Chapter 395
Time passed by and May arrived with the weather getting warmer.
The official comeback date for Seleste scheduled by Sigma Entertainment was June 2nd.
As always, they released a scheduler a month before the comeback and informed fans of the promotions they had prepared for this time.
'Huh?'
Like Karis's homma, there were a few parts that immediately caught everyone's attention.
First, the highlight medley a cappella version that first appeared in the previous
It seems that they are planning to include the a cappella version in all future albums after confirming that the response from Seleves was very good.
Second, the concept photos were prepared in three versions instead of two.
The album version also had three versions: Lights, Camera, and Action.
Looking at the blurred album image, it felt very fancy and like a lot of preparation had been done.
In particular, you could see that the components in the album were very colorful.
In addition to the photo cards, badges, and posters that are usually included in the album, there were various special features such as acrylic key rings and snapshots for each member.
And finally, there was something that had never been done before.
Instead of the usual music videos or concept trailers, two videos with the modifier 'Cinema' were scheduled to be released.
'Cinema? Does it mean it has a movie feel?'
Homma tilted her head slightly at the appearance of the word that she had never seen before in Seleste's comeback schedule.
If she were to guess, it seems like they filmed the trailer with a movie-like feel......….
It seemed like it would take two weeks to find out exactly what the story was and how the members would be portrayed.
One thing is for sure, Sigma Entertainment is putting a lot of effort into this comeback.
'You know what they're saying? The most important thing is after a big hit, right?'
Seleste's first full-length album,
Fans were also extremely happy to see the members reach such great heights, but some people, including Homma, were secretly worried.
When expectations get too high, it makes you anxious.
Even if the next album's results are outstanding compared to other groups on the surface, if it doesn't surpass the record of the first full-length album, people will indiscriminately say that it's disappointing.
Even though they sold 2 million copies when other groups sold 1 million copies, they would always hear, "But you sold 2.5 million copies last time, so why are you on a downward trend?"
Doesn't it make you feel uneasy for no reason?
They clearly achieved successful profits this time and showed the unity of the group and fandom, but they are being evaluated as disappointing in return.
This is also a refined thought, other fandoms are excited and celebrating, thinking it's right.
In such an important time, Homma was very fortunate that Sigma Entertainment was holding on tight and planning a comeback schedule.
If the schedule had been pushed back and the comeback promotion schedule had been poor, she would have been chewing her fingernails and not being able to control her anxiety.
But a few days later, an unexpected article came up, causing a strange feeling in Homma's heart.
[Breaking News] Connex to make a comeback on June 4th.... Collaborating with the composer of 'Breaktime' for the first time in 2 years]
[June is the month of comebacks......… Connex also declares participation after Seleste]
Finally, finally, Connex and their comeback dates overlap.
And it's not even vaguely overlapping in the 1st or 2nd week, but from the 1st week.
'......… Is this true?'
Homma looked at articles related to Connex and SNS reactions.
Connex fans have always looked down on Seleste.
At some point, Seleste started to overtake Connex, but instead of congratulating them, they were busy saying bad things like, "This is like robbing an empty house", "You must be lucky, why are you like that?", etc.
That's why some belligerent Seleves wanted Connex to come back at the exact same time and have a head-on showdown.
If they were to face each other one-on-one and fall behind in the rankings, they would have nothing to say.
'She also hoped that would happen at least once, but it just happened now.......'
She still had faith in the members and the agency.
They were promotional schedulers who proved how hard they prepared during their inactive period.
However, meeting Connex at this time is like a double-edged sword.
If we overwhelm Connex by writing records that are comparable to or superior to their past performances, we will kill two birds with one stone.
We can prove that Seleste's growth is endless.
Now we can prove that we have an advantage over any other idol.
But our opponent is Connex.
Even though they have recently shown signs of weakness and all their records have been broken by Seleste, they still boast the largest fandom in Korea.
'And they are malicious. If we really lose here, I will have to make our accounts private for a while.'
In short, the end game has come true.
A showdown where both teams' pride is at stake.
If you win here, you take it all.
If you lose here, the painful wounds will be deeply lingering.
A week of waiting with great determination passed, and the first cinematic trailer for Seleste's mini-album
'It's quite long?'
What caught Homma's eye right away was the length of the video.
Usually, music videos or concept trailers are usually between 1 minute and 40 seconds.
However, Seleste's cinematic trailer was almost 3 minutes long.
'What if they use a fraud technique from the thumbnail?'
Is there such a perfect close-up shot?
Homma pressed the thumbnail with admiration of Karis' face, who seemed to have never known humiliation.
The trailer started with a bright atmosphere.
A university campus with bright sunlight shining down.
The peaceful atmosphere with the brightly blooming flowers and the lively chirping of birds was impressive.
A boy was seen walking around the campus and exclaiming in admiration.
[Oh, this is also pretty.]
Song Hyung-bin, wearing a loose blue jacket that matched the spring atmosphere very well, stood in front of flowers boasting pink.
Homma stuck out her tongue at the screen that focused on his visuals.
Is it because of the soft and warm filming technique that you would see in a youth movie?
For some reason, it even made her feel a little hazy.
The screen was focused on Song Hyung-bin's bag.
Song Hyung-bin took out a small Polaroid camera and took pictures toward the flower garden.
Then, with a pleased expression, he waited for the pictures to be developed on the film.
The viewpoint changed.
A gymnasium where a basketball game was in full swing.
The scoreboard was signaling the end of the fourth quarter.
[Game End!]
[Haa, haa!]
[Ah.]
The players in red uniforms exhaled heavily and looked at the court in vain.
Ji Yoon-chul could not easily let go of the basketball he had in his hands until the very end.
His head dropped down, showing a vain atmosphere.
The next scene showed the atelier of the art department in the university.
Karis was seen in the window seat where sunlight was faintly coming in.
'This is crazy!'
Homma pressed her face close to the screen as if she was being sucked into the screen of her phone.
The brown knit he was wearing over his white shirt went so well with him.
Thinking about how thrilling it would have been if she had a senior like that when she was in college, Homma quickly came to her senses and focused on the trailer.
He sat in front of a large canvas that was two or three times bigger than his body and just stared blankly, his hands holding the palette and brush not moving.
Continuing to look at the canvas, Karis soon sighed deeply and leaned his body and head back to stare at the ceiling.
[...... I can't remember.]
The screen changed again and headed toward the library.
Heo Yu-bin, wearing glasses, was seen diligently writing something between the numerous textbooks piled on the desk.
Heo Yu-bin, who was solving a problem by writing down complicated mathematical formulas, complained of frustration by messing up his hair as if he couldn't solve something.
Similarly, Chae Eun-gyu was blaming himself for forgetting his lines during a PPT presentation.
Yoo Min-ha was frustrated after failing the test he had prepared for for a long time.
And Kang Si-yoon was even shown sighing in frustration after talking to his parents.
Everyone had their own struggles, hardships, and frustrations.
Homma was surprised by the members' vivid facial expressions.
Just like real college students, they were 100% immersed in their roles.
The members' passionate performances made Homma recall the difficult moments she experienced when she was in college.
The screen showed Song Hyung-bin enjoying the sunny weather outside again.
Unlike the other members, Song Hyung-bin, who was enjoying his freedom, sent a text message on his phone.
[Huh? It's the president.]
[We're not having a club activity today.......]
It turned out that all the Seleste members were in the same club.
The members, who had been going through their own hardships in their respective seats and had dark expressions, stood up as if possessed after reading the message Song Hyung-bin sent.
Then, they left the classroom and gymnasium where they were staying one by one and headed to the place Song Hyung-bin had told them to go.
[Guys, come quickly!]
A hill with an old tree standing that showed the passage of time.
Song Hyung-bin, who had been waiting on top of it, gestured with his hand for the members to come quickly as they saw each other one by one.
Homma felt that Sigma Entertainment filmed the trailer from beginning to end with the feeling of making a real youth movie.
The image quality, individual scenes, and even group scenes.
The quality is so perfect that there is nothing to criticize.
Isn't this the epitome of fandom with capital?
When the seven members of Seleste gathered, their dark expressions brightened up.
It seemed like they were putting aside their worries and concerns for a moment and enjoying the moment they were all together.
When the members each took their seats under the old tree, Song Hyung-bin took out his camera as if he had a good idea.
[Let's change our mood and take a picture. Honestly, the weather is so nice!]
From the moment Song Hyung-bin took out his camera, she heard a song she had never heard before.
[na na na na na na na
To reach the heart]
Homma, who recognized that it was the melody of the title song
Listening to the refreshing and contemporary hip-hop-infused accompaniment, the youth movie feeling she had been hearing since earlier became even stronger.
[Let's take a picture! One, two, three!]
Song Hyung-bin's Polaroid camera flashed.
The members who saw the film slowly coming out all ran to Song Hyung-bin.
[Show me the picture!]
[When will this be developed?]
[Hey, Kang Si-yoon! Don't expose it to too much sunlight! The colors will come out weird!]
[Oh, is that so? I thought it would come out faster if I did this.]
The members calmly waited for the picture to develop.
After a while, the film began to color and the members' figures gradually appeared.
The screen was angled upwards so that the viewers felt as if they were looking at the picture along with the members.
Homma also became focused on the picture being developed without realizing it.
[They're all out!]
[Did I come out well? I can't see it well.]
[Yeah, it came out a little bit in the shadows.]
[Why is it so dark? Hyungbin, is this how it's supposed to be?]
While the members were talking, the screen kept stopping at the photo.
Homma didn't understand why the screen was stopping there.
The photo clearly showed the seven members.
Of course, the shadow was there because of the old tree, so the members' faces were a bit hard to see.
Wait a minute.
The photo was definitely taken by Song Hyungbin.
How on earth did seven people end up in the photo?
The moment Homma's arms got goosebumps, the screen suddenly turned off with an eerie music box sound.
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