Chapter 12: The Prelude to Comeback (4)
November 27th. I suddenly received a call from Letter Entertainment. They wanted to use ‘Golmok-gil’ 1(The Alleyway).
There was nothing to think about. I said yes, of course.
As soon as I gave my permission, it was decided that Yoon Hyeok-pil would release a digital single. True to the nature of digital singles, the only tracks included were my song ‘Alleyway’ and its instrumental version.
I was still a bit dazed by how sudden it all was, but the company moved quickly.
People started showing up one after another.
First, there were the session musicians. Professional players I’d never met before came in and added depth to my song.
Then there was a professional lyricist. The lyricist kept the basic structure of my lyrics but tweaked the finer details, offering me plenty of advice in the process.
In addition to that, a few arrangers from Letter Entertainment tried to get involved too, like they wanted to leave their mark on the song, but I pushed them away because it felt like they were ruining the landscape of the song. Naturally, that earned me some grumbling.
Anyway, after what felt like a whirlwind of a day, I finally returned to the studio. Not my one-room studio, but Letter’s Entertainment B-1 studio. Thanks to the company’s generosity, I would be able to use this space until Yoon Hyeok-pil’s digital single was fully finished.
“…This is kind of surreal.”
“Yeah, I feel the same.”
Like me, Yoon Hyeok-pil looked just as exhausted after dealing with all the craziness.
For about five minutes, we both just stared into space. We arrived at 8 AM, and now it was 10 PM. We’ve been working for fourteen straight hours…
“Is it always this rushed?”
“…I’m not really sure.”
“Yeah, I thought so.”
This must have been the first time he’d experienced such a hectic day too.
“So, what were you doing all day? A cover shoot?”
“No, the cover hasn’t been decided yet. I just went around doing interviews.”
“Ah, I see… Wait, did you say cover?”
Suddenly, an idea sparked in my head. The cover. The digital single’s cover.
“Yes.”
“Do you want me to make it for you?”
“What?”
“I’m actually an art student, you know.”
I felt confident that I could do a better job than most freelancers. Plus, if I could capture the scenery of the alleyway I had in mind for the cover, it would give the single a nice, atmospheric touch.
“But that’s something the company decides…”
“I have pretty decent credentials, you know? Probably better than you think.”
For starters, I graduated from Seoul National University, and I’ve got a long list of awards. Sure, I haven’t done much since I turned 20, but still.
“Just wait a sec. I’ve got paints and paper ready to go.”
“Wait, right now?”
Last week, I bought some art supplies from a nearby store: colored pencils, a set of 24 watercolors and sketch paper. I also had some old brushes and pencils from before.
I’d been drawing every now and then to help with my sense of color. It was part of my effort to revive my long-unused painting skills.
“Can you bring me some water?”
I squeezed out some paint onto the palette and asked him to arrange the paints on the palette. Though a bit confused, Yoon Hyeok-pil did as I asked.
I closed my eyes and imagined the landscape of the alleyway. As the image slowly came into focus, the melody and rhythm of the song began to echo in my ears.
I painted exactly what I felt, exactly what I saw.
I started to paint my own alleyway.
At the same time, outside the B-1 studio…
Someone was peeking into the space where the work was in full swing, standing on tiptoes, her small stature clearly frustrating her as her expression twisted in annoyance.
“Ugh, seriously.”
Despite her desperate attempts, the woman ultimately couldn’t overcome the limitations of her body. Giving up on trying to peek in, she sighed heavily, exhaling her frustration before pressing her ear against the door instead.
It was then.
“Ah-ra-ya?”
“Eek!”
At the sudden call of her name, Yoo Ah-ra flapped her arms like a startled penguin. Soon, though, she tried to act natural, awkwardly leaning against the studio wall.
Crossing her arms in a forced casual manner, she looked over at the woman who had called her.
It was Lee Ha-yeon.
“Oh, uh, y-you’re here? But, Team Leader-nim, what brings you here?”
“Hyuk-pil-ie is working there, isn’t he? I came to check on him. But why are you here?”
Their gazes locked. It was a subtle power struggle. It wasn’t that Yoo Ah-ra and Lee Ha-yeon had a bad relationship, but it wasn’t exactly great either.
Yoo Ah-ra stared back at Lee Ha-yeon, deep in thought. What should she do? Should she just be honest and barge into the studio? But that might be a bit too much, right?
Oh! Wait, rather than asking directly, wouldn’t it be better to bring this up with her?
Yoo Ah-ra swallowed nervously and spoke directly.
“It’s nothing serious, Team Leader-nim. I just… I want to work with that guy.”
“Huh? What?”
Lee Ha-yeon’s brow furrowed in confusion.
“You know, since we don’t have any producers at Letter who are stepping up to do it and you were planning to hire someone from outside anyway. Why not save some costs and go with him? Plus, since he’s a rookie, we could probably get him to do things exactly the way we want.”
“Hm… is that so?”
Lee Ha-yeon narrowed her eyes. As a team leader, it was a difficult request to grant. Entrusting an entire album to a composer with such limited experience? Even if Lilac wanted it, the company wouldn’t agree.
“You do know that’s asking a bit much, right?”
“How is it too much? You specifically said that we could handle this album however we wanted.”
“…That’s true.”
Lee Ha-yeon simply smiled. Yoo Ah-ra, unwilling to back down, forced a smirk on one side of her lips.
The pointless power struggle resumed.
This time, it lasted a little longer.
About three minutes.
The recording of Alleyway was finished in just five days. With mixing and mastering now in the company’s hands, I was relaxing when suddenly a woman called the team leader walked in and called me over.
As soon as I entered her office, Lee Ha-yeon, without any preamble, dropped a shocking proposal.
She asked if I’d be interested in working with Lilac.
“Lilac… me?”
I couldn’t help but feel confused. Lilac wasn’t the kind of artist someone like me should even consider handling.
Sure, the response to my arrangement of ‘Sending My Love’ had been well received, but it was just a song for a competition on a weekday variety show. It’s the kind of song that would be a big hit if it reached the top 50 on the music charts.
“Yes. It seems like those kids want to work with you, Heli-ssi.”
“Wait, Lilac wants me?”
“Yes.”
That was another thing that didn’t make sense. When had they even seen me?
“…But isn’t album production something that isn’t decided just because the artist wants it?”
Lee Ha-yeon smiled brightly and nodded.
“Of course. That’s exactly right.”
Then she handed me a document.
“So, before anything else, I’d like to suggest something else.”
I picked up the paper. Skimming through it, it seemed to be related to a drama OST.
“This is…”
“It’s for the drama Yoon Ah-ra is currently starring in.”
The title was ‘Small Diary’, but I didn’t know much about dramas, so it didn’t ring a bell.
“Only two episodes have aired so far. But it seems there will be a scene later where Yoon Ah-ra sings.”
“…Ah.”
I got the gist of it.
“We’d like you to take on one of the OST tracks. I’ve already spoken with the drama’s music director. If it goes well, no one would object if I ask you to produce Lilac’s next album.”
“…”
“You’re looking at me like you don’t understand something.”
“Well, I’d be happy to have more work, but… there’s still quite a gap between doing an OST and a girl group’s album.”
Lee Ha-yeon tilted her head, as if she didn’t see what I was getting at.
“I told you already. Lilac wants ‘you’, Heli-ssi. And honestly, we don’t have much of an excuse anymore. We pushed the last album through, but it didn’t produce the results we wanted. Their contract is almost up and we already promised. For this next album—this ‘current’ album—they can do it their own way.”
Despite their popularity, Lilac has never been a chart-topping group. Not once had they hit number one on the music charts, let alone won a music show. There were always excuses that the competition was ‘too’ strong, but still…
“They want to be number one. I’m guessing they’re tired of being seen as entertainers rather than as serious artists. So, what do you think? Do you want to do it? Like you said, there’s a gap between an OST and a girl group album, but it’s also a chance to rise at once.”
The team leader asked and her intent was clear. She was testing my abilities.
If I were a well-established composer, I might’ve been offended, but for a newcomer like me, there was no reason to hesitate.
“Of cour…”
I quickly swallowed my words.
No, not yet. I needed to think back on what I had experienced so far. What did things go wrong for me before?
It wasn’t about skill or recognition. What mattered most was a person’s character.
“…Before that, could I meet Yoo Ah-ra in person?”
“Meet her?”
“Yes. I know it’s presumptuous, but at the very least, I want to assess her character…”
“Hm. I see.”
Lee Ha-yeon made a curious humming sound and began rummaging through her desk drawer. Each of her movements had a strange allure to them, not only from her face, but the lines and elegance of her suit were on another level… it was distracting.
“This is her profile.”
“Ah, but I don’t really need a profile…”
“It contains press releases we’ve blocked so far. Take a look.”
“Huh?”
She motioned toward the file with her chin. Was this the infamous X-File I’d only heard rumors about? Should I even be looking at this?
I cautiously opened the file with a wary eye.
Thankfully, there was nothing too serious—no school violence or rumors of her being a bully. Just a few baseless dating rumors and… extreme complaints about side dishes? What the heck?
“…She seems like a decent person.”
“Yes, she’s a good kid. We’ve never had any serious issues with her. You don’t have to worry about her character.”
Lee Ha-yeon took the file back.
“But if you’d still like to meet her in person, I can arrange it. When would be convenient for you?”
“Well… I’ll need a little time to prepare, so maybe sometime next week?”
“Next Monday… Sure. I’ll let Yoon Ah-ra know at that time.”
I nodded. Turning down an offer like this would be foolish.
“Then you can go now. I’m sorry for calling you in so suddenly.”
“Oh, no need to apologize… I’ll be on my way then.”
As I stood up, Lee Ha-yeon suddenly added something.
“Oh, and—”
I glanced back.
Her soft smile was directed at me.
“‘Alleyway’. It’s a great song.”
