In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Long before Souffles in Korea found the video.

A few Australians were the first to stumble on it.

‘What is this?’

Someone was doing a street performance in a Sydney park.

A handsome duo with a ukulele were singing while jamming with an old man on guitar.

[Hello. We’re singers from South Korea.]

They stared, briefly spellbound by the smiling handsome guy.

Then the playing that followed drew gasps.

‘Are they pros?’

They’d never known a ukulele could make sounds like that. Same for the castanets slipping in with subtle groove.

The old man’s guitar—no need to even comment.

They seemed like strangers, yet they were jamming like people who’d met for weeks.

‘Feels like jazz.’

A little off-beat at times, the push-and-pull tension between the instruments had a curious charm.

And when the singing began—

“Woah...”

They swallowed without thinking at the gorgeous voice.

It was a cover of Australia’s top star Aiello’s “My Sunshine,” completely reinterpreted in his own color.

Even the way the sea breeze ruffled the singer’s bangs was perfect.

‘He’s too good.’

Maybe others heard that voice too; in the video, people began to gather.

Soon the vocal that started in a soft, clear tone began to roam across a wide range.

When the lyrics spoke of a pony’s death, he whispered low.

When he climbed high, there wasn’t a tremor.

On the chorus, the ukulele and guitar playfully recreated the original’s distinctive electronic textures.

‘This is insane.’

Australians watched, smiling as they sank into the performance.

[whoooosh]

A gust of wind blew in the video, and the hat of the old man on guitar flew off.

Right then the castanets guy chop—caught the hat, and applause broke out.

But unlike those at the scene, Australians watching online stared wide-eyed.

‘What—do none of them know who that is?’

Nowadays more famous as a billionaire and club owner, it was Glenn Davis, guitarist of the legendary rock band Devil Grills.

One of Rolling Stone’s 100 greatest guitarists. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

A charismatic musician who, whenever he performed, would tear up the stage in a ruckus.

‘No way.’

Someone watching the video looked baffled.

‘How does nobody know?’

It wasn’t impossible to understand.

He had a bushy beard and shabby clothes. He looked like a neighborhood pub regular.

‘...Still, how does not a single person recognize him.’

Maybe you wouldn’t know the foreign singers, but even the locals in Australia didn’t seem to recognize him. It was maddening.

Worse—

[Next song is “Hell, Billy” by Australia’s legendary band Devil Grills.]

[cough!]

[Sir, are you okay? Sounds like it went down the wrong way.]

[I’m fine!]

Even though the original guitarist himself was playing, everyone just went waaaaah in admiration. It was funny.

Truly no one knew who he was.

If anything, the foreign singer kept sneaking doubtful looks at the old man.

‘Good grief.’

Someone, frustrated while watching, opened Twitter.

@Timi_Wimy

I’m watching a video of Glenn Davis busking and it’s driving me nuts.

My god.

How can no one recognize ‘him’? Not even one person?

That was the start.

People checked the video, retweeted it, and as it spread fast, the views shot up.

‘Glenn Davis is busking?’

A street performance by a rock legend who is now also famous as owner of a top Australian football club.

Everyone had to be curious.

Like a viral, the video spread everywhere, and viewers kept bursting into laughter.

[cough!]

Because of the moment Australia’s legendary musician, playing his own song on acoustic guitar, made that peculiar face.

Glenn Davis’s flustered expression was the highlight.

At first, watching a young guy in a foreign land soften his song, his lips went “oh.”

‘Looks like he likes it.’

Then, eyes crinkling with wrinkles, he broke into a broad smile and began to play. Seemed he liked the junior musician’s cover.

By the end, he was adding ad-libs and playing for joy.

His face—so plainly happy—made people watching through a screen feel warm and fuzzy too.

— 03:37 When he smiles, I feel happy too

— Those folks don’t know how lucky they are. There are people who’d pay millions to hear Glenn Davis play.

— When I’m old, I want to be that kind of grandpa (smiling emoji)

— Fun fact: Glenn Davis once got arrested for whacking someone with his guitar for butchering his song.

— I should’ve been in that crowd.

— Do those teen boys know they’re playing with Glenn Davis? I’m dying to see their reaction when they find out.

As the comments bubbled and views climbed fast—

The rising views fed it into Australians’ recommended videos, and the views rose higher.

And viewers who’d first focused only on Glenn Davis began shifting their gaze.

‘Did these guys live in Australia or what?’

It was a medley of songs Australians love.

They picked with a smile that said, We know what you go nuts for—and every time, it was uncannily right.

Especially because it was all decided on the fly.

[Hmm... we just did something mellow, so how about we lift the mood a bit? How about Maria Keynes’s “Take That,” sir?]

[Let’s match up for a moment.]

[Junhyun, let’s go.]

The ukulele and guitar locked in, then launched right in.

It was like they had data on every song in their heads, ready to pull out at will.

They glanced at a phone now and then, but they even knew all the lyrics.

‘Are they professional singers?’

Only then did the oddities stand out.

Even with a world-class musician on guitar, their playing didn’t get outshone; the singing was anything but ordinary.

A vocal who knew exactly how to move hearts.

— I don’t know who that kid is, but he’s overflowing with talent.

— Does he have all the harmonies mapped in his head or something?

— It’s weird. This medley is like planting K-pride in Australians.

— The voice is really unique.

— plot twist: turns out those boys are already massively famous.

— The other guy who comes in later—how does that small body make that sound?

— Huh???? It’s NewBlack!!!

Soon Australian Souffles who’d found the video began explaining in the comments who the singers were.

Australians reading the explanations blinked in recognition.

‘Oh. They’re the ones who sang with Hailey Blue?’

That wasn’t all.

When someone said Thousand Dreams from the film Nostalgia was by the same singers, their eyes went round.

They clicked through related content. It was true.

And up popped the MeTube account called NewBlack TV.

‘Well, I’ll be.’

It had tens of millions of subscribers.

There were music videos past a hundred million views.

They threw a bulgogi party and thousands cheered for them at a highway rest stop.

‘......’

Australians stared at the near-dominion-level popularity in Korea, and the recent video flashed back to mind.

[You boys take it.]

A clip of Glenn Davis holding out the money collected in the hat to the struggling musicians.

Soon a comment floated to the top:

— Now that I know who those boys are, I’m curious about Glenn Davis’s reaction.

— He might be hammering spikes into the headstock right now.

— The old man’s guitar is strong, y’know.

Tons of people were hitting “like” on those.

Meanwhile.

In Korea, Souffles found the video and burst out laughing.

‘What are you doing there?’

We sent them to shoot a travel reality and they’re filming a music program.

We had no idea what the situation was, but it felt good.

Australians in the video were showering NewBlack’s vocals with words like “insane” and “amazing,” spit flying—it was satisfying to see.

‘They cause an incident everywhere they go. As expected, my faves.’

Before long came the news they’d even appeared on Australia’s main news.

[Here’s today’s Fun Issue segment! A famous boy band from South Korea, NewBlack, reportedly did a street performance in Sydney—and a surprise guest’s identity has been revealed, causing a huge stir.]

It blew up because of a member of Australia’s national rock band.

In Korea, “Devil Grills? I’ve heard that somewhere,” was about the level of recognition, but in Australia he seemed massive.

Who cares.

What mattered was that Australia, where they’d gone to film, was responding.

— NewBlack definitely misunderstands the meaning of “healing.”

— Fr that’s a working holiday.

— Why are Australians’ national pride comments so funny lol

— A singer from a foreign country knows Australia’s national song medley.

— It’s insane how Wooju can plan all that on the spot in his head and sing it lol

— Even busking lands them in international trending lol

— High chance the clout-chasers pile in now.

Sure enough.

Korean MeTubers swarmed.

— The insane live singers who made Australians fall in love—who are they?!

— NewBlack’s Australia reaction is going wild, let me explain

— Who is Glenn Davis? One of rock’s top 3 guitarists #HistoryOfRock

Souffles, who usually sighed at the usual circus, turned to the news.

Their faves showed up on Korean news as an overseas trending topic.

They laughed again at the sight of kids who’d gone to travel and were working instead.

— Official response from the original artist just dropped lol

Looked like the guitar-playing grandpa had gone live on social media.

[They told me those kids didn’t have much for travel expenses. So I thought they were poor musicians.]

Souffles cracked up.

[It was a fun experience, in its way. It’s been a while since I played with someone who clicked. I hear they’re the most famous singers in Korea. It’s meaningful to have performed with singers like that.]

When the old man smiled, his wrinkled eyes curved gently.

[Tell them to get in touch sometime. I’ll buy a meal for us poor musicians.]

Souffles shook their heads.

‘No, that’s not it.’

‘Run, Grandpa!’

They could picture Wooju in Australia grinning at that video.

Meanwhile, starting with Glenn Davis’s official response, other singers’ reactions hit social media too.

The original singer of “My Sunshine” tweeted as well.

@Aiello

Killer cover. I like it.

The tone suggested they’d enjoyed “Blue Moon” too and would love to sing together someday.

Other singers reacted similarly.

They all subtly mentioned Blue Moon; even if you didn’t know the inside story, it showed, and it made people laugh.

— All right! Put out a song like “Blue Moon”!

It felt like that.

Even Souffles hadn’t fully felt it before, but now the meaning of “composed a Billboard #1” was starting to land.

They watched with faces both dazed and pleased.

The news spread.

By the next day, as Souffles around the world squealed and clamored in glorious dissonance—

“Hm...?”

A new video popped up.

A clip titled something like “Street performance with an absolutely killer voice.”

‘Did I miss one?’

Maybe there was a busking video they’d missed—no.

This one was newly uploaded.

This time, the background was different again.

‘The date... today?’

In the thumbnail, their faves were doing a full-on five-member a cappella.

‘What on earth is happening in Australia?’

“Bwahahahaha!”

“Kyahaha! Kyaa!”

“Heeheehee! Hahahaha!”

NewBlack members devoured lunch with blissful faces.

The production staff watching them had ashen, hollow looks.

“PD.”

An assistant writer looked at the PD.

“Is this... right?”

“Exactly.”

“These aren’t the scenes we planned.”

“R-right...”

They’d hoped to capture a slapstick, sweat-and-tears backpacking story of youth.

Day two’s vibe was nothing like that.

— Then we’ll roll over yesterday’s leftover money into today’s budget. And we’ll busk again once.

They did a quick set at a country-town restaurant far from Sydney and ate for free.

With yesterday’s money, they took taxis.

— You know the rule, right? Anything over three steps is a taxi.

— Facts~

They wanted ordinary youth travel.

What they were filming looked like a chaebol youth’s luxury vacation.

Meanwhile, after touring Blue Mountains National Park, the members moved to another town and even entered a local music festival.

“The winner is NewBlack for their ‘Bubbly SpongeBob’ song! The prize is 1,000 dollars!”

They rearranged a SpongeBob tune into a beautiful a cappella and bagged about a million won in prize money.

The crew clicked their tongues.

“That’s just mean...”

“Pros showing no mercy against civilians.”

Then Junhyun, who even won a pelican-feeding contest.

“My god.”

“Pelicans listen to people.”

“What’s the total prize? We came to shoot a travel reality and we’re gonna have to do tax filings.”

NewBlack proactively funded a luxury trip and the staff just blinked.

The audio director said:

“Didn’t they say he was amazing when he did the manager thing at Sagan last time too? These kids, whatever they do...”

“Drop them in the desert and they’d build an oil kingdom.”

“They’re really something.”

Each one alone might seem merely quirky, but together, NewBlack produced synergy in the direction of “unhinged.”

“Hold up. There’s an animal-and-plant ID quiz near here. If Junhyun hyung and I enter, we can win.”

Ri Hyuk vacuumed up info with hawk eyes.

“Which way do we go.”

“Spin Biju.”

“Let’s do it.”

“Go, Bi-compass!”

Even when the crew refused to give directions, the members spun Biju like a dial.

Biju staggered, pointed west, so they walked east—and nailed the direction.

“Time for heavy lifting. Junhyun!”

“On it.”

[rumble]

[boom boom!]

“Doing something weird! Go, Sun Wooju!”

“Grandma! Send me your strength!”

[thunk!]

[tang tang tang!]

Fueled by the minions’ cheers, the demon king sallied forth to bring back huge sums of money and goods.

“Woooooow! Well done! Well done!”

“I did good?”

The youngest egged on his hyungs from behind, giggling.

The staff smiled fondly.

‘I give up.’

Day two.

Seeing NewBlack earn all the money needed for the remaining five travel days in just one day, the staff took out an envelope.

“What’s the envelope?”

“Additional budget.”

“All of a sudden?”

“Yeah...”

With a woeful face, the crew pleaded:

“So play games with us... please.”

“Just one round of whack-a-mole. We’ll just give you the money.”

“We already made this stuff—we have to use it...”

“Hahahaha!”

Whether they understood the staff’s sorrow or not, NewBlack cackled like always.

Day two was pure joy.

In the morning, we went to Blue Mountains National Park to see trees, and odd lizard-like creatures and other flora and fauna.

In the afternoon, we wandered nearby small towns.

Maybe because it was summer, there were festivals everywhere, and thanks to that we won plenty of prize money.

Truly a land of opportunity.

“Hahahahaha!”

It didn’t fit the staff’s intended “youth trip,” but hey, we got the fun, didn’t we.

Yeonhu [What are you even saying]

Yeonhu [A snake came out of your lodging lol]

Junhyun [photo]

[Yeonhu has left the chat.]

[Huiyeon has left the chat.]

Every time we told people what we experienced, no one believed us—definitely great footage.

And then—

“I set up a meeting.”

We even managed to arrange a meal with Mr. Glenn Davis.

I was over the moon at the thought of eating ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) with, and talking to, a legendary musician.

An Australian outlet asked for an interview too.

It felt like working while traveling. I liked it.

“Did you all have a good day?”

That night, day two.

Back at the lodging, the staff addressed us.

“Tomorrow is the day you pair off for a free day. Please draw lots to pick your partner!”

“Okay!”

Biju prayed he wouldn’t be alone and picked first. We drew in order, one by one.

When I was holding a lot with the end dipped in blue—

“Hyung.”

“Oh!”

“It’s me.”

“Junhyun-aaah!”

Junhyun and I became a team.

“Ri Hyuk. It’s me.”

“B—Biju hyung! Optimal result!”

Ri Hyuk, a planner by nature, lit up at being paired with another planner.

Only our youngest held a solo lot and let his eyes mist over.

“Ueee... I’m alone.”

“Aww. Poor thing~”

“Do I really have to go alone? That’s too sad...”

When they told him the crew would join him midway, the youngest nodded.

Then the PD spoke:

“Okay. You’ll travel on the schedules you drafted on day one. First, the Junhyun–Wooju team!”

“Yes!”

“We’ll alternate between the two plans you wrote. Wooju, you said flying is fine?”

“Yeah. No problem.”

“First option is skydiving in Wollongong.”

“Sorry?”

“Skydiving.”

“...Excuse me?”

I stared blankly, Jiho swiftly hiding his lot inside his shirt, and the PD continued.

“And the second option is as follows.”

“W-what is it?”

“Shark cage diving with great whites.”

“...Excuse me?”

As I stood there dumbfounded, the kids began to hum the Jaws theme in sweet a cappella.