The animation director and I went through countless ideas and revisions before finalizing the animated music video. It was a blend of the Western taste, my preferences, and the director’s vision – and it was made without any input from Yumi herself.

To clear up any misunderstandings, Yumi was not deprived of the chance to express her opinions. Rather, she entrusted everything to me.

Our entire company gathered at the office, which also doubled as a dorm. By ‘entire company,’ I meant Blue Sherbet, me, and Jung-han. We were there to watch the premiere of the music video, which the director and I had poured our hearts into creating.

It was set in a cyberpunk world. 

In this world, robots and AI took care of everything from basic needs (like food and shelter) to healthcare, sexual desires, and entertainment. 

Flying cars and geometrically designed buildings lined the sky, and the world reached a singularity where androids were so advanced that they could take each other to court.

Androids, humans, and cyborgs were divided into three factions due to racism-driven hatred that eventually led to war. 

Amidst this terrible war, the protagonist came to lead the human faction and fell in love with a cyborg, whose brain and heart functioned mechanically. However, the protagonist lost her to an EMP attack launched by the android army. It resulted in brain death and cardiac arrest. Stricken with grief, he relinquished his leadership position to someone else. 

Eventually, the humans and cyborgs lost the war and faced extinction. As the last surviving human, the protagonist reminisced on the memories of his lost love and vowed to get revenge.

He waged an endless war against the androids in this lonely world. Eventually, he destroyed the world and restored his lover’s data so they could live happily ever after.

“What do you think?” I asked proudly after the music video ended.

The Blue Sherbet members only exchanged silent glances.

I turned to Yumi, the original artist, and asked, “Yumi, what do you think?”

Startled by the direct question, Yumi instinctively nodded. 

“Yes. It’s good.” Her response felt like she was only agreeing out of politeness. 

It was sad the music video didn’t get any genuine recognition from the original music creator, but it could have just been because she didn’t understand the rich history of EDM or Western tastes.

“Jin-ah, what do you think?”

“How do you think it turned out, President Kang?”

“What do you mean? It’s perfect for the music. It matches your voice well, too.”

Jin-ah’s expression twisted strangely, and she patted Yumi’s shoulder. Their eyes met, and Yumi bit her lip before resting her head on Jin-ah’s shoulder.

“It’s okay, Yumi. Don’t cry.”

“Hee-yeon… What about you?”

“I’m not sure. I don’t see the connection with the title.”

I nodded in agreement and explained. Not knowing wasn’t a crime. That being said, telling someone who didn’t know anything to stop crying was a crime. 

“The title is ‘I Don’t Love Anything,’ right? It’s a cyberpunk world where androids replaced everything. A barren world where humans gradually lose the things they love. Even in this world, war breaks out because of their hatred for one another. They can’t love anyone from another race. And then the protagonist even loses his lover and all the humans go extinct. He was left with nothing to love. It makes you feel the aftermath of the flawed ideology from this time and the protagonist’s loneliness and sorrow.”

“But… didn’t he restore his lover’s data and live happily ever after?”

“There’s also something wrong with that. Would restoring her data really be the same thing as bringing her back? The protagonist would be in constant agony. To him, this is all he has left of her. He loves her, but he’s always wondering if the one in front of him is actually her or if he’s just living in the past. It’s so cliché that it feels almost redundant to explain it again.”

Hee-yeon nodded slowly. Yoon-jung, who was beside her, tilted her head and asked a question.

“I get the story, but will this really be popular?”

“Stuff like this does well in Europe and North America. EDM and animation go especially well together. Does it seem childish to you?”

I wasn’t expecting an answer, but negative responses came flying in.

“A little bit?”

“Of course it does!”

“Yes.”

“It’s not so much childish as a bit…”

How was I supposed to deal with these clueless beings? I let out a deep sigh, feeling conflicted. It would probably do well overseas, but I was certain about one thing: it wouldn’t appeal to women in this age group here in Korea. A sad reality, no doubt.

Then, one enlightened soul spoke up.

“Boss! The music video is awesome!”

“Right? Jung-han, you’re the only one who gets it.”

“The music video is amazing, but… wow, Yumi! You’re really something! How did you come up with music like this?”

Despite Jung-han’s praise, Yumi didn’t seem convinced about the music video. Still, she couldn’t hide her smile, pleased with the compliment.

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

“Mr. Manager! That’s my voice in there!”

Jin-ah also jumped in to assert her thoughts, and Jung-han was busy giving thumbs up. Seeing all this, I nodded. This proved that it wasn’t just the director and me who liked it. Even domestically, there were those who were enlightened and appreciative.

It wouldn’t be a hit with the younger female audience, but who cared? As long as it was popular, it was all good.

Anyway, we distributed the music overseas and uploaded the music video to YouTube on the day of the digital release. Jung-han and I were confident, while Yumi and Jin-ah felt a mix of emotions between expectation and worry. Hee-yeon and Yoon-jung’s expressions said – I don’t know anymore – as they watched the upload screen.

[Yumi – I Don’t Love Anything]

After that, we all dispersed. About an hour later, I checked the comments. Since the music had just been released, these were all from subscribers.

They were raving about the music.

–  This is insane! It’s perfect! The birth of an absolute masterpiece!

–  Flawless. This is as good as it gets. This song is the best of the year.

–  100% talent. This deserves both an Oscar and a Grammy.

–  The music video is fantastic too. Yumi is a god.

–  The music and video blend together perfectly. This work is like a miracle come true. At the very least, it’s my top pick for all-time favorites.

Of course, these were all from subscribers who already liked Yumi, so they could be biased. Because of that, I couldn’t jump to conclusions. 

After a day, two days, and now three days, the comments remained overwhelmingly positive.

With renewed confidence, I asked Yumi, “You see this?”

“Wow… There are really a lot of good comments about the music video,” she said. Yumi looked genuinely surprised as she read through the comments.

“It’s going to take a bit more time to catch on. You’re still relatively unknown. Plus, it’s not exactly mainstream.”

Just because you posted a good song didn’t mean it would instantly blow up. We hadn’t done any promotions, after all. Plus, it was EDM. It wasn’t exactly a trending genre.

But again, the goal was to build a solid reputation as a skilled artist and attract passionate fans.

“Now, try arranging and composing songs that fit the trend like you did with the Daft Punk music.”

“Okay!”

Seeing the overwhelming praise in the comments seemed to energize Yumi. Her name would gradually grow in value, and someday, this song would shine even brighter.

Steady, but without rushing.

That was how we would move forward.

***

“Holy Shit. Holy Shit. Holy Shit!”

Kyle, a student at the University of Wisconsin, kept muttering curse-laden exclamations as he watched a music video in his dorm room. 

On his monitor, scenes of robots exploding and cities being destroyed played one after another while the speaker repeatedly blared, ‘I don’t love anything.’

He played it over and over again. He became increasingly engrossed in the video, so much so that he was practically in a trance when his roommate John walked in. Kyle quickly paused the video and motioned to him.

“John! Come here, quick!”

“Why? Did you finally realize the greatness of Giannis?”

“I don’t care about the NBA. Just come over and watch this.”

“I have ears, you know. That was EDM, right? But you know I’m not really into EDM.”

Kyle thought his roommate was hopelessly uncultured, but for the sake of their friendship, he decided to be generous.

“Just give it a listen. You might change your mind.”

“If you had watched the Finals, you might’ve changed yours. Giannis just surpassed LeBron.”

“John!”

Kyle’s sharp tone made John reluctantly pull up a chair, shaking his head as he did. He figured he’d humor Kyle, especially since he had nothing better to do.

Later, John would often say that this was one of the top ten best decisions of his life.

“This would be amazing to watch when you’re feeling high…”

Kyle smiled, satisfied, as he watched John get completely absorbed in the video. 

And so, Yumi’s name began to spread, slowly but surely, almost like a new enlightenment movement.

***

Yoon-jung diligently streamed her game plays every day and uploaded dance videos weekly. She steadily built her skills and reputation. 

Hee-yeon was immersed in rock music, listening to it nonstop unless she was practicing her singing.

Yumi expanded her focus by arranging her songs according to the latest trends while gradually gaining attention in the EDM scene overseas. It seemed like she was gathering a cult following, but I let it slide since it felt like it wasn’t uncommon in the EDM world.

That left one member.

“Jin-ah’s the only one left.”

The timing was perfect for her to start her solo activities. Of course, even if the timing was right, I wouldn’t hesitate to push her debut to the next opportunity if she wasn’t ready to go solo. 

However, I was sure she improved a great deal since she had been practicing diligently. Even if she wasn’t up to par this time around, I figured it would only be a matter of time.

I went to the practice room where Jin-ah was training hard alone, but I must have arrived too late. Jin-ah was lying on the floor, drenched in sweat and panting heavily.

“Huff, huff, huff… Did you come to take me home? I can go by myself, you know.”

“No, I came to check on your progress, but it looks like you overdid it today, so maybe tomorrow–”

“No! I can do it! I can do it right now!”

Jin-ah sprang up like a coiled spring, her eyes wide like a startled rabbit. 

“I’ve been practicing really hard! But that doesn’t mean I’m in a rush to debut solo, of course. I know I need to be good enough first! But it’s not like I hate the idea either! The others are doing well, so I can do well, too! I’m not jealous of the other members, but I am a little envious… but it’s not like I’m totally unaffected—” She rambled. 

As she continued to pour out her unfiltered thoughts, it was clear she had been struggling on the inside. Watching all the other members showcase their talents and achieve results while she was on the sidelines must have been tough. 

Even though she knew in her head that all this would ultimately benefit the group and that she would eventually go solo, too, it was only natural for her to feel anxious.

I listened silently, and her voice gradually trailed off.

“I mean, like…”

She started squirming, clearly embarrassed by how much she had just revealed.

“You said you can do it today?”

“…Yes, I can.”

I nodded and looked at her intently. Jin-ah’s eyes met mine, and I saw determination seep into her gaze. 

“…”

“…”

Were we having a staring contest?

“Go ahead, show me.”

“Ah.”

Jin-ah quickly started preparing herself. She took a deep breath and stood at attention to calm her nerves. After becoming somewhat calm, she began scrolling through her playlist.

I decided to make her choice easier.

“Do it without the track. Can you sing and dance at the same time?”

Jin-ah snapped her head up from her phone in surprise.

“Shouldn’t I show you the singing or the dancing separately first–”

“No, you’ll need to do both anyway, so just try doing it together.”

In my past life, she became hugely successful as a dancer-singer. Future Jin-ah successfully blossomed her talent. She could perform intense dance moves while maintaining rock-solid live vocals. 

Obviously, she wasn’t at her peak now, but there was no need to assess her singing or dancing separately. Her true talent lied in her balance and strength as a ‘dancer-singer’ rather than just a dancer or just a singer.

There was a reason people had left comments like these:

– These days, idols should focus on practicing their singing, no? They just rely on audio recordings and some of them lip sync the whole thing. How can you call that a singer? When they’re asked to sing on variety shows, only the main vocalists do it. The others never do. If their singing is decent, something else is a mess. Why do people even stan them? Except for Jin-ah Choi.

└I was about to mention Jin-ah Choi, but you beat me to it by excluding her at the end.

└You shouldn’t expect good singing from idols lol. Except for Jin-ah Choi.

└Even the losers who leave hate comments exclude Jin-ah Choi. She’s something else…

└Jin-ah defined what a ‘dancer-singer’ is, for real. Blue Sherbet’s president failed by going against that.

└ lolol that legendary company

“Ah, okay.” Jin-ah couldn’t hide her concern. 

On the other hand, I wasn’t worried at all. Even if she wasn’t up to par this time, I was confident she would soon show me what I expected from her.

“I’ll start, then.”

When it came to female solo dancer-singers, only a few names came to mind. Each had their own distinct style and strengths. 

However, the Jin-ah standing before me channeled all of them into one incredible performance. It was as if she was pouring every moment of practice and effort into this single performance. As if she was determined to show it all.

“Huff, huff… I can do it again.” She said this with a trembling gaze, seeing me stand there with a blank expression. 

I raised my hand to stop her.

“That’s enough.”

“!” Her body froze at my words.

“Sh-should I try again tomorrow? Maybe I’m not feeling well because I over-practiced earlier! I swear!”

“What are you talking about? Why would you need to do it again? There’s no need.”

“Oh… okay.” Jin-ah’s disappointment was obvious.

I smirked and added, “You could debut right now and blow everyone away. Why would you need a redo?”

“What…?”

Her performance had easily surpassed the standards I had in mind. She looked at me, searching for something. When she realized I was serious, Jin-ah burst into tears.

“Seriously… Sniff… President Kang, you’re the worst… Sniff!”

“Jin-ah, come on. Saying ‘you’re the worst’ is a bit much, isn’t it? You should be careful with your words. You’ll be on TV a lot, you know?”

“TV…?” She perked up.

“Yeah. Music shows, radio shows, variety shows. You’ll be on all of them, right?”

“Waaah! President Kaaang!”

Jin-ah came rushing at me, tears and snot flowing from her face. In that brief moment, I debated on what to do.

‘Should I push her away… or not?’

But as always, hesitating led to nothing happening. So, I had no choice but to let her soak my clothes with her tears, snot, and sweat.

‘Ew. It smells.’

The sweat was a bonus.

“Sniff, sniff… Sniff… Oppaaaa, you’re the best!”

(T/N: Oppa is a term of endearment to refer to an older man by a younger woman. I’ll start including these in my translations from now on… It’s too hard leaving them out.)

“Get off me, right now!”

—

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