Chapter 96:
Chapter 96
Idol You. (3)
Ian, who spent the night at a spacious hotel, followed the staff to the studio.
He greeted Zhao Gaga, who had arrived first.
“*What is this?”
Zhao Gaga’s eyes widened at the pile of papers Ian took out.
The interpreter quickly came over and translated their words.
“*I wrote down roughly how to teach them.”
“*That’s amazing… Did you sleep well?”
“*I slept a lot.”
Although they couldn’t read it because it was written in Korean, the letters written densely on the profile papers of the trainees looked like black paper from a distance, exaggerating a bit.
“*I’m not skilled enough to teach anyone, but I have to do my best.”
“*You have enough skills to teach them if you look at your mentor introduction stage.”
Zhao Gaga turned on her phone as if she remembered something. She pointed her finger at Ian’s mentor introduction stage.
“*It has the highest views right now.”
“*Really?”
Beating EXT Wang Yifeng and Wei Hao, who are China’s national idol-level? No way.
[The number of Chinese heads is no joke.]
It had been only a few hours since it was released, and the views had already exceeded 100 million.
“*The power of the song is great.”
The song Ian prepared was a song loved by the Chinese people as a national pop song.
‘I’m glad I prepared it separately.’
Zhao Gaga also told him in detail that Ian and his group were on the real-time search list of China’s green window. Then she went back to her waiting room.
[…It will rise in the first week.]
The Chinese fandom was the deciding factor for album sales.
Ian captured the Chinese portal site and sent it to his members.
He checked his makeup and hair and checked his outfit while waiting for a reply.
(Lee Ju-hyuk1) ?? – 9:43
(Hyun-hyun2) How come the views are higher than our music video? – 9:43
(Ian4) This was released and our group was on the real-time search list of China’s green window. – 9:43
(Jo-tang3) Awesome – 9:44
(Ian4) The reaction is no joke, the arrangement is good, the choreography is good, it’s crazy – 9:44
After that message, the members spammed emoticons such as characters dancing crazily, cats flying happily, and so on.
Meanwhile, the situation of the trainees who checked their grades was mixed with joy and sorrow.
“*Grade… S? Really?!”
“*F? I can’t believe it.”
Even though this grade was not the final ranking, some trainees were overjoyed as if they were jumping, and some trainees were crying as if they had lost everything in the world.
“*Did you all check your grades? This grade is not the end. You have to compete until the final live broadcast.”
Cheon Shin-hwi turned over his cue card.
“*The theme song of Idol You, ‘It’s you’, has a center opportunity open to all of you.”
After that, the trainees formed groups through mini-games and other competitions.
The groups were assigned practice rooms, which also stimulated their competitive spirit and sense of deprivation.
The trainees with higher average grades got good practice rooms with large space, personal cabinets, and beverage refrigerators, while those with lower grades got practice rooms with small space and no options.
“*Hello.”
As Ian opened the door of the practice room and entered, the trainees who were waiting greeted him with bright smiles and applause.
Ian also smiled broadly at their hospitality.
“*Nice to meet you.”
They covered their mouths with their palms and blushed. There were stickers with their grades and names on their stomachs.
“*How did you feel when you got your grades? Did you agree?”
Some trainees nodded their heads, while others shook their heads in denial.
“*Grades are temporary, what matters is ranking and debut.”
Ian opened his file holder and skimmed through the profiles of the trainees in this practice room.
“*Before I teach you, I can’t guide you all fairly. Those who already have their own style will have relatively less time with me. I hope you don’t mind that.”
Not wanting to be cut off by the middle interpreter, Ian spoke at length. The trainees nodded their heads.
“*There will be plenty of time to learn later. Now I will teach you how to sing according to your own style so that you can be in the center or in the front row. Are you ready?”
“*Yes!”
Ian nodded his head as he looked at them answering confidently. He was glad they were all enthusiastic.
“*Let’s start with vocalization. Some of you may have your own vocalization, but the basics are never enough.”
Just like dancing the basic routine before dancing, singing also required basics.
Ian showed them an example first.
The trainees marveled at the octave that rose gradually.
“*You can do it too. Just think about breathing in and out.”
Thanks to the tones of Chinese, practicing how to vocalize strongly was easy.
Ian checked a few of the trainees he would focus on teaching with his eyes.
***
“Okay, did you practice the song ‘It’s You’?”
“Yes!”
“Let’s sing it once.”
The trainees sang along with the lyrics sheet following Ian’s cue.
A grating sound caught his ear at the high note of the chorus.
He looked at the trainee on the far right.
It was the same trainee he had tapped his head in frustration earlier.
‘I’ll have to teach him intensively at the end.’
He stood in front of the trainee on the far left.
“First, let’s see Ryu Seol-yeong.”
Ryu Seol-yeong’s face tensed up.
“You have a nice natural voice. Relax your breathing for a moment… Ah, make some sound.”
Ian gently comforted the trainees as he gave them vocal lessons.
Unlike his worries from yesterday, the trainees followed Ian’s instructions diligently, and some of them showed progress.
‘I hope it goes on like this…’
The other trainees either had their basics down or were blank slates who learned well as he taught them, but the last one was a troublemaker.
“Last, Yang Ja-rin.”
“Yes!”
“Yang Ja-rin, you need to work on your vocalization again. Let’s continue from what we practiced as a group earlier.”
Yang Ja-rin did vocalization exercises. The trainees around her frowned. Her high notes still hurt their ears.
“You’re straining too much on the high notes. You don’t end on the high note, you have to go smoothly and come back. Like this.”
Ian showed her an example.
“You don’t need to start with a high pitch from the beginning. Again.”
Yang Ja-rin couldn’t get the hang of it, and Ian kept repeating himself to do it again.
“I guess I can’t do it.”
Finally, exhausted Yang Ja-rin slumped down and sobbed.
“Let’s try again.”
“I want to stop vocal lessons… I have to dance too.”
“Idols are singers who sing. What are you going to do if you can’t sing?”
“But I can’t hold on to a song that doesn’t work!”
Yang Ja-rin snapped in frustration. The trainees who were practicing individually were startled and looked at her. Ian stared at her coldly and sighed softly.
“…Cut the camera.”
He said to the production crew. The production crew hesitated. They couldn’t stop recording as they pleased.
“Turn it off for a moment.”
As the trainees bowed their heads in the awkward atmosphere, Ian mouthed silently to pretend to do it. The production crew pretended to turn off the camera.
The VJ who was filming this practice room sparkled his eyes. It was a perfect bait for attention. He had a hunch that a good scene would come out.
“Translate this as it is.”
The simultaneous interpreter nodded.
“So you want to quit now?”
Yang Ja-rin was three years younger than Ian.
“Tell me if you want to quit. No one will stop you.”
“But… I can’t do it. I guess I shouldn’t sing. Everyone says it hurts their ears…”
“You can do it. What are you going to do if you set your own limits?”
Yang Ja-rin avoided Ian’s gaze and lowered her head.
“I want to focus on dancing.”
“You’re giving up singing and focusing on dancing? That’s the same as saying you’ll be a backup dancer. Do you think you’ll get a good evaluation if you run away with dancing? You can’t dance well either.”
“…”
“The moment you give up, you’re done. Do you want to make this your last? Yang Ja-rin, look at me.”
Yang Ja-rin shook her head.
“It’s okay. You can do it.”
“I’m someone who can’t do it. Just, just teach the other kids.”
“There’s nothing you can’t do if you try.”
Lim Tae-woo, who succeeded as The Man of Trot, said that, and so did Choi Ian now.
Ian encouraged her with a confident face. Yang Ja-rin got up weakly.
He kept holding on to Yang Ja-rin while teaching other trainees in between.
‘I’m going to tear you apart and fix you.’
It was partly out of spite.
If he only judged by her tone, she was quite good. That’s why he expected a dramatic change if he fixed her basics.
***
Time passed, and it was around midnight. Ian, who had visited another practice room, looked at Yang Ja-rin sitting blankly.
‘Did I do something wrong?’
[No, she just seems really bad at it.]
Possible additional sentences to complete the response:
Even from Jin’s perspective, Ian was teaching very easily, so that even a kindergarten student could follow.
Suddenly, Yang Jaring got up and started singing again.
‘Remember the feeling of your vocal cords sticking together… Breathe until the end… You can do it.’ She sang the theme song with a determined expression.
[Does it feel good?]
Ian quietly watched her sing. From the introduction, her languid tone stood out.
‘Please, this time…’
As Yang Jaring continued to sing the chorus of the song, Ian clenched his fist.
It was not the ear-piercing high-pitched sound that was different from the grade evaluation. The other trainees were surprised by her high and clear tone that was also pleasant to listen to.
“*You did it!”
“*You succeeded, Jaring!”
The trainees quickly approached and hugged Yang Jaring tightly. They felt human compassion for her, who couldn’t do well even though she tried hard, regardless of the competition.
“*What do I do…”
Yang Jaring, who sang the song to the end, looked astonished as if she couldn’t believe it. Tears burst from her eyes.
“*Good job.”
Ian approached her and held out his palm. Yang Jaring smiled brightly while shedding tears and high-fived his palm.
***
The trainees who practiced until dawn returned to their dormitory, and Ian immediately proceeded with the recording to be inserted in the middle interview.
“*Yang Jaring trainee couldn’t get the hang of it all the time, how did you feel?”
“*Actually, Jaoga almost asked for an SOS from the mentor.”
Ian cried out, but his face was full of pride. The writer laughed out loud.
“*What would have happened if Yang Jaring trainee couldn’t get the hang of it until the end?”
“*It’s my fault for teaching.”
“*Not Yang Jaring trainee’s fault?”
Ian nodded. The writer quickly moved on to the next question.
“*Yang Jaring trainee got annoyed in the middle, right? How did you feel?”
“*I understand that she’s annoyed. There are days when things don’t work out, right? The other trainees are doing well as they are taught, but if only they don’t come out, they might feel unfair… I understand enough. Anyway, Yang Jaring trainee didn’t give up and eventually got a tremendous result.”
Yang Jaring, who gained confidence, continued to sing enthusiastically afterwards.
The trainees were also happy and sang along with her.
At that moment, it was not a survival program where they competed and pushed each other away.
He smiled brightly as he remembered the situation.
“*You must be proud. After all, you’re the one who transformed Yang Jaring trainee, right?”
“*It’s all because she did well.”
The writer smiled contentedly. If he edited well with the beautiful teacher-student relationship, he could surely pull the ratings at the beginning of the program.
“*If you have anything to say to the viewers who are watching this?”
“*There is nothing that can’t be done by trying. Like Yang Jaring trainee. I hope you find comfort too.”
Ian was an excellent teacher, explaining everything so clearly that even a kindergarten student could follow him.
Jin watched him with admiration as he guided Yang Jaring through the song.
Suddenly, Yang Jaring sprang up from her seat and resumed singing with renewed vigor.
I have to remember how it feels when my vocal cords connect… Breathe all the way through… I can do this. She sang the theme song with determination in her eyes.
[How does it feel?]
Ian observed her quietly as she sang. Her voice had a languid quality that captivated him from the start.
Please, let this be it…
When Yang Jaring reached the chorus of the song, Ian clenched his fist in anticipation.
It was nothing like the shrill high note that had ruined her grade evaluation. Her voice soared high and clear, pleasing to the ear.
The other trainees gasped in astonishment and looked at her with envy.
“You did it!” one of them exclaimed.
“You nailed it, Jaring!” another one cheered.
They rushed over to hug Yang Jaring, forgetting their rivalry for a moment. They felt sorry for her, who had struggled so hard without any progress, and happy for her breakthrough.
“What do I do…” Yang Jaring muttered, still in disbelief. Tears streamed down her face.
“Good job.” Ian said, walking over to her and offering his palm. Yang Jaring smiled through her tears and slapped his palm in a high-five.
***
After the trainees had practiced until dawn and returned to their dormitory, Ian went straight to the recording studio for the mid-show interview.
“How did you feel when Yang Jaring couldn’t get the hang of it?” the writer asked him.
“To be honest, I almost called for an SOS from the mentor.” Ian admitted, but his face was beaming with pride. The writer chuckled.
“What would have happened if she hadn’t gotten it by the end?”
“It would have been my fault for not teaching her well.”
“So you don’t blame her at all?”
Ian shook his head. The writer nodded and moved on to the next question.
“She got frustrated at some point, didn’t she? How did you handle that?”
“I understood her frustration. Everyone has bad days, right? The other trainees were doing fine as they followed my instructions, but she was the only one who couldn’t. She must have felt unfair and hopeless. I empathized with her. But she didn’t give up, and in the end, she achieved an amazing result.”
Yang Jaring’s confidence soared after that, and she sang with passion and joy. The other trainees joined her in singing, feeling the same excitement. For that brief moment, they forgot that they were in a survival program where they had to compete and eliminate each other.
Ian smiled brightly as he recalled that scene.
“You must be proud of yourself. You’re the one who transformed Yang Jaring, right?” the writer said.
“It’s all thanks to her hard work.” Ian said modestly.
The writer smiled contentedly. He knew he had a great story to tell. With the beautiful teacher-student relationship as the highlight, he could boost the ratings of the program from the beginning.
“Do you have anything to say to the viewers who are watching this?” he asked.
“Nothing is impossible if you try hard enough. Just like Yang Jaring did. I hope you find comfort and inspiration from her story.” Ian said sincerely.
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