Chapter 126

Chapter 126. Remember Racism

As soon as we arrived in America, we met Hailey Swift.

She told me who owned the Free Opt-Out number I'd asked her about before.

"His name is Kevin Park. He's a rookie PD working at NMC. His mother is Korean-American and his father is white. Apparently, he's lived in America his whole life and even graduated from an Ivy League school. Maybe because of his mother, he can speak Korean too."

PD Kevin Park of NMC.

First of all, NMC was indeed the network that aired 〈I Got Talent〉.

Considering the strange connections created by the spam, Kevin Park was probably a PD with a fairly important role on 〈I Got Talent〉.

And he was most likely the "yellow monkey f**king Asian" Nick Allen had been referring to.

Anna and Hailey immediately began recording together.

Hailey had sent Anna the track beforehand, and Anna had already written lyrics that fit it.

Naturally, the lyrics were in English.

Under the normal scenario, all I had to do was build a connection with Kevin Park now, then once Nick Allen left the show, put Anna or someone else in his seat.

That would complete this spam mission.

But Anna was busy.

Then again, who wasn't busy right now...?

If I was going to put someone in the judge's seat, Moon Hee-jung seemed appropriate.

She had already achieved considerable success with 〈City Heart〉, and her next song needed to be 〈Come Out of There〉.

If she could instantly raise her profile by serving as a judge here, then work on 〈Come Out of There〉 could also be done in America.

It was going to succeed on Billboard anyway.

Producing it in the Billboard market itself might help us get results much faster.

First, though, I needed to meet this Kevin Park.

I sent him a message.

[This is Do Jun-hyeok, CEO of Universe Entertainment in Korea. You haven't been answering my calls, so I'm contacting you by message. I'd like to meet you and discuss a proposal related to the program you're currently working on. Could you spare some time?]

After sending it, I stood at a distance and watched Anna and Hailey work.

About thirty minutes later, Kevin Park called me.

"Universe? CEO Do Jun-hyeok? I'm not sure how you got my number... Anyway, sorry, 미안해요. I haven't been answering because I didn't recognize the number."

They said he'd lived in America his entire life.

But from the way he spoke, he sounded more like someone who'd finished elementary school in Korea and then moved to America.

"No problem. I'm the one who contacted you out of nowhere. I also have a proposal related to the program you're working on. I'm free whenever. What would be convenient for you, PD Kevin?"

"I'm okay anytime. Your schedule is more important, Mr. Do Jun-hyeok. Ah, yes, I'd like to meet. Let's make a schedule. Are you in Korea right now? Maybe..."

The conversation was a little chaotic, but at least he was willing to meet.

Assuming he was a busy man, I offered to go to him myself.

I met Kevin Park at a Korean restaurant near his workplace after he finished work.

Korean food in America didn't quite feel like Korean food in Korea.

Still, I appreciated that he'd apparently chosen it out of consideration for me.

He had put quite a bit of wax in his hair.

His facial structure was fairly strong, but his skin was pale.

His hair was black, and most Westerners would probably see him as Asian.

But his blue eyes gave him an unmistakably American impression.

Judging by the way he'd slicked his hair back with wax, he seemed to enjoy dressing up.

He was even wearing flashy earrings.

"Korean, um... In America, uh... there's stereotype that Koreans dress well. Like, 'Hey, Kevin! You're Korean, so why are you like that? You're not stylish at all. Not cool at all~.' Ha ha... But seeing you, Mr. Do Jun-hyeok... Oh. Maybe it's because I'm only half Korean."

"Excuse me?"

If I kept pretending I understood, he'd probably mix in even more English.

So I gritted my teeth and acted like I hadn't understood.

Kevin eventually summarized it himself.

"I started dressing like this because of how people looked at me."

"Ah, I see. You don't need to worry about that at all, though. You're Kevin. That's enough."

"Oh. Thank you."

I gave him the kind of supportive line I'd seen in American movies.

Kevin smiled.

"So... why did you want to see me?"

His speech was slow, but he didn't seem like an especially talkative person.

Still, he had a fairly cheerful side to him.

I liked my first impression of him.

"How do you get onto 〈I Got Talent〉?"

"Ah, appearance! 〈I Got Talent〉. If you pay, you can join. Um... production cost. The money to make it."

Apparently, if you contributed a certain amount to the production budget, you could participate.

He wasn't asking for a bribe.

He meant you had to come in as a co-producer.

Which also meant it was impossible for me right now.

"You want to appear? Mr. Do Jun-hyeok? Or another singer?"

"Not a singer. Ah, not me either. I want to put a producer on the show."

"A producer? Oh. Then... are you asking for a judge position?"

I nodded.

Kevin grabbed his head as though I'd given him a headache.

No need for that.

My proposal wasn't going to cause him a headache.

It was going to cure one.

In the future video, Nick Allen had sounded extremely dissatisfied.

Maybe his conflict with Kevin had already started.

That was why I'd tested the waters.

But apparently, nothing had happened yet.

"I know how amazing the singers and groups at Universe are, but all the judges have already been decided... And you don't have any America activities yet..."

If there was no conflict with Nick Allen yet, of course he'd refuse.

There was no point pressing him now.

He wasn't going to change his mind.

Still, this wasn't a wasted trip.

Just like I'd done with Tak Hyun-mo when Turb fell apart, simply leaving my business card could be useful later.

"Then if a judge's seat becomes empty, can you put my person there?"

"Of course. Really. I'm not saying that just because there's no chance of it happening right now. I really would. I'm serious. You believe me? If there's a seat, of course."

Good.

I hoped he meant it.

"How about this instead? Not a judge. Um... competitors. Come in as competitors. Blue Moon, Heenari, and the powerful brand-new Dessault. One representative from each comes out and takes America by storm. Doesn't your heart race just thinking about it?"

Did he think I'd fall for that?

Now he wanted me to throw our girls back into a survival program and make them play clowns?

I politely declined.

"Just promise me one thing. I came to meet you because I want to recommend one person for a judge position. You said if a seat opens up, you'll put my candidate in. We're candidate number one."

"I promise."

"For example, if one of the judges has to leave because of some racism controversy."

At that, Kevin tilted his head, not understanding what I meant.

"Racism?"

"Yes. Racism. Remember that. Racism. If something happens, you have to call me!"

"America! We've come to devour all of you!"

Since there was no way the racism incident predicted by the spam wouldn't happen, I immediately summoned Moon Hee-jung and the Dessault members to New York.

I was waiting for them at the airport when Joo-won stepped out into the parking area and shouted that.

Her voice was so loud that nearby Americans immediately turned to look.

Joo-won didn't care and kept grinning.

Then she spotted me and hurriedly covered her mouth.

"Hey. So you girls are only timid around me?"

"Ah... no..."

When I'd called the Dessault members over, I'd framed it almost like a company benefit.

I would put Moon Hee-jung into the judge's seat, and New Dimension's second-song promotions would take place in America.

Anna would return to Korea after leaving behind a connection with Hailey.

Dessault would become the main piece I used to win the broadcasting station.

But I didn't have any confirmed schedule I could show them yet.

So I'd simply told them to come over for a while and enjoy sightseeing in America.

"Kids always go quiet when they visit a bigger house."

"Hahaha. Then according to your metaphor, does that make President Moon Hee-jung my daughter-in-law?"

"If we follow my metaphor, I suppose so."

We climbed into my black Starius, my black warhorse for conquering America.

Moon Hee-jung sat in the passenger seat.

The members sat in the back.

They had spent more than ten hours on a plane, yet all of them looked as fresh as if they'd just come out of a skincare clinic.

Youth really was the greatest asset.

Moon Hee-jung pulled various snacks from her bag and passed them into the back.

The members devoured everything she gave them like baby birds.

"We're about to eat. Is it okay to give them that much sweet stuff?"

I asked as I started the car.

Moon Hee-jung's eyes widened.

"What...? Are you worried they won't be able to eat later? Their metabolism is practically on the level of cattle."

"Ah, I see."

I remembered Teacher Song once saying that snacks didn't count as food.

To the Dessault members, I'd made it sound like a trip.

To Moon Hee-jung, I'd been honest.

Since we'd only recently been to Jeju, it would've been difficult to persuade success-hungry Moon Hee-jung with another simple vacation.

I told her there was no guaranteed opportunity, but if she waited in America, I thought something might open up.

And if it did, she could probably promote the new song here.

Moon Hee-jung readily accepted.

She said entering the American market had been one of her goals from the beginning.

If there was even a thirty-percent chance, she'd happily spend a month in America.

"By the way, where are we going?"

Min Ji-hee, who had finished eating everything, leaned her head between the driver's seat and passenger seat and asked Moon Hee-jung.

Moon Hee-jung answered.

"We're going to the hotel first. CEO Do Jun-hyeok booked one for us while we're in America. Apparently it's a really nice place."

"Oh, really? Th-tha..."

Min Ji-hee lowered her voice as though trying to thank me.

But apparently she was embarrassed, because she couldn't get the words out.

"Hm? You're saying, 'How dare you put goddesses who hit number one on the charts in a mere hotel'?"

"No! That's not it! I was trying to say thank you. Thank you!"

Usually, teasing someone properly required effort.

But these girls reacted so well even when I barely tried that it was hard to keep my mouth shut.

I should try this on the Blue Moon members later.

Serin was surprisingly good at tanking teasing, so I'd probably be the one who got tired first.

Youngchae, though...

She might be surprisingly fun to tease.

For now, I calmed down and decided to have an honest conversation with Moon Hee-jung.

"Honestly, I was worried you might refuse since I called you all the way to America over something uncertain. Thanks for trusting me enough to come."

"Hm? Did I seem like I would refuse?"

"Of course. When we first signed our contract, you practically told me to go away because you hated interference."

I exaggerated a little.

Moon Hee-jung giggled.

"Phew. That's true. Honestly, I'm not sure anymore. Back then, I had nothing to lose. Now that I have things I can lose, I find myself wanting something more comfortable. These girls secretly give me plenty of headaches too, but they're like daughters to me."

"Uh... It's obviously fine to seek stability, but don't suddenly announce you're getting married at an important moment and abandon the members."

"Ah, I'm seriously not getting married. Marriage really doesn't seem like it's for me. If I get lonely someday, I'll earn a lot of money and use a matchmaking service or something."

I'd spent most of my life rushing forward for business.

Still, I understood Moon Hee-jung's feelings completely.

Honestly, my own dream was to spend a small, peaceful, happy life with Blue Moon.

Just as I'd told Jin-hee not to become too stable, maybe I needed to become a little more stable than I was now.

I'd made similar resolutions several times before.

My personality had prevented me from actually following through.

This time, though, I felt strangely confident.

Once I returned to Korea, I'd reduce the schedules a little and let the members spend more time together.

Maybe watching someone else's happy little family in a foreign country was making me lonely without realizing it.

The Dessault members whispered among themselves in the back.

"Whoa, look. McDonald's! Real American McDonald's!"

"It really is..."

We hadn't even reached the hotel yet, and apparently they were already hungry.

"Are you girls hungry? Want to eat before we go to the hotel?"

I asked.

The members exchanged glances among themselves, reached an agreement without speaking, then nodded.

"I went to a pizza place around here last time, and it was really good."

"I love pizza!"

"All right. Let's go there."

We happened to be passing nearby.

We turned the corner and entered the parking lot.

"Real American pizza. Real American pizza."

"Is America even the homeland of pizza?"

"Isn't it?"

The members got out of the car while having a completely useless conversation.

"All right, everyone move together. We're going to eat pizza. Joo-won, you stay here and keep devouring America. Got it?"

"Aaaagh...!"

This really was fun.

Who should I tease next?