Chapter 80

Listening to this song "Old Boy," Li Mu was indeed somewhat reluctant to give it to them, as he really liked the melody and it had once truly moved him.

Initially, the micro-movie "Old Boy" and the eponymous song created a miracle on the internet, with the micro-movie receiving nearly 200 million views. The song "Old Boy" had an even higher number of plays online and in KTV, which was impossible to count.

Putting aside the micro-movie, "Old Boy" as a standalone song was also an excellent work. First, its composition was written by the Japanese singer-songwriter Takuya Ohashi, originally titled "Arigatou" (Thank You), which had won several awards in Japan.

Not only was the melody top-notch, but the Chinese lyrics were also first-rate. The lyrics revolved around the theme of "dreams," a topic that is particularly sensitive and persistent for young people. Everyone who is young or has been young has had their own dreams, but most people eventually have to compromise with life, picking up the trivialities of daily life and abandoning their dreams. This song attempts to awaken those who have given up on their dreams, urging them not to be numb and not to let their youthful passion fade away.

This is the key reason why the micro-movie "Old Boy" and its theme song touched so many hearts!

Although Zhang Kexuan and the others had never seen the micro-movie "Old Boy," Li Mu's song still moved them deeply.

The lyrics of the song, at first listen, seem to pose a huge question: Have your dreams come true?

Upon closer listening, it has a deeper meaning: If your dreams haven't come true yet, it's never too late to pursue them now!

Therefore, this is a truly inspiring song.

Some people say that "Old Boy" is suitable for middle-aged listeners, but in reality, the song can resonate with anyone who has dreams, even a teenager in their teens can be moved by the ideas conveyed in the song.

The four members of Simple Plan were moved and even more delighted. After Li Mu finished singing once, they all asked him to sing it again.

Li Mu found some paper and a pen and handed them to Zhang Kexuan: "I'll sing it two more times, and you can write down the lyrics and the chord progression."

"Okay!" Zhang Kexuan nodded excitedly. As the lead singer of the band, he was always more excited than the other three when he received a good song from Li Mu, because these songs would soon be sung by him to the public after Li Mu sang them.

Li Mu sang it twice, and Zhang Kexuan had almost memorized the lyrics and chord progression, with the melody also firmly imprinted in his mind. Li Mu then handed him the guitar: "Sing it once."

Zhang Kexuan took the guitar, cleared his throat, and started playing and singing.

There were a few small errors in the lyrics, which Li Mu corrected directly with a pen. The chord progression and melody were correct, proving that Zhang Kexuan had a good sense of music.

After Zhang Kexuan finished singing, Li Mu gave him some pointers: "In the beginning of the song, you need to make your voice bright and clear. This song is not about being overly emotional, so try not to use a hoarse, smoky voice."

Zhang Kexuan nodded in agreement and asked, "What about the chorus?"

"The chorus needs to be powerful," Li Mu said. "Think of the main part of the song as a narrative, where you are telling your story to the audience, with a calm mindset. In the chorus, show your explosive power. Think of it as a challenge, where you are questioning the audience: Have their wishes come true? Is it now only fit for remembrance? Are you willing to give up your dreams? The more power you can show, the more your 'challenge' will touch the hearts of the audience, not only making them feel moved but also ashamed and rekindling their fighting spirit!"

In the previous life, the song "Old Boy" could have been even more popular than the movie, but it became increasingly rare to see it on mainstream media. Even in the performances of Chopsticks Brothers, they almost never sang this song. The main reason was that they did not have the proper authorization from the composer, Takuya Ohashi. The Japanese record company had granted the Chinese adaptation rights to another Mandarin singer.

Now, with "Old Boy" in the hands of Simple Plan, Li Mu hoped they could use their unique advantages to make the song even more popular.

As for what their unique advantage was, in Li Mu's view, the biggest advantage was Zhang Kexuan.

There was no denying that good-looking people could still release albums even if they were off-key, and they could still act in films and TV shows even if they had a poker face, and they would still capture a large number of fans. In the future, countless handsome men and beautiful women recorded albums that were heavily edited to sound electronic, but they still became popular across the country, because this was a world that valued appearance, especially in the entertainment industry.

Ye Tianming was impressed. Li Mu's song was indeed exhilarating, and he even envied Zhang Kexuan for having such an opportunity to sing such a song. However, he quickly reminded himself that when they were in the band, he had chosen to be the drummer, so it was fine to be envious, but he must not lose his balance.

At the same time, Ye Tianming felt that having Li Mu's song made it worth it to help him even if it meant damaging his car.

The four members of Simple Plan learned the song "Old Boy," and Li Mu also briefly discussed the arrangement to make it more suitable for their style.

Li Mu said he had too many things to deal with and couldn't go to Jinling to supervise their practice in the next two days. However, since Yi Ting was about to launch, he would take some time to go to Jinling after he finished his busy schedule, to guide their practice and produce the songs "Li Bai" and "Sunflower."

After finishing the song, it was almost seven o'clock. The four members, unable to contain their excitement, left Li Mu's house, pulling him along to ride in Zhang Kexuan's Land Cruiser to the ecological park.

Song Liang was hosting the dinner. The four young masters had come specially, and Song Liang understood that helping Li Mu was a minor matter, but the main reason was to support him. They were afraid that Li Mu would not have enough weight in front of him, so they came personally to show that they highly valued Li Mu as a brother, and Song Liang should not look down on him just because he asked for help.

At the dinner table, the four, except for Zhang Kexuan who said he had to drive back and used tea instead of alcohol, took turns toasting Song Liang with white wine, each saying, "Thank you, Song Liang, for helping my brother."

Song Liang thought to himself that with his discerning eye, he would not have looked down on Li Mu even if the four had not come personally. His greatest skill in recognizing people was to see potential rather than the present. Li Mu had unlimited potential in his eyes, even though he did not know what specific talents Li Mu had.

Song Liang said, "Xiao Mu is your brother, and therefore my brother. Although I am a few years older, since we are all brothers, you being so polite to me makes me feel like you don't consider me a brother or doubt my sense of responsibility."

Ye Tianming quickly said, "Brother Liang, we've known each other for so many years, how could we not know your character? It's just that you and Xiao Mu have only known each other for a short time, and we were afraid that you two would be too polite to each other, making things seem distant."

Song Liang nodded, "So, you four came specially for this, isn't that too polite?"

Ye Tianming smiled and said, "Actually, we came mainly to thank Li Mu. We got first place in the semi-finals yesterday, and Li Mu's contribution was the greatest."

Song Liang raised an eyebrow, looking surprised, "So, you are going to Beijing for the finals?"

"Yes," the four nodded in unison.

Song Liang praised, "Impressive! But I am curious, who writes your songs?"

This question made the four look at each other awkwardly. Zhang Kexuan tried to dodge the question, saying, "Our original songs are co-created."

Song Liang smiled slightly and did not ask further, but he felt that the four were not entirely natural about this issue.

Li Mu also noticed their awkwardness. This would not do, as in future interviews, journalists would certainly ask about the songwriters, and if the four continued to be vague, it would be a problem.

However, Li Mu did not bring up this issue at the dinner table. He knew their intentions for coming and saw that they were doing their best to support him in front of Song Liang. He did not say much, just toasted each of them with a glass of wine.

Since they were all thinking about the song "Old Boy," the four were eager to leave after the dinner. Song Liang did not try to keep them, directly asked the hotel manager to put the bill on his tab, and then accompanied the five of them downstairs.

At the parking lot, Ye Tianming asked Li Mu, "Do you want to go back with Brother Liang or with us?"

Li Mu said softly, "I'll go with you, I have something to talk to you about."

"Okay," Ye Tianming nodded.

Li Mu said to Song Liang, "Brother Liang, I'll go with Tianming and the others, we have some things to discuss."

Song Liang smiled, "Alright, I won't see you off. Come find me when you have time, and you four should also come to Haizhou more often."

...

On the way back, Li Mu, sitting in the front passenger seat, said to the four, "In the future, the songwriters need to be clearly identified, as this will be something we need to tell the media and fans."

The four felt somewhat awkward about this issue. The lyrics and music were all created by Li Mu, and they could collectively take credit, but none of them wanted to take the lead.

After a moment's thought, Li Mu gave them a very fair solution just before they arrived home:

"Kexuan, you have the most exposure, so I won't give you too many opportunities for creation. Also, you give off a laid-back, cool, and handsome vibe, so the lyrics and music for 'Li Bai' will be attributed to you."

"Tianming, you are the drummer, and you are the least visible and least noticed on stage, so you must be given more importance in creation. When we announce it, you will be the band's creative soul."

"Gu Wei, you are the bassist. Generally, the audience does not understand the role of a bassist and might even confuse it with a guitarist, so you will 'share' some of the songwriting, and when needed, you will be announced as the second creator."

"Xia Ji, you are the lead guitarist. You play solos and stand in a prominent position, so you have more opportunities to show off. In terms of creation, you will be responsible for the band's arrangements."

This way, the four had clear roles in "creation."

Li Mu's generous act of attributing the songwriting credits to the four members of Simple Plan made them feel deeply moved, enough to circle the Earth fifteen or sixteen times...

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