As soon as I stepped into the meeting room, I spotted Kevin, Jayden, and Dae-Hong first before spotting 2 unfamiliar girls seated next to Jayden.
The twins and Bora are across from them, and they stare at me in surprise.
I turn to Jayden and frown in worry, I mean I know he said he would agree to appear on the show but I'd hoped he wouldn't go through with it.
When I eventually realized he's avoiding looking in my direction, I look away with a roll of my eyes. Let's see how long he can avoid me when we get home.
"Good, you're finally here, come sit." Kevin turns to me with a nod of acknowledgement, motioning for me to come in.
I settle down on the nearest chair and lean towards Bora whose next to me. "What's going on?"
Instead of responding, she ignores me and I frown at her in curiosity. Leaning back, I cross my arm over my chest and turn to Kevin when he starts speaking.
"Though am sure you all know why you here, I'm still going to say it. The 7 of you are a small part of the selected participants we picked for the new music show our company is establishing. The show is all about an intense competition between one hundred young trainees handpicked from a list of art schools we selected. Students from the top and most common classes of each school have been selected to compete for the chance of survival to become the top 10 trainees of LIGHT UP THE STAGE, and at the end of the competition only one individual will win the prize of earning a record deal with our company and the opportunity of a lifetime to collaborate with Cameron Kyong to produce 2 songs which will feature in his upcoming 7th album."
As heads perk up in enthusiasm, I let out an uncharacteristic snort under my breath. But judging by the eyes that swivelled in my direction my snort had not gone unnoticed.
Dae-Hong, for some reason, held back an amused smile while Kevin narrowed his eyes in irritation. "What exactly does this competition entail?" One of the girls seated to Jayden's right asks.
Kevin turns her way and addresses her question with a smile. "We started this competition as a way to show the audience an inside view of what it takes to become a K-pop Idol. You know, give them glimpses of all the hard work put into it. We're going to have camera's everywhere, recording you guys through your training, your practices, how you associate with one another, and everything you have to do to make it to the top. It's a music show that's going to air every week on cable channels such as Mnet Tv, tvN Korea, Mnet Japan, tvN Asia. And online, it's going to be via Mnet Smart and Mnet K-pop, Starlight Label YouTube channels, and Rakuten Viki Worldwide. And your mentors will be Hallyu superstar Cameron Kyong, China's famous Choreographer Yu Xiao Ran, and U.S music sensation Layla Heights."
The room is suddenly filled with excited grins and murmurings at the thought of spending time with such amazing stars, but I was the only one looking anything but pleased with the arrangements.
I resisted the urge to snort again when Kevin made it seem like Cameron was here to help the show instead of the other way round. "What does Cameron, Yu Xiao, and Layla have to offer us?" Bora questions.
Smiling, Kevin straightens with a pleased expression. "As you all may know Cameron is a talented music producer/singer-songwriter, he will take over training your vocals, helping you practice your songs, and he'll handle every other aspect that covers your music. Yu Xiao Ran handles your choreography, stage presence, stage props, while Layla handles your interviews, photoshoots, physical training, and diet."
"That's a lot of training."
"Of course, to become a star you have to work hard. During the competition, each contestant will be grouped into 10 members that represent their school, and each group will have the opportunity to perform on stage every 2 weeks. Your performance will be broadcast live on the internet and TV so that the audience can watch and vote for the group they like best. By the end of the performance, the group with the lowest vote gets kicked off the show."
"Each group has the opportunity to "Light Up The Stage" with their performance through votes pouring in from the audience. When your votes reach the qualified percentage, you get to stay on in the show."
"What qualified percentage will get the stage… lit up?"
"400 and above."
"Wow, that's quite a number." I couldn't help but scoff.
"I know," Kevin grins. "It sounds tough but I'm sure all of you will do well. There's a catch for the contestants that get to stay on in the show though, the sponsors and investors demand that every member has to personally hold a live performance for the individual that voted the most during the show. It's going to be like a little special episode at the end of each month. They believe it would be a nice way to draw in the audience and ensure viewer ratings."
"That seems doable." Bora shrugs, and everyone nods in agreement.