Chapter 303: Crash Landing (3)
[[Video] Universe Dust Appears on a Toronto Busking Program]
Apparently it's a local Canadian busking show.
It's famous for making guests perform completely live.
(https://www.neotube.com/hisfl337)
But this is really live?
They practically devoured the studio recording.
Holy crap, I just watched the video and my heart is racing.... I already knew our boys were talented, but I didn't know they were this good. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Is that kind of projection even possible on the street?
└This is real live unlike those radio lives where they always add post-processing. ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└Our boys are amazing. ㅠㅠ
Seo Ian sings so well. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ He's such a Master Singer Sundubu that I just want to pat his head.
└There's a reason he's Universe Dust's main vocalist.
└Ian, no matter how hungry you are, you shouldn't be devouring the studio recording. ㅠㅠ It's dangerous. ㅠㅠ
└Master Singer Sundubu. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Why is that so funny? ㅋㅋㅋㅋ People usually compare someone to an animal, so why is this one an inanimate object? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└Because our tofu is Sundubu!!
Since when could Seohan beatbox? He worked so hard until his face turned red. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ And he's actually good at it. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└This is my first time seeing Do Seohan beatbox too.
└I've finally realized Do Hamjji isn't just good at Cicada Impression....
└Our Hamjji is good at everything. He's a genius baby hamster. ㅠㅠ
Did this show invite them in Canada???
└No idea. It wasn't even on their schedule. They just suddenly appeared.
└They went out there and came back with a legendary video. My babies. ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
└The hearts of fans who were panicking because they thought the Lailyn Show was getting canceled have finally warmed up.
They said they weren't even planning to appear on this show and just happened to stumble into it. Is that actually true?
└As if. ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└Could be true though? They weren't originally supposed to go to Canada.
└You actually believe that?;;
└Nah. TV is always scripted. ^^
└Whether that's true or not, their live skills are definitely real.
└22222 Our boys are so good!!!
└Exactly. That's what really matters. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Universe Dust's live performance skills had already become quietly well known among K-pop fans.
After all, they had never once delivered an embarrassing encore stage on any music show.
However, this wasn't just a short encore performance.
It was a full live stage lasting over three minutes.
The moment the video was uploaded, it exploded with reactions.
[Universe Dust Really Is a Talented Group]
To everyone who hated on them because Ian's microphone cut out that one time during an encore—
Just go watch that video.
You'll have nothing left to say.
[Dustys' Pride in Their Group's Live Vocals Has Reached Peak Levels]
Why?
Because once you watch that video, your shoulders can't help but rise all the way to the sky.
Our babies are just so amazing. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
[Survival Show Idols Are Always Good at Live Singing]
They fought through hell to survive.
There's no way they wouldn't be good live. Yep.
If your ears worked properly in the first place, you couldn't possibly criticize them.
Dusty Yejin scrolled down with a proud smile.
Thinking back to the last encore stage, when Seo Ian's microphone malfunctioned and people criticized his vocal power, she couldn't help feeling relieved.
Our Master Singer Sundubu.
He'd gone and proudly shown the entire world what he was truly capable of.
Whether the Toronto busking performance had been a quick booking arranged by Doubles or not didn't matter anymore.
If it really had been an official schedule, then all she could do was praise whoever had handled it so brilliantly.
After all, the image of being a truly skilled idol group was still one of the most effective forms of marketing.
But—
She never expected this performance to receive an even hotter response overseas than it did in Korea.
[Are These View Counts for Universe Dust's Busking Video Even Real?]
It's climbing way faster than expected.
It already hit five million views.
It's rising faster than their fancams, and I'm honestly shocked.
Less than half a day after that post was uploaded—
[Our Boys' Live Performance Is Absolutely Exploding]
It looks like it'll hit ten million views before tomorrow. ;;
What is this?
What's happening???
The official video had been uploaded with a title along the lines of:
A K-pop Idol Group with Insane Live Skills.
The program itself had originally been one that received modest attention locally.
But this was the first time one of its videos had experienced growth like this.
Its view count was skyrocketing as YouTube's algorithm picked it up.
“Huh...?”
The fans stared blankly at the rapidly climbing numbers before finally snapping out of it.
[Hey, what are you all doing? Open YouTube.]
We need to stream this.
The Toronto busking video reached thirty million views.
Barely a week had passed.
Maybe it was just my imagination, but when we arrived at the Lailyn Show studio a week later, the atmosphere was far friendlier than I'd expected.
Appearing on such a major overseas broadcast naturally made me nervous.
Still, thanks to the warm welcome, I relaxed a little.
MC Emily Lailyn excitedly opened the show.
“I've been waiting an entire week. And now I finally get to see you all—Stardust!”
“Waaaaaaah!”
The Lailyn Show was filmed in front of a live audience.
I'd heard about its reputation before, but the stage was even bigger than I'd imagined.
I unconsciously swallowed.
The thunderous cheers pouring in from every direction felt more like a concert than a talk show.
“Wow....”
For a moment, I completely blanked out.
The scale of this studio was unbelievable.
I couldn't believe this belonged to a talk show instead of a music program.
I silently looked around the enormous audience seating.
Then—
The one who snapped me back to reality was Kang Siwoo's powerful greeting.
“Shine bright!”
“Hello, we're Stardust!”
“Kyaaaaaaa!”
Lailyn beamed as she looked at us.
“It's really wonderful to meet you! I truly mean that! I'm actually a fan of Stardust!”
I'd originally assumed her opening remarks about being a huge K-pop fan were just for the broadcast.
But as the interview continued, her sincerity became unexpectedly obvious.
Lailyn spoke rather shyly.
“I watched Ian's Rabbit Hat Fancam. It was sooo adorable!”
“Th... thank you.”
I don't know whether the staff had briefed her beforehand, but this was much more specific than I'd expected...!
“Seeing you in person, you really do look exactly like a rabbit!”
“That won't do, hyung. He's our official Sundubu-jjigae.”
“Sundubu-jjigae... what is that?”
“Korean famous food. Very delicious.”
Seo Haim smiled brightly and gave a thumbs-up.
...Was that really the English Doubles had worked so hard teaching him?
While Seo Haim enthusiastically promoted Korean cuisine, Seo Ian's ears had turned so red they looked ready to explode.
Then Lailyn suddenly turned her attention elsewhere.
“Seohan too!”
“Huh?”
“I became a fan after hearing your cicada sound.”
Laughter filled the audience.
I awkwardly cleared my throat and looked at Lailyn.
“Could you make the sound once—”
“Huh?”
“Just kidding!”
She said, “Just a joke,” but somehow it sounded completely sincere.
The happiest person there was Cha Seongbin sitting beside me.
“Ahahahaha! Ahahaha!”
He was even clapping as he laughed.
I looked at him with completely lifeless eyes.
If that's how it is....
“How about a cockroach impression—”
“Stop.”
The magical phrase that could instantly silence Cha Seongbin.
Not understanding Korean, Lailyn tilted her head.
“What is that?”
“N-never mind.”
There was no way I could perform another bizarre impression after coming all the way to New York.
In the end, simple was best.
“Meeeeee—. Meeeeeee—.”
That's right.
I was a cicada.
“Shall we... begin the stage?”
I was embarrassed.
Let's get back to what we're actually good at.
.
.
.
This is my universe
I'm swimming through the universe—
Across a distance of over five hundred light-years
The only ones who can reach it are only light and me
That's the power of a debut song.
My body moved before I even thought.
The choreography was so familiar I felt like I could perform it with my eyes closed.
The vocal tone that had been praised in Toronto echoed across the stage once again.
“Wow....”
The audience was so close.
Someone's gasp pierced through my in-ear monitor.
Grinning, I spun once.
I'll fold the universe in half
And catch up with the time that's already passed
It's been a long time
So many things have changed over all those years
The choreography flowed smoothly, as though we were swimming through space itself.
Thinking about it again, our debut choreography had really been incredibly well made.
The song itself was naturally unfamiliar to the local audience.
However, thanks to the English version lyrics arranged by Cha Seongbin, overseas fans could understand it much more intuitively.
I'll turn back time so I can fix everything and hold onto you
Can you catch my time?
Seo Haim smiled brightly and waved toward the camera.
Even though everyone had been trembling with nerves right before the performance, they now freely moved across the stage as though none of that had ever happened.
I miss that planet, so I picture you again
I fly to touch your sky
The utopia I once reached
That planet is achingly blue
I can't forget it because it was so beautiful
I'm stuck in you
The talk show studio transformed into a concert hall in an instant.
Lailyn looked up at us with an expression of complete fascination.
I didn't know how this unfamiliar stage would be remembered by them.
All I could do—
Was swim through the vast ocean of the universe.
Like one enormous whale.
Spacewalk toward you
Even if I die before reaching you, I'll be alright
Run in toward that planet
Even if I collapse before reaching it, I'll be alright
The utopia I once reached
That planet is achingly blue
I can't forget it because it was so beautiful
I'm stuck in you
The New York studio was dazzling.
Brilliant beams of light poured down from above, almost blinding me.
The thunderous cheers echoed through my ears.
Wanting to hear them properly, I removed one side of my in-ear monitor.
“Waaaaaaah!”
“Stardust! Stardust! Stardust!”
“Seohan!!!!!”
Hearing those passionate cheers, I raised my head with a bright smile.
A stage too beautiful to be real.
May it always be our stage.
[K-pop's Revolt—Stardust's <Spacewalk> Enters the Billboard Hot 100]
Stardust's single album <Spacewalk (English Ver.)> has entered the Billboard Hot 100.
The song is the English version of Stardust's debut track <Spacewalk>, and was first revealed on the Lailyn Show.
With this achievement, Stardust has entered the Billboard Hot 100 for the third time, further solidifying their position as a global idol group.
The promotional article released by Doubles received an overwhelmingly positive response.
The Toronto busking video eventually surpassed fifty million views.
Its growth was anything but ordinary.
Scroll.
A woman's hand hurriedly scrolled through the article.
“Ha....”
Even someone completely ignorant about K-pop could understand one undeniable fact.
Stardust was currently one of the hottest groups on the market.
They had already reached the upper tier.
No—
With their next album, they would confidently stand among the very top idol groups.
At the very least, their overseas momentum was second to none.
Doubles had truly produced a remarkable rookie group.
If the company continued raising them well, they would climb even higher.
Perhaps...
Higher than anyone could possibly imagine.
“......”
Wherever a bright streetlamp shines, insects inevitably gather around it.
Though she herself had yet to realize she was one of those insects.
“Well, well. Kang Siwoo's really making it big, isn't he?”
The corners of her lips slowly curved upward.
But only for a moment.
The smile vanished just as quickly.
Her sharp voice turned ice-cold.
“This won't do. How annoying.”
The woman's gaze grew frigid.