In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

At the PBS broadcasting station.

Around a table where the writers of “Now In My Hometown” and we were seated, articles kept popping up on the laptop screen.

“Wow.”

One writer pressed refresh in awe.

“Dozens of articles per second. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this since I took over this show.”

“My heart’s pounding already, man.”

The maknae, staring at the monitor, pointed at the real-time search list.

“Look at this. We’re trending. ‘Now In My Hometown.’”

“No way, that’s huge.”

As the writers scrambled for the screenshot hotkey, Rihyeok pressed the button for them.

Meanwhile, the page auto-refreshed at intervals, spitting out article after article:

– “NewBlack x PBS Collaboration Confirmed: ‘Now In My Hometown’ Appearance”

– “‘Why are NewBlack there?’... First Long-Term Appearance on ‘Now In My Hometown’”

– “[Official] NewBlack to Appear on PBS1’s ‘Now In My Hometown’”

Everyone was keenly interested in this PBS collab alongside the small-venue tour.

“Now In My Hometown”—airing weekday evenings—had a solid, loyal viewership. If young people had Joséhae and MIP, older viewers had “Now In My Hometown.”

One writer covered her mouth and said,

“Honestly... I still can’t believe it. When NewBlack said they wanted to be on our show, we were all flabbergasted.”

“Right? It’s so surreal.”

“They say the PD was so excited he couldn’t sleep that night.”

We laughed at the writers’ warm chatter, when the junior writer asked,

“But did your company object at all?”

“My company?”

“If your idol group says they want to be on ‘Now In My Hometown,’ I’d think they’d all oppose it.”

“...They opposed it?”

We stared off into space, reminiscing.

“They were like, ‘You’re going on “Now In My Hometown”? Uju, bring back some gochujang or kimchi!’

‘Let’s go break our recognition record with the seniors.’

‘So you won’t be in Seoul, right? No, Uju, it’s not that we don’t want to work with you, just asking! Ha ha!’”

We vividly remembered Director Seok-hwan flipping through ad lists, saying, “Is the next spot for that oriental raisin drink?”

We smiled and answered:

“They were thrilled. They told us to go get lots of love from the elders.”

“They said they’d send us money, so while we’re there, buy a bunch of local specialties.”

“At some point, I think they just gave up on complaining about us.”

At Viju’s wistful smile, the writers clapped and laughed.

But contrary to those jokes, this collaboration was a carefully considered plan, agreed with our company staff. It started when Deputy Manager Hong Seo-young of the PR team suggested,

“While you’re doing the small-venue tour regionally, why not strengthen your overall public presence too?”

Thus, MiTube content was planned around visiting hot spots and sampling local foods in each area. However,

“The 20–30s will catch you on MiTube, but other generations need to see you on TV, right?”

That was the dilemma. One change since the 2016 New Year was that our company solidified our path. Before, like other idols—like today’s TNT—our goal had been “Be the best!” but now, we’d decided otherwise. We would pursue being the best idols, yet also leverage our unique, public-friendly identity. Our aim this year was to venture down a path no post–first-generation boy group had taken. So alongside the fan-focused small-venue tour, we brainstormed how best to approach the general public... when

“I really wanted to be on this show,”

Junghyun spoke, eyes shining like a child thrilled to win a spot on their favorite program. The writers broke into laughter.

“When I was in elementary school, every evening I’d watch it hand-in-hand with my grandparents.”

“Really?”

“I’m still an avid viewer.”

Their amusement at our fandom made the writers laugh. We chimed in:

“I watch it on my phone at the gym while working out.”

“Yeah—last time I was on the bench press, I suddenly froze, saw him squatting down watching baby chicks on ‘Now In My Hometown.’”

“Junghyun hyung even started growing green onions after seeing MIP’s vlogs on here.”

As the writers marveled, Junghyun nodded earnestly.

“So I called my grandparents and relatives and bragged, ‘I’m going to be on there!’”

“Aww, you shouldn’t be boasting all over town. Embarrassing!”

Just then I swallowed hard, imagining,

“Dear Madam Deok-soon, your grandson has finally made it. On ‘Now In My Hometown’....”

“Dad! Text the relatives: I’m on my hometown show!”

“Mom, should I buy a few boxes of apples in Chungju? Rent a truck?” 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

I could almost hear Rihyeok tapping away an email on his laptop.

When we cleared our throats, one writer asked,

“What’s with you guys?”

“We’ve been bragging like crazy. We’re gonna be famous among the elders....”

Our embarrassment had the writers laughing again. Thanks to Junghyun’s fan confession, the mood grew warm and friendly. Writers who’d been nervous about us at first were now completely at ease.

“The average airtime is about fifty minutes. You’ll get a one-corner slot per day?”

“About fifteen minutes, I’d say.”

“Right. With a different corner each day, we’ll record accordingly.”

Fifteen minutes would mean roughly three to four hours of shooting. While I mentally organized the schedule, Rihyeok took meticulous notes.

I asked, “Is there anything extra we should prepare? Besides studying the cities and towns we’re visiting...?”

“Just bring yourselves. That’s enough.”

The writers shook their heads.

“Shooting time can be surprisingly long. It’s tricky to get enough footage. Just keep that in mind.”

“Got it.”

“And here’s our reporter list...”

They slid across the list of reporters in charge of each corner. As Junghyun recognized names and we blinked,

“Why are you giving us this...?”

“Oh! Since you guys wanted to be on the show, we told them to volunteer if they wanted to film with you.”

“Then?”

“All of them signed up. Not one person abstained—they all really want to do it.”

“Uh....”

We heard one writer got a gift and begged, “Som-i writer, please let me film with NewBlack!”

“So we thought we’d ask if there are any you’d like to shoot with. It helps for planning.”

“Hmm....”

We’d watched recent episodes but weren’t experts. Finally, we turned to Junghyun. He looked at me with big eyes.

“Can I do it?”

I nodded, and he picked up a marker.

“Hmm.”

He began circling the week’s corners next to each reporter’s name.

“Like this.”

“Oh!”

The writers’ surprised expressions were priceless.

“How did he pick only the most popular corners?”

“Amazing.”

“Junghyun chose the ones with highest ratings among the elders from surveys.”

“I did that survey too,” he said simply, earning applause and laughter.

Thus we wrapped the meeting with the “Now In My Hometown” staff, and as they saw us off, they said,

“We added your album to our playlists as soon as it dropped yesterday. It’s all so good.”

“Really?” I joked, smiling,

“If you like, maybe use our songs as BGM...”

“We already plan to play NewBlack as background music throughout this collab period.”

“Thank you!”

When we cheered “Wow, ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) great PR!” Junghyun hesitated and asked the writers,

“Um... do you have any extra merch?”

He’d eyed their “Now In My Hometown” logo notebooks. Laughing, the writers immediately fetched a box.

“I’m so happy. I hope you writers are happy today, too.”

At Junghyun’s delighted sign-off, everyone chuckled.

@thenewblack.official

(Like a friendship photo, all five members hold notebooks with a cat saying “Now In My Hometown” in a speech bubble.)

These are the hometown notebooks we got from the writers after the meeting. Thank you.

#WrittenByJunghyun #NewBlack_PBS #NowInMyHometown #WillDecorateWithStickers

As we prepared for the forthcoming small-venue tour and the “Now In My Hometown” shoot, our special album was posting overwhelming results.

– “‘We Wanted to Capture Winter’: NewBlack Sweeps Winter Charts + Ranked”

– “‘As Expected, NewBlack’: Chart Domination + MV Views Explode”

– “‘Six Songs in the Top Ten’: NewBlack’s Special Comeback Lives Up to Reputation”

Six of the top ten spots on the Mango daily chart were ours. Checking the charts each morning after washing our faces had become part of the routine—for us and the company alike. It was inevitable. When “Nine” sat at 16 and “Wind Flower” at 48 on the weekly chart, seeing every track chart was unprecedented. “Thousand Dreams” aside, the winter tracks held firm in the top 100 with no sign of slipping.

“...Twelve out of a hundred are our songs. What percentage is that?”

“Twelve percent, you dummy.”

It was the first time a single idol group consistently held 12% of the daily chart. Rihyeok said,

“I saw a critic’s review. They said it’s because we chose a variety of songs.”

“What does that have to do with charts?”

“If songs are all similar, people get bored and only the title track survives. But we picked diverse tracks, so maybe more people listened across the board.”

“Ohh.”

Since the album’s concept was to become everyone’s winter, each track felt different while remaining cohesive. Even the title “Hibernation” and track four “Winter Trip” conveyed the same season in completely distinct ways. That might explain the critics’ positive reactions as well:

『Blue Winter (2016)』

– NewBlack

– [★★★★★]

When I heard they aimed to capture all of winter, I was skeptical...

(...)

But NewBlack’s unique timbres and classic melodic flow have created perhaps the most universal “winter hit song.”

—By critic Hwang Ho-chul

Even Hwang, known for generous star ratings, and those who trashed “Nine” as an electronic mess now praised us.

“Whoa... did you see this?”

“Wow....”

Our first-week physical sales, normally reported after a week, surpassed “Nine”’s numbers by day two, and digital performance was off the charts. Everywhere we went, it felt like a festival with music and celebration.

“Oh, this feels so good....”

“Even just seeing the charts fills me up. Hey Junghyun, that meat was reserved for me!”

“When it’s sticky-sticky, it’s meat-meat.”

We became the party too. Every meal we ate a piece of meat, checked the charts, ate another piece, checked again—and that satisfaction fueled us.

“Alright, let’s go promote!”

“Let’s go go go~!”

We pounded our bellies and dashed off to promote the album. Promotion was vital before release—and after, too. Until the small-venue tour began, we followed a packed schedule:

– “Yes, after military variety and national bread, now ‘Now In My Hometown’—an idol showing every skill!”

– “Two, three—Hello! We’re NewBlack!”

– “Huh? No roasted sweet potato, chestnut greeting today?”

– “We thought you’d be sick of that chant, so we prepared a song instead!”

We appeared on radio for album promos.

– “Welcome to Music Café.”

– “Thank you. Hello viewers! An idol that comes every day—NewBlack!”

We guested on Ha Seung-ju’s Music Café. I worried people would say “He’s pushing his own production,” but thankfully that never came up.

– “Yesterday Uju called me, ‘Senior, is it okay if we really appear?’ Because I produced the album.”

– “Yeah, that could feel odd.”

– “Don’t worry—no one knows I produced it.”

The audience laughed at those lines. Throughout the recording, gazes poured in, and SNS still reacted, “Why is Ha Seung-ju acting like he’s best friends with NewBlack?” It was fascinating.

Originally we’d skipped music shows because of the tour, but broadcasters went out of their way to let us pre-record the first week. Alongside K-Net, PBS, and TBC’s pre-recordings, we did two special stages: one on PBS’s weekend “Midnight Concert,” and another when Educational Broadcasting booked HBS’s slot.

– “Two, three—Hello! We’re NewBlack!”

– “You got surprised, right? Didn’t expect us, did you?”

In Ilsan’s public hall at night, that music show usually featured indie or ballad singers, so the audience was amazed to see us. The winter special with eighty attendees was a huge success. We took commemorative photos with an indie guest, and after the show, mingled with the audience.

“Did you have fun?”

“Yes! The songs were amazing.”

The custom was to hold a signing and photo session in the lobby.

“Whoa....”

Outside the building’s glass, dozens of telephoto lenses focused in, shaking everyone’s pupils—us, the audience, even the security guards. It was bewildering, yet blissful. It felt like we’d ridden a hot-air balloon—“higher and higher!”—and broken through to the stratosphere like a rocket.

Most of all,

“This is nice.”

Our main vocalist—the heart of the album—broke into a rare, happy smile.

“So this is why Viju hyung and Junghyun hyung were so thrilled. When people love you, you feel connected as listeners, like you’ve claimed something as yours.”

“That’s it, exactly...”

“And above all, knowing it’s all because of me is the best part.”

As the juniors laughed, I teased our arrogant main vocalist.

“Rihyeok, you’re fully NewBlack now. No shame.”

“All thanks to you.”

“You ungrateful thing. Hope you only get the fatty parts of pork belly.”

“In return, I hope you only get the sinew when you eat beef.”

While exchanging mock curses and wry smiles, the others showed their joy.

“Rihyeok hyung’s arrogance bothers me, but it’s nice.”

“It’s great.”

“The schedule’s tight, but it’s been ages since I was this happy.”

Meanwhile, our manager brought news.

“Guys, the director says HBS just called again.”

“Waaaaah!”

Looking back, maybe this happiness is all thanks to HBS’s constant “You ready...?” calls.

From Monday through Thursday, we handled promo events and then attended the Korean Music Awards ceremony. There are two main types of music awards: year-end chart awards—like Mango Chart or K-Net Awards—and ceremonies in January or February summarizing the previous year’s results. The Korean Music Awards, hosted by a sports newspaper, belonged to the latter category.

“Congratulations! Song of the Year goes to NewBlack’s ‘Wind Flower’!”

As with the prior two awards, among the grand prizes, the Artist and Album Awards went to TNT and TeenSpirit, while we took home Song Awards. In addition to main awards, we also won in the Nostalgia OST category—an unprecedented achievement. Amid congratulations, we fled from a gaggle of seventh-year senior idols making rooster noises to wish us luck before returning to our dorm.

“...Oh. A trophy arrived.”

It was from TBC: last year’s “Rookie of the Year” award, which we couldn’t attend due to scheduling. The trophy’s design had the juniors in stitches.

“Hahaha!”

“...”

“Gasp—haha!”

It was a gilded statue of me repelling down a cliff, screaming. The expression was vivid—needlessly high quality. After flicking the maknae for calling me “Golden Jeon-min,” I noticed a gift box beside the trophy.

“A USB?”

A “Congratulations” ribbon was tied around it. Curious, I booted up the computer, and we all stared at the monitor. To a lovely BGM, someone appeared holding a bouquet.

“Hello, Uju.”

“Ah!”

“Yes, it’s me. Do Jun-gi.”

The PD of “Men On The Go” flashed a playful wink.

“I sincerely congratulate the success of your album. By the way, our show is transforming from a military variety into an extreme reality program called ‘People On The Go.’”

“Wait, wha—!”

My heart plummeted.

“Cut it! Immediately cut it! Junghyun, can’t you let go of that thing?”

“Why? It’s fun. Hyung, hold on to it tight.”

“They were complaining last time we weren’t a full group—this time, they want all the members...”

“—!”

The juniors turned pale.

“Get it out of here! Now!”

“Aaah! Who is this guy? Go away!”

“I feel like I need to throw this! Yank out the USB and hurl it!”

Watching them toss the USB as if it were a bomb made me burst out laughing.