Phul woke up later than usual today. Maybe it was the exhaustion from yesterday, or the relaxation after she finally played something, she had a good night's sleep. She was still a bit shaken, but slowly was coming to terms with her stage fright again.
"What else can I do? If I cannot perform on stage again, I can atleast play by myself and write songs for others to make a living." she thought.
It was not the dream she wanted to live, but it was better than going broke and living in the streets.
So she collected the music sheets she wrote in the burst of inspiration yesterday, made some more adjustments here and there, and recorded a draft. She was to write a new song for the Gemini boys in her company, and with some alterations, this could work. So she packed everything she needed and headed out. Her eyes were still a bit puffy, but that's nothing a little bit of makeup can't fix.
The music company Phul belonged to, "Kuroi Entertainment", was a small one, it had recently entered the market. The only artists it currently managed were "Gemini", a two person boy band, who debuted about 4 months ago. Phul had written their debut single too, and while it didn't enter the charts or become the greatest hit, did generate a bit of revenue so Gemini could release another single again.
Kuroi Entertainment was no Golden Meteor Entertainment, it was a small building with only one practice room where the Gemini boys, Jay and Michel, practiced together. They had to rent a recording studio to record music, and Phul was only called in when it was time to write a new song. If the boys did well, she'd get her share, the other times she'd be paid the bare minimum as her salary, and Phul often took up part time jobs near her apartment during that time.
Phul understood though. It was difficult for Kuroi Entertainment, but the CEO was doing everything he could to keep them all afloat. He was a country singer who enjoyed peak fame for about 5 years himself, landing in the top 10 in the charts, but soon lost all that glory, now not even being recognized anymore. He had opened a new company to transition as an artist to a businessman, but still had a lot of love and respect for music and the artists creating it.
And so as soon as Phul entered the office, she was greeted by the CEO's warm smile.
"The new song is ready, isn't it?" he said excitedly, before Phul could even sit down on the couch.
"I was worried I wouldn't be able to come up with something before the deadline, but I think I have something presentable here." She said, handing over the music sheets, the lyrics as well as the draft recording.
The CEO laughed. "You always say that, but right before the end date I give you, you manage to bring in something right up my alley."
Phul said nothing, just gave a faint smile.
"Are you okay though? You don't look very good, did something happen?", he said.
Ah, how observative he is, Phul thought.
He might be her boss, but he was also very friendly to his staff. Maybe it was because he knew what it was like to work for somebody else himself, or because he had tasted success as well as failure, but the CEO of Kuroi Entertainment was very modest. He was a grown man, perhaps 43 or 45, and you'd expect him to be dressed up in luxurious suits and expensive watches like all CEOs, but he didn't indulge himself with expensive luxury brands or extravagant wines. He would often be seen in the supermarket just in front of the company building, with his rough ginger hair and his casual plaid shirt, buying energy drinks for Gemini if it had run out in the fridge. He didn't have to do that, there was a helper in the company, but he did. He was just like that.
He had a lot on his shoulders though, Kuroi entertainment was only barely sustaining itself, and if the next comeback of Gemini didn't work out, the company would be in a lot of loss, and debt. Phul couldn't dump her worries on her boss, who was, although he never showed it, always admidst a lot of worries himself.
"I'm fine, it's just there was a lot of traffic and it annoyed me, haha." Phul lied, and the CEO nodded, getting the hint to end this conversation.
"Alright, I'll get everybody and we can give it a listen all together." he said and got up to call everyone, which consisted of the Gemini boys themselves, Jay and Michael, the helper assistant, their vocal coach, and their makeup artist, and the CEO himself. A total of 7 people worked in Kuroi Entertainment, and they'd have to rent other services for new releases.
"Miss Phul, I can't wait to hear what you've come up with!" Michal said, he was also 19, just a few months younger than Phul, but he always referred to her as miss. Phul had gotten used to it now.
"We're gonna have a lot of fun performing this one too, I'm sure of it. It was supposed to be a soft song this time around, right?" Jay added, he was 21, but he respected Phul as an artist a lot.
"Alright!" The CEO clapped and demanded their attention. The helper helped plug the recording to the speaker. "Let's give it a listen and see if it is a vibe we were going for, everyone can tell their opinions afterwards."
Everyone's faces got serious, as if they were marching into a battle. Jay and Michael were the closest to the speaker, with the sheet music and the lyrics in hand, the vocal coach had an extra notepad to make notes, and even the make up artist and the helper had a fierce look in their eyes.
This was one of the reason Phul stayed in Kuroi Entertainment. She was a decent songwriter, and truth be told, if she tried really hard, could land a job in a better company.
But Kuroi Entertainment had this group of people, who despite not having a lot of means to reach their full potential, had this drive, this hunger for success. Jay and Michal were gonna give any song their one hundred percent, always practicing, even beyond the time the CEO had allocated, the vocal coach was always researching new techniques to improve their singing, the makeup artist would actively promote them on social media, report to everyone about the new songs in the market, the assistant always helped the CEO, and never complained when the boys would stay up late practicing, and the CEO would never hesitate to invest in something he and the team thought would benefit Gemini.
And then the speaker started. The song echoed in the room, and everyone had their eyes glued to the sheet music and lyrics at hand, and their head turned towards the speaker.
The song started off slow and timid, but soon was like a raging storm carrying thunder and lighting, then broke into a soft relaxing tune again, it represented the roller coaster of emotions Phul had felt yesterday, and she was secretly hoping this song would be approved, otherwise she'd have to work on a new one again, and the deadline would be in just a few days.
The song ended, and the group was drop dead silent. Phul looked around, but everyone was busy looking at the notes. The boys were scribbling something, the CEO was lost in thought, with closed eyes.
The helper assistant turned the draft song on again, and again the room was filled with the piano base draft Phul had poured herself composing. Everyone was silent again.
And then they listened to it again, and again, and again. And again. Silently, seriously, making notes along the way. As Phul listened, she too found more parts she thought could be improved upon. Then they listened again. This was how it always went. It's not easy making something that is meant to resonate with a lot of listeners.
And then they listened again, Jay was humming along to the tune now. After this listening though, the CEO paused the recording, and said, "Okay, I think we can start discussing now."
Phul was a bit nervous, she always felt a bit anxious when it came to reviews.
"I personally, think it's goddamn beautiful." The CEO said and Phul let out a sigh. "Thank god." she thought.
Jay stood up and looked at Phul enthusiastically, "It's so very pretty. I don't know how to say this, but it feels so frustrating yet comforting at the same time."
Phul blushed a bit. They had heard it. They felt the same thing Phul felt yesterday. She was able to convey her emotions through her sound, and they had received it. Ah, what a good feeling it is to have someone understand you.
The vocal coach added, "There are some parts that can be improved though. Like this one here." And he got to the keyboard and played the note. "I think so too." The CEO added.
"I think this lyric is a bit away from Gemini's identity, I want to rewrite it." Michael said, and Jay nodded.
"This song will be perfect. I can sense this might be a breakthrough for Kuroi Entertainment. You did a great job, Phul." He said. Phul smiled.
And everyone got to work. They discussed more, wrote and rewrote a few parts, added in more sounds to the drafts, more instruments and recorded a rough draft through their handy portable recorder. Then listened to the demo again, and again, and again and again. The CEO, and Jay and Michael, and the vocal coach and Phul made a lot of alterations, to fit the song Phut wrote to Gemini's image, until they got a draft they were somewhat happy with.
"I think we are done for the day." The CEO said, and everybody got up and stretched. They had worked straight from the mroning to 7 o'clock in the evening. "Great job everyone." he said, and Phul started getting ready to leave work.
Jay and Michal said they'd stay behind to practice though, and the assistant and the CEO said they'd close up after they'd leave.
Others went home after bidding good byes, and just before Phul left too, the CEO came and said, "You really are talented, and you're so young too. I respect you, and I'm glad you're on our team. See you tomorrow for more editing."
Phul could say nothing except, "Thank you."
Yesterday had been a hard day for her, and those kind words really lifted her spirits, and she wanted to say more than that, but she just said "Thank you" and left.
As she walked on the streets, she looked up at the sky, the north star seemed to be shining brightly overhead.
She let out a sigh, then smiled.
Today was a good day.