So, the next one came up after that break to the stage,

“Hello, who are you?”

“Hello everyone, we’re NeonGlow~” it was a girl group.

“What do you have for us today?”

“We’re going to show you our cute dancing and captive voice.” They kept acting all dolly and femininely.

“Let’s see it…”

They were in one word a ‘MESS’!

I signed with my hand for the PD to stop the music.

Everyone was shocked.

It was planned that I will be the one to give the evaluation from now on.

“For how many years have you been dancing and singing you all?”

“Since elementary school, so 9 years or more.”

They were getting teary and emotional.

“Hmm,”

“Why? Is there something wrong?” one of them asked.

“No, just I was thinking of the years that you wasted like that.”

“W-What?”

Taeyeon shook my hand underneath the table to stop me.

“You weren’t really singing or dancing little girls.” I told them bluntly, “You were just following and imitating the other singers but in a bad version.”

They all started to tear up.

“Why I’m saying this in a harsh way? Because I’m frustrated that you lost all these years away from your hands over nothing useful.” I said, “If you have entered an official academy that would turn you into a professional artists it would’ve have been better.” I looked straightly at them, “Did you expected me to say that?” I chuckled, “No, what you all need it to find your true self, the real you, find the soul inside you and see what does it wants to be. A singer? A Makeup artist? An Actress? A Doctor?”

They calmed down then, “Have you ever asked yourself that question? I bet no one of you did, since you all thought that being an idol is predetermined for you all, it’s your destiny that your childhood locked you all in. it’s what you want to do to stay friends forever. Isn’t that right?”

They nodded.

“Now, don’t think that all these artists over here are better than you, so you just have to follow their way of singing or dancing. Go home after this recording, and look at the sky and ask yourself this ‘What should I be? What do I like? What I’m good at?’ ask your parents, your friends, but at the end, no one knows you better than your own self.” I smiled at them, “You still have time, you’re still young, your lives didn’t end here, it’d started from this point on.” And then I put my mic down.

Everyone started applauding suddenly, including them.

Taeyeon took the mic and said, “I’m sorry little girls for hearing such a harsh things, but Kwon Jiyong-ssi said them all just for your own benefit, you know that, right?”

They nodded, “Thank you PD-nim, we will keep that in mind.”

“Let us meet in the future.” I told them at the end before they left.

“Woah…!” Heechul reacted, “No wonder you were quiet all along.”

“Should I continue on? Or you would save people by letting me muted over here?”

“No, continue on. Since we can’t say such harsh words, we will dump them to you all.” He said.

I laughed in disbelief.

Then untalented participants kept coming one after the other.

There was a girl that was singing as if she is fighting with someone.

I stopped the music again, “Why did you stopped it?”

“Why don’t you tell me the reason instead?”

“Because I’m not like the other artists? Because I can’t sing high notes?”

“Hmm, so that is your way of thinking.” I looked at her, “I won’t give my vote.” I said and brought my mic down.

While the others were giving their votes, she looked up and asked bravely, “Why? I won’t go until I hear your reason of disapproving me.”

“You want to hear it?” I asked her seriously.

She nodded.

“Then don’t get offended and hear it till the end.” I took a deep breath, “Well first, you’re just angry and filled with negativity, second, you think that you’re talented and we’re all useless in front of you,”

“W-Wait! What?”

“You’re waiting from me to compare you to other artist, right?”

She looked guilty.

“You’re waiting for me to say, ‘You can’t sing as Taeyeon can’, isn’t that right?” I said brutally, “Well that is right, since what this women went through, maybe none of the participants that came here went through.” She gave me a wronged person look, “You have a phone, right? You can access music easily, right? Well, it wasn’t like that back in days, all these artists that you see right now couldn’t just practice easily as you all can do now, they couldn’t scratch a new independent path for themselves if they couldn’t make it on auditions on YouTube channels or SNS sites.”

“Woah, don’t even mention it, it was hell back in days.”

“You should be thankful for the days that you’re living at the moment, at least you didn’t have to travel all the way from Jeonju to Seoul to train for couple of hours and travel back again to home.” I leaned forward at the table, “Did you get now why these people succeed?” she bowed her head, “Because she didn’t give up, and kept sacrificing for her dream from time, efforts and enduring hardships.” I smiled and looked at her, “Look at where she is now, or where is Wendy-ssi is now at, she came all the way from Toronto to chase her dream and become an artist that people look up to.”

“Oh~ what a touching words!”

“Really, no body reached this position without sacrificing.”