Saturday night.
“Uhh....”
Suffle mbers, blinking against the darkness, erged from the gymnastics arena. The park was black, yet thronged with concertgoers spilling out like a river. Exhaustion clung to every limb.
“That was incredible.”
The magic of the night—“Nine,” the new song “Nakhwa,” the encore banter—flashed through their minds. A conversation drifted by.
“How was MiP tonight? Did episode three do well?”
“I saw sothing—on the portal front page....”
MiP. Only now did the concerters rember the show airing that evening.
“Right! MiP’s on tonight.”
Hearts pounding, they checked the news portal—and their eyes went wide.
MiP’s rookie composer ‘Woo Joo-seon’ makes audacious debut... side-splitting laughter
“The might of self-producing idols”... title song by NewBlack’s U-ju
KM’s Huh Gang-min: “That song’s too good for you boys”... raves about ‘Attention’
While they’d been laughing and crying at the concert, a whole new bombshell had dropped. The biggest shock? The composer’s identity.
“Wait—so the composer was U-ju all along?”
“Didn’t he say repeatedly he wouldn’t take part? I thought he was just too busy....”
“‘Woo Joo-seon’ is trending? What’s going on?”
Soone answered.
“Maybe U-ju was using a stage na. The autograph was ‘Woo Joo-seon.’”
“...But a stage na alone wouldn’t trend that high.”
“...!”
They stopped in their tracks, burying faces in their phones. “What did I miss?” they thought, tapping the #1 trending term “Woo Joo-seon.”
“Uh...?”
The screen showed the rookie composer with a dot on his forehead, erging to the show’s the music. Everyone froze, then burst into laughter.
“Ha-ha-ha-haha!”
Their fatigue vanished, replaced by fresh excitent. No sooner had the concert’s emptiness settled in than a new surprise arrived.
Checking the trending topic, the Suffle logged on to online communities. Soon they saw GIF s of rookie composer Woo Joo-seon:
[“Rookie composer integrity controversy.gif”]
(He’s explaining “Attention,” legs crossed on a stool)
(He frowns at a crude joke)
(He introduces his secretary “Goguma” as “Gamja-gun”)
“A rookie composer on TV, no filter, smug as anything.”
He’s crossed the line
What is this—go enlist again to atone
He can’t even rember his secretary’s na
?? What’s going on? Why all the hate on NewBlack??
┕ It’s a joke. Here’s the link—go watch the MiP clip.
┕ Oh OK
┕ Lol Woo Joo-seon’s real personality?
Poor Gamja, man
“Goguma,” hahaha
Recognized him when he made Na Sang-yun record a video letter to his sunbae
Woo Joo-seon should learn from U-ju, tsk tsk
anwhile, on idol-fan forums, TINSPIRIT and NewBlack exchanging balloons beca all the rage:
lol so the balloon ca from TINSPIRIT?
I watch “Please Take Care of the Manager” because TINSPIRIT’s my bias—never expected that foreshadowing lol
You’re seeing 6th and 7th floor villa diplomacy right now
I didn’t believe it—TINSPIRIT gave helium balloons to NewBlack, then MiP used them for voice mod??
(Timid balloon handoff GIF) Totally harmless, in my book
They must want to be friends—my sweet TINs, how could I not love them?
My TINbabies, aww
And TNT’s Han Tae-hyeon, teased in the preview, was also trending:
Looks like he’s a friend of Woo Joo-seon?
How many friends does NewBlack have, LOL
At this point it’s like a people-eting square
Why I don’t trust them: NewBlack mbers say they’re introverts IRL
LOL no way
I get called outgoing everywhere, but I’d turn into a hermit around them
So happy to see Tae-hyun on variety again
Tae-hyun...
Yet the biggest buzz, in both idol and general communities, was A-TEN’s debut song “Attention”:
This guy’s a genius...
The song’s amazeballs lol
The live comnt stream was hilarious—everyone fighting over 1, 5, 6, then 12 shows up and silence
Pyo Hyung-won’s submission was good but “Attention” smashed it
Aside from being untouchable as a title, several of those tracks could be album cuts
As a MiP fan, wow whew, true “Woo Joo-god” mont
He got that track for 50,000 won even Huh Gang-min would pay 500 million for
Since they got that song, the PDs have been grinning every day
Awe for the song’s excellence poured forth. The disco-funk fusion proved both addictive and joyous. Offline reactions matched.
“This track’s gonna blow up, right?”
“It’s gonna be huge. With MiP’s reach... that song will cause a riot.”
“When does it drop?”
“Next month?”
Reflecting that hype, on music sites not even released yet, searches were:
A-TEN
Attention
Woo Joo-seon
Amid the uproar, entertainnt reporters rushed to cover the spectacle. Yet the most amazed were A&R staff and composers at major labels. While the public simply cheered, professionals were stunned.
“How old is he? Twenty-four, really?”
“At my age, I couldn’t write anything half as good.”
They replayed the “Attention” clip in ten-second loops, marveling.
“How many lifeti hits is he writing?”
An idol composer pumping out what most write once in a lifeti. They vowed:
“Never schedule a release against his....”
Woo Joo-seon was already on their watch «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» list; now he was heightened to “dangerous.” A misplaced release could send their artists’ tracks spiraling.
anwhile, one group couldn’t stop smiling: the TJ Entertainnt producing team.
“Tae-hyun.”
“Yes.”
“So you promised U-ju you’d get a song from him on MiP?”
“I did. Even promised with my pinky.”
The TJ producers cheered Han Tae-hyeon’s choice.
“Great job, seriously...!”
“How did you get it? U-ju isn’t the easygoing type.”
“You saw no clip of how?”
They knew well that U-ju revered clear boundaries—they’d taught him composing when he was a trainee. Tae-hyun smiled at his phone.
“He promised to write us a song back then, as trainees.”
“No wonder.”
“We got a B-side from him thanks to that promise.”
“Nicely done.”
No matter the track, it was good publicity: “Song by NewBlack’s U-ju.” The TJ producers nodded.
“We always said he should be a singer-songwriter, not an actor.”
“But the planning team wanted to have him act—he’s too pretty to ss with his face.”
As they reminisced, Tae-hyun scrolled his private SNS feed, browsed online forums, chin in hand.
“Hmm...”
Despite the jubilant response to “Attention” and Woo Joo-seon, beneath the surface murmurs of discontent stirred. So doubted the fairness:
Weren’t other composers just used? This was rigged
100% pre-decided
They control the concept, so it was unfair from the start
The song was so good it bred suspicion. Rare posts claid “they cherry-picked U-ju’s track and exploited other composers,” and called his refusal lines “an act.” Though most comnts were aggressive, so truly wondered.
“Hmph—things might get noisy later.”
But it didn’t worry much. NewBlack had soone who’d shared every tip that helped in my idol life—so they must have planned for this too.
Sure enough, a MiTube notification popped up on Tae-hyun’s phone.
[Mister Producer – ‘Attention’ Production Behind-the-Scenes]
He tapped it, and erupted in laughter.
“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”
“Why? What’s so funny?”
“Look at this. Ha-ha!”
Soon TJ’s producers joined the laughter. The clip was irresistibly hilarious.
At the sa ti, across the city, KM Entertainnt’s CEO Huh Gang-min was flustered.
“Ha-ha-ha-haha!”
Employees who’d seen the behind-the-scenes clip were laughing helplessly. Hours earlier, after MiP’s live broadcast ended, he’d been thrilled by the end credits:
‘They’re releasing the composition-making footage...?’
A chance to watch the hitmaker at work. He’d ssaged every departnt:
[URGENT] When the MiP composition BTS drops, everyone must watch!!
Yet everyone was cracking up. To verify, he hit play himself.
“...?”
He cocked his head. “He looks fine.”
The footage was unremarkable: tired composer Na Sang-yun sitting beside U-ju in a hoodie, banging out the track. Ti-lapse showed the studio clock striking 1 AM.
[U-ju, I need to step outside for a mont...]
[No.]
The brusque refusal appeared in brushstroke subtitles:
Year 3 of NewBlack.
1 AM: Sang-yun requests a break; permission not granted.
Scenes of suffering followed, hilarious in their severity—like a Joseon anecdote: King Sejong telling aging retainer Hwang Hui to keep working after repeated retirent pleas.
Huh Gang-min chuckled through the clip, which showed the full ordeal of producing “Attention.”
[U-ju, I want to go to the convenience store...]
[No.]
Na Sang-yun’s trials were legendary:
1:30 AM: requests snacks; U-ju orders garlic jokbal
2 AM: requests to wash hands; U-ju hands wipes
2:40 AM: requests retirent; U-ju nas him co-composer
3 AM: requests solo composing; denied
4:30 AM: requests sleep; woken by recorder
Each ti the composer’s face drained color. CEO Huh Gang-min realized the secret to U-ju’s music:
‘He’s an Emille bell...’
U-ju weeping “making_music... making_music....” rang in his mind. Huh nodded.
“You must squeeze people like lemons....”
“Sir...?”
Staff exchanged uneasy looks.
“I’ve attained enlightennt.”
“No, that’s wrong. We don’t have U-ju.”
“Then we pay more and....”
“No!”
Composers rushed to correct their CEO’s spiraling thoughts.
Finally, Sunday arrived.
After the Day Three rehearsal, we cheered.
“Final show woohoo!”
“Final show! Final show!”
“After today, it’s really over!”
“Our final show... final show?”
Joy turned to sinking reality.
“Wait—today is the last day?”
“It is.”
We stared at each other, then wailed.
“Nooooo!”
“ neither! I can’t let this arena go....”
“The gymnastics arena...!”
“Why must today be the last....”
Sek-hwan and our manager clicked their tongues as they watched us cry.
“Pick one: celebrate it’s over, or lant it.”
“I can’t choose! You try doing a concert.”
Sek-hwan laughed. “Why so emotional today?”
“Because it’s the last day,” we sniffed.
Mixed feelings: bodies aching, yearning to finish, yet hearts wanting to stay forever. Rumor had it the arena would close for renovation until sumr 2018. Two years away—it hurt to think we might not return.
“Hah....”
Day Three wore on us. While stretching to warm our stiff limbs, I replayed every mont of the concert in my mind—today had to be perfect.
“Are the trainees not coming to the waiting room?” the maknae asked during stretches.
“No—they said it’s too nerve-wracking.”
“They could co.”
“They worry they might interrupt the seniors’ flow.”
Our little ones were so considerate. We’d have loved to show them the backstage buzz, but they held back. Ri-hyuk rolled his eyes and teased:
“Unlike soone who’d swipe your lunch while you’re not looking.”
“Huh? Who?” I asked.
“You!”
“Hey—where’s my mature maknae status, huh?”
He gave us puppy eyes, and we shook our heads.
“If you want to be called mature, start by dropping that ‘-yeo’ at the end of every sentence...”
“Once you’re an adult, forbidden for you, Ji-ho.”
“Isn’t it more about actions than speech, Bi-ju hyung?”
Bi-ju’s barb hit ho, and we laughed.
Then, with tension released, we checked costus and makeup one last ti.
“All right—let’s nail this final show.”
“Afterward, we feast on at.”
“And visit our parents.”
“And watch MiP over dinner.”
We nodded. None of us had seen how MiP episode three turned out. We didn’t want anything—good or bad—to distract us tonight, so we switched our phones to airplane mode.
“Let’s make this perfect.”
We high-fived the band and dancers, then clasped hands backstage above the stage lift.
“I’ll treasure this.”
“ too.”
“Sa here.”
Their hands squeezed mine, and I felt closer than ever—perhaps because of “Nakhwa”’s ssage. We all shared quiet smiles and nodded.
Chanting “BBQ, BBQ, BBQ” to pump energy, we launched into the show.
It felt like Day Three: the fans’ cheers were even louder than before. The audience’s heat made us sweat and lose all thought but the music. Fueled by their roars, our opening “Nine” hit harder than ever.
“Those who were here Day One or Two, hands up!”
“Waaaah!”
“You know the drill: even if you know what’s coming, cheer like it’s your first ti seeing it!”
“Ready? Let’s hear that cheer! Woooaaah!”
“Waaaah—!”
Three days in, our banter flowed naturally. We rode the wave, and each of the five colored stages let our brothers shine in turn.
“Waaaah—!”
Each song’s end drew thunderous applause. If there were a deity of concerts, they’d sniff politely and murmur, “Splendid.”
When introducing “Nakhwa,” the fans’ coordinated chants wove into our choreography, elevating it further. As the festival-parade vibe built on the resolve that this was the final day:
“...?”
After the first encore number, sothing we never foresaw happened. We turned, startled, as the crowd’s cheers swelled.
What is this...?
Bi-ju’s puzzled question echoed as the screens lit up with an unfamiliar VCR. Under a banner reading “2013 Year-End Evaluation,” trainees waved at the cara.
“One, two, three: Hello! We’re NewBlack!”
Ji-ho muttered, “Ah—why do I look so tacky?” and the audience laughed. We recognized it instantly—it was a fan-made video commorating this very arena concert. A moving tribute. My lips curved in a smile before I knew it.
“We, your Suffle, vow to work hard and repay the love you give us....”
My grin trembled as tears threatened.
“Daegil? You scrotum-haver.”
“Neeeaaah...!”
It wasn’t an official morial; it was simply a video they’d made because they missed us so much.
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