wavenovel Chapter 816 Collision
Chapter 816 Collision
Chapter 816 Collision
"Okay, from now on I will no longer be your agent,"
Lee Seung-hwan stood in front of the nine members of EXO, scanning each person's face in turn.
After all, it was a promotion, so he was dressed very formally today, in a suit and tie, with his hair combed neatly, but there were mixed emotions in his eyes, and he was obviously reluctant to leave.
After all, they have been together for more than four years, and I have been leading them since before EXO debuted.
It's not just Lee Seung-hwan. All the members of EXO actually feel a little lost. They still have feelings for their agent Lee Seung-hwan. This guy is very good at controlling the scale of management, and they have gotten along very well over the years.
"Don't be so serious, I'm not leaving the company..." Feeling the atmosphere was a little low, Li Chenghuan clapped his hands and laughed, "My office is upstairs from you now, you can come find me anytime when you are free. It's not like we won't contact each other in the future. I'm planning to invite you to be the guests to sing a song to celebrate my wedding in two years."
"Brother is actually getting married."
"Haha, we still have to discuss the appearance fee then."
After he said that, everyone in EXO felt relieved, and Kim Junmyeon and Park Chanyeol laughed immediately.
"Remember to call me if anything happens."
The various teasing and joking also reduced the regrets between each other. After chatting for a few words, Li Chenghuan waved his hand and said, "Let Chengyuan talk to you next. Okay, I'm leaving first."
"Goodbye, brother."
As Ji Jingyuan and others said goodbye, Lee Seung-hwan looked back one last time, and after a brief eye contact with the nine members of EXO, he strode out of the practice room. As his back disappeared behind the door, it seemed to herald the beginning of another era for XO.
"Aniha Saiyo, I'm the new manager of the management office, An Chengyuan..."
The new head of the agency office is named An Chengyuan, who used to work in the agency department. He is 36 years old this year. Although his eyes are small, his facial features have a sense of familiarity. He is slightly fat, and the black suit is a bit tight on his body. Chi Jingyuan also found that this guy seems to be still trying hard to tighten his waist, and the protruding belly makes him look funny.
An Chengyuan introduced himself with a smile on his face, while also constantly looking at the nine members in front of him.
He is very satisfied with being EXO's main agent. Today, EXO is the most profitable and best-performing group under SM. The company's resources and channels have been used preferentially by EXO in recent years. All kinds of treatment are also top-notch, and it is very easy to achieve results. This can be seen from the fact that Lee Seung-hwan has been promoted several times in four years as an agent.
And it's not just Lee Seung-hwan. Most of the original EXO management team got promoted this time. It seems like this has become a direct train to promotion in SM company.
There was fierce competition for the position of EXO's main agent in the previous company, and he got this position after some activities. The company's top management was quite satisfied with XO's performance over the years, so he didn't think about changing anything. Besides, Ahn Seung-won himself is not a strong-willed person, so he thought about staying for a few years with the help of a favorable wind, and then, like Lee Seung-hwan, rise up quickly.
An Chengyuan introduced himself with a smile, and his eyes drifted to Chi Jingyuan's face standing next to him. His smile suddenly deepened and he nodded to the youngest member of the group.
He did his homework before coming, and even the top management greeted him specifically, so An Chengyuan was very clear about the situation within the EXO team, especially some members who received special treatment, and he had a very deep understanding of them.
For these royal cash cows with strong backgrounds that even companies have to support, An Chengyuan, who has just taken on the position of agent, feels that the word "management" may not be very appropriate.
Use 'service'.
Chi Jingyuan clearly felt the new agent's kindness towards him, and it seemed that he was not a difficult person to deal with.
He felt relieved and thought this was a good thing.
He is not a difficult person to get along with. Even if he receives some special treatment that makes people jealous, he will consider other people's feelings. As long as the new agent is aware of some unexpected events, no unnecessary and unhappy things will happen.
"...Okay, many members already knew me before, and I'll be living with you all from now on, so I won't say much."
After talking about the upcoming schedule and accommodation arrangements, the first meeting with the new agent came to an end. An Chengyuan looked at the time, clapped his hands and said, "It's almost time, let's go to the meeting room together..."
Everyone responded and followed Ahn Seung-won out of the practice room. Ji Kyung-won, Oh Sehun, and Kim Junmyeon exchanged glances with each other, and it seemed that the members all had a good impression of the new manager.
The most satisfied ones seem to be Park Chanyeol and Kim Jong-in... Ji Jingyuan can also understand that although Lee Seung-hwan is very familiar with them, he sometimes still manages them strictly. The newcomer looks easy to talk to, which is definitely good news for members like them who have active private lives.
They soon arrived at the conference room where the planning and music department staff were already waiting. After EXO arrived, they exchanged a few simple greetings and then got straight to business.
This project is to study EXO's winter special this year.
It's time for the winter album again. Except for 12, there has been no break since 13. Releasing a special album consisting entirely of ballads at the end of each year has become one of EXO's hallmarks.
The effect of the winter albums released year after year is very obvious. From "Miracle in December", to "Let It Be", to last year's "Biased" and "Sing for You", they are all high-quality works, showing their other charm as a TOP boy group and attracting more fans.
What is more important is EXO's reputation. Now their music reputation in the hearts of the people of the Peninsula far exceeds that of other boy bands, and a lot of it is due to the influence of these lyrical songs.
At the same time, the members' singing skills have also been fully demonstrated. Through the persistent lyrical songs over the years, EXO's main singers have engraved the name and impression of "powerful singers" in the hearts of the people and fans.
Nowadays, when people mention male idols with excellent singing skills, many of them will naturally think of EXO, Ji Kyung-won, and Kim Jong-dae.
Just like whenever you mention female idols who have "no acting skills", many of them will come to mind naturally.
Although this was the first official meeting, the song selection had actually been discussed many times before. There was no need to discuss too much about the album style, as the style of EXO's winter albums has always been similar, leaning towards sad ballads.
So the overall progress is very fast.
This year's winter album is still in the form of a mini album, with a total of five songs, the title song is "for life",
The title song was actually decided a long time ago. Chi Jingyuan had listened to this song many times when he was selecting songs. Continuing the consistent style of the winter special, it is a lyrical song that sounds slightly sad, but is very affectionate and timeless.
"For Life" is Kenzie's work. Chi Jingyuan was a little surprised when he heard it... This sister is really amazing. She can write "Monster" and "For Life". The style changes are huge.
But how should I put it, this title song doesn’t have an overly addictive chorus, nor an explosive melody, but it’s very comfortable to listen to, and the quality is also top-notch... It’s just that people who like this style may like it very much, while people who don’t like it may find it a bit bland.
Chi Jingyuan thought to himself...it's better to "let nature take its course".
In comparison, "Miss You", one of EXO's hit songs for their comeback this year, is actually of higher quality and more in line with the positioning of the winter album's hit song... Unfortunately, it has already been used.
However, Chi Jingyuan did not comment too much on this. Up to now, the winter album has almost become a gift song to give back to fans. Of course, he put a lot of effort into it, but he does not need to pay too much attention to it. He should focus more on his personal solo album which will be released later in the winter album. According to the previous plan, although the two albums will be released at different times, their preparation time will almost overlap.
The meeting lasted until noon, and all matters concerning this winter special were officially confirmed. The release time was the same as before, in mid-December.
What’s interesting is that SM still hasn’t completely given up on the summer Chinese market. Even though EXO has confirmed that they will not have any activities in mainland China this year, their winter album will still be released in Chinese version, and there are also Chinese cover, inside pages, etc. specially shot for the Chinese version, which can be said to be careless.
SM has even found someone to write the lyrics for the title song, and the Chinese version of the song, "for life", sounds pretty nice.
It’s called “One Life, One Thing”… Chi Jingyuan likes this name, but it may be a little difficult for him to do it.
After the meeting, EXO disbanded on the spot. Ji Kyung-won and Oh Se-hun had lunch nearby and soon returned to the company's practice room. Not long after, Kang Seul-gi and Yu Jeong-yeon arrived with their respective agents.
The reason why Chi Jingyuan did not return to the crew directly after finishing his previous personal schedule, in addition to having a meeting today, the most important purpose was to work on the advertising song "really really".
Because they were too busy some time ago, the advertising company and the brand have urged them several times, but their progress has been very slow. In order to cooperate with the pre-determined promotion and marketing process, Chi Jingyuan had to lead his three friends to stay up late and work overtime these days to quickly complete the progress of this song.
Fortunately, everyone has practiced the dance and song very well... except Chi Jingyuan... After a little more choreography and rehearsal, we can start shooting the MV as soon as possible.
According to the plan, two versions of the MV for "really really" need to be shot. One is as the advertising song for Mercedes-AMG. Chi Jingyuan participated in the shooting alone, and the audio source is also his solo version. It will mainly be used for TV and Internet broadcasts, as well as ground advertising promotion.
The other one is SM's subway song. The MV was shot by Ji Kyung-won, Oh Se-hun, Kang Seul-gi, and Yoo Jeong-yeon. The audio source is also the four-person version, and this version was the main promotion after it was released.
The focus of the MVs is also different, the former focuses on the car, while the latter focuses on the people.
"Have you got a meal yet?"
Seeing Kang Seul-gi and Yoo Jeong-yeon coming, Ji Kyung-won greeted them and asked casually.
"Of course I ate it."
"Eat it, Oppa."
The two of them walked over and replied with a smile.
There's not much change between the two of them after not seeing them for a few days. Seulgi looks very energetic, probably because she is comforted by the excellent results of this comeback. In addition, Red Velvet has finished their promotions and is on vacation these days. Although she voluntarily comes to the company every day to practice the dance for "Really Really", she is obviously resting well.
Yu Jeongyeon looked the opposite, with no life in her eyes and fatigue written all over her face.
Jiang Seulgi obviously noticed this and asked with concern, "Jeongyeon, why do you look so tired?"
"Because they were filming a music video all night yesterday..."
Chi Jingyuan helped to explain casually, but he felt that he was a little too talkative right after he said it. The moment Yu Jeongyeon's surprised eyes drifted over, he took the initiative to change the subject and looked at the few people with a worried look: "How are you all practicing? There is not much time. The actual set has been completed over there. The official MV shooting will start tomorrow. Don't let anything go wrong then."
"Don't worry, Oppa, I've been practicing every day these days."
Yu Jeongyeon suppressed the doubts that were rising in her heart and quickly raised her hand to reply.
She really put in a lot of effort for this collaboration. Recently, Twice has also been preparing for a new album, and they are very busy with various dance practices and filming. However, she still makes time every day to practice the dance for the collaboration song, even if she has to stay up late to work overtime. The choreography, which was not difficult at first, has already formed muscle memory.
Compared to Chi Jingyuan, who worked hard for three days and rested for two days, and was busy with other things every day and had hardly practiced dancing, Yu Dingyan really cherished this opportunity and had a very correct attitude.
"Jingyeon will definitely be fine." Chi Jingyuan nodded immediately and praised her in agreement.
In fact, he had already noticed from the last practice that Yu Jeongyeon and the others were already dancing almost the same and very skilled. He asked this just to change the subject...
At this time, Wu Se-hun's disdainful voice floated to my ears: "With your proficiency last time, don't worry about others. I haven't seen you come to the company to practice dancing these few days. You should worry about yourself."
"This time I will let you know what talent is!"
Chi Jingyuan snorted, stood up confidently and clapped his hands: "Don't waste time, let's get started."
Once they got into work mode, the four of them stopped talking and immediately began practicing together with the music. No matter if it was Oh Sehun, Yoo Jeongyeon or Kang Seulgi, they had obviously gone through a lot of practice, and they probably even adjusted their posture and movements in front of the mirror to get closer to the style that Ji Kyung-won had mentioned at the beginning.
Compared to the three people next to him, Chi Jingyuan did seem a little unfamiliar at first, and made some mistakes in many movements and positioning. However, after jumping down a few times, his previous feeling returned and his overall performance became better and better.
Although he did not have the free time to practice during this period, he participated in the overall choreography from the beginning. He worked very hard and put in a lot of sweat when he first started practicing, so he still has some muscle memory.
And as he said, he is indeed talented.
“really ~really ~really ~really ~”
“really ~really ~really ~really ~”
The repetitive music of "really really" kept repeating in the practice room, accompanied by slight breathing and the constant friction sound of soles of shoes against the floor.
Although he was too busy to practice much, Ji Jingyuan attached great importance to this subway song for the advertisement. Apart from anything else, this was his first time to work with friends and relatives, and he had the intention of giving them a hand from the beginning. If the song did not perform well because of him, he didn't know what Yu Jeongyeon and the others would think, and Ji Jingyuan would definitely feel embarrassed.
So he specifically asked for leave from the crew, and after everyone else left, he would stay and practice overtime all night.
After practicing together for more than ten times, everyone was tired and took a break. Chi Jingyuan sat there and took a few gulps of mineral water. Just as he stopped, Yu Dingyan came to his side.
Yu Jeongyeon looked obviously tired. She took a few sips of the drink in her hand, then wiped her mouth and remembered something. She asked with concern: "Oppa, when will our song be released?"
"Late October, around the 25th, I remember." Chi Jingyuan thought for a while.
"The 25th?" Yu Jeongyeon paused for a moment, and her expression suddenly became interesting.
"This is not decided by me, but by the brand and the advertising company... How come it coincides with Twice's comeback time?" Chi Jingyuan knew what she was thinking at a glance... He already knew the comeback time of Twice this time, which was not much later than Yu Jeongyeon's.
"Just a few days."
The girl nodded heavily, looking a little worried, but no one knew what she was worried about.
"Don't look so sad. Have more confidence in our collaboration song."
Seeing her expression, Chi Jingyuan was a little dissatisfied. He waved his hands vigorously to cheer Yu Jeongyeon up, patting his chest and making promises: "Although you probably won't be able to promote your song, I will lead you to sweep the music charts and directly knock out those members of yours who only know how to do radio gymnastics every day."
“Oppa~, what’s this radio gymnastics? Those haters can say that, but ‘Cheer Up’ was choreographed by you, it’s you!! Also, I’m also Twice~ I’m Twice!!”
Yu Jeongyeon was instantly dissatisfied when she heard Chi Jingyuan's slander. She frowned and loudly scolded him. Then, she saw Chi Jingyuan's inconsistency and perfunctory apology, so she smiled helplessly and sighed: "This is what I'm worried about..."
As a collaborator, Yu Jeongyeon is very aware of the quality of the song "Really Really". Combined with the theme style tailored for her by Ji Kyung-won, the unique choreography, and the extremely addictive melody, as Ji Kyung-won said, she is very confident about this collaborative song.
And her group's new song seemed a little childish to her...and as Chi Jingyuan said, the choreography did have a little bit of radio gymnastics in it.
As a member of Twice, she of course hopes that her group's comeback will be a big hit, but she also hopes that "really really" will perform well. Unfortunately, the two songs were released very close to each other, so it is easy for their popularity to overlap.
Fortunately, this is an advertising song, so there will be no publicity. And even if Chi Jingyuan participated, even if the sound source of an advertising song goes viral, it won’t be too exaggerated, right?
"Hey, Yu Dingyanxi, you have to pay attention to your position. You are on our side now!"
Seeing Yu Jeongyeon's worried expression, Chi Jingyuan looked anxious and quickly tried to persuade her: "Don't do anything like an undercover traitor or something like that, and don't deliberately slack off~"
"Oppa~"
Yu Jeongyeon, who was a little worried just now, couldn't help laughing when she heard it. She was extremely helpless about this oppa's childishness and occasional out-of-touchness, and patted Chi Jingyuan's arm with a smile.
She didn't say what was in her mind.
Are you the one who has been arguing about paddling these days?
...Although I'm just slacking off for a very cool reason.
Just as the two were chatting and laughing, Jiang Shuqi, who was originally answering the phone quietly next to her, suddenly screamed, as if she heard something unbelievable.
Chi Jingyuan and the others beside him immediately fell silent. Seeing that she still looked worried after hanging up the phone, Chi Jingyuan couldn't help but ask curiously:
"what happened?"
"Yerin and the others were in a car accident!"
(End of this chapter)