*.☽ .* ┊ song jihoon meets select pr video , 052422 ! ( gif credit 🍓 )
↪ rapping to dandelion’s red flavor ( 1:57 - 2:13 ) , costume
the dance covers , the singing lessons , shoot , even some of the rap evaluations - there was always going to be another trainee that fell higher than him. as much as he hated to admit it , he simply wasn’t the best performer yet. but what he lacked in technical skill , he made up for in personality through charisma. so as jihoon comes into the view of the camera , adorning an overly dramatic strawberry costume , he’s not met with an ounce of nerves. all the other idol-like activities were accompanied with a wave of doubt and uncertainty of his skill. but if you just need jihoon to talk ? oh , he’ll talk.
ok , maybe he should’ve ordered his costume earlier. by the time he had it shipped to the dorm , it was too late to take it back , but it’s evident from his awkward hobbling to the center of the camera’s frame that it might be three one size too big. but he wears it with pride , the curly strands of his perm poking out from the hood of the costume. as he begins , he looks down the camera lenses with an amused smile , no stranger to the camera after dozens of home videos filmed by his mother earlier in his life. when he gets the cue , he starts to rap , performing a line recognized as dandelion’s debut song red flavor.
복숭아 주스 sweet and sour 믹스 mood
네게 주고픈 칵테일을 brew (RED)
귓속이 쨍 코가 맹
상상 그 이상 기분 Up and bang (RED)
bet you wanna, bet you wanna dance like this
외쳐 보자 좋아해요 솔직히
긴장해 땀이 뚝뚝 귀엽지
사랑에 빠져 그을려우린 RED RED ah
he takes a different approach from his usually more intense raps , as he feels he’ll have more time to show that side of himself with his real performances. this , instead , is his chance to appeal to the audience in the best way he knows how - his charm. as this was a video that would be shown to audiences , jihoon felt he had a better chance reeling them in through a light-hearted , humorous introduction to himself. it was more the real him anyways , and he feels they’ll have plenty of time to see the more manufactured version of him they create anyways.
the rap’s from his favorite girl group , so he doesn’t stutter over any of the lyrics , jumping from each line with a fun sort of ease. in fact he marks each beat with a little dance , not yet proud enough to avoid aegyo for the sake of fan appeal. although he’s having fun , he still takes the rap seriously , and while it’s in a slightly lower key than it’s original recording , he tries his best to do dandelion justice.
when he’s done , he re-centers himself , unable to hid the childish smile of pride on his face as he tries to catch his breath. damn , should’ve got a lighter costume , i’m sweating bullets under here. although he’s comfortable , it’s evident that he’s still new to the scene , adorning a sense of slight clumsiness and over-excitement in front of the cameras. a small bow towards the camera transitions him into his spoken intro , followed by jazz hands.
“ ta-da !! hi everyone ! i’m zm entertainment’s song jihoon , a twenty-one ( korean age ) year old from all the way down there at jeju island ! and i’m here to fill select with a bit of 빨-빨-빨간 맛 ( red flavor ) ! ” alongside reciting the infamous song lyric , he does the dance move , putting his hand to his mouth.
“ now , what’s red flavor ? it’s like a strawberry - ” he claims , patting the costume’s belly in unison with his words. “ it’s bright , refreshing , and full of unique flavor ! wow , that sounds a lot like that select contestant song jihoon , huh ? ” he asks the camera , trying to wink - although honestly , it’s a half blink at best - he’s never been taught to wink. after such a fail , he can’t help but let out a soft laugh at his own expense.
“ i brighten the audience’s day with my fun personality ! i’m a fresh new , hansome face on the scene who wants to become a star ! and of course, i’ve got that unique flavor in my raps to bring something new to the kpop industry ! ” all were statements even jihoon didn’t fully believe himself yet , but he says them with home that he one day will , and hope that his ambition overshadows any looming doubt he may have in himself.
“ i know i could be a great team member , so please , don’t forget about your daily dose of 빨-빨-빨간 맛 !! ” and with that , a finger heart and one last attempted wink marks the end of song jihoon’s first introduction to his new world.
