Chapter 1207: Soaring (7)

The presenter’s lips moved as though in slow motion.

Why did such a brief moment feel like an eternity?

Cold sweat streamed down the back of my neck, and beads of perspiration formed across my nose.

I tried desperately to smile, but the muscles in my face had gone so rigid that they refused to move.

“Dear God….”

Cold was muttering something with one hand resting on the cross around his neck.

“Oh, please.”

“Please. Let it be our brother….”

The others were also clutching one another’s hands tightly, praying with all their might for my name to be called.

I prayed just as fervently.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

My heartbeat pounded violently against my eardrums, and just as I began to think I might be the first one to faint and collapse—

The presenter smiled and brought the microphone to her lips.

“Cold Brown and Wooju.”

At that moment—

All the tension drained from my body, and everything around me snapped back to normal speed.

“……!”

Cold shot to his feet with both hands pressed over his mouth.

As though he couldn’t believe what had just happened.

The king of hip-hop stared blankly with one hand on the back of his head, then widened his eyes at the singers around us rising to their feet and applauding.

“Oh, Sunny! Sunny!”

The singer, reeking strongly of sweat, pulled me into a fierce embrace.

As Cold hugged me and shouted, “You lovable bastard!” I soon burst out laughing too.

“Bro!”

“Broooo!!”

Next came the others.

The people around us laughed and applauded as the members surrounded me and pounded me on the back.

Jiho threw both arms wide and bellowed,

“My brother won Grammy!!!”

The Americans burst out laughing.

Ri Hyuk shook his head with a helpless expression, Biju wiped away his tears, and Junghyun hugged me.

Cold came over to me.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

After straightening our clothes, we walked toward the stage.

As we went, we exchanged endless smiles with the people who reached out to shake our hands, lightly patted us on the back, or applauded.

“You bastards! I knew you’d do it!”

I smiled back at Hailey, who looked as delighted as though she had won the award herself, and climbed onto the stage.

And we weren’t the only ones going up.

The producers, engineers, arrangers, and everyone else who had worked on Answer joined us.

“……This is insane.”

I laughed at Team Leader Na Sangyoon, who followed behind us looking as though he might faint, then stepped onto the stairs.

Once I reached the stage, the entire ceremony hall came into view.

The celebrities standing at their tables and applauding.

The Souffles roaring like lions.

The smiling audience.

“Wooju, I’m so nervous I could die.”

As Team Leader Na Sangyoon whispered behind me with a tightly strained expression, everyone who had participated in Answer stood together with their hands clasped.

“Congratulations.”

The elegant presenter in a gown held out a trophy to each of us.

A golden gramophone gleamed atop its black base.

“…….”

As Cold accepted the trophy with a slightly dazed expression, I saw the gold lettering engraved on the base.

National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences

Cold Brown & Wooju

Record of the Year 2019

Only then did goosebumps spread across my entire body, and it finally began to feel real.

I…

I had really won a Grammy.

And not just any Grammy, but Record of the Year.

I was holding the trophy every singer here dreamed of winning at least once in their lifetime.

“Uh…….”

What was I supposed to say?

Even though I had prepared and organized everything I wanted to say beforehand, my thoughts were now a tangled mess.

I was about to let Cold speak first and follow afterward when—

“Sniff….”

“?”

“Sniff, sniff… Ughhh…….”

Everyone burst into laughter at the sight of Cold hugging the trophy and sobbing like a child.

Smiling, I stepped up to the microphone.

“I suppose I should go first.”

At the same time.

Cheers were erupting all across Korea.

Like the roar after a goal in the World Cup finals, echoes of “Waaaaah!” seemed to ring out from every direction.

Waaaaaaaah—

A housewife vacuuming in the morning tilted her head at the sound reverberating through her apartment building.

Wooooaaaaaaah—

A college student listening to music through wireless earbuds on the subway blinked at the small exclamations coming from the people around him.

Waaaaah—

Someone passing in front of a restaurant wondered what was going on.

Soon, bold headlines marked [Breaking News] appeared on people’s phones.

-[Breaking News] NewBlack’s Wooju Wins Grammy for Record of the Year

Holy shit.

No way….

Is this real?

As people stared wide-eyed and searched for the live-streaming link, the Koreans who had already seen the winning moment were in an uproar.

“Waaaaah! He won!”

“Yes!!! He did it!!”

“Wow… He really won a Grammy.”

People clapped as though their team had just scored in an important match, breaking into delighted laughter.

-This is insane??????????

-Wow, seriously???????? What is happening?

-I was freaking terrified that he’d lost his chance after missing Song of the Year?????? I’m so glad. Seriously, this is amazing

-HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT

-Congratulations on Record of the Year~~~~~

-Phew

The joy was immense, but the relief was even greater.

Only the people who watched this live would understand.

Those watching the ceremony in real time had been badly shaken during the Song of the Year presentation.

The music critics and experts commentating on the Grammys had all said the same thing.

“There are many formidable nominees, but from a songwriting perspective, Answer has a very strong chance of winning. Wooju’s compositional skill in fusing different genres into one song, combined with the lyrics of a top-class rapper like Cold Brown, makes it an exceptional contender.”

“From an expert’s perspective, I consider it an almost perfect song. In particular, it is exactly the sort of song the Grammys tend to favor.”

Of course, another expert had offered a different opinion.

“However, it would be difficult to say its chances of winning are one hundred percent. Considering the Grammys’ established tendencies, I don’t believe they will readily hand an award to nonwhite artists.”

“I see.”

“This may be a somewhat pessimistic view, but the key question is whether the Grammys will truly open their doors to a hip-hop artist and a K-pop star.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than Song of the Year went to Regina.

“Song of the Year has gone to Regina.”

“Yes…….”

“I see…. It truly is a wonderful song.”

As the commentators abruptly became more reserved and tried to conceal their disappointment, the viewers grew increasingly anxious.

Are these bastards seriously not going to give it to them?

Everyone had considered them strong favorites, but they suddenly realized that there had never been any guarantee they would win.

It wasn’t as though the award had been reserved for them.

Still, with one of their two nominated categories already lost, no one could help feeling their heart race.

Fortunately, Wooju had won after all.

“Wow…….”

Koreans watched in awe as Wooju walked onto the stage.

Even then, articles continued appearing one after another.

-NewBlack’s Wooju Becomes First Korean Singer to Win a Grammy (First Report)

-Seon Myeongju and Sun Wooju, Father and Son, Achieve Historic “Grammy Wins”

-[In Focus] Wooju Wins Grammy’s “Highest Honor” Record of the Year… “His Shocking Sheer Fashion from the Past”

The father had received a Lifetime Achievement Award, and the son had now won one of the Grammys’ highest honors.

The first Korean….

It all felt strangely unreal.

Koreans hadn’t known much about the Grammys in the past, but recently they had begun to understand what kind of awards ceremony it was.

Unlike the Academy Awards, which considered itself the center of the global film industry yet still made some effort to recognize foreign films, the Grammys were far more conservative and exclusionary.

And there, NewBlack’s leader had proudly won an award as a singer, producer, and composer.

“This is a deeply moving moment.”

“After the father, the award has now gone to the son.”

“He is the first Korean singer to win.”

As Wooju, dressed in a suit, climbed onto the stage, Koreans blinked.

“Hm?”

“Who’s that guy?”

A distinctive face stood out among the people following Wooju and Cold Brown onto the stage.

A Korean man in a tuxedo was conspicuous among the Americans.

“I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere.”

“Isn’t he NewBlack’s Hwang Hui? The guy from Mr. Producer!”

“Oh? Is that him?”

“His name was Na… Na something.”

As more and more people began to recognize his face, the commentators explained.

“That is Lemon Entertainment producer Na Sangyoon. His name has also been included among the recipients of Record of the Year.”

The Koreans looked envious.

“I’m jealous.”

“They say you can follow a friend to Gangnam, but this guy followed one all the way to the Grammys.”

“He’ll be bragging about that for the rest of his life.”

They weren’t jealous of Wooju, but they were jealous of Team Leader Na Sangyoon’s lot in life.

Wasn’t this what it meant to live as the tail of a dragon?

They had no confidence in working themselves to the bone like Wooju, but they were confident they could latch onto someone like him and work hard alongside him.

“He looks completely stunned.”

Everyone laughed at Team Leader Na Sangyoon, whose bewilderment seemed even greater than his joy.

Wooju had strode forward with such confidence and vigor that they had forgotten, but this was the normal reaction for an ordinary person.

His face seemed to say, Why am I here…?

And then….

“Sniff, sniff…….”

Everyone laughed sympathetically at the man sobbing his eyes out on television.

After learning more about the Grammys this time, Koreans had also come to understand Cold Brown’s circumstances.

Those bastards.

It was an awards ceremony that had denied him a trophy for more than a decade simply because he was Black and performed hip-hop.

Apparently, even while other rappers received awards like Best Rap Album, Cold Brown had never been given so much as a crumb.

That was why Americans mocked him with memes about his obsession with the Grammys, but Koreans could understand exactly how he felt.

“He must be so happy.”

“I heard winning one was his lifelong dream.”

“Good for him too.”

The Koreans looked at him with warm affection.

After all, his contribution had also been crucial to Wooju winning a Grammy.

Cold Brown could not have made a Grammy-winning track without Wooju, but by the same token, Wooju could not have won a Grammy alone.

A variety of factors had contributed.

The song’s commercial success and its relevance to current social issues.

After Cold Brown and other Black rappers boycotted the Grammys the previous year over racial discrimination, Wooju had made Sound of the Sun a success, helping create public sentiment that musicians who had long been marginalized deserved proper recognition.

That was how they had come to win one of the Grammys’ highest honors.

This is wonderful.

As everyone watched with satisfaction—

“Oh, he’s about to give his acceptance speech.”

“Shh. Be quiet.”

Holding the Grammy trophy, Wooju stepped toward the microphone.

Everyone’s eyes gleamed as they listened closely, eager to hear what the first Korean Grammy-winning singer would say.

Thank goodness I had prepared my acceptance speech in advance.

Otherwise, I would have stood here with my mind completely blank and babbled whatever came to me.

“Thank you, Grammy.”

First, it was time to speak about the meaning of the award we had received.

“It is truly meaningful that Answer, a song created through the efforts of Cold, myself, and countless others, has received Record of the Year.”

Record of the Year was awarded based not only on the singers’ performances, but also on the combined merits of the songwriting, composition, arrangement, mixing, production, and more.

I turned around and met each person’s eyes in turn.

“Sangyoon, Jared, Nellie… It is a tremendous honor to win this award alongside the very best people in the industry.”

As everyone smiled and nodded, Team Leader Na Sangyoon burst into tears with a loud wail.

I couldn’t help laughing.

“And I would like to thank every listener who loved this song. It is because of your love that we were able to win a Grammy.”

There were so many people I needed to thank.

The Souffles, CEO Park Gyuho, Director Jo Gyuhwan, Seokhwan, Deputy Manager Hong Seoyoung, and many more.

Had there been enough time, I would have liked to name each and every one of them, but because our speech was limited, I offered my thanks on behalf of them all.

“To everyone who made this song possible, and to my father and mother, whose song Question inspired me before Answer ever existed, I dedicate the honor of this award.”

Applause broke out throughout the hall at the mention of my parents.

Then I turned my head.

Have you calmed down a little?

Yeah.

I stepped aside to give Cold the microphone.

Cold stood before it and spoke in a voice thick with tears.

“My God. A Grammy.”

Everyone who knew what he had endured smiled faintly and applauded.

“It took a very long time. The trophy I have waited nearly twenty years for is finally in my arms. I imagine many people are wondering how I feel right now. Was a Grammy trophy truly worth that much? To those people, I can now answer with confidence.”

Cold raised the trophy and beamed.

“Yes. It was absolutely worth that much.”

His smile was so wide that it showed not only his brilliant white teeth but even his gums, and everyone cheered and applauded.

Cold’s hip-hop crew, wearing sunglasses, threw out swaggering hand gestures and shouted, “Cold!”

“Just as Sunny said, there are so many people we need to thank.”

After calling out each member of the team who had worked on Answer and praising their efforts, Cold looked at me.

“And Sunny, thank you so much.”

His tear-filled eyes sparkled with gratitude.

“I was able to receive this award because of you. You are my friend, my colleague, and the best man I know. I’d like to say something more, but I can’t think of the right rhyme. You’re one seriously badass sun.”

I smiled and nodded.

Thank you too, Cold.

Cold smiled back before continuing.

“And lastly, I would like to thank myself. Yo, Phineas. You worked your ass off, you bastard.”

He lightly kissed the trophy as though presenting the award to himself, drawing another wave of cheers.

After finishing his speech, Cold glanced at me.

His expression seemed to ask whether there was anything I wanted to add before we wrapped up.

I leaned toward the microphone.

“Lastly, I dedicate this award to the Souffles cheering passionately from all over the world, to everyone watching me from Korea, to my beloved Mrs. Kim Deoksun, and to my beloved brothers.”

At the words my beloved brothers, my minions burst into laughter.

“Hehehehe!”

“You’re welcome, Brother Wooju!”

Their laughter was so loud that the entire hall erupted.

Our youngest probably accounted for ninety percent of the volume.

Smiling at them, I turned my gaze toward the camera.

“And there is one more thing I would like to say.”

Whenever I gave an acceptance speech, I tended to prepare only about seventy percent of it.

Even after preparing everything, there might be something more I wanted to say once I arrived, and if I simply recited a memorized speech, my genuine emotions might not come through.

That was why I always decided my final words on the spot.

Of course, today, I had known what I wanted to say from the moment I stepped onto the stage.

It isn’t enough.

I had won one of the Grammys’ highest honors, an award every singer considered the pinnacle of a career, yet the thirst in my heart had not diminished in the slightest.

If anything, the desire within me now burned hotter than ever.

“I don’t know when it will be, but I will stand on this stage again.”

I met the eyes of the members looking up at me from below the stage and smiled.

“And when I return…….”

I smiled as I spoke.

“I will come back under a different name.”

Amid thunderous cheers and applause, I raised the trophy.

I would not stop.

Not until the darkest name of all shone brighter than anyone else.