episode_0019

“Starting anew with a cover song? No intention to hide it, I see?”

“Yes! Haha.”

The department head chuckled brightly and glanced at me.

“No reason to hide it, right? You should subtly showcase it. Since you garnered great popularity at the late-night karaoke contest, it’s time to capitalize on that. There’s nothing like stirring up some controversy at the beginning stages.”

It wasn’t a bad suggestion, but there were several complications involved in casually singing at a karaoke contest versus meticulously mixing and uploading a cover song video. The department head seemed well aware of this and began to elaborate.

“Don’t worry about copyright issues. I contacted the TIER Band’s management company, and they gladly gave their permission. Also, when I reached out to the late-night streamer, thanks to whom the karaoke nights gained momentum again, Seo-ah also expressed her support.”

“Ahaha. Is that so?”

Seo-ah had been working hard as well. It was truly generous of the TIER Band to grant permission.

“By the way, when I conveyed the message from TIER Band’s vocalist, TIER-nim… initially, they refused to release a cover song.”

That’s right. For the TIER Band, starting afresh was a sensitive matter. That’s why, despite their songs being popular, they never released any cover songs.

“But when I mentioned that Seo-ah would be singing it, they said, ‘Oh, really? Then we should allow it. Aren’t we part of the same rock lineage? Refusing this would go against the spirit of rock.’”

Upon hearing that, I burst into laughter.

“It’s funny how my rocker days are coming in handy once again. More than that, I’m really grateful that they knew… I must thank them later.”

“Yes, hehe. Next, Sunsoo…”

Seeing her speak Japanese, she must be preparing for a Japanese-style performance. However, Sunsoo smiled and nodded as if she had intended to sing that song.

“I was going to do that, but I passed the audition for Linu. It seems like we understood each other.”

“Hehe.”

The more I saw her, the more I felt she had a good sense. It seemed safe to follow her lead. She continued to recommend cover songs to others. Meanwhile, Minji, whose confidence seemed shattered since her last interview where she sang, responded in a defeated tone.

“I feel like it’s a waste of money to make a cover song. Just recording it roughly on my phone and uploading it…”

“What are you saying? Don’t lose heart. You have to face it! And it’s not like you have to record it today; you have about a month or so. If you work hard on vocal training, you’ll see a big difference.”

“Is that so…”

“You’ve never received vocal training before?”

“No. If I did and still sound like this, it feels like a scam…”

Whether she was speaking sincerely or joking, her words made me smile involuntarily.

“Then you will see a significant change. Right, Sunsoo?”

“Yes. Vocal training classes may be expensive, but there’s a reason for that… But who do you think will teach us?”

“You might be surprised when you find out, right? Let’s all go together. To the vocal academy!”

And so, we arrived at a vocal academy in a company van. Its large scale resembled that of a major institute.

“Wow…”

It seemed like many things left Linu speechless after joining the company.

“Really impressive here. This place is quite renowned, producing many alumni from our university. So, Seo-ah unnie, how did you learn to sing? Self-taught?”

“Yeah. I diligently followed along while listening to songs by famous rockers.”

“Wow… Song imitation. It must have been tough to self-teach that.”

“I couldn’t afford to attend a place like this. Nowadays, you can easily find tutorials on how to sing on channels, but back then, there was nothing like that.”

I vaguely remember around the time I graduated middle school? It was when smartphones were just becoming popular. Wasn’t it a time when UCCs were more popular than YouTube?

“Wait a minute. Did my statement just make me sound like an old-timer?”

“No. Thanks to you, I could hear Seo-ah’s unique vocal tone~.”

While we were on the subject, I became curious and asked Minji. Minji and I have a 7-year age gap. So, there might be a significant generation difference.

“Did Minji have a smartphone when she was young?”

“Yes. When I was young, there was a game called Angry Cow… I have a fun memory of playing it.”

“Oh really? I used to enjoy that game too.”

“Oh!”

Excitedly, Minji explains the folklore related to the game. She may be reserved with strangers, but when it comes to something she knows well, she explains enthusiastically. This leads to gradually becoming closer by engaging in such conversations.

“Ah~ Angry Cow. It was fun, right?”

Meanwhile, the department head approaches me and asks, “Why didn’t you ask me?”

“Oh, when was it…?”

“Was it when I was in my third year of college, or when I graduated? Before that… Do you happen to know what PMP is?”

It felt like encountering the real deal.

Inside the vocal academy. For some reason, a familiar face, a woman in her early thirties, stands up and greets us.

“Nice to meet you all. I’m Ha Yurim, a singer and vocal trainer.”

As we exchange greetings, I recall who she is. Ha Yurim. She had a few hit ballad songs. But I remember that she hasn’t been active since then.

“It’s been quite a while since I’ve been active as a singer…”

“The one who sang ‘Cruel Love.’ I really love that song…”

“Oh, you know my song even though you’re so young. You must be Sunsoo, right? You must have graduated from Silum.”

“Haha. Yes. That’s right. Sunbaenim.”

Thanks to Sunsoo’s academic background, it didn’t take long to become friendly.

“Your songs were great, Sunbaenim. Are you not active anymore?”

“Yes. I hit a limit. As I continued, I realized I have a talent for teaching others. So, I changed my path.”

I glance at the department head, who seemed to have anticipated this.

“Well then! Let’s do a light singing test. But before that, some of you might have strained voices from broadcasting until dawn yesterday.”

The sound of keys resonates. Sequentially, the scale goes up and down, a commonly known scale.

“Now, watch me closely. You’ve probably tried it or heard it before, so it shouldn’t be difficult. La la la…”

Her scale continues. It was a flawless and clean vocalization.

“Shall we continue? Who wants to go first…”

“Yes, it’s better to get the hard part over with. I’ll go first. I’m Cha Hyobin.”

“Yes, Hyobin~.”

Hyobin’s scale. With a strong voice and good breath control due to exercise, surprisingly, her scale was fine this time, unlike during the last interview.

“Is it good? You can’t sing, right?”

She said, jotting down notes on a paper with our names.

“Yes. Haha, it’s easy, that’s why. I have a tone-deafness when singing…”

“I see. Alright. Let’s listen to a song later, and next…”

“I’ll go! I’m Baek Minji. Since everyone else sings well, it might stand out if I go in the middle…”

“Understood.”

Minji’s scaling begins.

“Huh? This feels strange…”

“You’re doing well. Again~.”

Her voice may be shaky, lacking breath support. However, upon listening to her lower range scale, which I felt during the previous interview, her tone sounds decent. After finishing the scale, Minji murmurs quietly.

“Piano, I’m sorry…”

“Haha, no. You did well. Your lower range voice sounds pretty. Let’s focus on enhancing that.”

“Oh, really? Oh. Okay.”

Indeed, a skilled teacher is different. They find pearls even in the mud and strive to polish them. It’s my favorite style.

Next, Goeun’s scale follows. She handles it easily, as if she’s done it many times.

“You’re doing well. Have you done this a lot?”

“Yes, I attended a vocal academy during my corporate tax days.”

“Oh really? That explains why your pronunciation seems a bit refined. Understood. Next is Sunsoo.”

“Got it!”

“Majors are different. Show me.”

As usual, she brightly smiles, adjusts her posture upon hearing the pitch, and starts singing. Even on ordinary scales, there’s a distinctly full feeling compared to others.

“Wow. Excellent.”

“Thank you.”

Is it my turn next? It seems like I always end up being the last one in these singing tests. Perhaps this time, I should go first.

“A singer like me…! Oh, ‘New Start’ sounds great. Sometimes we use it as a textbook here.”

“Haha. It’s an honor.”

A light scale…

Wait a moment, how high is this going? It seems like this person is deliberately testing my vocal range. Well, I’ll just have to accept the challenge.

“!”

The scale is over. I have perfect pitch, so I immediately recognize piano notes, but unexpectedly, it went up to C6. Unbelieving, I ask:

“You reached C6 just now?”

“Yes. It seems like you could go even higher. But since you have to sing later… Let’s stop here. Wow, that’s impressive.”

She picks up a pen to jot something down on paper, then chuckles and puts it back down.

“It’s not just about producing sound, but how you produce it that matters more. However, Seoa’s high notes… the texture, the volume… even the tone that emerges from within. I can’t put it into words.”

“Thank you.”

“Unnie, look at this. My goosebumps are showing.”

Hyobin quietly shows her arm.

“It’s okay to eat chicken breast instead of duck meat.”

“Haha, sure.”

Others seem quite surprised by the simple scale exercise.

“Let’s proceed with the song test right away. Take a sip of water… Who will start the song?”

I raise my hand eagerly.

“Alright. What song would you like to perform?”

“I’ve decided to sing a cover of ‘New Start.’ I’ll sing that.”

“Okay. Whenever you’re ready, please go in there and put on the headset. Oh, let me adjust the microphone in the recording studio for a moment…”

“It’s fine. I can do it myself.”

“Got it!”

When it comes to singing, I’ve tried out various equipment, from old ones to new ones. I enter the recording studio and check the microphone. It was one of the devices I knew well. Skillfully adjusting the microphone height and putting on the headset.

“I’ll start.”

People beyond the recording studio are visible. Everyone, including the vocal teacher playing the music, is watching me intently.

After finishing the song and taking off the headset, she looks at me with an even more stunned expression than before. With a pleased smile, I ask the teacher:

“How was it?”

“This. There’s nothing to teach you, right? I feel like I should be the one learning from you instead.”

“What?! Is it really that good?”