When I Opened My Eyes I Was a Superstar

# 164

From the Universe (2)

“Ma……”

Jeong Yoon-gi suddenly sensed something ominous. It seemed like he didn’t know what Do-wook was trying to say.

“Let’s release one more song.”

“uh?”

“…… Yes?”

“This time, it’s Yoongi’s song.”

The members all looked at each other with puzzled expressions at Do-wook’s words, which seemed a little apologetic but enjoyable. Koo Cheol-min, who was sitting in the passenger seat, looked around as if there was something wrong with the turbulent atmosphere in the back seat, but could not figure out the cause.

This was because even the members could not know exactly what Do-wook was talking about.

***

The intense ‘Continue’ music video filming in Dubai took place over three days.

Now that the desert filming was completed, there was still studio filming left to go back to Seoul. The studio shoot took place a week later.

This was because Dowook had a personal schedule in the meantime.

Unlike the members heading to Incheon from Dubai International Airport, Do-wook, team leader Dae-hyung Lee, and the youngest manager who was newly hired under Koo Cheol-min headed to Charles de Gaulle International Airport.

It was Paris.

Branch Manager Jeong Jin, who met with President Lee Yu-min not long ago, officially contacted us through Hit Entertainment. The message was that they wanted to select Dowook as Coco’s new season muse. Team leader Lee Dae-hyung already knew what Do-wook was talking about, but he thought it was truly amazing.

It was definitely something that would remain as an incredible event for Dowook personally. Even if you look at it as a team rather than as an individual, it was somehow beneficial. Team leader Lee Dae-hyung thought that even if the schedule was not possible, it had to be done.

Fortunately, although it was a little tight, it wasn’t an unreasonable schedule because it wasn’t the activity period.

Coco’s side even invited Dowook to a meal with Saul Niguez, Coco’s chief designer and director, before the full-scale photo shoot.

Although there was a separate founder who created Coco, it could be said that it was Saul Niguez who created the black and white image that has now become Coco’s signature colors.

Saul Niguez, who became Coco’s chief designer at the age of 40, is still active today, even as a gray-haired old man, and is considered one of the most influential figures in the fashion industry, along with ‘bombe’ editor-in-chief Joey Wintour.

Saul Niguez chose Dowook as his muse and wanted to meet him.

Of course, it could have been a business process, but Branch Manager Jeong Jin added that Saul Niguez was so fascinated by Do-wook’s face and atmosphere that he even listened to Do-wook’s songs.

It meant that Saul had a significant crush on Do-wook. Branch Manager Jeong Jin seemed to be in a very good mood as he organized the detailed schedule and spoke to Team Leader Lee Dae-hyung.

As Branch Manager Jeong Jin, it was natural for him to feel good as the model he posted as the representative from Korea was selected without much difficulty. Thanks to this, I had the opportunity to go to the headquarters with Do-wook as planned and make an impression on the superiors at the headquarters.

‘If the position of Coco’s muse has already been decided… then there is something more that can be gained…’

thought team leader Lee Dae-hyung.

Dowook also had such thoughts.

It really wasn’t common to have a meal alone with Saul Niguez.

It was well known that people would buy an hour with Warren Buffett, the investment genius, for money. People would line up to have a meal with Saul Niguez if they could buy it with money. If you are from the fashion industry or have even the slightest interest in fashion.

Dowook, who went from Dubai to Paris, met with Branch Manager Jeong Jin there. After meeting with Branch Manager Jeong Jin and having a brief conversation, Do-wook immediately headed to the restaurant where he had arranged to have lunch with Saul Niguez.

The place that Saul Niguez personally recommended to Dowook, who was visiting from Korea, was a Michelin 3-star restaurant in the city with a good view of the Eiffel Tower.

When I entered the restaurant, the staff asked me if I wanted to make a reservation, and Branch Manager Jin Jeong mentioned Saul Niguez’s name.

The staff led the two people to a well-organized and set table.

“Don’t be too nervous.”

“Ah yes.”

“haha. “Actually, I’m nervous.”

Branch Manager Jeong Jin relieved Do-wook’s tension with light words. There was no other reason why Dowook was a little nervous. Although Saul Niguez was a great person, the fact that he was French was something that Do-wook was worried about.

‘Since we’re talking in English, there won’t be any major communication problems, and since we have Branch Manager Jeong Jin, it’ll be okay.’

Dowook sat down and thought.

After about 5 minutes of waiting, the restaurant door opened and Saul Niguez came in. The appointment time was on time. Saul Niguez was with his assistant, Anna. Although she was only a secretary, she had the appearance of a French beauty who could be considered a model, with her tall height, slim body, and cool features.

Do-wook had his first greeting by shaking hands and giving light hugs to those who arrived.

“Bonjour!”

On the way from Dubai to Paris, Dowook practiced his greeting by blowing hard on the plane. I put on my earphones and tried to imitate the original pronunciation as much as possible.

“Enchanté de vous rencontrer.”

It was a formal greeting saying it was nice to meet you, but Saul Niguez’s expression brightened when Do-wook spoke French, which he had not expected.

Before asking the question as if he knew how to speak French, Branch Manager Jeong Jin tactfully said that Do-wook seemed to have been practicing. It was a short sentence, but the pronunciation was so good that even Branch Manager Jeong Jin almost thought Do-wook knew French.

Only then did Saul Niguez nod his head as if he understood and offered to shake my hand again.

“Ang Nyeoheung…. Hasheyo…?”

Do-wook looked happy at Saul Niguez’s Korean and said, “Merci.” He expressed his gratitude. He said he had previously learned greetings in Korean from his friend.

Anyway, we ate and the next conversation was conducted in English.

Dowook’s worries about communication were unfounded.

Because Do-wook’s English skills were more developed, there were no restrictions on saying what he wanted to say, conveying it to the other person, and listening to what the other person said.

While working with LIL, Dowook realized even more that if he were to enter the global market one day, English, the world’s common language, would be essential. There was a reason why each idol group included members who could speak foreign languages such as English.

Therefore, even after work, I continued to build my English skills by talking to Kim Won in English or watching videos, and now I am able to speak English at the level of an average international student.

Since there was virtually no language barrier, throughout the meal, not only Saul Niguez but also his secretary, Anna, naturally fell in love with Do-wook’s polite, humble, yet not self-conforming attitude.

To be picky, Saul Niguez was one of the best in the world, but Dowook was Coco’s muse that he personally chose. It was a meeting I had while I already had a crush on Do-wook.

Saul Niguez praised Do-wook by saying that when he met him in person, the atmosphere he felt in the photo was stronger and the scent of a person who loved life was intact.

In his expression, there was a saying that there was a ‘deep’ atmosphere as if he had lived his life twice.

Dowook felt a little uncomfortable at that moment.

‘It may be nothing more than a simple expression… but after all… it is the gaze of a master.’

In fact, the reason Saul Niguez wanted to talk with Dowook was to finally determine whether it would fit the atmosphere of the new season of Coco and whether it would fit well when seen in person.

So to speak, it was the final interview. Even if it had already been decided, Saul Niguez’s temperament would have been enough to cause his selection to be cancelled.

However, the meal had already become more than an interview.

Saul Niguez truly felt a human attraction for the star from the East. A depth and unique atmosphere that is quite different from his young appearance. Healthy energy that flows even through light laughter.

When Saul Niguez showed a little more curiosity about Do-wook, Do-wook introduced himself to K.K.

Saul Niguez, who had watched Dowook’s video but had only seen a brief video of his solo performance, also showed curiosity about KK by asking if they were a boy band.

Dowook did not miss the moment and showed ‘LAST DANCE’, which paid the most attention to visual beauty among KK’s music videos.

Branch Manager Jeong Jin thought that Do-wook was not normal, but he did not expect that he would be able to continue the conversation so smoothly with Saul Niguez. In addition, he was naturally promoting himself.

While Branch Manager Jin Jeong was inwardly amazed, Saul Niguez watched KK’s video and gave his impressions.

“Oh… that’s good. It’s beautiful.”

In fact, it was a typical compliment. It was true that it was a positive review, but it didn’t seem like it was something that would really catch Saul Niguez’s eye. For Saul Niguez, K-POP was also a very unfamiliar genre.

Dowook was a little disappointed, but later set a new goal of creating music that would receive rave reviews from people like Saul Niguez.

But it didn’t end there. Saul Niguez thanked K.K. for introducing him to good music and later expressed his desire to give K.K. a gift of clothing.

Branch Manager Jeong Jin’s eyes widened.

Of course, Saul Niguez was a fashion design artist, but he was also a business expert. It was not that there was no prior information about Dowook or KK, and he had already heard from his secretary, Anna, that they would have considerable influence in the Asian market.

For a luxury brand like Coco, quality was as important as popularity. ‘Luxury’ is not a luxury product for nothing. After meeting Dowook, I felt like I could give the costumes to a group called K.K.

Dowook gratefully accepted Saul Niguez’s proposal.

***

“We get all of our filming outfits from Coco. “It’s a limited edition made specifically for KK.”

“Oh, you were a model… but what about us?”

“yes.”

Do-wook answered Ahn Hyeong-seo’s question.

All the members listened to Do-wook with their mouths open.

Dowook thought that now that ‘Continue’ was receiving such a strong response even in the Americas, it was time to push it further.

However, I had no intention of releasing another album. The album was currently enjoying its best sales. In this case, there was no need to distribute album sales by releasing additional albums. Profit was important, but records were also important.

‘Records make history.’

So, when Do-wook released his 3rd full-length album, he talked to the album production team about releasing a remixed version of the digital music.

If ‘Continue’ works in the global market as planned, we will lay the foundation for the next step. And the song that Dowook would make a remix version of was ‘Go low Go high’, a song included in the album composed by Jeong Yoon-gi.

‘Go low Go high’ was a song that could be said to be an extended version of ‘Go high’ that was included in the OK album.

There was a reason why Do-wook thought of Jeong Yoon-ki’s song.

What KK is good at. I found it and created ‘Continue’. It was a song that brought out the best performance.

Next, if there’s something I want to show the world, it’s the hip-hop genre that KK has always based on.

Hip-hop has been a genre that has clearly established itself as a mainstream genre in the global market, including the United States, from the late 90s to the present.

Dowook decided that the momentum of ‘Continue’ could be maintained by producing a high-quality music video with Coco’s costumes and the power of a visual director from Coco who was introduced by Director Jeong Jin.

‘It’s time to unleash all of KK’s diverse charms.’

The members who heard Dowook’s explanation nodded.

At the same time, the tiredness was forgotten for a moment, and the atmosphere changed to a cheery atmosphere where everyone wanted to continue the momentum quickly.

It was K-K who rose to the top with passion.

However, unlike the other members, Jung Yoon-gi’s face was very dark. It wasn’t simply because of the pressure of performing his own song.

“Do-Wook… I appreciate your idea to promote my song as a producer.”

“…… yes?”

“As a composer, I am against it.”

“Maybe it’s because it’s a burden…”

“No. It’s not a burden. “If you want to get out, you have to completely change the song.”