Chapter 85 of 100
Chapter 85
10 min read2,452 words
December 23rd, afternoon, Songjiang District, Shanghai County.
Inside the No. 1 studio of the Oriental Star TV headquarters, a bustling scene unfolded. Over twenty camera positions were set up on extended crane arms, all aimed at the vast central stage. Additionally, there were four track-mounted camera positions on the stage and over a dozen people on the ground carrying cameras, ready to capture various shots.
The stage was fully set up, and except for a few major stars, most of the singers, actors, dancers, and hosts were already waiting backstage. The audience seats were sparsely occupied, mostly by staff members, with a few being journalists from the internal news and variety channels of Oriental TV. There were no actual audience members.
Indeed, this was the rehearsal site for Oriental Star TV's annual New Year's Eve concert.
In the domestic entertainment and variety show industry, there are four major annual galas.
Among them, the Spring Festival Gala hosted by China Central Television (CCTV) has the highest status, the best quality, and the highest viewership, but it is a comprehensive gala with a strong official nature. The time truly allocated to the pop music scene is only about forty to forty-five minutes. Even at this gala, military singers have a higher status than those in the pop music scene because they perform the main theme, closely following the government's tone.
Therefore, it is very difficult to get a spot at this gala.
Either your work has been incredibly popular over the past year, and the entire nation would be disappointed if you didn't appear, or you have a work that is not only outstanding but also aligns with the positive energy required by the state. Otherwise, you should focus on building your status within the industry. Once you reach the level of Liu Mingliang and Zhen Zhen, even if you want to promote a new song through the Spring Festival Gala, the organizers would usually welcome you.
The forty minutes or so allocated to the pop music scene at the Spring Festival Gala are divided into two segments, each about twenty minutes long. The first segment is reserved for the major stars, with about six to seven songs, usually three to four male singers and two to three female singers. This spot is out of reach for ordinary singers.
The remaining segment is for a medley of pop songs. Each song gets about a minute, and the twenty minutes are divided into three parts, with each part consisting of five to six songs, totaling about fifteen to eighteen people. This is where most record companies strive to secure a spot, and it is also a crucial battlefield for ordinary second- and third-tier singers.
As long as the song is good, once you get on this stage, you don't have to worry about not becoming popular!
Therefore, it's easy to imagine that with so few spots available, even if everyone fights for them, only a few can ultimately secure a position.
For those who want to use a nationally watched gala for promotion, they have to consider the other three galas.
After the Spring Festival Gala, there is the Dragon Boat Festival Gala, which, although it has the lowest viewership among the four major galas, is still significant. The arrival of the Dragon Boat Festival in May marks the beginning of the summer blockbuster season, so those who want to promote movies, new songs, or new albums all vie for a spot.
Following the Dragon Boat Festival Gala is the Mid-Autumn Festival Gala hosted by Shuntian TV.
This gala has a high quality, but its viewership is only slightly higher than that of the Dragon Boat Festival Gala. Therefore, for most singers, it is somewhat of a chicken rib: the requirements for the song's atmosphere and quality are very high, making it difficult to get a spot, and the promotional effect after appearing is not necessarily good.
Of course, it depends on the person.
For folk and traditional Chinese music singers, the Mid-Autumn Festival Gala is perfectly suited to their style, and they all vie for a spot.
After the Mid-Autumn Festival Gala comes the New Year's Eve concert hosted by Oriental Star TV.
Unlike the other three galas, which are comprehensive, this New Year's Eve concert is purely for singers, and over 90% of the performance time is dedicated to the pop music scene!
Therefore, despite being considered too lowbrow by mainstream media, it has always been the most beloved and pursued gala by the young generation, ranking second in viewership!
Therefore, it's easy to imagine that those who have new songs to release, new albums to promote, or need to boost their presence after a few months of sales, including those who haven't been seen much recently but will release new albums and songs soon, all make the entire pop music scene come alive.
To some extent, the faces that appear on this gala largely determine the trends in the domestic music scene for the coming year!
And now, on December 23rd, it is the first rehearsal for this New Year's Eve concert.
At this moment, in the dozens of preparation rooms behind the stage, almost all the active forces of the domestic music scene are gathered. One of these preparation rooms belongs to Wuxing Wusu.
There are still twenty minutes before the rehearsal starts. According to the program schedule, they will appear at the 2-hour and 20-minute mark, so there is still plenty of time. However, the girls have already finished their makeup and styling, just waiting for their turn to go on stage. On this stage, they are nobody, and during the rehearsal, major stars can appear without makeup or styling, and even bigger stars might not show up for the first rehearsal, but they must be fully prepared to avoid leaving a bad impression on anyone.
At this moment, it must be said that the five girls are all very nervous.
The preparation area, with dozens of rooms in a corridor, is separated by partitions, and the sound insulation is poor. Even in their own preparation room, they can still hear various sounds from all directions—voices, laughter, footsteps, and, of course, guitar playing and singing.
In such an environment, the five girls, who are first-timers at Oriental Star TV, are naturally even more nervous.
The rehearsal is about to start. As a singer, the common sense is not to eat or drink anything before a performance, even if your throat is dry, you can only take a few sips to moisten it.
Experienced singers can strum their guitars and sing casually, chat with their agents or producers to relax, or even visit other singers they know, sit together, and catch up. Time passes quickly.
But Wuxing Wusu can't do that.
Although they have released an album and are no longer newbies, they haven't achieved any significant success, so their status is low, and they don't have many friends in the industry. Honestly, they are too nervous to chat with anyone. The five of them, plus their agent Ms. Wu, are in a small room of about ten square meters, and they are so nervous that they don't even want to speak, let alone go out to meet others.
So, outside it's noisy, but inside it's quiet.
In the morning, everyone seemed relaxed, but now, Zhou Pingping is so nervous that her stomach hurts, and she has been to the toilet several times without relief. Sun Ruoxuan keeps swallowing saliva, and when you ask her, she says her throat is dry, but even after drinking a few sips, her throat is still dry.
Sima Dodo is a bit better, but she is sweating profusely. It's cold outside, and the room is only about 17-18 degrees, but she is sweating through her thin performance outfit. She wipes her hands with a towel every few minutes, but if you hold her hand, it's always damp.
Xie Bing is a bit better, but she is also nervous, muttering to herself with her headphones on, and the volume is so loud that you can hear it from a few meters away.
As for Wang Jingsnow, she is probably the only one who can maintain a calm appearance. After noticing everyone's nervousness, she chose to sit in a corner and close her eyes to rest.
Actually, they all know that there's no need to be so nervous. This is just a rehearsal, and there will be another rehearsal and two official recordings. Moreover, the gala is not live, so as long as they perform well during the two official recordings, the audience will see their best performance when the gala is broadcast.
But... they can't help being nervous.
Because of the new album and the gala.
Their second album, "Sisters Stand Up," will be officially released nationwide on December 26th. Both the company's internal response after listening to the album and the girls' own feelings are very positive about its market prospects.
The fast songs like "Sisters Stand Up" and "Happy Baby" are expected to open up the market for fast songs and dance music, according to the producer Li Jindragon.
Even the slow songs, which Li Qian believes will earn them recognition from mainstream media and music critics, received high praise from the company's music director Du Xiaoming after the internal listening session: "To get a song like 'Farewell' and to be the first to perform it, you will still be remembered by many people fifty years from now!"
Considering all this, with Li Qian's works and the high praise from the company's authoritative music people, even if they were not very confident before, they now have a lot more confidence.
However, the company said that although they are very optimistic about the album and have high expectations for its market prospects, considering their past market position, they cannot treat them like first-tier stars and invest heavily in promotion. Therefore, after internal discussions, the company decided to focus all the promotional and release efforts on the Oriental Star TV New Year's Eve concert...
So, despite not having the qualifications, they managed to secure two songs, totaling over seven minutes, and a relatively good time slot at around 10 PM.
But this all-or-nothing promotional strategy means that they only have this one chance. If they become popular through the New Year's Eve concert, that's great, but if they don't, they will be in trouble.
The company can continue to invest in promotion, but it's not impossible! However, what other promotion could be as effective as performing for seven minutes on the Oriental Star TV New Year's Eve concert around New Year's?
Moreover, it is well known that after the New Year's Eve concert, if you become popular, you will be popular, and if you don't, you won't. If you don't become popular, and no one pays extra attention to you, then when the whole country and society start to focus on the New Year, even if you are a top star, it will be difficult to achieve good sales during this period. And after the Spring Festival, the songs from the Spring Festival Gala will dominate the streets and alleys!
So, it's a do-or-die situation!
Time passed slowly but quickly. The corridor outside was still noisy, and in the next room, it seemed that someone had come to visit. Two male singers laughed heartily...
Finally, the rehearsal officially began.
Then, finally, the program staff came to remind them that they would be up in half an hour, and they should start preparing and go backstage in ten minutes.
The girls stood up, their faces stiff, looking like they were about to go to battle. Zhou Pingping's stomach still hurt, Sun Ruoxuan's throat was still dry, and Sima Dodo was still sweating.
Agent Ms. Wu comforted them, and their producer Li Jindragon arrived, offering more comfort and encouragement, which slightly improved their state and reduced their nervousness.
Before going backstage, Xie Bing finally mustered the courage to speak, "Sisters, don't be nervous. Let's sing well and don't let down the hard work of the past few months. Don't let down the efforts of Teacher Li Qian for us!"
Sima Dodo clenched her fist, "Yes, don't be nervous! We will become popular! Our songs will be loved by everyone!"
Even Wang Jingsnow spoke calmly, "Liao Liao has five songs by Li Qian, and each one was a hit. In our new album, eight songs are his works! We must believe in ourselves and in him!"
Then, the five girls extended their hands, held them together solemnly, and shouted in unison, "Let's do it!"
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