HPDBC Chapter 438 Song Selection
Chapter 438 Song Selection
Meanwhile, backstage at Studio One of Kyoto Television, in the control room.
The heavy smell of smoke from the Honghe River almost permeated the air, but the chief director, Wang Dazhong, looked like a gambler who had just won the lottery.
He stared intently at the red viewership rating curve below the monitor, which was almost vertically upward at a 90-degree angle, and laughed so hard that his back teeth were practically physically exorcised by the cold light of the camera.
"It's gone up! It's gone up again!"
Wang Dazhong slapped his thigh hard, making the half-finished can of Jia Shao Bao herbal tea next to him shake on the table.
"It hasn't even started airing yet! We haven't even officially begun the opening credits, and the ratings have already surpassed last year's finale peak!"
"Jiang Baizhi... This isn't just a female celebrity, she's a ratings booster sent right to my doorstep by God himself!"
The assistant director next to him wiped the sweat from his brow while pulling up real-time trending data across the internet; his voice trembled slightly with extreme excitement.
"Director Wang, please check Weibo!"
"#JiangBaizhi'sSweetSongBanned#, #SemifinalsWithForeignAid?IntimateChildren'sVoices# are both marked with a bright red 'Explosive' tag!"
"It's no exaggeration to say that right now, everyone in China with a TV at home and a mobile phone is waiting for our opening shout!"
Wang Dazhong took a deep drag on his cigarette, his eyes gleaming with an almost greedy depth:
"One month from now... the finals will be held at the Bird's Nest in Kyoto."
"I was initially worried about whether we could fill all 100,000 seats, but now it seems I should be worried about whether the security situation will be so dire that we'll need to call in the police to patrol!"
Thinking of Jiang Baizhi's two miraculous events, Wang Dazhong's smile gradually turned melancholy and conflicted.
He's been in the entertainment industry for most of his life; what kind of big shots hasn't he seen?
But a girl like Jiang Baizhi, who can help her ex-boyfriend pass on with a song, make a song that will be etched into the history of children's songs, and also raise 70 million yuan in donations.
That's truly a case of "one less and one less," and you could even say that there might only be one of these remaining in all of humanity!
"Where am I supposed to find a ratings phenomenon like this one month from now when the show is canceled?"
Wang Dazhong fell into deep anxiety.
He was already thinking about whether he should work through the night to put together a script and create a spin-off variety show specifically for Jiang Baizhi, such as "National Goddess Takes You to Learn Music" or "Teacher Baizhi's Charity Journey".
After all, Jiang Baizhi is currently a black hole for online traffic.
As long as there's even a glimpse of her in the shot, even if she's just moving things, the audience can probably imagine a tragic and beautiful scene of immense strength.
"That's right. These days, Hunan TV and Blueberry TV have been asking about Jiang Baizhi's availability."
Wang Dazhong even heard that several dating reality shows wanted to hire her for a million yuan, but...
"I wonder if Qin Meng's agent is actually restricting Jiang Baizhi, or if there's some other reason?"
"He refused all commercial engagements and all hype. Apart from recording 'The Voice of China,' he didn't even leave those people a promise."
Wang Dazhong muttered to himself, as many of his friends in the industry had complained to him about it.
Getting Jiang Baizhi to appear on their variety show is extremely difficult!
He even considered taking a roundabout approach, seeking out his brother-in-law, Jiang Bai, who was also the president of the country.
Unfortunately, Jiang Bai's agent is also Qin Meng, so there's absolutely no chance for him.
Many people want to go directly to the Shanghai Theatre Academy in Shanghai to confront Jiang Bai!
But those people are just thinking about it.
After all, judging from Qin Meng's attitude, even if Jiang Bai were to persuade him, it wouldn't work!
Their attitude was incredibly firm!
"Those small-time shows certainly can't get her to participate. Bai Zhi is an angel descended from heaven; how could she possibly go and create a CP (couple pairing) with those young heartthrobs? That would be blasphemy!"
"No way... I need something bigger."
"The next show must have the same level of popularity as 'The Voice of China'! Only with that kind of prestige can we try to get Qin Meng to agree and keep Jiang Baizhi!"
He turned to look at the already started "The Voice" on the screen, his eyes shining with determination!
.......
Kyoto.
The hotel's presidential suite was filled with a wonderful aroma.
Jiang Bai was squatting on the leather sofa without any regard for his image, with a large pile of hot and delicious food in front of him.
He held a top-quality double-headed abalone that he had packed from lunch in one hand, and half an Australian lobster in the other.
Its mouth was stuffed full, making it look exactly like a little hamster that had fallen into a rice bin.
"Mmm...it smells so good!"
"Tongzi, do you think these old Dengs are just wasting their money? They're talking to me about the purity of the soul while eating such delicious abalone. Isn't that sacrilege of food?"
"Thank goodness I brought them back; I have to save these innocent mollusks! Let them die a worthy death!"
[Host, please mind your manners.]
If those soldiers see you like this, tomorrow's welcome party will probably turn into a massive collapse of faith.
Jiang Bai rolled his eyes, swallowed the last bite of shrimp, let out a burp, and his expression instantly turned melancholy.
"What a headache! Do you think I want to just sit here doing nothing?"
"What am I supposed to do at tomorrow's new recruit welcome party?"
"Those are the vast majority of this year's recruits from the East, there must be at least tens of thousands!"
"What if I mess it up, or the performance isn't good enough? Wouldn't I lose the chance to film 'Soldiers Sortie' later?"
He rubbed his chin, frantically searching his mind for military anthems suitable for a female voice.
"The Song of a Strong Army? No, that's too harsh."
"If I were to shout 'Soldiers, obey the Party's command!' in Bai Zhi's voice, I'm afraid the greenhorn recruits below would instantly have the illusion that 'Mulan took her father's place in the army.' That iron-blooded spirit would be diluted into sweet soy milk by my charm!"
"The Little White Poplar?"
"We Are Soldiers? A Good Man Should Join the Army?"
Jiang Bai shook his head once for every number counted, muttering dejectedly:
"These songs are great, but they all have a very masculine tone, and they are all from a male perspective."
"If a large-sized Jiang Bai were to sing it, it would be 'Iron Torrent,' but if a small-sized Bai Zhi were to sing it, it would be 'neither fish nor fowl.'"
"I'm here to comfort the heroes in drag, not to impersonate someone else; that would yield extremely low popularity points!"
Just as Jiang Bai was scratching his head in frustration, he casually swiped his phone to unlock it.
It was already past 8 p.m. on Saturday night, and "The Voice of China" on TV was at its most intense moment.