Episode 10.
Production Staff: How did you feel about the other trainees’ song choices?
[Bora:] I think everyone chose well.
[Juhong:] No, I swear everyone except me is a genius. How do they all come up with stuff so quickly? I’m sure they all planned it without me!
[Geum:] …Not bad, honestly?
Production Staff: Who do you think picked the best song?
[Ryeoyu:] Baekyoung unnie? She seemed to really understand her charm. She’s annoyingly good at this.
[Heeon:] Everyone did well, but… if I had to choose….
[Kyeongah:] Cheong.
[Soo-in:] Trainee Yoon Cheong.
[Baekyoung:] Cheong, of course.
[Juhong:] I was seriously shocked. Does she have an IQ of 200 or something? Who thinks like that?
Production Staff: Why do you think Yoon Cheong made the best choice?
[Yuhyeon:] Honestly, I only thought of seniors who are currently active.
Production Staff: What kind of senior is Purple Apple? Why didn’t you think of them?
[Heeon:] Well, technically, Purple Apple isn’t from our agency. That’s why I didn’t think of them.
[Baekyoung:] Who would’ve thought someone would pick a song by our company’s CEO….
It was true.
The “Purple Apple” that Cheong chose wasn’t actually under COLORS.
To be precise, COLORS’ CEO, Hong Yeonseo, used to be part of Purple Apple.
Just like many other entertainment CEOs, CEO Hong was once an idol.
The production crew debated whether to approve the choice or not—but in the end, they did.
How was it approved?
“It’s entertaining, right? And it’ll probably get some buzz.”
That one sentence from PD Oh sealed the deal.
[Bora:] And honestly, it’s not easy to choose that even if you think of it. They’re such senior idols. You need confidence to pull that off—and she had it. That was cool.
[Juhong:] That song is from 25 years ago! That’s wild!
[Ryeoyu:] Was it really that big of a deal? Let’s be honest, I bet everyone thought about it. They just didn’t pick it.
Production Staff: Then you did think of it, Ryeoyu?
[Ryeoyu:] I mean, yeah. But I personally prefer White Noise seniors, so I went with that.
[Juseon:] If we had more time, everyone probably would’ve thought of it. It’s just that we didn’t have enough time.
Production Staff: …They said that?
[Geum:] Another trainee said that? That they would’ve thought of it if they had more time?
[Geum:] (bursts out laughing)
[Geum:] What is this, the Columbus’ Egg?
[Geum:] Well… they should’ve thought of it sooner, then. Credit where it’s due—Cheong unnie made a great choice, in my opinion.
[Juhong:] I really underestimated her. She’s totally a dark horse! Even that self-composed song last time!
Production Staff: Why did you pick a Purple Apple song?
[Cheong:] Uh, I….
Caption: Trainee Yoon Cheong’s shocking answer is…?
[Cheong:] First of all, I really admire Purple Apple seniors.
[Cheong:] (shy smile)
[Cheong:] And well… when I heard the word “mentor,” they were the first that came to mind.
Production Staff: Why?
[Cheong:] If I’m going to choose a mentor anyway… wouldn’t it be best to aim for the biggest senior? Especially if it’s our CEO….
Caption: Burning ambition…!
[Cheong:] Haha, I’m joking. I just really respect our CEO. But I mean, would she really show up as a mentor? She’s a super busy person. I’m not really expecting anything.
Caption: Yoon Cheong pokes at the production team’s pride
[Cheong:] Honestly, just doing a cover of her song is an honor in itself. I’m not expecting her to come mentor me or anything!
Of course I was expecting it.
Who is Hong Yeonseo—aka CEO Hong—really?
First of all, she’s a total attention-seeker.
She loves being in the spotlight. Not because she used to be in entertainment—she’s just always been that way.
She acts all cool and dignified, but to me, she’s just a clout-chaser.
She probably misses being on screen lately. I bet her hands are itching to get back in the game.
But she needs a good excuse to appear.
That’s why I’m throwing her this bait. Giving her the justification to step in.
The reason I twisted the rules and chose Hong Yeonseo specifically?
“Cheong-ah. That idea you had earlier was really good.”
Kim Ryeoyu.
She’s the reason.
I glanced at the camera. The red recording light was on.
So she’s saying this just because we’re on camera.
“Oh, thanks. You picked a great song too.”
She’s a relative of Director Kim, one of the judges.
Kim Ryeoyu had openly disclosed from the start that she was related to Director Kim.
To avoid any future controversy entirely.
She said she had confidence that she could succeed as Kim Ryeoyu, not just as someone’s relative, and that her position would be decided by vote anyway.
What’s interesting is that her attitude actually made her more popular.
People said her confidence was attractive.
…She really is a rare type.
“This mission was a solo one, so we didn’t get to work together. Let’s do our best together next time.”
She held out her hand to me.
“Sure.”
I shook her hand.
We’re on camera, after all—gotta play nice.
“You heading to practice?”
“Yeah. Gonna try singing it solo once in the vocal room.”
“I’ll come too. I’ll practice in the room next to yours.”
“…Alright. Let’s do that.”
If we weren’t being filmed, I would’ve turned her down flat.
Can’t be helped.
…But why is she being so overly friendly with me?
I walked with Kim Ryeoyu toward the vocal rooms.
If I want to counter Director Kim’s influence, I’m going to need someone like CEO Hong to show up.
One thing I’ve learned after surviving this industry:
If you’re going to align yourself with someone, make it the strongest person.
The one who’ll go down last.
D-3.
Three days before the mission evaluations—
And the big midpoint check-in day.
Also, the day we’d meet our mentors for the first time.
In Make a New Color, mentors are a big deal.
Since mentors are usually senior idols from the same company, the agency actively encouraged mentoring activities.
From small things like vocal and dance tips to full concept direction, mentors did it all.
So of course everyone was nervous…
“Alright, alright.”
PD Oh got down to business once all the trainees had gathered.
“Your performances will only be watched live by the three judges. The mentors will get the videos afterward.”
Well, yeah. All twelve mentors can’t be here in person.
I nodded.
“Any questions?”
As soon as PD Oh finished talking, a hand shot up.
Ah, it’s her…
“Yes, trainee Yeon Juhong?”
“When will we know who our mentor is?”
Yeon Juhong.
She’s a polarizing trainee.
Some say,
“Eh, isn’t she a bit mid-tier? Not the best at anything—not super skilled or super pretty.”
Others say,
“Maybe not a top-debut material kind of position.”
But then end up concluding—
“But once she debuts? She’ll probably be the most popular.”
And I agreed.
Because—
“Oh, that will be after your evaluations. You’ll meet your mentor after the results and performance video are sent.”
Juhong actually did debut—and became incredibly popular.
More than anyone else here.
“Whoa, no way.”
Though she didn’t debut in Steel Blue, technically.
“Alright then, let’s start drawing lots for the performance order. Kim Ryeoyu, please come up and pick.”
Starting with Kim Ryeoyu, each trainee picked their turn.
I ended up somewhere in the middle.
Let’s see… My number is…
12.
The last.
Nice. If you want to make a lasting impression, going last is ideal.
…Though it depends how they edit the episode.
The other trainees also seemed okay with their draw.
Except for the one who picked 1st—Yeon Juhong.
“I’m doomed…”
She was tearing at her hair in frustration.
Why is she that upset?
Is she not confident in her performance?
Well, to be fair, she did have a slightly shaky live early in her debut.
She was a “growth-type” character.
And her rapid, visible improvement is what made her popular.
People love hard-working underdogs.
And even if she wasn’t a genius, Juhong was at least a hard-working talent.
She trained like no one else, and her growth was clear.
“Aaaaaaaaah….”
Not that you’d think so just by looking at her.
Or by listening to her talk.
And yet—this is the same fierce Juhong I used to run into a few times back in the day during broadcasts and on stage.
She had a fire in her eyes. I respected that.
…Guess she was kind of a goofball before debut.
“Judges will now enter!”
At the staff’s shout, a long table was brought in front of the practice room.
Four chairs were neatly lined up.
Soon, the judges entered.
It was our first time meeting them since filming began.
They all had serious energy—but one stood out above the rest.
The agency’s director and producer: Kim Mokyeong.
Kim Ryeoyu’s relative—and in truth, the one who really runs COLORS right now.
“Nice to see you all again.”
And the one I’ll have to eliminate eventually.
