When I Opened My Eyes I Was a Superstar - Chapter 83
# 83
Run towards the future (4)
“Are you OK?”
It was Kim Won, who was walking from behind, who asked the female fan who had fallen.
Kim Won stopped, bent his knees and held out his hands. The private security guard shouted something, but Kim Won waited for the fan to hold his hand. The fan, whose hair was a mess, didn’t know what to do and held Kim Won’s hand.
Fans were still shouting from the back and pushing each other here and there, but the force pushing towards the fallen fan and Kim Won was still less.
When the female fan held Kim Won’s hand, Kim Won helped her up.
Kim Won was famous for his friendly personality, remembering his fans’ names well and making eye contact with them without fail.
For Kim Won, a fan fell in front of him and he couldn’t just pass by.
Kim Won, who held the fan’s hand and lifted him up, asked the fan once again if he was okay. Even in the midst of the panic, a female fan nodded in response to Kim Won’s question, and Kim Won smiled as if relieved.
After checking the fan’s condition, Kim Won quickly started walking again.
It was obvious that if there was even a little bit of delay, there would be even more confusion.
I couldn’t say it was fortunate, but the fan even fell over once, so there was less pushing and pulling even in a chaotic situation.
After making their way through the crowd, the members were able to safely arrive at the van parked in front of the airport.
“and.”
“Phew…”
The members who had barely escaped the airport sighed in silence as soon as they entered the van. I felt like I was completely exhausted.
“It was the biggest mess ever….”
“I almost died.”
As Seok Ji-hoon muttered to himself, Jeong Yoon-gi groaned.
Director Oh Baek-ho spoke to the interpreter and quickly had the driver start the car. This was because the fans who followed him to the car stuck to the car and asked him to open the window.
There was a passion on a different level from that of Korean fans. Feeling as if they had lost their souls, the members looked out the window and saw the fans moving away.
“I’m going straight to the press conference. It takes about two hours to go. “I’m going to go put on makeup and hold a press conference.”
Even Director Oh Baek-ho stopped talking as if he was exhausted. The members nodded. I felt like I needed to replenish my stamina quickly along the way.
“It was almost really dangerous earlier. “Isn’t it your rule?”
Jeong Yoon-gi asked Kim Won, who was sitting next to him.
“uh. What am I? “I’m not hurt.”
Kim Won answered lightly.
“But if you help a fan for no reason, you could end up in big trouble. From now on, just leave the next task to the bodyguards and pass by. okay?”
When Oh Baek-ho spoke strictly, Kim Won nodded.
Do-wook’s thoughts were not much different from Director Oh Baek-ho. This time, thanks to Kim Won’s help, the fans got up well and the fans calmed down a bit, but it could have escalated further.
However, Kim Won said that his body reacted first when he saw the fan who was pushed down by the security guard in front of him.
“Did the security push you?”
When Seok Ji-hoon asked again, Kim Won nodded.
When Do-wook heard that he fell because of the security guard hired by KK rather than being pushed by the fans behind him, he thought that something serious could have happened.
In the past, there have been many cases where bodyguards of popular celebrities were criticized for actions such as pushing fans while protecting artists.
The security guards probably acted like that because they had a professional duty to stop fans from recklessly pushing in, but sometimes they were so excessive that even Do-wook couldn’t understand it.
Because of this, it is true that when the controversy over excessive security arises, even if it is not directly related, it will have a negative impact on the image of the celebrity concerned.
“Look at this, bro.”
Ahn Hyeong-seo, who was frustrated because the internet wasn’t working quickly, held out his cell phone to Kim Won.
“What?”
“Won’s video came out!”
When Jeong Yoon-gi asked as if he was curious, Ahn Hyeong-seo answered. Oh Baek-ho, who was riding in the passenger seat, also turned his back when he heard that Kim Won’s video had surfaced.
“what. “What kind of video is this?”
“This is the airport video just now.”
“I filmed all of this.”
Kim Won and Jeong Yoon-gi looked at the cell phone and handed it over to Oh Baek-ho.
The video showed KK arriving at Beijing Airport. The picture quality wasn’t very good, as if it was taken with a cell phone, but I was able to make out who was who.
Additionally, the airport was in complete chaos.
Amid shouting here and there, KK’s Chinese private security guard pushes the fan, the fan falls to the floor, and even Kim Won extends his hand to the fan.
The edited video of the series of processes was quickly spreading to KK’s Chinese fans through Avo.
“Looking at it again, it’s really not that crazy.”
Seok Ji-hoon, who received the message last, looked at it and shook his head.
As it was spreading on Avo, it seemed like it would quickly spread in Korea as well. Dowook wanted to check the reactions of local Chinese fans, but with his poor Chinese skills, he could only read the fans’ mood.
Do-wook copied words that were repeatedly used among Eibo’s responses, pasted them into the translator, and searched them.
‘I’m glad, the security guard is angry, orderliness, manners are good, he’s cool.’ It was found that the sentences were connected.
In a loose sense, there seemed to be voices of concern even among Chinese fans about the mess at the airport. At the same time, there was outrage over a security guard pushing a fan.
Additionally, many fans were impressed by Kim Won’s manners in helping the fan in such a situation.
The word ‘sweet’ was also seen a lot, so Kim Won’s image in China seemed to be captured that way.
‘Thanks to Kim Won’s response, it went well. thank god.’
Dowook sighed.
***
Press conference room set up in a hotel in downtown Beijing.
After completing preparations, the KK members entered the conference hall wearing costumes tailored to the concept of ‘Howl’. The stage costumes almost had the feel of loose-fitting school uniforms, but today they were neatly dressed for the formality of a press conference.
As the members appeared, numerous flashes went off simultaneously.
Even the members who had heard that ‘quite a few’ reporters would be there could not help but be surprised by the number of reporters.
This was because more than 100, close to 200 reporters were looking at KK with their cameras on him.
‘This much…?’
Dowook also felt dazed. Do-wook looked around and found a familiar figure.
In the officials’ seat, a little away from the reporters, was production director Kwon Heung-jo, who had already come to China and had a business meeting scheduled.
Director Kwon Heung-jo was introduced to Hwang Heon, head of the entertainment investment business department in China, through Hong Un-young of the Korean branch of Taehwa Group, which invested in Hit Entertainment.
Since I received a lot of help from Director Hwang Heon regarding KK’s entry into the Chinese market, I thought that we should have a meeting in person, at least at a personnel level.
Director Kwon Heung-jo’s idea was that it would be good if KK could also be showcased in person. So, it was Director Kwon who deliberately scheduled the meeting around the KK press conference.
Director Kwon was also confident that Hwang Heon, the Chinese manager, would also be more attracted to KK if he saw the KK members in person.
After meeting in the restaurant above the hotel in advance, Director Kwon and Director Hwang Heon naturally walked to the press conference room.
Director Hwang Heon also knew that he would see KK in person at the press conference.
Hit Entertainment was chosen by the Korean branch as a new investment destination. Branch Manager Hong Un-young had a pleasant phone call with Hwang Heon, saying that the profitability seemed to be good.
Therefore, it was General Manager Hwang Heon who helped KK’s expansion into China by helping Branch Manager Hong Un-young in order to increase the company’s profits.
Although it was only for a short period of time, from the perspective of being in the same boat as an investor and investment destination, it was naturally a good thing for Taehwa Group that KK was doing well.
In particular, if the company achieved successful results in China, it would further strengthen Taehwa Group as an investor.
Director Hwang Heon hinted.
“I called a few more reporters.”
Director Kwon Heung-jo, who received the words through an interpreter, looked surprised.
“Wouldn’t it be better if the start was more flashy? haha!”
Director Hwang Heon said and laughed. Director Kwon Heung-jo bowed his head and expressed his gratitude.
The number of reporters who originally planned to come to the press conference was about a hundred.
Of course, there were also Korean reporters, but that number alone meant that KK had already established a certain level of standing as a rising star in China.
However, due to the influence of Headquarters Director Hwang Heon, there were now as many reporters flocking to the ship. The sheer number of reporters flocking was enough to become a hot topic in Korea and be covered in articles.
Thanks to this, KK’s first press conference in China was held with great fanfare.
“How do you feel about coming to Beijing?”
The first question was okay as expected.
The members were sitting on chairs covered with a red carpet, which is rare in Korea. There was an interpreter next to me.
Jung Yoon-ki took the microphone as a representative and spoke about his feelings about coming to China. I also didn’t forget to say thank you for welcoming me.
Afterwards, questions were asked about KK’s musical color. This was also explained by Jeong Yoon-ki, who is always in charge of explaining albums.
“…Especially in the case of this Howl, there is a lot of choreography to see, so I hope Chinese people will love it a lot as well.”
After Jung Yoon-gi finished answering, a request was made to show the choreography. The KK members were momentarily embarrassed, but they were not embarrassed and put forward Taehyung Park.
Taehyung Park put down the microphone on the chair, stood up, and performed a choreography that was considered a highlight. In the back, other members sang to the rhythm. It was a moment where teamwork shined.
“I saw you on Running Man and you seem to have a really flexible body. Please show me other cool moves too.”
At another request from the reporter, Taehyung Park, who was about to sit down, stood up again.
With his earlobes turning red, Taehyung Park danced the rhythm and danced freely for about 16 bars. Even though it must have been difficult to dance unaccompanied in front of two hundred reporters, Taehyung Park concentrated on dancing.
Afterwards, a request came in saying they wanted to hear Ahn Hyeong-seo’s high notes.
Hyungseo Ahn sang the high-pitched part of ‘Sorry but I Love You’ and winked about five times in a row at the same time.
Then laughter broke out among the reporters.
The atmosphere at the press conference was hot. Because there were so many reporters, there were a lot of requests of various kinds, and some of the questions seemed friendly, but some were sharp.
And when it was time for personal questions, questions were focused on Do-wook.
Dowook was also popular in China. People continued to praise Do-wook for his clear facial features, saying that in China, he is said to be blessed with good fortune.
Every time Dowook laughed, the shutter exploded.
‘Get Ready 1999’, in which Do-wook played, was not such a hit in China. However, perhaps because they knew he was acting, there were also requests to show his acting in Chinese.
Of course, Do-wook, who did not have any ‘Chinese acting’ that he had prepared separately, coped with emotional acting and lines like ‘I love you’.
And since he was a singer from another country, questions were pouring in about what Chinese fans were like and what they thought about China.
Do-wook said that he liked China because it was his favorite country and that Chinese fans were passionate, but the reporters’ reaction was not positive in that regard.
“Tell me what you like about China.”
The reporter dug in as if to determine whether Do-wook’s words were sincere or not.
“Uh… I am.”
Dowook, who was choosing his words, answered.