Chapter 3 Chapter 3 The Girl Group of Kuaigou
Although Neon Company is not big, it has complete facilities. Relying on the riot dolls that became popular in 2016, it has also recruited many new trainees. Although most of them are people who were eliminated from the three major companies, there are also many with potential. According to various rumors and gossip, due to the sluggish performance of RD, the boss is already looking for a new pillar. It is said that he is spending money to poach artists who have debuted for a long time and whose contracts with the old company are about to expire.
The company is small to begin with, so the resources it will be allocated will be even smaller.
That's why RD's team, including their agent, assistant, and All Star Love teammates, attach so much importance to this comeback single. If it meets expectations, they will start preparing for the official album. If the results are not satisfactory, I'm afraid the fate of their team will really be put on hold indefinitely.
Fortunately, the return is in November, which is more than two months away.
As Quan Xingai entered the company, she felt all kinds of gazes and scrutiny, but she didn't care and went straight to the team's locker room.
RD has his own dressing room. Quan Xingai opened the closet in the dressing room and found it was full of sportswear for dance practice. After taking a shower and changing into sportswear, she saw Chi Mingzhen standing outside the dressing room waiting for her.
"Come to practice?" She looked very happy, probably because Quan Xingai finally returned to the company and the practice room.
Quan Xingai thought about it, then gave up on explaining and replied simply, "Yes, everyone is working hard, and I shouldn't hide anymore."
"Okay, okay, that's good. You can go to the practice room first. We just finished practicing tonight and have a meeting to attend." Chi Mingzhen patted Xingai's shoulder and looked much happier.
The two of them came to the practice room while talking. In the spacious dance room, the three girls saw Quan Xingai wearing familiar sportswear in the mirror.
"Huh, have you finally thought it through? Did you remember where the door to the practice room is?" Venus Kim Eun-mi, the long-haired girl who hugged him in the morning, supported her knees and looked at him, panting but with a smile on her face.
"Captain! Come on, come on, our formation cannot be without you!" Iris Park Jinwen, the girl with a bun, is about the same height as Xingai, and she looks very excited.
Lumi Yin Yanzhen, the short-haired rap star who always has a cool expression on her face, didn't say anything and leaned aside to drink water.
"Okay, Star Love is back, and there are still more than two months before the new single is released. Hurry up and practice." Chi Mingzhen clapped her hands, gave a few instructions, and let the girls practice on their own.
After the assistant sister left, Quan Xingai was surrounded by people.
"Are you okay? Why are you here in the afternoon? Didn't you say you would take a few days off?" Yin Yanzhen came over and asked. She used to be an underground rapper, and was later recruited to form a girl group. Although she looks arrogant, she is actually a careful person.
"Yeah, yeah, we thought you wouldn't be able to resume training until at least tomorrow or the day after tomorrow."
"You're too fragile mentally. Why should the public opinion care so much about you? The fact that you're still being criticized means you're popular. The scariest thing these days is that no one cares about you."
The teammates were chattering one after another.
Quan Xingai nodded continuously, "Yes, yes, you are all right, so I have decided to move on. If heaven doesn't accept me, then I will come back!"
"Have you changed a little?" Kim Eun-mi is a rich second-generation, and her personality is straightforward. If you haven't known her for a long time, people would think she is speaking in a sarcastic tone when they first meet her.
"I forced myself to change. I am no longer the same person I used to be." Quan Xingai smiled. After all, he had eaten more than ten years longer than these kids, so it was easy for him to pretend.
"That's right. Once you enter the circle, it's not like in school where you just need to get good grades in exams. You came from an orphanage, so how can you be so naive?" Jin Enmei said unhappily.
"Eunmi! You talk like that again!" Park Jinwen quickly poked Jin Eunmi's waist. In the past, the two of them had many disagreements because of their speaking habits. As soon as Xingai came back, Eunmi said that again!
Kim Eun-mi pursed her lips and felt a little annoyed. Her mouth, ah!
"I know, Eunmi is thinking about me."
"Okay, let's practice dancing and stop chatting. Nothing is more important than returning home." Yin Yanzhen said.
The girls shrugged and dispersed to face the mirror.
Quan Xingai was a little overwhelmed at first, but fortunately her body memory started to swing automatically and spontaneously with each beat as the music started. This feeling was both strange and familiar. After dancing for a while, she started to cry out in pain and hold her waist before she could be happy about her dancing skills.
"I didn't stretch, ugh—my waist, my legs."
"Hehe, let me stretch your legs." Park Jinwen walked over and pressed down on Quan Xingai. The girl who was sitting on the ground and was being pressed down screamed.
"Okay, Iris, let me go. I'm not like you. I've been learning Latin since I was a kid, so my body is flexible. My old arms and legs can't stand this kind of torture." Quan Xingai struggled under Park Jin's tattoo and screamed. Her voice was so weak that you might think she was doing something.
Sure enough, it attracted the choreographer, Sister Minchan, who asked, "Sarah is back?"
Park Jinwen got off Quan Xingai with a giggle, "Ouni, our Sarah's bones are stiff again, I'll help him loosen up his muscles."
Quan Xingai was still lying pitifully on the floor, with her long legs stretched straight out to both sides, at least 150 degrees if not 180 degrees.
"Sarah, you have such a pitiful expression. Oh, I can't bear to see it. Now that everyone is here, why don't you dance for me?" The choreographer was kind but still ruthless. He pulled Quan Xingai up from the floor, pinched her little face, and gave the assessment instructions with a smile.
The girls stuck out their tongues, then stood in a row and got into the starting position. As the music started, the four of them danced in unison.
At first, it was fine, but as they danced, Quan Xingai started to feel like she was losing her rhythm. She'd always been a solo artist, writing and producing her own songs, so she was used to being in the center and hadn't yet adjusted to working with a group. Xingai's role in the group was ace, meaning she could sing, dance, and rap. The dance numbers for the new single hadn't been officially recorded yet, so there was only music. But judging by the dance numbers, she at least had her own rap and singing parts.
Sure enough, after the song ended, Han Mincan frowned and looked at the four girls. The girls were panting and sweating all over their heads, with the same uneasy expressions.
"Sarah, you're at least a week behind schedule. You need to work harder lately. Also, your dancing doesn't keep up with your expression. I feel like you're not familiar with your head and body. It looks like the mistakes a beginner would make."
Quan Xing loves to stick out her tongue, isn't it because she is not familiar with her head and body? She is adapting to her new body, but it is too difficult to ask her to start dancing with coordinated hands and feet immediately, so for now she is just relying on pure instinct of her body.
"Actually, each of you has decent dancing skills, but stage presence is what's most important. I heard that the company is going all out with your return and will have you perform on two stages at once. Your performance is what separates you from other groups from major companies, and that's precisely the aspect of performance that's the most difficult to train. It requires both stage experience and genuine confidence."
The choreographer spoke with great sincerity.
Quan Xingai nodded. She agreed with the other party. After practicing for a while, although she was still training her limbs, she could see at a glance that the core of the girl group was the stage, and the core of the stage was actually expressiveness.
The four of them practiced for another hour, feeling somewhat dejected, until they collapsed on the ground in exhaustion. By then, it was already dark outside.
"The results in the first half of the year were just so-so. If the single comeback at the end of the year fails, will we..." Kim Eun-mi's mouth corners drooped, and unhappiness was written on her face.
No one responded to her, and everyone was tired and frustrated.
"What will happen? Disband?" Only Quan Xing Ai, who was not familiar with the ecology of girl groups, asked weakly.
“…” Park Jinwen and Kim Eunmi looked at Jeon Xingai speechlessly.
"You know how to stab someone in the back." Yin Yanzhen spat out a mouthful of water.
"Although we are not very famous, we still have a fixed audience, so we shouldn't disband..." All Star Love hasn't started making money yet. Let alone a mansion in Malibu, at least they have to buy a mansion in Seoul.
"Are you all here? A meeting is about to start. Get ready to go to the conference room." A fat middle-aged man walked in and knocked on the door. It was their agent Wu Xianhao.
The girls stopped talking about their downcast conversations, hugged each other, and followed their manager to the meeting room. Sitting in the meeting room, the manager and assistant, and even their boss, Moon Eun-joo, showed up.
Quan Xingai opened her eyes wide and searched her memory. She had deep feelings for her boss, so when she saw Wen Enzhu, a wave of happiness surged up in her heart.
"Please sit down. It's been a while since we last chatted. Xing'ai, have you figured it out? I'm glad you're back in the practice room." Although the boss is almost 50, he lives a pampered life and takes good care of himself, so he looks like he's in his early 30s.
"Ouni, I'm sorry for betraying your trust, but I came back because I've thought it through. I won't do anything stupid again." Quan Xingai bowed to the boss as an apology and an oath.
The female boss chuckled softly, and then Quan Xingai felt her hair being touched.
"This is Star Love—Okay, sit down, don't stand."
Seeing that the boss had a good attitude, the girls' mood also improved. They sat down in a row and looked at the agent with confused eyes.
"Ahem, the meeting is to discuss the arrangements for the last quarter, and also to inform you about Sarah's recent hospitalization." Wu Xianhao looked at Quan Xingai who was looking down and sighed before continuing.
"Recording for the November comeback single will begin next month. You still have one month to practice dancing this month. I heard Minchan talk about your coordination and performance issues. We'll find time to meet next week for the subsequent comeback styling. Feel free to bring up any ideas you have. Also..."
"As everyone knows, neon isn't big, with a small staff. We had good results in the past few years, but losses have been mounting since last year, so the company might be cutting costs next year. You know how important your comeback single is. I've watched you grow since your debut, and I don't want any regrets. So, let's all keep our spirits high. Go for it!"
The agent said as he focused on watching All Star Love.
Quan Xingai lowered her head and wanted to sigh. She really felt like a lazy fish. She really wanted to slack off, but the current situation did not seem to be the time for her to slack off. She had finally made it until now, and everyone did not want to let RIOT DOLLS, who had invested their feelings, be silent.
Kim Eun-mi, who was beside her, first reached out and held Jeon Sung-ae's hand, and then Park Jin-moon and Yoon Yeon-jin joined in, and the four hands were held together. Moon Eun-joo laughed when she saw this scene. When she saw Jeon Sung-ae this time, she felt that this child was indeed a little different, and there was light in her eyes.
"Let me tell you about the company's future plans. For better development and to relieve your stress, we plan to select several of our current trainees to form a new boy group."
"I know Star Love has been under a lot of pressure these past few years. I've watched you grow up, and I've always felt bad for you. But this is what you have to go through to grow into a big tree. I've been thinking about how to share your pressure. Besides the new group I might be launching, I've also been contacting artists from other companies recently. His contract is about to expire, and the company's attitude towards him is even colder. I think there's a chance I can win him over, and then the pressure on you will be relieved a little."
Moon Eun-joo smiled as she spoke of that artist, even raising an eyebrow at Jeon Seong-ae. Her idea was to remove the source of Seong-ae's stress and offer her desensitization treatment. If they succeeded in recruiting a superstar, Neon would undoubtedly be among the top entertainment companies.
However, the atmosphere was still a bit tense. The four girls had already regarded their boss's words as an ultimatum, which meant that if they didn't work out this time, they would just sign mature artists and be abandoned... So everyone lowered their heads, completely unaware of the boss's good mood.
"Although the pressure is great, I believe we can do it, step by step. You all are very talented, and are on par with the big three girl groups. Think about the girl groups they launched that year. Although they debuted in the same year and had similar positioning, even though they were backed by the big three, we were still more popular."
"Jin Wen, your dancing, Eunmi's vocals, and Yeonjin's rap. I think the difference between you and them now is reflected in your confidence and stage performance. Now that we have Star Love again, there is no problem at all. Think about the screams of fans when your popularity skyrocketed that year..."
"Finally, it's Star Love. Welcome back to the world. Don't do stupid things." Wu Xianhao saw that the atmosphere was getting lower and lower, and his fat face showed the eyes of an old father. He removed his serious expression and said encouraging words to cheer them up.
The advantage of a small company is that the boss's vision determines the company's atmosphere. Moon Eun-joo is a generous and beautiful female boss, so the atmosphere of neon is like a big family, and they treat their artists with genuine care. Everyone is actually very happy to see that Jeon Star Love finally figured it out and returned to normal.
"Thank you all for your concern. I will cherish this second chance at life. I won't let anything get me down this time." Jeon Seong-ae stood up and spoke earnestly. She felt the company's care for her, and while she felt sorry for her, she was also thankful for her own luck. In the brutal Korean entertainment industry, she'd actually encountered a startup with such a warm and caring staff, and even had the chance to become an OG veteran.
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