Chapter 35

When I suggested working on the source code that everyone else had given up on, my siblings' reactions were mixed.

"Can you really do it? Don't give up later. Let's start with something easier and be realistic."

The main vocalist, who handles the sense of reality in New Black, was skeptical.

"I'm a bit worried, but if you're going to do it, I'm in favor."

The main dancer gave a supportive smile, despite his concerns.

Jung-hyun just shrugged, as if to say, "Do as you please."

The youngest one, munching on a pickle, showed off his thick wallet.

"Do what you want. Your own feelings are the most important. I don't know anything about composing, so I'll buy lots of snacks instead."

The vote ended with 3 in favor, 1 on hold, and 1 against.

That's how we decided on our approach to the debut song.

Ri-hyuk said, looking unconvinced,

"Since it's a majority decision, I'll follow, but can you really do it? Objectively, it's too difficult."

"Bro, remember when you said the same thing during the year-end evaluation?"

The youngest one interjected.

"Back then, Woo-joon suggested an idea, but you said it was unrealistic and too difficult."

"You're really no help. Whose side are you on?"

"I'm on the side of the composer who will give me a good part, of course."

While feeding me a pickle, the youngest one grinned, and Ri-hyuk clicked his tongue in disbelief.

At that moment, Biju seemed to have an idea.

"By the way, I've been curious about this since the year-end evaluation. How do you work when you compose or arrange music?"

"Yeah, I've been curious too."

"Back then, it was really strange. You suddenly said you'd finish it by tomorrow, and the next morning, you came in with the completed arrangement."

I dipped a slice of pizza in the dipping sauce and replied.

"It was largely thanks to Mr. Jo. If I had done it alone, it would have taken much longer due to the computer work."

"Then how did you arrange it? Without using a machine?"

"I wrote it by hand. I made a rough score."

My siblings looked at me with strange expressions.

"You wrote it by hand?"

"Yeah."

"Where did you live? 19th century Europe?"

"I did it that way in the military. I couldn't install Logic or Pro Tools on the unit's computer. In the end, I had no choice but to do it by hand."

When I mentioned the military, my siblings seemed to understand.

What can I say.

They seem to accept it as an unknown world. They might even believe I was a combat pig breeder in the unit.

"Then, how do you work, bro?"

Jung-hyun asked.

"We need to know this to figure out how we can help."

"Ah, my working method."

I thought about how I usually work on music.

I create a stage in my mind and work from there.

But if I say that, they'll probably look at me even more strangely.

"Let me just say this: don't look at me strangely after you hear it. I know I'm a bit unusual."

"Just say it, uncle. What could be more surprising?"

"Um... so, how I do it is..."

I put down the pizza and said,

"Everyone, close your eyes."

Everyone closed their eyes. In the meantime, the youngest one peeked and stole a slice of pizza that Ri-hyuk had set aside.

I continued, trying not to laugh.

"Did you close your eyes? Now, think of a familiar space. Preferably a wide one. The auditorium of your school or the music show stage we performed on would be good."

Under their closed eyelids, their eyes moved.

"Got it. Now, in that state, set up the instruments on the stage. Guitar, bass, keyboard, saxophone, cello. Just a drum set for the drums. Leave out other percussion for now."

"Bro, I think I forgot from the middle."

"I couldn't remember either. Hey, Wang Ji-ho, do you remember?"

"......I think I did it roughly."

Ji-ho, focused on secretly eating the pizza, didn't respond, and only Jung-hyun seemed to have followed my instructions roughly.

"If you've come this far, you're almost there. The next part is easy. Add our five members one by one and work on it. Imagine everyone singing. Try creating a melody. Add some instruments."

"......"

"Then repeat it. Until it's done. I kept conceptualizing the year-end evaluation arrangement in my mind like this."

"Is that it?"

"Yeah."

The members opened their eyes one by one.

At first, they seemed to be adjusting to the light, but then they looked at me strangely.

"I told you it would sound strange."

"......Bro, does this work? Playing instruments in your mind?"

"Then how did you arrange it in a day?"

Everyone looked doubtful.

When I was at TJ Entertainment, the TNT kids had a similar reaction when I told them this.

'Bro, does that even make sense?' they would say.

My siblings looked at me as if I were an alien, just like back then.

They seemed both amazed and a bit disgusted.

"......"

Everyone stared at me blankly.

How long had it been?

Ri-hyuk's voice broke the silence.

"What? Where's my pizza?"

* * *

The first day in the studio passed, and we returned to our daily routine.

Events, practice, lessons, and now music production were added to the mix.

After performing "Something" with Senior Jang Soo-won in a local event and returning to the company, we had group PT, vocal, dance training, and foreign language education.

After that, Jung-hyun and I, unlike the other siblings, headed to the studio instead of the dormitory and worked through the night.

Most of the work was technical.

Discussions and work on how to refine and create the melody.

The concept was already decided.

The concept for our B-side track was a summer seasonal song.

Since we had announced the beginning of the spring season with "Something," the plan was to create a summer seasonal song for our debut.

Of course, this was what we told the manager.

The simple idea of "It's summer, so let's do a summer song" was our secret.

A refreshing and cool song for the summer.

Following this concept, Jung-hyun and I kept working on the melody of "Untitled."

It was a simple task.

At first, we struggled with how to refine the melody, but after working on it a few times in my mind, it turned out to be surprisingly easy.

Of course, it wasn't because of my talent.

It was possible because I didn't perfectly preserve the subtle nuances of the melody like others did.

At first, I tried to capture this feeling a few times but ultimately failed.

So, with the intention of at least applying it even if it lost its subtlety, we started by remaking the beat.

During this process, we also received a lot of help from our network.

We sought advice from Senior Jang Soo-won whenever we met at events, asked for opinions from Mr. Jo during lessons, and talked to the company's A&R team and connected composers whenever we had the chance.

Thanks to this help, the work progressed smoothly.

"Where should we reference the instruments? I want to make the sound more sophisticated."

"Let's go through the Billboard Top 100."

We referenced the latest trends in American music for the sound under the top-line melody.

"Jung-hyun, do you want to try the intro this time?"

"Me?"

"Since you have a good sense of rhythm, you can find the right timing for the band and attack points. It will have an impact. And for the B part, Biju's soft voice will fit well."

"I think you would do better, bro."

While discussing the parts, we also talked about the strengths and weaknesses of the members.

"What about Ri-hyuk?"

"His vocal balance is good, so he'll be fine wherever we put him."

"That's true. We'll have to think about it after the choreography is done. We should put him in a part with less choreography."

If Ri-hyuk had heard our conversation, his ears would have turned bright red.

In this way, we progressed quite quickly, discussing who would take which part of the song.

The problem arose right then.

"Hey, Jung-hyun."

"Yes."

"Do you visualize this in your mind?"

"......Are you talking about that strange method only you can do?"

"No, not that."

I asked.

"Can you visualize performing this on stage in your mind?"

"Um... let me think for a moment."

He closed his eyes and thought for 10 seconds, then opened them.

"It doesn't work."

"Right, it doesn't, does it?"

The problem was the identity of the song.

The work was progressing smoothly, but no matter how many times we listened to it, it didn't feel like "our song."

It felt like "Untitled" could belong to anyone, not just New Black.

In simpler terms, we had successfully polished the gem, but we didn't know what to make with it.

We had the gem, but we didn't know if it should be a necklace or a ring.

"What do you think is the problem, bro?"

"It seems we didn't consider our identity when we made the song."

"Our identity?"

"If 'Something' was a song by Jang Soo-won, this should be our song. It should feel 'New Black-ish,' but it's too bland."

The identity of New