Right after the broadcast, OnMusicNet’s YouTube channel kept uploading the team-by-team videos for <My Idol Stars>. The purpose was partly for voting and for applying to be part of the live studio audience, but most of all, it was for promotion. After the first episode aired, the response was hotter than expected.
Considering the show started with nothing but the “OnMusicNet” title and emotional marketing about poor trainees from small agencies—with no disclosed information about the participants—it was a very good start. And naturally, at the foundation of that interest were the trainees from Team 7, YC Entertainment.
Although their individual stage names were not disclosed, that was virtually meaningless. As soon as the show aired, people who knew the participants through various channels started appearing everywhere, and the comment sections were already filled with posts calling out their names.
Some recognized them from the TEAM ONE videos on YC Entertainment’s channel (which have since been taken down), and in Sol’s case, he had the label of “that guy” from Eun-gyeom’s music video, so word spread quickly. As for Tae-oh, Ga-ram, and Ji-ho, even though their past activities were from a while ago, they played a role in bringing back some of their former fans.
Eun-gyeom, sprawled out on the sofa, stretched his stiff body from the long shoot and took out his phone. Crossing his legs and wiggling his toes, he reflected on his chat with Sol. Luka, who was on a break, asked Eun-gyeom what he was doing, but without answering, Eun-gyeom held up his phone and checked the comments on the <My Idol Stars> first-stage performance video.
Yoon Taeng • 5 hours ago
Yoon Tae-oh and Sung Sol are seriously amazing… They’re born celebrities.
m • 5 hours ago
Kang Ga-ram and Yoon Tae-oh, please debut together.
That Damn Plain Field • 5 hours ago
In the 4th gen, the main vocal is important, so why hasn’t Ga-ram debuted yet? I don’t get it.
Annisa Dewi • 5 hours ago
The silver-haired man is so beautiful. PLZ NAME.
SungSolDebut • 4 hours ago
Search “Team ONE” on YouTube for Sung Sol, YC’s debut group.
ENFJ • 4 hours ago
So that’s the guy from Eun-gyeom’s music video. He’s seriously gorgeous.
GiveMeAHug • 4 hours ago
Honestly, YC's next lineup visuals are insane, and their vocals are solid too—there's nothing missing, so why on earth haven’t they debuted yet?
Kuromi • 4 hours ago
But why does he keep making that face at 01:02, 01:23, 02:08, 02:45, 03:01?
Maaseu Jinsimnyeo • 4 hours ago
Amid all that, the face he makes at 03:01 is so cute tooㅠㅠㅠㅠ Is this what they call a ‘millennium-idol’ kind of thing?
Eun-gyeom, wearing a faint smile, scrolled through the comments, but his expression soured when a particular comment caught his eye. He revisited the contents of his past chat with Sol. Since asking why Sol had made that face or if he was feeling unwell, Sol hadn’t given any real reply.
The first broadcast. Their own stage. Eun-gyeom reflected on how he had felt during his own first performance. He had spent that day solemn and tense, like waiting for exam results. Sol was probably different. Lately, Sol had seemed noticeably closer to the other members. So much so that Eun-gyeom felt there was no room for him to step in. If there was any consolation, it was that Sol at least kept in touch via messages—though even that was often cut short whenever filming or schedules with his own members came up.
Sol’s actions, which clearly showed his priorities, left Eun-gyeom unsettled. His judgment felt twisted, but he couldn’t let it show. After all, he had eyes and ears too—he couldn’t whine and demand attention or time from someone participating in a time-pressed survival program. They weren’t even on the same team, and with his own activities, Eun-gyeom didn’t have much time to spend with Sol anyway. All he could do was hold onto his phone and wait for Sol to reach out.
Eun-gyeom tossed his phone onto the sofa. Luka, who had been watching Eun-gyeom’s mood closely during their first shoot together in a while, quickly picked up the discarded phone.
“What are you looking at? You’ve been glued to your phone lately, but it’s hard to get a hold of you.”
“Don’t just grab it. Give it back.”
Eun-gyeom roughly snatched the phone from his hand. Luka, whose hand was slapped with a loud smack, frowned. The blabbermouth Luka never gained anything from prying. He was the type to do anything for a bit of attention from fans and then brush it off as a mistake. He had a history of already trying to bring up Sol in DMs with international fans. Eun-gyeom was painfully familiar with his antics, but he reacted especially sensitively, worried Luka might do something to make Sol uncomfortable.
Eun-gyeom stared at his phone, which still hadn’t received the message he was waiting for, only buzzing with notifications from others or social media alerts. Jealousy was ugly. He didn’t want to show himself acting desperate. Suppressing his frustration, Eun-gyeom opened social media. He hadn’t even looked up this much reaction when he himself had debuted. It wasn’t like him to be this fixated on someone else’s affairs, but still, he couldn’t stop himself from typing Sol’s name into the search bar.
It was a mere unfounded worry that the boy who once cried about having no friends might end up getting hurt even more. He found himself ridiculous for hovering around, wondering if there was any way to help. But as if to further capture Eun-gyeom's attention, the reactions on SNS were somewhat concerning. That was why Eun-gyeom couldn't hide his unease after watching the first episode.
There were simply too many close-up shots of Sol. It was obvious that Sol's appearance served as good bait to draw people in. However, whether Sol could skillfully handle that attention was another matter.
Even the reactions of the other participants, inserted in between, were subtle. They would compliment Sol on his looks, but that was it. While some were probably being cautious to manage their image, a few thoughtless participants made remarks with subtle nuances to position themselves as the underdogs.
Even at that moment, Sol's expression on screen was mostly blank. It got better once he actually got on stage and started moving, but during interview scenes or brief introductions, he showed no particular expression throughout. Sol, who already had a delicate and cool-looking face, came across as even colder when he gave short, monosyllabic answers.
He was actually someone with a gentle personality who laughed easily at silly things, but based on the limited image shown on the broadcast, he seemed cold. There was a slight hint of madness in his clear eyes, but he probably would have looked somewhat better if he'd been with Tae-oh, who had a calm and sincere image. Unfortunately, he was often shown with Ji-ho, who was always smiling brightly and acting overly polite, making the contrast even starker.
Gaksam @gag3
No, but why is only Team 7 showing when they're standing like this? Relative squid game Louvre, whyyyㅠㅠ Just show Sung Sol's face, that's all we needㅠㅠㅠ
(Image of Sung Sol greeting other participants under bright lighting)
Haemul Jjigae @So_Delicious
Even his face scrunching is like a thousand-year-old stone, that japchae.
#SungSol #MyIdolStars
(Photo of him scrunching his face on stage)
My Idol Stars fan Yul @Yulllilliliiliil_03
#MyIdolStars_FanIntro
I like Sung Sol, Kang Ga-ram, Kim Gun-wook, and Liu Wei ♡
If even one pick overlaps, please leave a trace ₍ᐢ. ̫.ᐢ₎♡
Maaseu Vote Team 5 @CheerUP5
Am I the only one who finds this uncomfortable? Isn't it obviously YC favoritism no matter how you look at it?
Myeongsoda @MH_SODA
The more I think about it, the more pissed off I get. Our boys prepared so hard and finally got an opportunity, but if this is how it's going to be, don't talk like you're rescuing failing agencies. And then shoving YC in our faces—it's so annoying.
Whyeon @WWWah0225
Why do you keep making that face? What are you complaining about, lololololol
Kkyuk @gly5Xj68iclVqL7XiY
Why does his expression look like that?
Sayagsoolsoo @sayagsoolsoo
That retweet is ridiculous, lolololololololololol. Favoritism my ass.
Eun-gyeom's face was full of irritation. Around the time of the broadcast, the posts had been mostly positive. The overwhelming majority praised the outstanding visuals and tall stature—things like that—but as time went on, the content of the posts became increasingly displeasing.
He had done too well in the first group introduction stage. Of course, the opposing team's performance had also had its slip-ups, but compared to the other contestants who had joined at the very end, he came from a relatively powerful agency, had flashy looks, and possessed all the qualities that wouldn't seem out of place even if he debuted right away—all of which earned him hostility. There are always those who view everything negatively no matter where you go.
Among the comments, there was a tendency to slightly devolve into baseless speculation and slander toward Sol. The reactions weren't yet at a level requiring action, but they were more than enough to make Sol—who must have been expecting a good response after the first broadcast—want to crawl into a hole.
Was he feeling upset and angry about these reactions along with the other members? Eun-gyeom was curious. He wanted to have him right in front of him and see for himself.
"Oh, hey. That's the guy from your music video. Seems like you've been looking out for him a lot lately, huh? You were like that when we had a meal last time too."
Luka, who had been sneakily glancing at Eun-gyeom's phone screen, remarked knowingly. I hated that a guy like Luka was showing interest. Eun-gyeom was about to turn off the screen with an indifferent expression when a sudden thought made him look at Luka. He had already mentioned Sol on SNS before. Rather, he thought that mentioning him too often might come across as showing off their connection.
“Hey. Post something on Instagram.”
“You told me not to use Instagram.”
“When I tell you not to, you don’t. When I tell you to, just shut up and do it.”
Eun-gyeom’s face hardened as he spoke sharply. He looked so stern and overbearing that it was hard to believe he was the same person who usually wore a gentle, doleful smile like a big, soft-hearted large-breed dog. Luka, seeming used to this side of Eun-gyeom, merely twitched his lips and pulled out his phone.
“Fine…. What should I write?”
“Something about how our company’s juniors are nice and working hard. You like posting things like that anyway.”
“So something along the lines of ‘check these guys out’ will work, right?”
“Yeah.”
As soon as Eun-gyeom gave the order, Luka skillfully uploaded a post praising Sol’s team along with a screenshot from the broadcast. Even though he had never actually watched the show Sol was on, the post was written as if he was sincerely cheering for close juniors. Typical of someone glued to social media all day.
“Is he your relative? You don’t look alike…. Or did one of them get something on you?”
Luka, his curiosity unresolved, threw a question at Eun-gyeom, but Eun-gyeom didn’t even bother to answer. As if being ignored was nothing new, Eun-gyeom rested his chin on his hand, fiddling with his phone without so much as a glance at the prying Luka.
