In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Same time.

News of NewBlack’s VMA appearance was blanketing Korea’s internet.

To the general public, it was downright astonishing.

“Hey, hey, did you see this? NewBlack’s going to America again!”

“Again?”

“They’re going again this time?”

People skimmed the article at speed.

VMA.

It said it was one of America’s “big four” music awards alongside the Grammys, AMA, and Billboard. To Koreans, it was the show famous for that 2001 moment when a star came out with a python around their neck.

But what caught the public’s eye was something else.

This would be NewBlack’s second U.S. awards show.

‘...So Billboard wasn’t the end?’

Up to now, most Koreans had treated the Billboard Awards as a one-off.

A publicity event that happened because the collaboration with Hailey Blue devoured the Billboard Hot 100.

So even while watching the awards, many just went, “Wow, they’ve got a lot of fans,” and moved on.

But this time it was another major show, the VMAs—and a solo stage at that.

‘Is this really happening?’

The so-called “feel” was there.

A feel they’d do well in the U.S., too.

So many acts had wrecked on the rocks of “the U.S. market” that Koreans had defaulted to “it’s hard anyway,” but their view was starting to change.

“I think they really might pop in the States. Wild. They’re even giving them a solo stage. They’re releasing an English track.”

“Wow, they’re rolling out the red carpet.”

It felt like watching a Korean film make the Oscars.

It’s not my business, and yet I keep caring. I even want them to go and win something.

That’s what a second time means.

The first can end as a one-off, but from the second, there’s an implicit message.

There could be a third and fourth.

So unlike the Billboard Awards, which filled feeds with memes and jokes, people in Korea started sharing actual info.

[About America’s Big Four Music Awards (Info)]

Similar posts started hitting “best” across communities.

If Korea has Mango and the KMA, America has four major shows; people were breaking down their themes.

“Billboard gives trophies for records and numbers. This one scores buzz and virality, looks like.”

“There’s something called AMA too. What’s that?”

“American Music Awards... also one of the big ones. I’ve heard of it but never really knew.”

“The Grammys are where a bunch of old white guys give whatever they feel like... confirmed.”

From “the Grammys are the hardest to win” to each show’s recent controversies, Koreans were inhaling it all.

And the most proactive among them picked up their phones.

“Thank you for your suggestion~”

At Lemon Entertainment, PR staffer smiled sweetly and ended the call.

A question flew over from nearby.

“Who was it?”

“A gentleman in his seventies from Andong. Says he has a killer strategy. He told us to wear Hahoe masks on stage.”

“Oh, that’s secretly good.”

They jotted down the ideas worth passing to NewBlack.

Everyone stretched, then dove back into the nonstop ringing phones.

The mood wasn’t bad.

‘It’s all because they care.’

Compared to when a client actor gets caught drunk driving or in a social-media mess, this was angelic.

Back in the days when reporters would say, “You’re still checking? We’ll run that you’re checking then,” and your heart would bounce with every call, this was easy mode.

— ...But other people called too, right? I only called because I’m worried sick and can’t stop thinking about it.

“No, no. We’re really grateful you shared your thoughts.”

— You’re working so hard. Fighting! NewBlack best!

It felt like managing a national team—the cheers kept coming, and every one gave strength.

What matters in PR?

You do PR to make even one more person join your artist’s side. Having the public on your side like this—there’s nothing sturdier for a PR person.

When the phones eased for a moment, the PR head glanced at the monthly schedule.

“It’s only a few days until August.”

“Whoa! Time flies.”

And August mattered.

It was when the things NewBlack had prepped for nearly two months would roll out one by one.

Wooju’s Scarlet single.

Sun Wooju’s Rest Diary and other self-made content.

The new single “METRO.”

The VMA stage.

Smiles tugged at the PR team’s lips as they looked at the jam-packed calendar.

“Okay, let’s fire up again and—”

[knock knock]

A rap on the door, and in came newly hired composer Yoo Ung, who had just joined Lemon Entertainment.

Tall but very skinny—he gave off a gaunt impression.

He even resembled PD Na Sangyun a bit; no wonder folks at the company kept joking he was “Sun Wooju’s pick.”

“Oh wow, first time saying hello in person.”

“Hello!”

“Hope I’m not disturbing you while you’re busy.”

“Oh, not at all. What brings you?”

“Nothing big. I wanted to greet you and also drop this off.”

“Oh my! Oh my!”

Composer Yoo held out a box of coffees and some cake slices, and a chorus of “We’ll enjoy it!” followed.

He shook his head and said,

“The NewBlack folks bought them.”

“Ah.”

In their minds, they pictured five guys peeking into the PR office, going “Oh!” and backing away—

Then spotting “Composer!” and lighting up.

The staff burst out laughing.

“Did you deliver them?”

“It just turned out that way, but I’m really glad I got the chance. Heh heh.”

“Sorry?”

“I scored points with Wooju. Heh heh...”

Seeing the new composer happy about earning points with the power broker of Lemon Entertainment, the PR staff nodded.

‘Come to think of it, his direct supervisor is Wooju...’

‘We live blessed lives.’

For some reason, looking at the scrawny composer made the PR team smile warmly.

While TJ Entertainment’s PR was being hounded by an antiques enthusiast, and Lemon Entertainment’s PR was giggling,

the VMA news was also spreading through idol-fan spaces.

— omg

— insane (crying)

— our boys got a solo stage (wailing)

— omg is this real???

— official. it’s up on the VMA’s official twitter

— i’m already excited for the new song (sobbing)

For Souffles, it was the kind of news that makes you want to cheer all day.

With the tour schedule, they’d assumed there’d be no more new songs this year.

‘A new single!’

And the news that they’d premiere it on stage at a major U.S. show—hearts were pounding to bursting.

Of course, the bait-throwers weren’t few.

— America again???

— give it a rest

— since Billboard, you can see both staff and members lost in a field of poppies lol

— dropping an English track right away looks so try-hard lol

— i saw your fandom on sns clowning others for releasing Japanese tracks, now the boomerang is coming~

— your group goes straight to English~~

— you just beat up Trickster for announcing an English track, but when NewBlack does it, you’re quiet lol. having a big fandom is king

— fr, why did Trickster’s fans get roasted lol

— always with that “we’re a warm, small fandom” spiel, but you’re worse than what you suffered back then

— the hypocrisy is gross

Souffles were baffled.

‘When did we ever pile on?’

They felt dumbfounded watching people flip it and blame them after doing the slinging themselves.

Souffles had actually kept as quiet as possible when the Trickster news broke.

‘Because we might release one too.’

Since NewBlack had always said they could release an English song if they wanted, Souffles had stayed quiet on purpose.

Because it could all boomerang.

Seeing the political sniping go back and forth like this was just absurd.

‘And what do you want us to do about it.’

But it didn’t really land.

Because through the anti masks shaking in rage, the faces were visible.

Like auto-translation piping straight into your ears:

— damn. jealous. so jealous!

— you punks! if you’ve got something good, share it! stop hogging it all!

— why are they doing so well? i’m pissed.

Long used to filtering, Souffles tuned it out and swung back to positivity.

‘Answer with positivity.’

They decided to go non-violent in the face of rabid antis.

Souffles soon started posting NewBlack articles and “what should I eat for lunch” threads.

[ding]

With a tap on “post,” the antis were swept away in an instant.

They waved at the ones being flushed down like in a toilet, then looked elsewhere.

— what do you think the new song will be this time (crying) can’t wait

— since it’s “Metro,” maybe Seoul Metro... subway... is it subway???

— lol that’s pure stream of consciousness

— maybe “Metropolitan”

— i can’t even imagine lol they’re always so different from predictions

— sorry to the boys but i kinda want a tougher choreo this time hehehe

— in wooju we trust

— i also want Maid Wooju

— (Captain Flower photo.jpg) then for you, Captain Flower

— every time i see it, that pic screams both femininity and masculinity at once

— meh... to me it’s just a pic I don’t want to see

Souffles chatted in soft, drifting streams of thought.

Like finding a steamed bun on the floor, brushing off the dust and puffing on it, they savored the breadcrumbs for “METRO.”

Then something dropped from the sky.

“Hm?”

News hit that a new piece of content had gone up on MyTube, and Souffles scrambled over.

MyTube lagged and stuttered.

A rocket-riding chibi Wooju with the logo “Kind Spaceship Wooju” underneath.

Hypnotized by the title “Ri Hyuk Likes Wooju,” they clicked, and Ri Hyuk appeared at once.

Ri Hyuk: I don’t like you.

Wooju: I like you.

Ri Hyuk:

Wooju: Myself.

From the jump, the main and lead vocals were bickering—the so-called “vocals” duo chemistry in action, and it brought out fond smiles.

‘They’re recording a drama OST.’

It felt like turning in a report on what they’d been doing during the low-teaser period.

Souffles watched, exhaling little gasps.

And they searched between cuts.

‘My Bear and Tiger? A drama airing in early October.’

Soon the real-time search term “My Bear and Tiger” started climbing.

Something a PR agency would spend tens of billions of won to push was getting done with a single content drop.

It was barely a taste, but the OST quality already felt no joke.

Souffles, pseudo-Souffles, and lurkers all mixed and watched.

‘One episode every three days. Got it.’

Episodes tracing the younger members’ individual schedules.

They watched the end-tag teaser for the next “Kind Spaceship Wooju” episode—“Biju’s episode”—with mounting anticipation.

“Did they go to Gunsan?”

Come to think of it, sightings of Wooju and Biju in Gunsan had poured in recently.

Was it that show “Food Before Sightseeing”?

‘It’ll air soon.’

If the behind-the-scenes was coming, the broadcast had to be close.

And sure enough—

— guys! check the teaser from PBS!!!!

The public broadcaster’s official social account posted a teaser with a MyTube link.

PBS’s MyTube account “Patbingsu TV” dropped a NewBlack-related clip.

It had the vibe of a variety teaser.

Even the thumbnail felt different.

‘...What is this?’

Wooju and Biju, in purple and yellow raincoats with sunglasses, grinning with a “heh.”

The visuals looked silly.

With no idea what was going on, they clicked fast.

And—

“Haah! Cute!”

Souffles pounded cushions and pillows, expressing the cuteness they felt from the screen with their whole bodies.

I’m singing in the rain~~♬

To a jaunty tune, the dancer duo slid in as if figure skating.

Souffles were grinning ear to ear when

an EDM-flavored intro hit and the two raincoat boys started moving smooth.

‘Oh.’

A two-man unit serving perfect in-sync moves behind shades.

When Biju stretched an arm up, Wooju reached down—an asymmetric decalcomania in motion—

“Oooh.”

—then the stage kicked off into sharp, snappy hip-hop.

Just thirty seconds.

But the main dancer and lead dancer of NewBlack left afterimages with surgical synchronization. Even in goofy raincoats and sunglasses, the aura bled through.

You could just tell their lines and control weren’t normal.

As Souffles watched, mouths open, and the dance neared its end, they dragged the cursor back to the middle.

After a few replays of the Wubees, fans scrolled to the comments.

‘So it wasn’t just me.’

The comments were buzzing.

— whoever thought of a fancam, promote them

— insane..

— so hot lololol

— can’t believe I didn’t know this existed

— if the network has sense, they’ll now upload Wooju ver, Biju ver, and a full cam. then Souffles will give thunderous applause

— why are they this good lol

— feels like they can talk with just their eyes

— biju’s dance lines are crazy.. unforgettable lol

— i’m a muggle, requesting a UN stage

— that’s a unit

— hip teletubbies as hell

Watching regular stages, fans had often thought, “If you pair these two dancers it’d be fun,” and even in something simple like this, the Wooju-Biju combo shone.

Like the comment said—they looked like they read ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) each other with a glance.

Even without long practice, the eldest and second child matched perfectly; it was heartwarming.

‘Ah. Those outfits are the only shame.’

Automatically sketching stage outfits in their heads and imagining a two-man set, Souffles smiled dopily.

The screen went dark; a smirking face reflected back.

“Ugh. Hate it.”

They lit the phone again to avoid their own face.

One comment caught the eye.

— btw guys this is from “Food Before Sightseeing” lol

They’d been tipsy on Wooju and Biju’s chemistry and forgotten the obvious.

The source of the clip.

Souffles snapped back to their senses and watched the end they’d skipped by looping.

— wow! wooow!

The crew and veteran actor Kim Jeongnam clapped in delight, and with “Hello, we’re the Wubees!”—

a savory, old-school Korean font popped up.

[Food Before Sightseeing]

[Please watch the live broadcast!]

“Ah...”

Right. That’s the program.

Watching a “fancam” from a culture show, Souffles smiled and added “Food Before Sightseeing” to their to-watch list.

‘Since it’s a culture program, some will probably watch reruns too, right?’

Countless hands decided, I’ll watch it live then.

That was why PBS’s “Food Before Sightseeing” would rate several times higher than usual.

“Woooooo!”

Saturday, 8 p.m.

We turned on PBS for dinner time and beamed.

“Shall we head to the sea to catch some fish~”

“Fish!”

We burst with happy laughter over a protein-packed beef spread.

Jiho giggled.

“Ah, I love America so much.”

“Me too.”

“Love you, America!”

Since this track targeted the U.S. market, there was no need to keep our bodies super gaunt.

Some build actually helped.

So aside from holding back on salty instant foods like ramen, we didn’t need a brutal diet.

Human happiness really does come from carbs and meat.

“Love you!”

“Love you!”

Whether we said it out loud or not, Ri Hyuk’s cheeks were pink, and the “Food Before Sightseeing” episode featuring me and Biju—the Wubees—had begun.

There we were, dancing as Wubees in front of lead guest Kim Jeongnam.

“Wow...”

The maknae paused mid-reach with his chopsticks and said,

“You two are insanely good. I admit it.”

“Want to unit with us?”

At Biju’s question, the maknae gulped water like his throat caught and shook his head.

“...No way. I can see the suffering if I get between you two... I’ll go act.”

“I’m out too.”

“Hm? I don’t think anyone asked you. Aaaagh!”

I watched the brats squabble and turned back to the TV.

The Wubees dance from the teaser passed. I told Biju, who was monitoring intensely,

“Let’s just enjoy this one. It’s a culture show—no need to think in variety terms.”

“Ah, true.”

“And it’s not like anything special will happen after the broadcast.”

Meanwhile, the Gunsan food crawl was getting going on TV.

First, seafood knife-cut noodles for breakfast.

On screen, Biju and I sipped broth with a “whooaa,” then slurped noodles in.

“...”

Gulp.

Junhyun’s swallow was louder than the TV.

[Wow. You two make it look so good. People watching this on a Saturday night are going to go nuts.]

[We do eat well, right?]

[That can go to air. Young people these days are muk... bo?]

[“Mukbang,” sir.]

With praise for our hearty appetites, the edit the crew had slaved over rolled by.

Eat, and eat again.

Those captions flashed while Biju and I scraped the bowls clean, leaving only clam shells.

But... why does it look so good even to me.

Like that late-night ramen scene at 11 p.m.

“...Hyung.”

Junhyun said,

“Should we order just a little seafood knife-cut noodles?”

“Uh, should we?”

“If we only eat a little of the noodles and not the broth. Maybe one spoon of broth.”

“Right. We can fast tomorrow!”

Swayed by the kids, I cautiously opened a delivery app.

“Hm?”

A pop-up appeared.

[The connection is temporarily unstable. Please try again.]

I tried reconnecting; same.

“Open another delivery app. Is it okay there?”

“Nope. Same there.”

“...That one too?”

The delivery apps were stuttering. We briefly slipped through once, but it froze again right away.

All we ended up seeing was the real-time search ranking inside the app.

[seafood knife-cut noodles]

[Gunsan knife-cut noodles]

Then it kicked us out again.

We looked back and forth between TV and the apps, staring blankly into space.

“...”

“...”

The delivery apps had crashed.

We only learned later that netizens dubbed it “the NewBlack Uprising.”