Chapter 1099: I am New Black, Class of ’18 (23)

Pulling our jackets tighter against the chilly air, we climbed onto the stage.

"Whoa..."

The openness was breathtaking.

Just like when we'd stood on the stages at Seoul World Cup Stadium or the Olympic Stadium, a vast sea of seats stretched out before us.

"This feels kind of surreal."

"Why, hyung?"

I stretched lazily before answering.

"This is the place, Biju."

"The place?"

"The stadium where Korea beat Spain in the penalty shootout during the 2002 World Cup."

"Really?"

"Oh! That happened here?"

Biju and Junghyun looked around in amazement.

This was Gwangju World Cup Stadium—the very ground where the Red Devils had roared loud enough to shake the stadium, where the entire country had been plastered with headlines declaring "Korea Advances to the Semifinals!"

Thinking that I'd watched that quarterfinal as an elementary school kid...

...and was now standing here as a singer, performing a concert on the same stage...

It felt strangely emotional.

"Of course, you two wouldn't remember."

I laughed as I slung an arm around the shoulders of the younger two.

The sharp little triangles immediately fired back.

"It must be nice being old."

"Seriously. Sometimes you sound exactly like my dad."

"You little..."

Still bickering with the maknaes, I accepted the microphone a staff member handed me.

"Ah."

I tapped it lightly.

"Can everyone hear me?"

I was obviously asking the staff.

But at that exact moment—

A thunderous roar erupted from outside the stadium.

"YEEEEEEEEES!"

It had to be tens of thousands of people.

We all burst into laughter.

Like the Olympic Stadium, this venue was open enough that voices from outside carried straight in.

"So... did everyone come to see us?"

"YEEEEEEEEES!"

Even hearing their voices without seeing them, I could practically picture all the smiling faces.

Biju raised his microphone and spoke gently.

"It's supposed to get really cold tonight. Make sure you all dress warmly, okay?"

"YEEEEEEEEES!"

"And who's not able to see tonight's concert?"

"WAAAAAAAAAH..."

"Then this rehearsal is for all of you."

Cheers and excited screams erupted from outside.

Enjoying the overwhelming response, the members and I signaled to the director that we were ready to begin.

Naturally...

It turned into the most energetic rehearsal we'd ever done.

7:00 p.m.

Bright stage lights illuminated the darkening sky.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

The cheers of thirty thousand people echoed throughout the World Cup Stadium.

Student club performances and cheerleading routines had already whipped the audience into a frenzy.

"Let's hear some noise!"

The famous announcer serving as MC shouted into his microphone.

The university students answered with deafening screams.

"Are you all ready?!"

The night's main event hadn't even begun.

Yet everyone's excitement was already at maximum.

While the MC continued building the atmosphere, organized chaos unfolded beneath the stage.

"The singers are standing by!"

"What about the doubles? Are they ready?!"

The production staff barked into walkie-talkies without pause, making sure every cue was perfect.

The dancers and body doubles moved into position.

The NewBlack members sat casually atop the lifts.

The New Universe production team filmed everything.

As the members sipped water through straws, Producer Gu Jaeyoung looked over.

"How are you feeling?"

"A little nervous."

Jiho grinned.

"What about you, PD?"

"I'm nervous too."

If even the staff who had prepared the show weren't the only ones feeling anxious, neither was Producer Gu Jaeyoung.

Thirty thousand people...

For what was supposed to be nothing more than a university festival special...

The scale had become absurd.

He'd handled plenty of large projects back during Living Together, but nothing on this level.

Ironically...

The NewBlack members looked even calmer than he did.

"PD!"

"Hm?"

The maknae clenched his fist.

"Let's do our best."

"Let's do it."

"Come on! Louder than that!"

After shouting "Fighting!" together with the members, Gu Jaeyoung laughed and returned to the production crew.

Camera One through Camera Sixteen.

After confirming every camera was operating perfectly, he looked toward the director.

"Ready?"

"Ready."

The director relayed instructions over the radio.

The MC raised his voice.

"One last time!"

"Are you REALLY ready?!"

"YEEEEEEEEES!"

"Then let's begin!"

An enormous roar swept through the World Cup Stadium.

Light sticks rippled across the stands like waves.

The evening wind was bitterly cold.

Yet the students' faces practically radiated heat.

Finally... NewBlack!

Everyone excitedly shouted,

"This is insane!"

"This is seriously insane!"

As the New Universe cameras captured sweeping shots of the ecstatic audience—

Click.

The lights suddenly went out.

Darkness swallowed the stage.

Everyone instinctively looked forward.

Then—

Flash!

The spotlight illuminated...

...somewhere completely unexpected.

"Huh?"

"Wha...?!"

Thousands of heads turned simultaneously like startled meerkats.

Standing in one of the audience aisles...

...was a lone figure.

Within the frozen music

Take off your mask

And smile... for me

As Masquerade played like a theme song, a red-haired figure performed a graceful solo dance.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

People close enough realized it was a body double.

From farther away...

It looked exactly like Jiho.

Flash.

The spotlight disappeared.

Another golden beam lit up somewhere else.

Like a swaying dandelion.

As Windflower began playing, a dancer portraying Biju performed another solo.

The lights continued appearing one after another.

Flash!

Junghyun.

Ri Hyuk.

Wooju.

Then—

As the final violet spotlight disappeared—

Boom.

Boom.

The sound of marching drums echoed through the stadium.

The stage burst into light.

Flames filled the giant VCR screen.

Five silhouettes slowly rose atop the lifts.

The students erupted into hysterical screams.

Holy—!

The members had been crouching beneath ominous crimson lighting.

Now they slowly stood.

Black jackets.

Confident smiles.

As their faces appeared across the massive screens...

The crowd's roar became almost unbearable.

Midnight Sun

The opening number.

The lyrics appeared on the screens.

Nobody bothered reading them.

Every single person was already singing along.

The powerful choreography exploded across the stage.

People shouted from every direction.

"This is insane!"

"Oh my God..."

There was no mistaking it.

This was the performance of a group currently headlining stadium tours.

Everything about the stage was world-class.

The effortless eye contact with the audience.

Vocals powerful enough to split the night sky.

Choreography that somehow looked relaxed while remaining perfectly synchronized.

Visuals flashy enough to resemble supervillains themselves.

From the very first song...

The only possible reaction was:

This is unbelievable.

"So the audience is divided by university?"

"Then let's hear which section is the loudest!"

The NewBlack members expertly controlled the atmosphere, effortlessly raising and lowering the crowd's excitement.

"...Wow."

One of New Universe's co-directors, Oh Taejoon, rubbed his rough stubble.

"They're incredible."

"I had no idea they were this good."

"Same."

Everyone had seen NewBlack perform live countless times since the Living Together days.

But this...

Watching them command tens of thousands of people so naturally...

...was something else entirely.

The staff stared at the five idols in awe.

...They're singers.

Maybe it was because they'd grown so used to seeing NewBlack as variety stars.

Watching them shine so brilliantly onstage felt unfamiliar...

...and wonderful.

They looked every bit like untouchable superstars.

And another thought surfaced.

The ratings...!

This was going to explode.

It was the same instinct television producers got whenever a music special became something extraordinary.

Just look at this atmosphere.

This is going to be huge when it airs.

The exact same feeling had returned.

The excitement inside Gwangju World Cup Stadium was contagious.

Even the New Universe staff found themselves swept up in the energy.

Gu Jaeyoung looked around.

They're the same.

Several city officials were smiling from ear to ear.

No wonder.

He remembered what one of them had told him during a planning meeting.

"We've been hoping for an event like this at the World Cup Stadium. Just maintaining it costs the city 2.5 billion won in taxes every year..."

They had built such an enormous venue...

...only for it to sit mostly unused.

Now NewBlack's university festival had finally filled it.

The officials couldn't stop smiling.

Everyone's happy.

The students were thrilled to see one of the country's biggest acts.

The New Universe crew sensed record-breaking ratings.

City officials and local merchants celebrated booming business.

And above all...

The happiest ones are probably the kids themselves.

Gu Jaeyoung looked toward NewBlack on the extended stage.

Wooju was kneeling on one knee, locking eyes with fans in the front row while delivering his rap.

Every member wore a smile that refused to disappear.

Which made perfect sense.

No one had benefited more from the university festival special...

...than NewBlack themselves.

"The reaction's completely different."

Writer Yang Mihyun folded her arms.

"Doesn't the atmosphere feel different compared to when this special first started?"

"Not just different."

"Completely different."

At the beginning of the university festival project, students in their twenties had mostly reacted like this:

"Wow! NewBlack! The group that's on Billboard and even went to the Grammys! We actually get to see them at our school!"

But after performances at Korea University, Seoul National University, and every campus afterward...

The mood had changed.

Amazing fancams flooded social media.

"Wait... I know all these songs."

"Look at that setlist. How many year-end No. 1 hits is that?"

"Their live vocals are insane."

The members were simply too good onstage.

Even people who hadn't cared before would watch one powerful live clip...

...and suddenly want to experience them in person.

Then they'd discover the endless parade of hit songs.

Soon every university student was saying the same thing.

"We want NewBlack at our festival!"

Gu Jaeyoung smiled.

Whether they planned it or not...

The effect couldn't have been better.

The greatest thing NewBlack had gained from this university festival special...

...was proving themselves as singers to the general public in their twenties.

Until now, college students had associated NewBlack more with variety shows.

National idols who made hilarious MyTube content.

People listened to their music too...

But they hadn't truly appreciated NewBlack as performers.

That perception had now completely changed.

"WAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"NEWBLACK! NEWBLACK!"

The cameras repeatedly caught students jumping up and down in excitement.

Director Oh Taejoon murmured,

"They're really national stars now."

"Their fans are going to have it rough."

"How many people do you think will be fighting for concert tickets next year?"

"They'll sell out in three seconds."

"At this point, they'll have to start doing stadium tours inside Korea too."

As everyone marveled at how far the group had climbed...

There was one person in the audience smiling brighter than anyone else.

Park Gyuho.

Lemon Entertainment's CEO.

"Hehehehehe..."

Watching tens of thousands of Dalbongs wave across the stadium...

He looked positively ready to ascend into heaven.

He could already see the future.

Business.

An enormous success...

Sweat trickled from beneath his furry winter hat and rolled down across his forehead.

As he removed the hat, steam practically rose from his head.

The people nearby stared.

Wait...

Why does it look like tears instead of sweat?

Wow... his head shape is incredible.

Having just recorded Lemon Entertainment's highest single-day Dalbong sales ever...

The CEO couldn't have been happier.

The day NewBlack headlined the joint festival of Gwangju's three universities—

Souffle watched all the post-event content with mournful expressions.

I'm so jealous...

Maybe it was because thirty thousand people had attended...

Or because most of them were university students constantly posting on social media...

No matter where they looked, ecstatic reviews filled the internet.

They're seriously the kings of K-pop... Watching them live literally leaves you shaking... THIS is what a performance looks like... THIS is NewBlack... Legendary... Historic... They absolutely destroyed everything...

NewBlack. Unquestionably the greatest singers in the world.

Ri Hyuk's vocals are insane. Everyone around me kept asking if he had gills.

The singers were delicious and the staff were kind.

It was SO MUCH FUN!!!!!!!!!

So the fans have been keeping something this amazing to themselves all this time?!

You were the ones who never came!

Souffle had tried countless times to convince people to watch NewBlack perform.

Nobody had cared.

Now everyone acted like lifelong believers.

The public really did change with the wind.

Still...

Their newfound attention had sent the charts soaring.

Real-Time Chart

#1 — NewBlack — OverCooked

Starting with OverCooked, NewBlack occupied every position from No. 1 through No. 13 with songs from the concert setlist.

Souffle quietly nodded.

At least OverCooked finally reached No. 1.

Was topping the Korean charts always this difficult...?

Even though OverCooked was exploding worldwide...

Its response inside Korea had remained surprisingly muted.

Another reminder that succeeding with an English-language song in Korea wasn't easy.

Still...

I'm so jealous...

Photos and fancams flooded social media.

"KYAAAAAAAH!"

"WAAAAAAAAAH!"

Every video featured university students screaming their lungs out.

Having long since grown accustomed to huge concerts, Souffle could only sigh enviously.

At least the encore concert is coming...

The final Seoul encore was just around the corner.

Unfortunately...

Only those blessed by the Ticketing Gods had managed to get seats.

Seriously, how is it possible that I didn't get a single ticket?!

Gyuho, forget university festivals. Your fans don't even have concert seats.

Even ten shows at the Olympic Stadium wouldn't be enough.

At this point why don't Souffle just crowdfund our own university? Then we can invite NewBlack ourselves.

Oh.

"Oh" my ass. LOL

Everyone burst into laughter.

Then...

They all became strangely thoughtful.

...Wait.

That's actually tempting.

Ridiculous as the idea was...

Souffle had enough money—and enough people—to make everyone hesitate for just a second.

Then the jokes escalated.

Professor Wooju, the K-pop Mother-in-Law, teaches Introduction to Contemporary Music Composition.

Enrollment: 0 students.

Course review: "Professor's handsome but he's terrible at teaching. He just keeps talking about music only he understands."

???: "You dare skip my class? Fine. It's mandatory now."

Petty to the very end LOL

A farming volunteer trip with Professor Kim Junghyun actually sounds fun.

He'd probably smile kindly while carrying an entire wild boar on his back for dinner.

Sweet! Professor Wang Jiho canceled class again!

Professor Wang is currently playing League of Legends at a PC café.

LOL everyone's personalities are so obvious.

As hashtags like Souffle University climbed the real-time trends and everyone continued joking around...

Those who had failed to get tickets for both the concert and the university festival turned their attention elsewhere.

At least we still have this...

NewBlack had one more public performance coming up.

The very next day.

Another university festival.

NewBlack to Perform at Korea National Open University Festival—Live Online Broadcast Confirmed

In keeping with Korea National Open University's distance-learning concept...

The entire festival would also be streamed online.

Is the link already crashing??

Seems okay... for now.

Souffle gathered across MyTube and countless other platforms, waiting eagerly.

They stared at the black screen.

Starts at noon?

Weird. Why are they doing it during the day?

While waiting...

They dug up every rumor they could.

Wasn't this supposed to be an online festival?

Contrary to expectations of a virtual concert...

The festival itself would still be held offline.

At the auxiliary stadium next to Jamsil Olympic Stadium.

...I seriously have no idea what they're planning.

Unlike ordinary universities packed with students in their twenties...

The Open University also had many older students.

Everyone waited curiously.

Then—

Here we go!!!

It's starting!!!!!

Everyone!

Hohoho... At last this grandma gets to join a university festival too.

Unnie-dle. what is this???

It is university festival :)

A countdown appeared over the rapidly scrolling comments.

3... 2... 1...

At last...

The world's first online university festival began.

The camera swept across the auxiliary stadium.

Then—

A familiar melody rang out.

Ding~ dong~ daeng-dong~

The instantly recognizable xylophone tune made Souffle tilt their heads.

A moment later...

The members appeared.

Dressed in glittering outfits that looked straight out of a trot performance.

Wooju raised his microphone and shouted in a hearty voice,

"Korea National Open—!"

The students answered in equally hearty voices.

"Singing Contest~!!"

Accompanied by a theme song every Korean recognized...

The camera slowly zoomed out.

The sight of older students happily dancing in the audience made Souffle burst into laughter.