I don’t know how fandom names are usually decided. The only idol I know is Spark.
Still, I clearly remember how Spark’s fandom name was set.
It was during the live where they recruited the first fan club and revealed the light stick... if I’m remembering right.
While I was digging through my memory, Yoo Hansu passionately insisted on how important it was for Spark, their stage names, and the fandom to form a single, unified relationship.
Summed up in one line, he wanted to name the fan club “Only One.”
“As the single presence that supports the group Spark and makes Spark a singular being...”
Sure, sure. “Only One” is nice.
It’s unique. A Korean-language fandom name is pretty.
If you put it with Spark, you can even call them “the only flame,” which isn’t bad.
So what. He’s so obsessed with the concept that it just feels like we’re being eaten alive by it now.
I also hated that he forced the first syllable to match his own surname, “Yoo.”
It was like slapping on layer after layer of efforts to leave his footprint somehow. Is this your personal fandom or what.
I could already picture the reaction when the fandom name dropped.
≫ Enough already, seriously
Know when to stop beating a dead horse
≫ Pushing that “we are one” worldbuilding nonstop while gritting your teeth and releasing 12 photocards? Cringe, you f***ers
└ Big like
≫ Changed my Bubble Pop nickname to OnlyOne ATM and came back
└ The moment I changed it, got a message from PassionateSupporter
(OnlyOne ATM, are you very busy right now?)
I thought they were asking for a loan...
└ lololololololol
└ New type of smishing lol
└ Leaking paid messages is prohibited. Please take this down
Lore and relationships and all that are fine.
But at the very least, shouldn’t a fandom name focus a bit more on the bond with the idol?
“If we emphasize that fans are an indispensable element in Spark’s steps forward, won’t that make the fandom even stronger? That’s what I think.”
Not shoehorn it into a one-body worldbuilding like that.
The conference room went quiet after his long speech.
That familiar air when a business is headed for a dead end. It felt calming and uncomfortable at the same time.
Separate from the tightly shut mouths, the Planning Team’s hands were busy.
Looked like they were desperately brainstorming to decide on a different fandom name somehow.
Normally I would also rack my brain and try to come up with something, but this time I didn’t have to.
Because the existing fandom name “Sparkler” had been coined not by the company, but by Spark themselves.
Meaning even if we said nothing, the kids would speak up on their own.
The group name had ended up “Spark” again, so the fandom name wouldn’t be much different.
Sure enough, after tossing around ideas, the staff looked over at us and asked:
“What do you guys think?”
Voicing an opposing opinion in front of the person who brought the proposal (rank: high) is a crime against heaven, but what can you do. If you don’t want to be the only flame of the idol market, you need to speak up.
I pretended to ponder seriously while watching the kids’ reactions. The moment ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) “Sparkler” came up, I was ready to clap like it was a stroke of genius.
So I thought, “Think, you punks! Then say Sparkler fast and end this meeting!”
Something was off.
Time kept slipping by, and yet their mouths didn’t move.
“PD. Since a fandom name is one you use with the group for a long time, maybe we should take our time and think it over...”
Sensing that the idols themselves were flustered, the Planning Team lead stepped in. But Yoo Hansu was adamant.
“No. I think spending too much time on things like this is actually a waste of resources. If we want to use limited manpower efficiently, we need to remove unnecessary tasks.”
You call a fandom name “things like this” when you say you’re doing the idol business? Do you have a brain?
And if you wanted to reduce unnecessary tasks from the start, you could’ve brought several name options.
If the one option gets dropped, you need to come up with another, then hold another meeting on whether to pass that. My chest felt tight.
“Well, he probably never considered his proposal might get rejected.”
You could tell just from that brazen face and attitude.
That guy firmly believes his idea will be chosen. That’s why he keeps running his mouth without pause.
I don’t know how a person can be that shameless. At this point I suspect he planted a mole in the company.
Meanwhile, our side was still nothing but silence.
By now someone should have said something...
“What is this. Why is no one giving an opinion?”
For a second I wondered if those past interviews—where they said they themselves had coined “Sparkler” after much thought—had all been lies.
And then I realized.
+
This too was the system’s influence.
Say the Spark brats needed about a week to think up a fandom name.
By radically rearranging the debut timeline, I caused this character, Yoo Hansu, to suddenly barge in, and the things that should have progressed in the meantime got pulled forward, wiping out the kids’ time to think.
On top of that, I endangered Yoo Hansu’s position and lit a fire under his drive.
In other words, I turned their already scarce time into ashes.
“F***, so they really had spent a lot of time thinking it over!”
I thought they’d come up with it in three minutes with a flash of wit and then said all that. Their sincerity almost brought tears to my eyes.
Whether the fandom name was Sparkler, Only One, or a third option—none of it was really my business.
It wasn’t, but...
“You know we exist because Sparkler exists, right?”
≫ They said they can shine because we exist
Why are our babies’ words so pretty...
└ That’s why I love Sparkler so much ㅠㅠ I feel proud
≫ Put nicely, it’s Spark–Sparkler
But aren’t they actually flame and firework?
Feels like a gunpowder company
Still strong and good tbh
└ Even better, actually
By happenstance, I’d learned some of the reactions from Spark fans, and they crept back into my mind.
“In the bottom right, please write ~the Sparkler who will always make you shine~! Thank you again!”
Even the email sent by Chief Nam’s daughter.
I swallowed the sigh that tried to come out and said:
“I remembered a name recently when we were talking group names with the members.”
Name-dropping the members so it wouldn’t become entirely my credit.
“How about... Sparkler?”
I’m just hitching a ride, so I’ll help you this much and no more, punks.
The meeting didn’t end satisfyingly, but it ended in the best possible way.
Stage names: on hold. Fandom name: use “Sparkler.”
Yoo Hansu glared at me like he wanted to kill me, but that’s not my problem.
Looking like he’d just shaved ten years off his life, Lee Cheonghyeon called to me quietly as we left the conference room together.
“Iwol.”
“What?”
“Couldn’t you just handle our activities exclusively? Like, plan them?”
“So don’t debut and switch to producer? Are you taking a jab at me right now?”
“That won’t do either... Couldn’t you do both?”
No. Would fans be happy if a withdrawn member was doing the producing?
And having a non-specialist gripping the producing reins wouldn’t do these punks any good either.
“My mom says society is meritocracy, you know? But these days I think that’s wrong.”
“It is meritocracy—but age sits on top of merit.”
“Ah-ha.”
He accepted it easily. I felt bitter, like I’d shown a high-schooler the bitterness of society too soon.
Maybe he heard us, because Jeong Seongbin, walking behind, said:
“Still, you might be able to help in other areas, so let’s not get too negative.”
The kind of clean phrasing I always emphasized—something anyone could overhear anywhere without causing problems.
But this time, we needed to go a bit extreme.
From where I stood, we had to push that man out.
There are people in this world who only increase the amount of work. It’s better to have no such manpower at all.
“I’ll... have a lot of talks with the PD.”
At my words, Jeong Seongbin and Lee Cheonghyeon looked at me.
They didn’t have to say it; I could read it in their eyes. It was a pitying look.
If I abruptly withdraw someday, I hope you’ll remember at least a bit of my effort.
While there were tasks where the company and Yoo Hansu were butting heads, there were also tasks that progressed smoothly.
Recording and MV filming, whose plans were already set, were like that.
This must be why the Planning Team battles day and night. You have my sincere respect.
Of those, recording moved like lightning.
It would’ve been cool if everyone miraculously finished in a single take with no NGs...
Not that much, but everyone did their part admirably.
Even though Jeong Seongbin and Park Juu got OKs in one go, they still tried a few more takes. A great attitude.
I can’t tell you how relieved I am that “everyone” included me.
It was heaven’s blessing that I didn’t end up trapped in the booth all night alone.
And then came the moment the track was done.
Spark’s first MV shoot!
My condition was perfect.
Thanks to being closely marked by Jeong Seongbin to take care of my dark circles, I’d slept eight hours a day these past few days.
Under equally strict watch, the very excited Lee Cheonghyeon said:
“Iwol, this is my first time wearing makeup this heavy! How is it? Too much?”
“Once the lights hit, it all blows out. And your face could take a tar coat and still be fine, so relax.”
“Whoa, I’m moved!”
“That doesn’t mean actually smear tar. Don’t put just anything on your face.”
“Of course. Skin trouble due to poor care is one of an idol’s seven deadly sins...”
His eyes suddenly went hollow and he drifted off. The kid’s memorization really is top-tier.
But now wasn’t the time to worry about his makeup.
That’s the most important thing, yes, but I’m not worried about his makeup—our staff poured their souls into it...
The real problem was elsewhere.
On my face.
