Chapter 181: Kim Ye-rim's Problem
# The Beginning of the Girl Group Golden Age #
With the release of IZONE's debut album's digital music and debut stage, this rookie group displayed an even more formidable dominance than IVE did back then.
Upon their debut, they not only broke IVE's record, which was once called "insurmountable" for digital music performance, but also topped the trending lists of all K-pop forums.
This buzz reached its peak, especially after DM Entertainment's Chairman Jiang Shu updated his online channel with a vlog related to IZONE's debut.
The beginning of the girl group golden age.
After IVE's debut, more and more people regarded IVE as the initiator of the girl group golden age, and 2018 was even called the "Girl Group Inaugural Year" by many.
However, as the core of everything, DM Entertainment had never responded to this.
But on the day of IZONE's debut, Jiang Shu, DM Entertainment's Chairman, the most outstanding and most knowledgeable person in creating girl groups in the current era, a godfather-level figure in girl groups, personally uttered the evaluation, "The beginning of the girl group golden age."
It was precisely because this incident fueled the fire that "La vie en rose," which had been consistently topping the charts, was pushed to second place on the daily chart, while "Re-encountering the World" ascended to first place.
Mr. Lei's experience taught us that being able to tell a story, and tell it well, can truly make money.
After IZONE's debut, the most direct observation was the abundance of advertising endorsements.
After IVE disbanded, many of IVE's endorsements were terminated. Many companies chose to demand breach of contract compensation from DM Entertainment, but some companies chose to trust Jiang Shu and invest in DM Entertainment's future. And so, the returns came.
Those companies that did not demand breach of contract compensation from DM Entertainment received notification from DM Entertainment that IZONE would replace IVE in signing endorsement contracts with them.
Although IZONE had only debuted for a few days, the buzz they generated far exceeded that of IVE initially. While both were pervasive, IZONE's momentum and recognition were much more intense than IVE's at the start. Even K-pop audiences who weren't deeply familiar with how popularity is measured could clearly feel what it meant to have a unique level of buzz.
And the people at the companies that demanded breach of contract compensation from DM Entertainment were stunned.
Who would have thought that IZONE would be even more popular than IVE?
One IVE had already dominated, and who would have thought an even more formidable IZONE would come along?
After IVE disbanded, one ITZY had already stirred the hearts of many companies. Now DM Entertainment has cooked up an IZONE that looks even more formidable than IVE?
Are they even going to let people live?
However, the most distressed was undoubtedly YG.
Because...
IZONE made their comeback on August 4th, and BLACKPINK on August 10th. It was thought to be a fierce battle, but...
BLACKPINK's data was completely crushed, like a roadside weed kicked to death.
There's no problem with that, though.
In such a world with bonds, even if the original BLACKPINK came over, they wouldn't be able to beat IZONE. No one knows how strong the only hidden bond is better than Jiang Shu.
This bond, even when used against those two top-tier bonds, isn't unbeatable. As for other bonds, only ITZY, stacked with five Wangdao Passion, has the potential to contend with it.
But even with Jeon Soyeon, the five Wangdao Passion have an upper limit; it's impossible to keep coming back and stacking them indefinitely.
Theoretically, popularity is of course limitless, but the problem is where do you get so many suitable title tracks to boost your popularity?
Jiang Shu doesn't know how high ITZY can stack, but for now, it seems there's still some distance from their upper limit.
Sending the 'deviant' version of BLACKPINK to fight IZONE is no different from fighting the Demon King right after leaving the Novice Village .
Jiang Shu dared to let IU fight Kim Hyun-a because IU isn't truly weak; she's just a hidden dragon in the abyss.
But your 'deviant' version of BLACKPINK, they're truly weak.
Pretending to be a pig and being a real pig are two different things.
Currently active girl groups, even Red Velvet and ITZY, are not compared to IZONE by the public. Anyone with eyes can see how big the popularity gap is between them.
The terror of ITZY is only understood by the executives of these entertainment companies. They are aware of how exaggerated the potential of this girl group, whose popularity is currently barely reaching second-tier, is. But the public doesn't know that.
In the public's eyes, ITZY isn't even as popular as Red Velvet, let alone comparable to IZONE, which almost surpassed IVE upon debut.
And as IZONE filled the top-tier void left by IVE's disbandment, S.M. and DM jointly announced that aespa would debut on October 17th.
Given the immense popularity generated by IZONE, which features Zhang Yuanying, aespa, boasting the other twin star, naturally became a hot commodity after their debut date was announced.
Countless media, while pursuing IZONE, also closely monitored aespa's movements, and even NMIXX, which had been relatively quiet, also gained a lot of attention.
IZONE, at the center of the popularity storm, attracted everyone's attention, and as the creator of all this, Jiang Shu was secretly planning something big.
DM Entertainment, Red Velvet practice room.
Jiang Shu sat with his legs crossed, arms folded across his chest, listening to the Red Velvet members, who were lined up opposite him, softly singing "Russian Roulette."
"Stop," Jiang Shu suddenly called out, and their pleasant singing came to an abrupt halt.
"Kim Ye-rim, your voice needs to be layered on top when Joy sings, otherwise it will sound too thin."
"Yes."
"Continue."
The girls resumed singing.
Jiang Shu is different from a recording engineer. A recording engineer would usually ask them to sing in sections and then piece those fragments together to better form the studio version.
Jiang Shu, however, prefers the song's continuity and emotional injection, which means live performance, so his demands for them have always been to sing the entire song continuously.
His current interruptions were simply because they were just starting.
Soon, the song was finished.
"There are still quite a few problems." As his understanding of music deepened, Jiang Shu was no longer simply copying. He couldn't write songs, but he had developed his own understanding of these songs, allowing him to better recreate these classic tracks, no longer just dryly or rigidly copying as before.
"You're all singing your own parts; it doesn't sound like a cohesive whole," Jiang Shu said, frowning.
The girls lowered their heads, not speaking.
They weren't Liu Zhimin or Zhang Yuanying; they didn't dare to talk back to Jiang Shu. Even the most lively Kim Ye-rim was the same; her liveliness was reserved for those at her own level. She wouldn't dare with the Chairman.
"The main problem lies with Kim Ye-rim." Jiang Shu looked at Kim Ye-rim. "Look up."
Kim Ye-rim cautiously raised her head.
"When Red Velvet was first formed, I told you that your voice is the core that connects the other four members. So you need to be very familiar with every song, because you are very important, and therefore I will have high expectations of you. If you can't do it, I won't force you."
"I can do it!" Kim Ye-rim quickly said. High expectations meant high treatment; her resources within the group were second only to Bae Joo-hyun and Sun Shengwan.
"Then familiarize yourself with the songs properly." Jiang Shu looked at her deeply.
In Kim Ye-rim's current state, it would be difficult to connect "Russian Roulette," let alone the few big hitters that would come later.