Chapter 77: Publicity Mishap

On February 7th, the sky was exceptionally clear, with not a cloud in sight, making it a rare good day in winter. The sunlight felt warm on the skin, as if it were shining into one's heart.

On the eve of the Spring Festival, the streets were filled with a festive atmosphere, permeating every corner. By 8 a.m., more and more people were out, and the once quiet streets became bustling with activity.

Merchants began to open their shops, and various music to attract customers filled the air. A song with a strong rock flavor reached every passerby who walked by the music store. Xiao Mi, who had already walked past the store, suddenly stopped and turned back to enter the music store.

"Boss, what's the name of this song?" Xiao Mi asked.

"Oh, you mean this one? It's called 'I Should Love You.' Student, would you like to buy a copy? This album just came out today, and since you're my first customer of the day, how about I give you a 10% discount!" The boss said, taking an album from the shelf and handing it to Xiao Mi.

"Yunjae of 'Cloud in the Wind'!" Xiao Mi muttered, looking at the album. "Hey, isn't this the song 'Elimination' that's been widely circulated online? So he's released an album... Boss, how much is this album?"

"20,000 Korean won!"

"What... That's so expensive!" Xiao Mi exclaimed. As a student, his living expenses were just enough, and 20,000 Korean won was no small amount for him.

The boss calmly said, "Don't be so surprised. Don't think it's just a mini album; it includes a CD, beautifully made photos, and a poster. 20,000 won is definitely worth it!"

"Is that so?!" Xiao Mi looked at him skeptically, hesitated for a few minutes, and then said, "Alright, I'll take it!"

Xiao Mi had become obsessed with the song 'Elimination' after hearing it online. Although spending 18,000 Korean won on an album was quite "luxurious" for him, it wasn't impossible. Moreover, the song 'I Should Love You' was also very good, which further increased his desire to buy the album.

Similar incidents occurred in different music stores. From 8 a.m. to 9 a.m., within just one hour, 300 copies of Lee Yunjae's mini album were sold.

Although 300 copies were insignificant compared to the millions of sales other singers could achieve, it was a good start for Lee Yunjae. At least these people had the desire to buy the album after hearing his songs by chance.

By 9:30 a.m., the first wave of sales reached its peak. However, these fans who came to buy the album were not there by chance. Most of them had been waiting for a long time, some even for four years, to fulfill their promise to buy an album by Lee Yunjae.

The fans of Lee Yunjae, known as "Fengzi," gathered again, though their numbers were far fewer than four years ago. Two-thirds of them had become fans of TVXQ, one-third of the remaining half had become loyal fans of other singers, and the other half were casual fans. The 50,000 people who gathered again were the first batch of registered fans of the Lee Yunjae fan club.

Although 50,000 sounds like a lot, it was actually not much. For example, in the bustling crowds on the street, only one in a thousand was a fan, which was a very small base.

Small as it was, the gathering was significant. By 10 a.m., the sales had increased to 2,000 copies, and the number continued to grow. By 11 a.m., it had reached 5,000 copies.

However, at this moment, Bae Song-in was not pleased by the sales trend. Instead, he was raging in his office.

"What's going on? They said they would do it, but now they're backing out... Do they not respect us at LOEN at all!" Bae Song-in angrily threw the folders on his desk to the ground.

"President, we don't know what happened. It seems that the Taeyoung Group has booked the advertising slots for this week, and they offered a higher price. Those fickle merchants all turned to the Taeyoung Group and rejected us!"

"Taeyoung Group?!" Bae Song-in initially thought someone was opposing him, but hearing the name Taeyoung Group seemed unlikely. The Taeyoung Group had no connection with LOEN, and perhaps LOEN buying pianos might have some customer overlap with Taeyoung. Taeyoung was a major piano manufacturing company in Korea, mainly focusing on piano production and sales, with no conflict of interest with talent agencies.

"Is it really just a coincidence?!" Bae Song-in frowned and sat down, deep in thought. "Apart from not being able to play the MV on the electronic screens of major department stores, how is the rest of the publicity going?"

Since the moment Lee Yunjae's album was released, LOEN's pre-planned publicity strategies were put into action.

The first step was to play Lee Yunjae's MV on the large screens at the entrances of major department stores in Myeongdong. This was the most direct way to promote, allowing fans to hear and see the quality of the songs, and to spark their desire to buy the album. However, due to the merchants' greed and the interference of the Taeyoung Group, this best publicity strategy failed.

Of course, LOEN also made a small mistake by not signing contracts with the department stores. Usually, a verbal agreement was enough, but this mistake taught LOEN a lesson: any cooperation, big or small, should be formalized with a contract.

"The source is already on MelOn, and the MV has not been released yet, only MP3 downloads are available. The supply to small and large music stores is sufficient, and the owners, following our advice, play Yunjae's songs to attract customers. We don't know the sales situation yet, but it seems to be going well. Posters have been put up on billboards and buses, and we are in talks with major TV stations for Yunjae to perform and appear on various shows. However, this week's Music Bank, Inkigayo, and Music Core are too late, and we have to wait until next week!"

The most promising and innovative publicity method was forced to "abort," and LOEN had no choice but to focus on traditional methods, intensifying the publicity to bombard the public. As long as you walked down the street, you could see Yunjae's posters everywhere, whether on buses, bus stops, department store billboards, or music store entrances, all high-traffic areas.

However, these publicity methods required significant human, material, and financial resources, and it was fortunate that LOEN was willing to invest heavily in Lee Yunjae.

"Um... Continue to intensify the publicity. We can't lose momentum now. Put the MV of 'Elimination' on MelOn, and make sure it's in the most prominent place!" Bae Song-in tapped his fingers on the table, speaking quietly.

Although he had many other publicity methods, such as holding a grand fan meeting or even a live-streamed press conference across Asia, these methods were not suitable for the current Lee Yunjae. The reason was simple: he was a newcomer with no fame. If it were TVXQ, Bae Song-in would have used these methods without hesitation. But for Lee Yunjae, it would be like "using a sledgehammer to crack a nut."

"Yes, President!" The person was about to leave the office.

"Remember, I don't want to see such low-level mistakes again... No matter who we cooperate with, no matter how good their reputation is, no matter how big or small the cooperation is, we must sign a contract to prevent them from backing out, understood?" Bae Song-in was still furious when he thought about it.

Sensing Bae Song-in's anger, the person trembled and said, "Yes... Yes, President, I understand!"

"Wait! Set up a special section for Lee Yunjae on MelOn, and upload some videos of Yunjae in the recording studio and practice room to attract attention! Also, create a message board to provide a platform for fans to interact with Yunjae!" Bae Song-in continued to give instructions.

"Yes, President, I'll take care of it right away!"

...

Although LOEN's publicity was not satisfactory, on the other side, Lee Yunjae's friends were all promoting his album on Twitter.

Artists from the S.M. family, such as H.O.T. (disbanded), S.E.S. (disbanded), Shinhwa, TVXQ, Super Junior, Girls' Generation, BoA, and others, all suggested on Twitter that fans listen to Lee Yunjae's new album and, if possible, buy a genuine copy to support him.

The fans, including SONE, Orange, and Fairies, logged onto MelOn to listen to Lee Yunjae's new songs, but this did not significantly boost album sales.

This was due to various factors, such as some people still being in bed, too lazy to go out, or the cold weather making it easier to buy the album a few days later.

By February 7th, Lee Yunjae's new album had sold 23,000 copies, a good number for the first day. Everyone thought that more people would buy it the next day, and with LOEN's publicity, it was possible to break 50,000 copies in two days.

However, at this moment, an invisible black hand was reaching out to LOEN, or perhaps their target was Lee Yunjae.

I worked overtime last night, so I'm posting two chapters today... The second chapter at 10 a.m.! Please follow and recommend!

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