Chapter 127: MusicBank

I didn't expect to meet the president here. I was so scared..."“That boy just now was Yuan, a member of the male group EXO, right I even chased after the TV drama he acted in last year. He’s from ** c...With a slam, the car door shut. After leaving the restaurant, Ji Jingyuan arrived at the parking lot and got into the nanny's car.

"Where is Jingyuan going, the dormitory or somewhere else" After a few seconds of silence, Cui Zhichang, the assistant in the driver's seat, turned back and asked.

Choi Jichang must have just gone out for a cigarette, he still has a faint smell of smoke on him.

"Go back to the company."

Just now, everything has been planned out. Coincidentally, because of the recording this afternoon, Chi Jingyuan is feeling particularly inspired about that band song right now.

Looking at the time, it's not even eleven o'clock yet. Going back to the dormitory now feels a bit too early. Besides, Ji-seong has been really busy lately. Apart from XO squad activities and his solo schedule, he's also in charge of songwriting for the Music Festival and working on Taeyeon's solo album.

Tomorrow morning, I will also have a meeting with Lee Hyo-ri and other music people involved in the album project to listen to the songs and decide whether the recently completed demo can be used as Taeyeon's title track.

If everything goes smoothly, the next step would be to start assigning music production tasks to musicians, including himself. This would mark the beginning of the album's journey into full production.

So if you can finish one, get it done right away.

Okay.

After responding with a sound, Cui Zhichang started the car. It seemed that he also smelled the smoke on himself, so he casually opened the windows on both sides a little.

He opened it, and Chi Jingyuan just didn't bother. He ate the late wind that blew in from the front seat, let out a long sigh, and leaned his head against the window, watching the city lights outside.

Last time we made plans to eat together, but I didn't have time. This time, we finally got to meet up and had a meal together. I chatted with Ji Jingyuan in person, so Zhou Ma must be feeling much more at ease now.

This meal could be considered a pleasant exchange between host and guest. Zhou's mother was indeed quite warm and welcoming, which Chi Jingyuan felt firsthand. However, compared to the natural and easygoing interactions he had with Zhou Tzuyu, Zhou's mother seemed to have a more calculated approach to building rapport. This was evident in her words, compliments, and the specific curved local products she sent him along with her parting instructions, all subtly revealing her intentions and thoughts.

But this is quite normal, it's understandable that she would want to give her daughter more care and attention in a foreign country like Seoul. Park Kyung-sun understands this too, he just sighs that parents really do their best for their children.

As for that contract, it's said to be under consideration, but Tzuyu and the others would definitely sign it in the end. After all, as trainees who have worked hard for over three years, they went through five months of intense competition on "Sixteen" and finally earned their spot to debut. It's impossible that they wouldn't sign just because the contract is a little stricter. Even if it's harsh, they would still sign.

The heat for 《sixteen》 is now at its peak, and after it ends, it will gradually cool down. To capitalize on this momentum before it fades, JYP will definitely accelerate the debut of their new girl group. According to Pool Geon-won's estimate, this "ice" should debut within the next two or three months.

Next, Tzuyu and the others are expected to get busy. Over the next two or three months, they'll have many classes, dance practice, recording sessions, and preparation for a new album. Their schedule is quite tight, much busier than during Sixteen.

However, no matter what is said, having hope makes you not feel tired, it's similar to how Red Velvet's members like Bae Joo-hyun felt before their debut.

Come on!

Her eyes lit up, remembering Tzuyu's wide grin throughout their meal, a smile as bright as winning the lottery. As they drove towards the familiar S building, she couldn't help but send a heartfelt blessing her way.

and Choi Ji-chang temporarily bid farewell, Ji Kyeong-won went upstairs back to his own music. He first tidied up the place where he had been shooting before, and then sat back down at the computer, opened the band song's deo and listened to it.

Although the song isn't finished yet, the general style has been decided. Since it's going to be a band theme now, Arranger Chi Ching-yuan already has a clear direction in mind for the arrangement.

Now, he wants to try his hand at songwriting.

This song's style and melody don't seem to fit lyrics with repetitive, catchy rhythms. Comparatively, lyrics with a more narrative feel might be more impactful.

But neither is difficult. For Chi Jingyuan, the latter is simply a matter of drawing inspiration from his own life experiences or those he has witnessed, and then artistically processing them to be used directly.

"Humph~"

He tapped his head to the music's rhythm, humming along, and as he recalled the song's inspiration, quickly typed a few words on the keyboard.

"You said you were going to look at the stars, and you took me with you."

After writing a beginning, he paused for a moment, as if remembering something. He couldn't help but laugh and shook his head before continuing to write.

But there wasn't a single star in the sky...

…………

The next two days of work went quite smoothly. Because I had already communicated with Lee Soo-man in advance, and under Kim Tae-yeon's unwavering support and Ji Kyung-won's authority as a producer, we successfully established the direction for this song, which will be Tae-yeon's title track for her solo debut.

Immediately, over the next two days, EXO held consecutive autograph events in several cities on the peninsula, and this also made the actual sales figures of their second regular album approaching the milestone of one million.

However, there's also some not-so-good news. With summer arriving, girl groups are making a comeback one after another, and each group seems to be pulling out all the stops. AOA and Sistar, who released songs three weeks ago, are still holding strong, performing very well on music charts.

On the same day, both Girls' Generation and Girl's Day made a comeback, proving to be powerful contenders. This dominance overshadowed EXO's "Boy With Luv," which had been consistently overshadowing other girl groups throughout July, adding a layer of discord to the girl group battle. The song saw a noticeable decline in its chart position, being replaced by Sistar's "Shake It" on the weekly rankings.

Although the afterglow of "exod" in both new songs could be stronger, "ifyou" performed very brightly, vying for top spots on music charts with other girl groups.

Two days flew by, and it was July 10th. It was also the day that Girls' Generation and Girl's Day, two girl groups who had come back on the same day, performed their first stages on "Music Bank."

"If we had performed at the singing competition back then like you two, that would have been great! I would definitely have tried to find an opportunity to give it a shot."

Kim Hyo-yeon looked at Ji-sung and Park Joo-hyun entering their dressing room. After greeting them and making some casual conversation, she couldn't help but gaze at Park Joo-hyun, who was dressed to the nines standing beside her. She spoke in a sour tone, seemingly envious.

Today, senior colleagues from the company came to sing, and they were even the familiar sisters from Girls' Generation. As C, Park Kyung-won and Bae Suzy definitely wanted to say hello privately. After a few people finished recording the stage beforehand and returned to rest, the two of them just happened to be free, so they knocked on the door together and walked in.

As soon as Ji Chang Wook came in, he was pulled away by Kim Tae Yeon before he could even finish greeting everyone. The other sisters were teasing Irene playfully.

I heard that because of Jingyuan and Irene, the C positions on several music shows are now very competitive.

And now that Music Bank's viewership has become so high, not only have the advertising fees increased, but many more artists also want to come and perform.

"That's definitely true! Being a singing contestant on a show like "We Got Married" is super appealing for idols, who wouldn't want to do it"

"Irene, would you let me take your place for one episode I also want to try the feeling of co-hosting with Jingyuan."

"Hee hee hee…"

Being surrounded by a few wolf-like senior colleagues, Bae Joohyun couldn't help but cover her mouth and burst into laughter. Faced with these seniors who weren't quite familiar yet, she didn't know how to respond, so she could only smile with curved eyes.

As for Girls' Generation, now Seohyun is only slightly closer to Kim Taeyeon, and they just exchanged contact information a few days ago. They haven't even been familiar with each other for a few days.

Don't look at her birth year, she was born in 1991, and she is about the same generation as early members, even older than maknae Seo Hyun by a little. But after eight years of debuting versus one year, standing beside these senior members, as a junior, Bae Joo-hyun's aura looked significantly weaker, completely acting like an adorable rookie, very well-behaved, nodding her head from time to time, clapping her hands occasionally, and giggling every now and then.

Sometimes when things get really ridiculous, I can't help but sneak a glance at Ji Jingyuan who's been pulled aside to talk.

"I've been listening to it for two whole days now, it's awesome, totally my style. I have a really strong feeling about what kind of lyrics to write now. In two days, when it's done, I'll show you... Actually, I already tried writing a little bit yesterday."

Next to the restroom, by the vanity, Kim Taeyeon and Ji Kyeong were quietly chatting while each holding a bottle of drink.

Just off the stage, all the young girls were wearing elaborate makeup. Today's look for this sister is a very eye-catching head of gold and pink ombre wavy long hair with a big sparkling butterfly bow on top. Among the bunch of young girls sitting next to her, she was definitely the most dazzling one. That would be Yoona, who was sitting smiling on the sofa not far away, with long golden hair cascading over her shoulders and a cute little braid.

As soon as you step inside, you can smell a fragrant aroma. However, once you sit down nearby, the scent becomes much less intense.

Ji-yeong sipped his orange juice through a straw, listening intently to Kim Taeyeon's words. After finishing her story, he made a thoughtful sound and smacked his lips: "Have you already written a little bit Nuna, sing me a snippet."

"Hmm..." Kim Taeyeon was a little moved, but glancing at the twenty-odd people in the adjacent resting room who were quite noisy, she waved her hand: "Forget it, it's not convenient here. I'll write it and give it to you later. It'll be soon, I've already found the feeling, it won't take two days..."

"Oh, Kim Taeyeon, what are you whispering about You've taken up all of Ji-won's attention as soon as he arrived! He's here to greet all of us, not just you. Being a solo artist is amazing and all, but don't be so exclusive!"

Before Taeyeon could finish her sentence, a member who was already a little annoyed by something over there interrupted her. As soon as she said that, other members chimed in and egged her on:

"That's right, it's not like I came looking for you."

"It's Irene and the other person who are partners. What do you think you're doing by pulling someone away"

"Ah…"

Kim Taeyeon, who was cornered and squeezed out, cursed under her breath as if she was dizzy. She shook her head and rolled her eyes. Seeing the current situation, she knew it wasn't a time for words. After giving Ji-sung a 'phone call later' gesture, she walked over with an air of authority, ready to exercise her captain's power.

"Ji Jingyuan also shook his head and followed. He glanced at the cute and well-behaved Pei Zhuxuan in the crowd, then casually chatted with Sunny beside him."

This sister doesn't know if she offended dy, but today's styling is really speechless. A head of bright red, glued-on long hair looks like seaweed dyed with pigment, plastered on top. I don't know how this hairstyle came about, I can only describe it as 'weird'.

It's not like IU or Yoona, that level of beauty. It can't even cause this much of a side effect with the hairstyle, right...

Ji Jingyuan felt that Sunny didn't seem to like this hairstyle very much. She would flick her hair back and forth with every few words, although it was her debut stage comeback. Her enthusiasm seemed rather low, a bit listless.

The lively chat lasted for twenty minutes, after which Ji Jingyuan and Pei Zhuxuan bid farewell to their former seniors and headed back to prepare for the live stream that was about to begin.

At 5:00 PM,

Music Bank began broadcasting as scheduled. After the less-known girl group x finished their performance, the camera focused on the two Cs who had been waiting at the host's stand for a long time.

To match the current summer refreshing theme, both Pool Kyung-won and Jeon Somi are wearing brightly colored t-shirts with floral patterns. One is light-colored, and the other is dark-colored, looking like a couple's outfit perfectly suited for a summer beach getaway.

"In the heart of hot trends!"

"Watched by the whole world..."

The camera focuses on Ji Chang Wook and Park Soo Joo, who effortlessly deliver the opening lines. As they reach the final sentence, a classic and well-coordinated eye contact occurs, culminating in a unison shout of their promotional slogan: "Live broadcast, ik!"

Two people, one with black short to medium length hair and the other with brown long and silky hair, appeared in front of the camera. Their looks complemented each other perfectly. Many viewers were immediately captivated by their appearance as they stood close together. Many viewers perked up and focused on the television because a significant portion of them had tuned in specifically for these two individuals. They hadn't even bothered to watch the opening stage performance.

This handsome and beautiful couple's c combination is really eye-catching and makes me want to ship them! Compared to that, what does the stage even mean

"Hello, I'm Yuan. Nice to meet you."

"Anihaseyo, Irene one meter da."

The cheers from the audience were also very loud. After finishing his usual self-introduction, Ji Jingyuan directly turned to face Pei Zhuxuan: "By the way, Irene xi~ "

"What"

When it comes to July, what's the first word that comes to mind

"Hmm... hot." Bae Joo-hyun furrowed her brow, using the script as a fan to fan herself and Jiyeong.

"Hot" Ani oh. Ji Jingyuan pursed his lips and shook his head, indicating that she was wrong.

"That's... summer vacation" Pei Zhuxuan made a thoughtful expression, her eyes lit up as she thought of an answer.

"Aniyo," he said in a mysterious tone, and Ji Jingyuan shook his finger.

"What is that Tell me."

Even when addressing elders and older sisters, her speech naturally carried a hint of coquettishness.

Chi Jingyuan turned his head and met her gaze for a day. According to the script's setting, he didn't sell any more suspense: "Speaking of July, that naturally means returning!"

"Ah~ So that's how it is... It seems like, besides aoa, sistar, teeop..."

The little sister also hosted according to the script she had memorized, but she stumbled a bit while speaking.

Even though she's been acting as C for over three months now, Pei Zhuxuan still gets nervous sometimes while hosting. When she speaks, her words sometimes get stuck.

Mingming had already memorized it very well, yet he still felt so nervous.

"...and 9es and btob are also making a comeback!"

"Yes, just like last week, today we also have some amazing people returning! That's… Girls' Day, and also Girls' Generation!"

"Wow! So many girl groups are coming back, today's Music Bank is going to be so exciting! Before we see them perform, let's take a look at which two artists are competing for the July second week spot!"

"Come and have a look!"

Two people, one after the other, built up the suspense and hype. And then, with a cut to camera, it transitioned into a VCR announcing today's nominee.

"During the second week of July, a candidate for kchart..."

池景源 was watching the screen in front of him while introducing today's candidate. Just as he finished reading the previous words and saw the candidate's name, he couldn't help but pause. Out of camera view, he and Pei Zhuxuan looked at each other and held back laughter before he continued speaking:

"EXO's 'Boy With Luv'"

And, EXO's "If You"

"Oh~~~" Two different posters of exo flashed on the screen one after another. The same artist's name directly caused the audience to exclaim in surprise.

No, you two spent half an hour introducing comeback popular artists and even mentioned several big girl groups making a comeback one after another. After all that talk, how come both of your picks are EXO

And the two substitutes haven't had a chance to perform yet, isn't this misleading

After the cheers died down, they would temporarily subside each time the next performer took to the stage, only to resurface again in the studio a short while later.

Then, they introduced the 20th to 11th place of this week's list. To their surprise, EXO's name appeared again! Several months ago, EXO released songs like "Call Baby," "Spring Day," and "LR" which are now all on the chart. Plus, with two title track contenders this week, EXO occupied one-fourth of the top 20 spots on MCountdown.

Not only were the fans and audience in attendance surprised, but Ji Jingyuan was also quite taken aback.

Because the regular second album was released, all the songs from the single albums that were released before the sound source chart rankings dropped were re-popularized. Coupled with steady sales, these "old songs" that had been released for several months reappeared on music charts without any promotion or performances.

Referring to the recent "Summer Girl Group War" that has been heavily promoted in the music industry, seeing the current scene made many viewers feel both magical and ridiculous.

Still not leaving

"Special Return Visit!"

After several stages of performances, the two Cs reappeared on camera. The scene had shifted to the waiting room where guests were being interviewed. Pei Zhuxuan faced the camera with a sweet smile and introduced the next two groups: "Girls' Day and Girls' Generation are here! Welcome!"

After that, Ji Jingyuan and Pei Zhuxuan stepped aside, leaving the spotlight to these two girl groups who had returned on the same day and were making their debut stage on the same day—a truly incredible coincidence.

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Let me know if you have any other text you'd like me to translate!

After the two girl groups greeted each other, they began to introduce their title tracks for this comeback one by one. The twelve members of the chirpy and lively girl group, plus a cute female rapper, worked together to brighten up this waiting room with their energy.

Ji Jingyuan stood beside Lin Yun'er, occasionally picking up the next sentence of the host's speech, while keeping an eye on the two girl groups out of the corner of his eye.

Although Girls' Day had a huge success at the beginning of last year, while Girls' Generation showed a clear decline in their last comeback, this time, looking at the on-site fan cheers and applause during their simultaneous comeback, Girls' Generation still has a dominant advantage.

No matter what, the popularity and the hardcore fanbase are right there. It's not something that can be caught up with just by someone suddenly becoming popular.

However, the new song "rgybel" released this time for Girl's Day, Ji-seong listened to it and thought it was pretty good. The sound source results are also quite good, ranking at the top of the weekly chart, competing with ShaSha's "party".

What was interesting was that because their return times coincided, the stage times were completely overlapped. Coupled with the fan disputes and attacks on each other online, and the hype surrounding the "girl group war" which had already been fully heated up, these two girl groups clearly collided very severely, competing fiercely against each other.

In the eyes of many fans and even some industry insiders, the return time chosen by Girls' Day's agency is aimed squarely at Girls' Generation.

However, the two groups of people in front of the camera were still behaving very well and getting along famously. When the camera panned to them, they enthusiastically interacted with gestures. Huang Meiying even showed off a smile with Fang Minya, leaning close together and laughing brightly, appearing very harmonious.

Mingming noticed that just before they went on stage, the two groups hadn't talked much to each other besides Ri playing her role as a junior by politely greeting them. The atmosphere felt a bit stiff…

Ji-sung's natural acting left even him, who has already taken a big step on the path of an actor, feeling a little inadequate. At least when he was on stage with BIGBANG before, both sides were still a bit stiff in their performance.

Who dares say that senior Yoona doesn't have performing talent

Girl groups are still amazing, Ji-gyeong thinks they're much more interesting than boy groups.

This website is the first to publish the full-length novel. just about to take aim when a staff member suddenly ran over and whispered to Ji Jingyuan, "Jingyuan xi, the PD said please take off your hat before shooting.""Um, inside."Pool's shot was as graceful...