🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter – 04
「Comments」
└ An 11-year-old has such a powerful, emotional voice? ㄷㄷ
└ Is this the birth of a genius…
└ Sir, please send your daughter to an entertainment company ASAP
└ Agreed… it’s too wasteful to let that talent rot on YouTube
└ But the person playing piano is a man, right? Then is he the father? Did he personally write and compose the song?
└ This was the most insane talent video I’ve ever seen~ Why are there so many insanely talented people in this world!
See more +)
In addition to this, there were over 20,000 comments.
No—maybe closer to 30,000.
“Come to think of it…”
Originally, this song was a masterpiece that would, just a few months later, shake all of South Korea.
“Because it was a song made by a top-tier producer.”
Sori’s vocal ability was indeed impressive for an 11-year-old.
But she had never received any formal training.
Her voice still carried rough edges, and a childish tone was mixed in, so I thought it wouldn’t receive much attention.
But maybe because the song itself had such overwhelming impact.
Even Sori’s unrefined high notes were being met with passionate reactions from viewers.
In the silence,
a phone suddenly rang.
“…Yes, this is Jeong Hwi-eon.”
[This is the day labor job placement center. You’re coming again today, right?]
It was the place I visited yesterday.
They said they would contact me by text or phone if there was work, and it seemed a job had opened up.
[There’s a site job this morning. Are you available?]
My hand was already pinching my cheek.
My eyes remained fixed on Sori’s broadcast channel.
“No, I don’t think I can today.”
[Ah… I see.]
“I luckily got a job. Thank you very much for calling.”
[Oh wow, you got employed already.]
After a brief conversation with the staff, I hung up.
Click.
After that,
I carefully read every single comment without missing even one.
“Wow, sir. You brought Sori again today.”
“Haha, yes. The house and school are a bit far apart.”
It was when we arrived at school.
Most other parents drove their children, but I always had to walk 30 minutes with Sori.
Then I happened to meet Sori’s homeroom teacher at the school gate.
Seo-hyeon greeted us warmly without any distance and held Sori’s hand.
But…
“…Sori’s father.”
She hesitated, as if she still had something to say.
“Yes, is something the matter?”
“Ah, no. It’s just… do you happen to run YouTube?”
“…Pardon?”
It was a channel I had opened just this morning.
And the only people shown in the video were Sori and my backs.
“Ahaha… was that a strange question?”
“No, it’s fine. But why do you ask?”
“Ah… this morning, my mother showed me a video. The voice of a child singing in front of a piano sounded a bit like Sori’s, so I think I misunderstood.”
“Ah, I see.”
It was just a casual part of conversation.
After that, Seo-hyeon said goodbye and walked away with Sori.
As I watched them for a moment, I checked my phone.
「Comments」
└ Hello, this is TUE Entertainment. Could we talk separately?
└ Hello, this is OO broadcasting production team. If possible, we would like to meet in person and talk. We would like to interview your daughter, so please contact us at a convenient time.
…
It wasn’t just comments praising the child’s music.
There were signs from entertainment companies trying to scout Sori, and dozens of messages from broadcasting stations wanting to cast her.
Most channel owners usually leave business emails or SNS contacts for advertising inquiries.
“I didn’t expect things to blow up like this in just one day.”
I also normally leave such contact information when managing channels carefully,
but I had only intended to grow the channel slowly.
I never expected this level of attention, so I hadn’t left any contact details.
Seeing people still leaving contact information even on comments that could’ve been buried gave me a strange feeling.
More than anything…
“…I know too well what kind of place entertainment companies are… can I really trust them with my daughter?”
She was only 11 years old.
I understood why my wife had so strongly tried to keep our daughter away from the entertainment industry despite her genius talent.
And even now,
just imagining Sori entering that world made me dizzy.
“But I can’t just ignore it. Now that I know Sori’s talent.”
With my experience, I already had a clear understanding of the industry.
Until now, I had worked behind the scenes as an idol manager, enduring all kinds of hardships.
“Maybe from now on, I can live for my daughter.”
As I got older, my daughter had drifted further away from me, yet she still remained vivid in my mind.
It had always just been excuses—saying I needed to earn money to survive.
I wanted, at least once, to properly look into my daughter’s heart.
“First, I should hear Sori’s opinion.”
From now on, I decided to actively make choices for her sake.
I had resolved in my heart to live as a father for my daughter.
“Wow! Is this real?”
I showed Sori the channel status.
Comments were still flooding in, and views had already surpassed 3 million.
The heat showed no signs of cooling down.
Now it was time to hear my daughter’s opinion.
“Sori, do you still want to sing?”
“…Hmm.”
Sori hesitated for a moment.
If it were before, she would’ve answered yes without hesitation.
But maybe she had matured quickly.
She was probably thinking about our situation at home, and what her mother had once said.
“It’s okay. No matter what you choose, I’ll support you.”
“…Then… can I… sing freely now?”
“Of course.”
“Yay! Then I’ll do it!”
Sori answered brightly.
Seeing her like that, I gently patted her head.
“Then from now on, I’ll be Sori’s manager.”
“How?”
To match her 11-year-old perspective, I tried to explain it simply.
“It means I’ll support you from behind so you can sing well, and guide you from the front too.”
“Then can I stay with Dad all the time?”
“Of course. You might even get tired of me and tell me to go away. Is that okay?”
“Yeah! Then I can play with Dad every day!”
Even if she officially debuted, I wanted her to continue her studies.
‘Money doesn’t matter.’
If necessary, I was even ready to go back to labor work.
For now, I would only think about Sori’s future.
“Then, Sori…”
“Hmm?”
“Do you want to go on TV like other people too?”
“…TV?”
Sori had seen singers on TV before.
Sometimes she watched idols performing when I monitored stages.
“Can I go too?”
“If you want to, you can.”
“Then I’ll do it! I want to try it too!”
“Aren’t you scared of singing in front of people?”
“No, not at all!”
I hadn’t realized she was this unshy.
Maybe I didn’t know my daughter as well as I thought.
“Then let’s go on broadcasts and sing too.”
“Okay! I love you, Dad!”
A short while later,
Sori’s grandmother, who had agreed to look after her, arrived late.
“Oh my, why are you home today? What about work?”
“I had something else to do today.”
“Have you eaten?”
“Just did. Mom, I have something to take care of for 2–3 hours, so please stay with Sori while I’m gone. I’m counting on you.”
“Honestly, you don’t need to say it like that. Go on quickly.”
The place I hurried to was a broadcasting station in the center of Seoul.
A round table in a not-so-large room.
And on one wall, a program poster was hung.
The name was ‘Sing Your Talent’.
The PD of this program mainly cast famous idols, popular singers, or people who had suddenly gained attention despite being unknown.
“Familiar place, this meeting room.”
It must’ve been when the 5-member girl group I had once managed at Maku Entertainment was slowly gaining recognition.
About a year ago.
They finally showed themselves to the world and appeared on a famous program stage.
“I was so happy back then.”
Even now, remembering it made my chest feel full.
It proved I had worked while treating those Maku Entertainment people like family.
“Have we met before? I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere…”
Song Yeon-seong PD greeted me politely and asked.
“Yes, I used to work as a manager at Maku Entertainment.”
“Ah, a freelance manager. Thank you for responding to our contact.”
I clearly remembered his face and behavior.
He was known as a polite and respectful PD toward performers.
That was also why I chose this program for Sori’s first appearance.
“Then you must be familiar with our program.”
“Yes, it’s quite a famous one.”
“So the child who sang on Sori broadcast is Jeong Sori, correct?”
“That’s right.”
He continued with casual questions.
“…Has your daughter always sung? Her vocal ability and technique don’t seem like something a child would naturally have.”
“Haha… honestly, I didn’t even know my daughter sang that well.”
Song Yeon-seong PD looked surprised.
I understood.
He probably thought I was a careless father.
“It doesn’t seem like a simple cover song. Did you write and compose it yourself?”
“…Ah.”
It was a song that would one day be born into the world.
Even so, since it didn’t exist yet, did that make it something I had created?
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Did you originally work in lyrics and composition, sir?”
“No. I learned it as a hobby while working as a manager.”
“…A hobby, you say.”
As the conversation continued, his gaze gradually changed.
It wasn’t just my imagination.
There was respect—and something close to awe.
A strange thing indeed.
The famous PD I had always admired was now looking at me like that.
“I’ve met many singers so far, but you seem like quite an extraordinary person.”
“Haha, not at all…”
“Sori also hasn’t had any vocal training, and you yourself don’t primarily work in songwriting or composition.”
I admitted my daughter Sori was a genius.
But I was still only half-baked.
Still, I could improve from now on, so I wasn’t particularly worried.
“What we mainly want to discuss is your daughter’s appearance on the program.”
“Yes.”
“After her first appearance, we plan to gauge audience reaction before deciding on further appearances. Would that be alright?”
“Of course.”
“Then let’s talk about appearance fees.”
PD Song Yeon-seong first made an offer.
3 million won per episode.
And if Sori’s appearance boosted ratings, they would double it for future episodes.
“It’s been just over 24 hours since the YouTube video was uploaded… and it already has over 3 million views. There’s clearly massive interest in your daughter.”
If everything went well,
I planned to use this opportunity to start a one-person entertainment company.
An agency made solely for Sori.
