The Halloween self-produced content event by The Dawn drew an explosive response from Noeul. [Title: The Dawn’s Halloween self-content is seriously hilarious lolololol Seo Hoyun’s only magic spell being “Abracadabrain” is insane LOOOOLLLLLLLLLL Kim Sunghyun was like, “Haven’t you heard of Abracadabra...? Is that... good?” ㅠ Hahahahahaha Seo Hoyun: (Knows the meaning) Kang Ichae: (Leaves him be because it’s fun) Sung Jiwon: (Leaves him be because he looks happy) Jung Dajun: (Eyes shaking) And on top of being funny, they wore the costumes from the vote again and did the choreography... what is this... I was obsessed with Kim Sunghyun as an American quarterback, so if there hadn’t been a choreography video, I would’ve been seriously upset. What is this, giving us both comedy and feels... └Honestly, Kang-I‘Chae’ri was so touching └└Agreed, agreed, Daepaseong must really have at least one hardcore otaku staffer haha. Otherwise, there’s no way they’d come up with this.] Their most recent title track, “Fall,” was deemed to fit the Halloween atmosphere best, and The Dawn performed the choreography accordingly. [They took individual and group photo booth strips—so, so pretty...... You’d go bankrupt trying to get these └If you got them, it’d be like winning the lottery, damn, a crazy premium would be attached └└My baby lottery subscriptions..] [If you give away this much, what are you going to do next year,,,ㅠㅠ Next year, please wear magic school uniforms └The Dawnies really might do it When they give, they really give a ton] [Title: The Dawnies are seriously so cute Dajun told this on live After filming the Halloween self-content (read: sniping party), they went back to the dorm and told ghost stories. Sunghyun, who has a single room, got scared sleeping alone, so he went to Hoyun and Jiwon’s roomㅠ Kang Ichae also came to retrieve his game console that Sung Jiwon had confiscated, and the maknae, curious after hearing the older members murmuring, peeked in lolololol In the end, since it was too cramped, they all slept in the living room... When someone asked Sunghyun if he got that scared from a pop-up, he answered, “It was for member bonding”..< I’m gonna die from how cute that isㅠㅠ lololol] [Seriously so cute.... Excessively moe-ifying twenty-three-year-old men... But... should I really? └If we could’ve fixed it, would we even be right now └└#TheDawnIsBabyGodTier,,] Kang Ichae would sometimes post Polaroid shots on his SNS, and perhaps because he’d enjoyed this Halloween so much, he uploaded a huge number of behind-the-scenes cuts from the self-produced content. Among them was Seo Hoyun, in a school uniform, looking vacantly into the distance—an uncharacteristic expression that almost looked like a scene from a youth movie. [Seo Hoyun is just too much Looks like he has a backstory just by breathing,,,] [Why does this photo look so early 2000sㅠ haha His face is so my type it’s painfulㅠ Damn it... If he’d debuted since high school, I could’ve gone crazy using screencaps] [But seriously, it’s so weird,, A guy who looks ... why is there absolutely no talk about his school days... If it were me, I’d be happy just watching him breathe as he passed by] [Isn’t the company blocking it?? If you go with the mystery concept, you can block all the insider talk] [LOOL No scandals, that’s all that matters] Noeul still wondered about Seo Hoyun’s school days, but soon the topic shifted to the Halloween choreography video. Especially Seo Hoyun’s dancing skills. Seo Hoyun was already known as a perfectionist. Fans thought his prim, composed demeanor in front of them came from that personality. [Whoa, look at his dance lines this time] How he practiced—by now, it was hard to even remember the clumsy Seo Hoyun from the beginning, since he improved every promotion. In this Halloween choreography video, his improvement was again so visible you could see it with the naked eye. [Seo Hoyun is the real deal... Even when I watch those “idols improving” videos that flood YouTube, honestly, they haven’t changed much, so I’m like, meh lololol. But this is massive improvement] [I’m curious what exactly he did to improve this much hahaha └There’s a rumor Joo Woosung helped him with dance └└Where the hell did that sasaeng rumor come from,,, └└LOOOL Believe it or not] Of course, results required a process. But to avoid being underestimated, Seo Hoyun had always believed, ever since becoming an adult, that he should only show a calm exterior and never let anyone see the fierce reality underneath. Thanks to that, he had mastered the art of feigning composure, and fans simply saw him as someone naturally gifted. That was fortunate for Seo Hoyun. After checking Daepaseong’s quarterly report and statistics, I lightly searched for fans’ reactions to this Halloween self-content. Not bad, and overall, the mood was calm. So, to maintain this, I decided to slightly adjust the direction of the plan I’d set in my mind. It was unavoidable for celebrities to get caught in gossip, but it seemed like Noeul had suffered too much since debut. I couldn’t guarantee something similar wouldn’t happen again, but at the very least, I could provide some aftercare. “Seo Hoyun-ssi... please look at this.” Just as I finished organizing my thoughts, a dying voice came from beside me. It was Lee Jihyun, half-zombie-like, tapping away weakly at her laptop keyboard. It almost sounded like swearing, but I ignored it and turned my head to look at the screen. On it was a document titled “20XX The Dawn Market Analysis Report.” Summarized roughly: lots of scandals, but a group that treats fans well and is fun to watch on stage. “Sorry about all the scandals.” “Not that—look at the recognition rate.” Lee Jihyun scrolled as she continued. “After Shining Star Season 2, a little below Hi-Five. A 2nd-tier group among mid-sized companies building their base. That’s The Dawn right now.” That was our current position. Black Call’s dominance was so overwhelming that the vague tier of “1.5-tier” even existed, and The Dawn wasn’t even on the outskirts of that. “So what should we do?” “...You sound like a college professor asking questions without giving clear answers.” ‘What do you think?’ muttered Lee Jihyun to herself before sighing deeply. “If I knew, we’d already be on the Billboard chart.” It was something people in the entertainment industry often said. When someone got big, the question “Why is that person so popular?” always followed. Failures had clear reasons, mid-tier success had rough reasons, but when something was a megahit, there often wasn’t an overwhelming reason visible. That’s why even veterans who’d been in the industry for decades still didn’t know what would take off, and kept churning out idols with new concepts. ‘I can still get a general idea.’ Whatever people said, there were common factors. As I silently stared, Lee Jihyun glanced at me and tossed out, “If we ask Kang Ichae to somehow get us a hit song, we’ll be fine.” “Ms. Lee, that’s the kind of obvious answer a CEO would give.” “...You really are a genius at provocation. Ugh, fine, you want the honest answer?” Lee Jihyun bit her lip once, then took a board marker ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) and popped off the cap. She began writing a string of characters on the whiteboard that looked like a demon summoning spell. I had to work hard to check if those characters weren’t actually cursing me by cramming more work onto my plate. “It’s not just because they’re our company’s idols, but The Dawn is great at fan communication and overflowing with self-produced content. Barring exceptional cases like Chae Jungwoo or Joo Woosung, they’re about 1.5-tier in skill alone. The album’s lore? I, Lee Jihyun, who’s lived most of my life as an otaku, wrote it—how could it be lacking? At worst, it’s just a matter of taste.” Tilting her head, Lee Jihyun’s eyes sparkled as she snapped her index finger up. According to her, aside from the small handful of long-time fans, the people who joined early on were veteran K-pop listeners drawn in by The Dawn’s niche-slaying lore. They’d rapidly gained popularity after Shining Star Season 1, and solidified the fanbase further through the Apocalypse Trilogy. And now, having gone through the “spicy” flavor of Shining Star Season 2, the fandom was practically indestructible. Lee Jihyun murmured that we had to treat Noeul really well. “Anyway, people who like K-pop already know you and The Dawn. But if you asked random passersby? How many would know The Dawn? And how many could name a member other than Seo Hoyun?” “If they know even me, that’s lucky.” “Exactly. Plus, the overseas fandom is relatively weak. The OTT platform that streamed Shining Star was blocked in some countries, except Japan and Europe. These days, with new groups popping up constantly, unless people want the satisfaction of ‘raising’ a group, they’re not going to look up a group they’ve never heard of.” In short, we needed to expand the fanbase domestically and internationally, and boost mass appeal. It was roughly the same conclusion I’d reached. Know yourself and your enemy, and you’ll win every battle. While preparing for the next album, I’d been checking the group’s condition and scouting out the conditions to reach 1st-tier. If we could blow up, I was willing to do whatever it took. Still staring at the nearly illegible writing on the whiteboard, I spoke. “You know the program ‘Perfect Singer’ that’s coming back?” Lee Jihyun, capping the marker and turning around, widened her eyes. “Of course. Isn’t that the one where they score how well a singer sings, almost like precision grading? They’ve been talking about rebooting it lately... Wasn’t last season kind of meh?” Season 1 had been a massive hit when vocal variety shows were trending. The next season’s popularity dipped due to forced panel reactions and contrived tear-jerking. They’d been pushing ads and articles since last year for a fresh return, but due to lukewarm public interest and several delays, the “reboot” was only now airing at the end of this year. I’d often clicked my tongue seeing them ruin what could’ve been a great show. But in the Asian market, its recognition was still high, and after selling the format to the US two years ago, it had gained decent popularity there too. ‘And the nationwide US ratings weren’t bad either.’ Especially in certain US states riding the K-pop boom, ratings were respectable. That’s when I’d called Lim Hyunsu, and of course, being the hot composer she is, she told me she’d be a guest. “The format’s pretty unique.” “Right? It’s like, they really try everything.” The rebooted “Perfect Singer” seemed like a show whose reception would depend heavily on cast and editing. “I’m thinking of appearing.” Official source is novel•fire.net Familiar enough, yet new, and funny. And a show that would accept me if I applied at my level. Right now, it seemed like a better opportunity for me than the very top variety shows. “You’re going alone? Not with Sung Jiwon?” After a moment’s hesitation, Lee Jihyun spoke cautiously but firmly. “If you jump in carelessly, you might damage the image you’ve built. I’ve watched it sometimes—since the scoring is done by a machine, it’s brutally precise. Loads of strong singers appear, and you could end up compared and only get bad talk... wow, you’re not listening.” I just already knew it all, so I let it wash over me. “I’ve already asked the management team to check if I can appear. Until we get word back, please gather all the info you can on it.” “Ah... sure... okay. But...” Lee Jihyun scratched her head and asked, “I heard from management that all the members are in talks for individual shows...” Aside from Kang Ichae, already mentoring on Rising Rookies, Kim Sunghyun was headed for a parenting variety, and Jung Dajun was lined up for a cooking program. And Sung Jiwon was... I’d hold onto him for now. “Isn’t this list—some of the shows, at least—a bit questionable? Wouldn’t it look better if you delayed solo activities and made joint appearances later?” “No, we’re going as is.” I don’t have time to worry about appearances right now. “Ms. Lee, remember what you said earlier.” “What’s The Dawn lacking?” “Mass appeal... overseas recognition...” At that, Lee Jihyun seemed to realize something. She quickly woke her laptop from sleep and rushed to a portal site. Moments later, she looked at me with a weary expression. “...They’re all shows that are huge overseas.” Being stuck in a hospital room hadn’t been all bad. It gave me more than enough time to think. “Not a bad list, right?” I plan to finish everything by next year.