Chapter 29: A Poem Composed with You
After returning to Tokyo from the Shonan Coast, everyone resumed their respective routines. Hikaru Hoshino handed the completed songs for the album over to Xini Entertainment, and Takashi Kadomori arranged for professional arrangers to complete the track arrangements. To maximize efficiency, Kadomori divided the different tracks among various arrangers. Now that the demos were fully produced and Hikaru had practiced thoroughly in private, all that remained was the recording and distribution process.
Thus, he arrived at Xini Entertainment's recording studio.
Pushing open the heavy, soundproof door, a well-equipped professional recording studio materialized before Hikaru's eyes. Countless buttons and faders on the mixing console gleamed under warm ambient lighting, while top-tier microphones stood on display inside a glass isolation booth, infusing the entire space with the sacred aura of a grand musical hall.
Outside the tracking room, the professional production team was lined up in a neat row, and Takashi Kadomori began introducing them one by one.
"This is our veteran recording engineer, boasting over twenty years of industry experience. He has participated in the production of countless platinum records and has tracked signature pieces for multiple renowned artists." Kadomori pointed toward a middle-aged man wearing thick glasses, his eyes remarkably large. "He can accurately capture the nuances of every single note, ensuring the recording quality achieves flawless standards."
The engineer, whose eyes protruded remarkably like a goldfish, pushed up his glasses and nodded. "I'm the recording engineer."
Kadomori continued his introductions: "And this is our senior mixing engineer. He has won the Best Mixing Award at the Japan Record Awards and specializes in post-processing across all genres, capable of bringing every song to its absolute acoustic potential." He gestured toward a completely browless man whose bare forehead caught the glare of the ceiling lights. "He can make your vocals sound even more captivating."
The browless mix engineer offered a expressionless nod. "I'm the mixing engineer."
"Finally, this is our professional producer," Kadomori concluded, arriving next to a woman with highly prominent cheekbones. Her high, sweeping features gave her the sharp, piercing look of an eagle. "She has produced multiple million-selling albums, possesses sharp insights into the music market, and can accurately steer the stylistic direction and commercial viability of an album."
The sharp-featured producer nodded confidently. "I'm the album producer."
Gazing at this high-profile professional team, Hikaru didn't find himself particularly awe-struck.
Instead, he felt a slight wave of intimidation.
"Uh," Hikaru spoke up, formulating his words carefully. "It seems the company's staff all possess a great deal of individuality. That's excellent; I believe high-tier talent requires strong individuality."
Drawing a deep breath, he stepped into the tracking room, slipped on a pair of professional monitoring headphones, and prepared to record the very first song.
Because his previously released single *Dry Flower* had followed a poignant, lyrical ballad route, Hikaru had decided after careful deliberation to sustain this signature style, centering the theme of his debut album around sentimental ballads. He had meticulously handpicked a selection of emotionally charged, slow-tempo tracks–all of which were phenomenal J-POP hits from before his transmigration, having achieved stellar commercial success in his previous life.
Every single one was a classic ballad. Hikaru intended to rename his burner social media account to "Tokyo's Most Sentimental Soul" once the album officially hit the shelves.
Album Title: Kimi to Kanaderu Uta (A Poem Composed with You)
"Dry Flower" – Originally sung by Yuuri. A streaming phenomenon in Japan.
"Takane no Hanako-san" – One of back number's signature classic hits; the ultimate unrequited love anthem.
"Haiiro to Ao" – A collaboration track between Masaki Suda and Kenshi Yonezu, illustrating the profound depth of their friendship.
"Machigaisagashi" – One of Masaki Suda's definitive solo masterpieces, performed at the 2019 NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen.
"Neko" – A masterpiece by DISH// comparing a departed lover to a stray cat. Streaming figures surpassed 100 million, earning the Excellence Work Award at the Japan Record Awards.
"Leo" – Originally sung by Yuuri, written entirely from a dog's perspective.
"Niji" – A tender, heartwarming ballad by Masaki Suda.
"Betelgeuse" – Another defining masterpiece by Yuuri, boasting cumulative streaming figures exceeding 600 million plays.
"Kanade" – Originally sung by Sukima Switch and later adapted as an anime ED. A perennial chart-topper certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ).
"Christmas Song" – back number's biggest smash hit, certified Million for digital distributions by the RIAJ; the quintessential Christmas anthem.
"Happy End" – One of back number's immensely popular representative tracks, featured as the theme song for the movie 'My Tomorrow, Your Yesterday'.
The premier track of the album was naturally Dry Flower, but since this song had already been fully recorded, it didn't require a re-track and was bypassed.
Hikaru rearranged the tracklist based on a narrative emotional arc, leaving Takane no Hanako-san up next.
This song had also been performed at the NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen in the past; its musical style was warm and therapeutic, depicting the yearning and unrequited infatuation directed toward an unattainable individual.
The moment Hikaru opened his mouth to sing, the professionals listening through their monitoring headphones relaxed their brows.
"The vocals possess immense character," the recording engineer said, his large eyes widening as a smile broke across his face. "Deep and magnetic, with upper-middle-tier vocal mechanics. The vocal placement stems from professional training, but his control over microphone distance still lacks seasoned familiarity."
The browless mixing engineer raised an eyebrow. "The vocal timbre is an excellent fit for this lyrical style, leaving a massive canvas for post-processing."
After listening through the take, the eagle-like producer's gaze grew even sharper. "The emotional depth needs to be a touch more profound, but the sheer quality of the song completely compensates for his lack of experience. This track has massive hit potential. I have a gut feeling that this album is going to explode."
Takashi Kadomori let out a soft chuckle, a triumphant expression plastered across his face. "Well, look who scouted the artist."
Genuine geniuses weren't a dime a dozen; being able to lock down such high-caliber talent was entirely credit to his own razor-sharp eye.
Following the completion of the first take, the professionals began guiding Hikaru to adjust the finer details–the breathing placements, the emotional delivery, and micro-tonal pitch corrections.
By the time they finally tracked a version that left absolutely everyone satisfied, a full half-day had already slipped away.
Hikaru had never anticipated that an album recording would prove to be such a tedious process. In the past, he had merely borrowed Strawberry Productions' modest studio to track his singles; the conditions there were basic, and the standards were far more relaxed, requiring very few re-takes. He hadn't expected a major label's criteria to be sky-high, demanding absolute perfection in every single detail.
Having sung all morning, Hikaru's mouth was bone-dry and his vocal cords felt slightly raspy. Removing his monitoring headphones, he felt entirely drained.
Noticing Hikaru's growing impatience, Kadomori explained, "This is entirely normal. Tracking an album is inherently meticulous work; managing to complete two full songs in a single day is already considered high efficiency. Besides, you can't record every single day either; your vocal cords require adequate rest, so we'll likely only track two to three days a week. In fact, many artists spend anywhere from one to three months recording a single album."
*Oh, good lord.*
Hikaru wailed internally. *Why is this such a massive pain? In all those plagiarism and copycat web novels I read in my past life, why did the main characters never run into this problem?*
"That's way too slow," Hikaru couldn't help but ask. "Can we wrap it up within a single month?"
Kadomori turned it over in his mind. "Considering your lyricism and composition speeds are indeed astonishing–meaning you've already completed the hardest segment–there is a legitimate possibility. But that is strictly conditional on you ensuring nothing goes wrong with your throat."
After grabbing a quick, simple bite for lunch, Hikaru resumed his tracking session. The observing professionals remained highly enthusiastic, but Hikaru felt as though he was already running on fumes.
The next track up was Haiiro to Ao.
The theme celebrated personal growth and camaraderie, even if the lyrics carried a distinctly bromantic undertone.
It took Hikaru the entire afternoon to finally nail the definitive final cut.
While every professional's face beamed with sheer joy, Hikaru stood behind the microphone parched and utterly exhausted, looking like a dead dog.
The mere thought of the mountain of songs still waiting to be tracked on the album gave him a massive headache.
He realized with absolute clarity...
He was going to be incredibly busy for the foreseeable future.
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