I became the leader of a damned girl group

EPISODE : 6

A few days later. A video was uploaded on the M10 account on YouTube.

▶ [M10X COLORS=?]

▶ [‘Make a New Color’ teaser. 07.03(fri) 9 PM]

Oh, this is that COLORS new girl group survival show.

2:11 Who is she? What’s her name?

Eng sub plz

It wasn’t a long video.

After the silhouettes of the twelve trainees appeared, the intro of an unfamiliar song started playing.

They were facing down, so it was hard to make out their faces yet.

Then, when the center, Ryu Yoo, raised her head, the video ended.

★

[Coming soon]

[We’ll be your new color]

[07.03(fri) 9 PM]

The fact that COLORS was doing a survival show to launch a new girl group had already been revealed through news articles, so it wasn’t particularly surprising.

The initial reaction was just modest.

Analysis of the trainees appearing on COLORS’ new girl group launch program

First, the trainees clearly shown as the center: Kim Ryu Yoo (rumored to be Kim Mo Gyeong’s close friend)

The two side trainees next to the center: Seo Baek Young, Ryu Bora

Next to Ryu Bora: Kim Geum

The rest seem to be trainees whose identities are still undisclosed?

Oh, Ryu Bora is in it.

Has Ryu Bora quit acting?

What’s the name of the center?

└ Kim Ryu Yoo

└ Isn’t she that one? The public trainee?

└ COLORS didn’t reveal it, but the sasaengs leaked it, haha

└ I don’t think she’s a good fit for the center, why is she the center?

└ She’s Kim Mo Gyeong’s close friend, read the post.

└? Kim Mo Gyeong is not that type.

└ COLORS executive

Since COLORS is a big agency, some of the trainees already had a bit of recognition.

The famous ones were Ryu Bora, Seo Baek Young, Kim Ryu Yoo, and—

What’s with the girl rapping, I’ve seen her somewhere before.

└ Isn’t she the one from Unpretty Rapstar?

└ Ah, she’s the one who made it to the finals.

└ Yeah, haha

└ COLORS really needs to drop the title of “skills-first,” they should just focus on fair competition.

└? Kim Geum dropped out due to health reasons, you should know that before commenting.

└ Yeah~ Probably because they were afraid she’d lose again.

Trainee from COLORS, known for her genius rap skills, now appears in the new girl group survival show.

Make a New Color, keep watching.

Our Geum Geum too, keep watching.

It was Kim Geum.

In particular, Kim Geum had appeared on a rap survival program before, so she already had a certain fan base.

Ryu Bora, who had worked as a child actress for a long time, was a given.

When are their profiles coming out?

M10, do your job.

Please release the self-introduction videos, there’s no hype, can’t even promote properly.

After a bit of delay, it seemed like the production team had responded to the fans’ requests.

A little bit of information was released soon after.

▶ [ We speak through the stage! | Kim Ryu Yoo || Dance | 1-minute self-introduction shown on stage♥]

▶ [ We speak through the stage! | Ryu Bora || Sing | 1-minute self-introduction shown on stage♥]

…

It was the individual self-introduction videos.

Today was the day for shooting self-introduction videos.

The trainees didn’t go to COLORS as usual but headed to a studio rented by the broadcasting station.

“Alright, we’re going to shoot self-introduction videos.”

Despite the trainees looking uneasy, PD Oh appeared with a big smile.

Such a pain.

“You’ll have exactly 1 minute. During that minute, you can do whatever you want, we won’t care. Okay?”

I quietly listened to the explanation.

One minute might seem short, but that 1 minute wasn’t the real problem.

“But,”

This was the issue.

“No talking. No unnecessary explanations or introductions.”

PD Oh said this with the most excited face imaginable.

“You all want to be idols, right? What’s an idol? It’s the stage, the stage. So, your first impression should be made on stage.”

Is he kidding?

Then at least give us some time to prepare.

PD Oh was the problem. Sure, idols speak through the stage? The intention’s good.

But are idols machines? Do they just press a button and bam, the stage appears?

At least give us a little heads-up to prepare.

Even though PD Oh’s words were frustrating, the trainees just had resigned faces, not one of them spoke up.

Of course, even if they tried to rebel, it wouldn’t change anything…

It was more likely that by now, the trainees in the debut group would at least have one killer stage ready.

Of course, I was the same.

Especially since I…

[ First self-introduction video revealed! Idols speak through the stage? Netizens are all praising the new introduction style.]

Thanks to the notification from that fluffy lump yesterday, I had known ahead of time.

But just knowing a day earlier, how much can you really prepare?

The difference of one day in stage preparation is huge.

In that sense, I owed that fluffy lump a favor.

Or was it? I was supposed to be working for that fluffy lump, so wasn’t it only natural that they let me know?

But then, why didn’t the fluffy lump just show up and tell me directly, why through a news notification?

“Alright, we’re going to draw lots to decide the order.”

PD Oh rubbed his hands together like a fly.

“One by one, come up and draw your lot.”

The trainees came up, one by one, to draw lots.

I waited until the other trainees had drawn theirs.

It wasn’t like the order mattered.

“Oh, Yoon Cheong trainee… number 8.”

PD Oh gave a half-hearted reaction.

I didn’t respond and just went back to my seat.

PD Oh wrote the order of trainees on the whiteboard.

Then he set up the cameras and sound equipment and showed the trainees the range of the camera.

The space wasn’t that big.

It was about half the size of the practice room.

The trainees seemed familiar with it, though.

They all sat in the back of the studio.

They were curious about the other trainees’ performances.

Of course, some trainees looked anxious, memorizing lyrics or checking their choreography.

As far as I remember, none of the trainees who looked anxious ever debuted.

“Explain briefly what you’ll be doing. We need to know so we can set up the filming accordingly.”

After PD Oh explained, he sat in the VIP seat like a viewer.

I also sat in the audience mode and just stared at the stage.

Why?

“Alright, number 1, Kim Geum trainee. Come on up.”

Now I needed to start researching who I would cast as my group members.

“Alright, Yoon Cheong trainee, eighth in line.”

When my turn came, I felt the eyes on me.

I had watched the previous performances carefully.

The trainees confident in their vocals mostly covered pop songs.

The dance-oriented trainees were dancing to self-choreographed routines.

Neither of them were easy tasks, and they all performed well.

But I had to show something more than that.

I was the trainee with the least recognition here.

“Yoon Cheong trainee… self-composed song, huh?”

And my goal was to debut first.

“Self-composed songs are risky, are you sure about this?”

“Yes, I’m confident.”

In audition programs, performing your own composition was a total gamble.

Do it well, and you hit big.

Mess up, and it’s over.

No matter what, you couldn’t play it safe.

But I was confident.

“Well, since you brought your own track…”

How was I confident?

“Let’s start.”

Of course.

On the sloped purple hill between us

The sunset is coming to comfort us

It was the song I ranked #1 for six weeks in my past life.

Production Team: How was it shooting the self-introduction video?

[Jo Hong: I was so nervous. I don’t think I showed my true abilities…]

[Baek Young: I practiced thousands of times, but for some reason, it felt completely different in front of the camera.]

[Geum: Ah, it was a disaster. What else is new.]

[Ryu Yoo: It was fun. I was nervous, but it was enjoyable.]

Production Team: Who’s performance did you think was the best?

[Hee On: Ryu Yoo. She’s really the ace… She’s my friend, but she’s honestly amazing.]

[Kyeong Ah: Surprisingly, Jo Hong. There’s something that catches your eye.]

[Geum: Is this even up for debate? Of course—]

[Bora: There’s only one person that comes to mind.]

[Su In: Of course—]

[Baek Young: Cheong.]

Subtitle: Yoon Cheong received the most votes.

[Jo Hong: I didn’t even know it was a self-composed song. I thought it was just a hidden masterpiece.]

[Geum: If I knew she had that compositional ability, she should’ve told me earlier. I’d have followed her around to learn.]

[Ryu Yoo: I thought, wow, she had a hidden trick up her sleeve.]

[Kyeong Ah: I thought it was unfair.]

Production Team: Why?

[Kyeong Ah: Well, I’m up next, and if she’s that good, what am I supposed to do?]

Subtitle: Tears…

[Hee On: Honestly, when I heard it was a self-composed song, I thought she was crazy. It’s a risky choice.]

[Yu Hyeon: The song’s good, but it was also surprising. It’s not even a popular genre right now, more of an old-school country vibe.]

[Ha Eun: But she really knows her voice well. She uses it smartly. She’s clever.]

Production Team: Why did you choose to perform a self-composed song as your first stage, even though it might be risky?

[Cheong: Writing and composing songs is a hobby of mine. I wanted to show as many sides of myself as I could. I might not have the chance to show my composing skills again, even though I can always show my dancing or singing.]

Production Team: Do you think it went well?

[Cheong: Haha. That’s a tricky question.]

I hesitated for a moment, then answered.

[Cheong: Yes, I believe it went well.]

Ding!

Did you see the self-introduction?

Hey, go watch it now.

Why? Something’s happening?

└ Seriously, these kids are insane; are they out of their minds?

Ding!

The new rookie girl group’s reaction is going viral.

COLORS is truly the idol factory.

Ding!

Ding!

★

? Yoon Cheong?

Wow, Yoon Cheong is amazing.

COLORS continues its legacy of bringing out amazing vocalists and songwriters.