Chapter 84

"Next up is someone everyone will recognize. He is the biggest dark horse of this Olympic Games, winning the most prestigious gold medal. He is hailed as the greatest breakthrough in the history of the national team! That's right, he is the world's top sprinter, Zhang Guan! Now, please welcome Zhang Guan and Wang Feng to perform 'The Blooming Life'!"

Before the host finished speaking, the cheers of tens of thousands of people in the venue had already begun, and the audience watching the live broadcast on television were also excited. To the audience, they were not particularly interested in which singer would appear next; they were eagerly awaiting the appearance of the Olympic champion. And Zhang Guan was clearly the most anticipated Olympic champion.

"'The Blooming Life'? What is this song? I've never heard of it!" Some veteran music fans immediately realized it was a new song.

Then, a floating box appeared in the lower left corner of the TV screen. The song "The Blooming Life," composed by Wang Feng, lyrics by Zhang Guan.

"Turns out it's composed by Wang Feng. Is this Wang Feng's new song? Didn't he just release a new album a few months ago? How could he release a new song so quickly?" Some veteran music fans noticed this point.

However, some even more experienced music fans noticed another point.

"Lyrics by Zhang Guan? Is it a coincidence? Yes, it must be a coincidence. It can't be Zhang Guan. How could an Olympic champion also write lyrics? But I've never heard of any musician in the music industry named Zhang Guan. He must be a newcomer!"

At that moment, the singing began.

"I want a life that blooms like a flower,"

"Like flying in the vast sky,"

"Like wandering through the endless wilderness,"

"Like standing at the top of the rainbow,"

"Like traveling through the brilliant starry sky!"

The venue was already in a frenzy. "The Blooming Life" was so uplifting, both in melody and lyrics, and with Wang Feng's top-notch performance, it instantly stirred the emotions of the audience.

In the backstage, other singers looked at each other with admiration.

"Great song, great melody, great lyrics! It makes you feel so passionate!"

"True to Wang Feng's style! This song is definitely top-notch! For a regular artist, this one song would be enough to last a lifetime."

As professional musicians, they could analyze the song from a professional perspective. "The Blooming Life" was so stirring and powerful in Wang Feng's rendition, and the lyrics were so passionate, filling the audience with energy. Many singers could already predict that this song would become a hit and might even win awards in the future.

...

The next day, "The Blooming Life" had become a hot search on major search engines in the country. However, the only version available was the live performance from the concert. This live version, with its lower audio quality and mixed with audience noise, was not as good as a professionally recorded version, and Wang Feng was even dragging Zhang Guan along. Despite this, it was still very popular!

Of course, the live version had something that the album version lacked: the atmosphere. For many music fans, the atmosphere was the main reason they paid to attend concerts.

For professional music producers, the song had a strong Wang Feng style, so it was expected that Wang Feng could make it a hit. A good melody, good lyrics, and a good singer naturally made a good song. The industry generally recognized Wang Feng as a good composer and singer, but the key was who wrote the lyrics?

Zhang Guan, with the same name as the Olympic champion, but no one associated the lyricist with the Olympic champion. After all, they were in different fields, so more people thought this Zhang Guan was probably a newcomer in the music industry. Some even started calling Wang Feng to verify.

But soon everyone knew that this lyricist Zhang Guan was indeed the Olympic champion!

The Olympic champion turned out to be the lyricist of "The Blooming Life," which immediately became a hot topic. The media loved such unusual stories, and without any hype, "The Blooming Life" was thoroughly covered by various media. Even those who usually didn't listen to music tried to find the song and listen to it after hearing that an Olympic champion wrote the lyrics.

"'The Blooming Life' seems to describe Zhang Guan's journey to victory. From an unknown ordinary athlete to the world's top sprinter, this is truly a life that blooms! As he wrote in the lyrics, on the path to success, he fell many times, lost his way, felt lost, and had his dreams shattered, but he persisted, continuously striving and moving forward, ultimately blooming like a flower! Through this song, I can feel Zhang Guan's inner cry, his pursuit and hope for his dreams! I believe this is why Zhang Guan has achieved what he has today, embodying the spirit of 'higher, faster, stronger' in sports, constantly surpassing himself!"

A well-known music critic published this review, instantly elevating Zhang Guan's image to a new level.

Of course, there were also those who doubted Zhang Guan, thinking he must have had a ghostwriter. They believed that as an athlete, Zhang Guan's cultural level was not high enough to write such lyrics.

Fame brings controversy, but as long as the Olympic wind hasn't passed, topics related to the Olympics would continue, and Olympic figures would remain in the public eye.

After the concert, Zhang Guan did not get any free time, nor did the entire Olympic delegation. The next event was the summary and commendation meeting for the Athens Olympics. More importantly, several top leaders would attend this meeting to meet the Olympic athletes.

Zhang Guan, of course, was the primary target for the meeting, so he spent the entire morning preparing until the meeting started at 3 PM.

After the summary and commendation meeting, a banquet was held in the conference hall to entertain the Olympic champions and outstanding coaches. This was Zhang Guan's first time enjoying a genuine state banquet.

The Olympic champions would still stay at the Tiantan Apartments because two days later, they would leave the capital by plane to begin their tour of Hong Kong and Macau.

...

"This is the itinerary for the visit to Hong Kong and Macau." Director Ma handed the schedule to Zhang Guan. Before Zhang Guan could read it carefully, Director Ma continued, "At 7 PM on September 7th, there will be a grand performance at the stadium. The organization requires you to perform, preferably sing a song. Yes, this is a task, and you must complete it."

"Sing again?" Zhang Guan said with a wry smile.

Director Ma nodded, "The 'One Song' concert a few days ago was very successful. Your duet with Wang Feng received a lot of positive feedback from the media and the audience. I listened to it myself, and it has a very positive and uplifting message. This positive effect is exactly what we hope to see. Therefore, the leadership hopes that you can showcase your singing talent at the Hong Kong Olympic performance and achieve a positive effect."

"Am I singing alone this time?" Zhang Guan asked hesitantly.

"Of course, you are singing alone. The Hong Kong compatriots came to see you, the Olympic champion. Do you think we would ask Wang Feng to come with you to Hong Kong?" Director Ma said.

"This is a bit troublesome. 'The Blooming Life' is not easy to sing, and without a professional singer to accompany me, I can't do it alone." Zhang Guan paused and continued, "Moreover, the Hong Kong compatriots might not like 'The Blooming Life.' Their rock music style is different from ours."

Director Ma nodded seriously, "The organization has considered your difficulties, so they have specially arranged a professor from the Central Conservatory of Music to provide one-on-one guidance. This shows the importance the organization places on this visit. I have inquired, and this professor is a renowned composer in the industry. If necessary, he can modify 'The Blooming Life' to make it easier to sing or even translate it into Cantonese."

Zhang Guan shook his head vigorously, "No! Let's stick to Mandarin! I grew up in the north and don't know a single word of Cantonese. Singing in Cantonese would be a joke. By the way, who is this professor from the Central Conservatory of Music?"

"His surname is Zhou. A car will take you there, and I have already arranged it." Director Ma replied casually.

...

Early September was the time when universities welcomed new students. The music college entrance was crowded with new students, their parents, and senior students with ulterior motives.

Zhang Guan's car was stuck outside for a long time before finally entering the campus. Just a day later, Zhang Guan met Professor Zhou from the music college again, the same Professor Zhou he had met during the rehearsal with Wang Feng.

"Professor Zhou, to be honest, I don't want to sing 'The Blooming Life.'" Zhang Guan said. Singing this song himself? He couldn't hit the high notes or the low notes. What a joke!

"Why? I think this song is great, and the feedback so far has been very positive." Professor Zhou asked, puzzled.

"This song is too difficult for me to sing, and the Hong Kong compatriots might not accept this style." Zhang Guan explained.

Professor Zhou frowned. As a specialist in popular music, he was well-versed in the development of Hong Kong's popular music.

In the mid-1970s, Hong Kong's popular music began to flourish, and by the late 1980s and early 1990s, it became a trendsetter in Asian popular music. Artists like Leslie Cheung, the Four Heavenly Kings, and Beyond were popular throughout Asia. Although Hong Kong's music is not as prosperous as it was during its peak, there are still many young and talented singers.

In terms of style, there was a significant difference between Hong Kong and the mainland. Whether it was the older Four Heavenly Kings, the currently popular Twins and Nicholas Tse, or the newly rising Chen Daoming, their styles were clearly different from the pop-rock style of "The Blooming Life." This high-energy and passionate melody might appeal to older audiences but would be hard for the younger generation to accept. Although music has no boundaries, accepting a new style of music requires a process.

"Should I modify the melody of 'The Blooming Life'?" Professor Zhou shook his head, "It's not easy to modify. Wang Feng's music has a distinct style. If modified, it would lose its flavor and might not be singable."

"Let's change the song, then!" Zhang Guan suggested.

"Changing the song is a good idea." Professor Zhou began to think of a suitable song.

Zhang Guan also filtered through the songs he knew, looking for a suitable one.

"It should be catchy, easy to sing, have a clear and positive theme, and be liked by Hong Kong people. This is quite troublesome!" Zhang Guan's frown suddenly relaxed as he found a very suitable song.

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Chapter 1 is here, please give me some recommendations. I have more updates today.

I hesitated about whether to add a few words, but I decided to share my thoughts with you. This book, from the beginning, has a novel idea. I originally planned to write it in the traditional sports novel style, focusing on training and competitions. However, while refining the outline, I decided to make some changes. I wanted to add elements outside the competition to the story.

In traditional sports novels, when there are no competitions, the focus is on training and trades, and other off-field matters are glossed over. This has made sports novels increasingly niche. Now, sports novels are written by sports fans for sports fans, and they are becoming more formulaic. Why? I believe the primary reason is that authors are unwilling to change or try new writing styles, or they are not willing to innovate. Readers are forced to follow the authors' rhythm, and I believe readers want to see something new but have no choice.

Since no one is willing to change, I will! In my writing, I will innovate and try to add new elements. These new elements may not be part of the traditional sports novel style, and the focus of the writing may be different. For example, I will add some introductory elements, story elements, life elements, current events, and things that a reborn person should do. I don't want my novel to be only for sports fans; I want even those who know nothing about sports to be able to read it smoothly and find something they like.

An author must lead the readers. The current situation is that readers dictate what authors write, and authors write what is popular. I won't do that. I believe authors should be pioneers, opening new paths for readers to follow smoothly.

Finally, I welcome you to follow me! Welcome to walk on the new path I have opened! Welcome to walk with me!

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