.
Soon, what was once a dance break transitioned into a bridge, and now the members began to sway their heads rhythmically as they bounced.
[Um, um, um, um]
And with each nod, time and space flowed irregularly.
The jump cuts moved through night, morning, afternoon, the maze, the attic, and the bedroom.
Finally, the reddish sunset shone over the scene.
The place was incredibly peaceful, a small hill.
[Now, the day bleeds into night
In the hollow of your gaze, it makes so clear]
(Now, the day bleeds red into night
In the emptiness of your gaze, it has become so clear)
The members sat side by side, gazing at the sunset.
[The blush on your cheek, just sunset’s light
that’s eating me up inside, you were just a lie]
(Your blush, it was just the light of the sunset
And it’s consuming me inside, you were just a lie)
Then the camera chased after a piece of a white dress caught in the wind, turning to ash somewhere.
Do-hee picked up the fallen piece on the ground.
On the hill, Do-hee was alone again, her hair flowing beautifully.
【Debonair, Friday the 13th】
“…Bro, there are so many points to review here.”
“Uh, first, let’s search if Do-hee is registered as a composer. Also, the lyricist.”