Chapter 640 The True Hexagonal Warrior

Hou Jun never expected that Lu Yanhe would think of him for a program.

"The Voice of China?"

“Yes,” Lu Yanhe said, “an original music program.”

"How should this kind of show be done? Original music, with each episode featuring a competition?" Hou Jun, a veteran of music variety shows, immediately identified the most difficult part from the phrase "original music," saying, "A person might be able to create one good song a year, so how can they compete with others? Only once? What about the next time? Will they use the same old song again, or will they use a new song to compete?"

The problem Hou Jun mentioned is actually the reason why original music competition programs are difficult to produce.

Everyone's creative talent is limited, and it's not so quick to create a good new song.

There are only a handful of truly outstanding composers who are prolific and produce exceptionally high-quality music.

Lu Yanhe said, "We can't use the conventional competitive format, that's for sure. It's definitely not about bringing together a bunch of singers and having them compete against each other in an elimination-and-advancement format. Otherwise, if everyone brings out their best songs in the first round, the songs in the later rounds will only get worse and worse, and the result will be that the first episode will be the highest quality."

“That’s right,” Hou Jun said. “There are so many platforms and so many music variety shows, but there’s a reason why original music programs can’t take off. There are too few creators who can truly make good music, especially now that many young people are doing rap.”

“However, Jun Ge, do you know? When we first started working on ‘Jump Up,’ we also had a headache because we were worried about not receiving any submissions,” Lu Yanhe said. “Actually, over the years I’ve always felt that in China, you can lack anything but creators. The key is whether there is a stage for these people to emerge on their own.”

Hou Jun: "But if we can't gather enough creators, especially outstanding singer-songwriters, it will be difficult to produce this program, right?"

Lu Yanhe said, "I did not intend for this program to become a simple stage for singer-songwriters."

"Um?"

"I see it more as a platform for new songs to chart," Lu Yanhe said. "The only hard requirement for songs to appear on this show is that they have never been publicly released before."

Hou Jun was taken aback.

“We’ll create monthly, quarterly, and yearly rankings, referencing the format of ‘Idol Era’,” Lu Yanhe said. “We’ll invite all singers who are about to release a song to perform their first song on this show.”

So you don't just want to be a singer-songwriter?

“What I want to do is ‘The Voice of China’,” Lu Yanhe said. “But usually, these kinds of shows tend to have more singer-songwriters at the beginning.”

Hou Jun: "But if you do it this way, how can those unknown singer-songwriters compete with those who are already famous?"

“We should separate them into several charts, with singer-songwriters and non-songwriters competing separately, and the songs themselves forming an overall chart,” Lu Yanhe said. “This is just a preliminary idea. The key is that, firstly, there must be good songs; secondly, there must be a mechanism to motivate singers to participate in the program; and thirdly, the charts must be valuable, credible, and worthwhile, so that they can promote the development of singers, songs, and the music industry in a positive direction.”

Hou Jun: "How did you suddenly come up with the idea of ​​making this kind of music program?"

"Actually, I've always had the idea of ​​making a music program. Sister Ziyan opened a talent agency called Shihuo, which has many singers. That was my initial idea. I'm currently recording 'Young Days' with Song Linxin, and we happened to talk about the difficulties in the music industry, so I changed my mind."

Hou Jun: "Of course, there's no problem with you making this show. All the songs you've written over the years are classics and highly recognized in the industry. It's just a pity that you're not willing to put more effort into music."

“Brother Jun, it’s not that I’m unwilling to put effort into music, it’s just that I’m really not as good at songwriting as you all think,” Lu Yanhe sighed. “Although every time I say this, you don’t believe me.”

"Who would believe that? 'Remembering,' 'The Days of Youth,' 'Infatuated,' 'Chinese,' 'Green Apple Paradise'... Tell me about all the songs you wrote, they all became hits and were sung so widely."

“It’s been six years since my senior year of high school, and I’ve only written a few songs. The reason these songs became popular is because of a combination of favorable timing, location, and people,” Lu Yanhe said. “I may be a very popular singer, but I definitely can’t become a top singer. My vocal abilities are what they are.”

Hou Jun: "I'm not going to argue with you. You always have a set of arguments. I'm happy that you want to make a show like this, but you want me to be the director. From what you're saying, you probably want to make this show a year-long series like 'Idol Era,' rather than a seasonal show. Aurora Studios might not be able to let me go."

Lu Yanhe asked, "So, do you want to do it?"

"That's no nonsense. I've always wanted to work on music variety shows again, but Aurora Studios has been forcing me into the position of gala director for the past few years, and all the music variety show proposals I've submitted have been rejected." Hou Jun's tone turned into a grumbling as he talked about this.

Lu Yanhe said, "I'll go talk to President Lin. If you really can't be the general director, I hope you can at least be a supervisor. You'll be in charge of the entire music content. I don't know anyone else who has worked on music variety shows or has extensive connections in the music industry.

Hou Jun: "Then you should communicate with General Manager Lin. Maybe if you do it, their attitude will soften a bit."

Lu Yanhe: "Okay, then I'll go and talk to President Lin. I'm not sure if you can't join."

"Why? There must be quite a few directing teams producing music variety shows," Hou Jun said. "If you need, I can introduce you to some."

“No, Brother Jun, we’re not making an ordinary music variety show,” Lu Yanhe said. “If we can’t ensure that the production team has musical taste and can be fair, even if the show becomes a huge hit, it will become a game of capital and money. The works and singers that make the list in the end will be on the list for various reasons, but not because they are musically good or because the audience likes them enough.”

Hou Jun: "I understand what you mean."

He gave a wry smile.

In fact, it all comes down to nothing more than trust.

However, to be trusted by Lu Yanhe like this—

Hou Jun hadn't expected this either.

-

Sometimes, some people rise to fame overnight, especially in the entertainment industry.

The so-called overnight fame, instant popularity.

Hou Jun could never have imagined that his idol from back then would grow to such heights six years later.

A height that many can only dream of.

Hou Jun really didn't expect that Lu Yanhe would want to create a music program and make such a big move at this time.

To be honest, he was actually quite excited and eager to do this with Lu Yanhe.

However, Hou Jun couldn't directly agree to Lu Yanhe's request.

This is not just his problem alone.

This also includes his team, as well as his communication with the Northern Lights.

A variety show director, unless they also hold other positions or reach a high-level role, doesn't actually have much say. This is especially true for a director like him who doesn't have a truly flagship variety show. "Little Song Gathering" has always been a relatively niche program, not a widely popular national variety show. And those later galas, after all, are different from making a regular program.

Now that Hou Jun is middle-aged, it's impossible for him to switch allegiance to them over such a small issue. At Northern Lights, aside from not wanting him to continue doing music programs, they treated him well in every other way.

He just couldn't understand why Aurora was so opposed to him continuing to do music variety shows.

-

Lin Desheng said, "I know Hou Jun. He is highly regarded within our organization."

Lu Yanhe was somewhat surprised; he had thought that Lin Desheng didn't know who Hou Jun was.

"Then why hasn't the Northern Lights' audio program been approved?"

Lin Desheng smiled, made a phone call, and summoned someone to his office.

After a while, the person arrived.

Lin Desheng said that this is Yu Jian, who is in charge of variety show content production at the company.

"Hello, Mr. Yu." This was the first time Lu Yanhe had dealt with this person.

Yu Jian warmly shook hands with Lu Yanhe, "God Lu, it's great to finally meet you in person."

"God Lu?" Lu Yanhe was taken aback.

"Haha, that's what all the younger guys in the company call you, so I just started calling you that too," Yu Jian said. "I think the nickname they gave you is very fitting. You can succeed at anything, you really are God Lu."

Lu Yanhe quickly waved his hand.

"I dare not accept such praise."

After exchanging pleasantries, Lin Desheng brought up Hou Jun's matter. Yu Jian was taken aback, and then, at Lin Desheng's prompting, he revealed the Northern Lights' considerations for Hou Jun.

“Hou Jun actually makes very high-quality programs, but he is too focused on so-called artistry and quality. With this kind of thinking, no matter how creative the program is, there is only a limit to its potential,” Yu Jian said. “Including the new music variety show proposals he has been submitting for the past few years, we see that no matter what form it takes, it is still the same old thing. From the beginning, he has never really thought about how to make the program popular with the public.”

Lu Yanhe suddenly realized.

I understand.

Hou Jun's ideas may be great, but the ceiling is that they can only be "small and beautiful" programs.

This is not what the Northern Lights video is meant to be.

The projects of Aurora Video, especially the self-produced projects, are all aimed at becoming "viral".

For these "small but beautiful" projects, they can buy copyrighted programs from outside or have their own team of newly trained talents do them, but they don't need Hou Jun to do them at all.

Furthermore, given that Hou Jun can fill the current needs of Aurora Borealis for directors of galas and ceremonies, they are even less likely to ask Hou Jun to work on those "small but beautiful" programs.

After understanding this, Lu Yanhe nodded.

Yu Jian, however, was very perceptive and asked, "Why did Lu Shen suddenly ask about Hou Jun? I remember you were on his show 'Little Song Gathering' before. Are you quite familiar with him in private?"

Does this imply that Hou Jun hired Lu Yanhe as an intermediary?

Lu Yanhe said with a smile, "We've always kept in touch. When I wasn't very famous, he put me on those two shows and I sang a song called 'Remembering,' which earned me some money so I could finish high school and take the college entrance exam. I'm very grateful to him."

Yu Jian and Lin Desheng exchanged a glance.

Lu Yanhe: "Here's the thing, I have an idea for a music variety show, which is comparable to the idol show 'Idol Era'. I've only ever worked with director Hou Jun on a music variety show, and I think he has a great eye for music. He even helped me with the soundtrack for my movie 'Love Letter'. I hope to get director Hou Jun involved in this music variety show."

For Aurora Video, "Idol Era" is a name they find very distasteful.

In recent years, videos of the Northern Lights have been incredibly popular.

From dramas to variety shows, it has achieved widespread success, firmly establishing itself as the leading video platform.

However, in the realm of annual variety shows, Icefield Video has managed to maintain a stable membership of over 20 million and generate over 1 billion yuan in revenue with just one program, "Idol Era," keeping Icefield Video firmly close behind Aurora Video.

The show "The Birth of an Actor" has become a hit again, and its season is about to end.

Not to mention, a top-rated annual anime series in the number one position represents a strategic value for this video platform that cannot be quantified by data.

Aurora Borealis has been trying to create a year-long variety show like this, but things haven't gone as planned.

With its extremely strong fan base, "Idol Era" has almost pushed the limits of what a show can achieve.

It would be extremely difficult to replicate one's own "Idol Era".

Now, Lu Yanhe, this hit-making machine, has actually proposed to create a year-long variety show? Or is it a music variety show that's aiming to rival "Idol Era"?

The auras of Lin Desheng and Yu Jian changed instantly.

-

"Another program."

Chen Ziyan smiled.

"Music competition".

Lu Qingzhen smiled as well.

Lu Yanhe sat in front of the two women, somewhat bewildered.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing much," Lu Qingzhen shook her head. "I'm just very curious how you can have so many endless ideas in your head."

"Everyone has a constant stream of ideas in their head."

"But your ideas can become reality, and more people will see your next idea as gold."

"I'm lucky."

"Ziyan, you're right. His modesty sometimes makes you want to spit on him."

Lu Yanhe looked completely innocent.

Chen Ziyan said to Lu Yanhe, "You should know that it's easy to fail when making a music variety show, especially one featuring original music, right?"

"I know." Lu Yanhe nodded. "However, like I said, if we fail, we fail."

Chen Ziyan: "How do you plan to make this show?"

"Director Hou Jun's team is in charge of the music, and director Li Zhenzhen is in charge of the program production," said Lu Yanhe.

Chen Ziyan: "Is this the program you told us about before... tailor-made for those talented singers who are helping us ignite our careers?"

“No.” Lu Yanhe shook his head. “But they can still participate, as long as they can receive good songs.”

Chen Ziyan: "When do you plan to release the program tailored for talented singers?"

“I can do it anytime, but right now I’d rather work on the show ‘The Voice of China’.”

Chen Ziyan nodded.

"If this show becomes a hit, I believe it will greatly benefit the entire original music industry. In the future, when people release new songs, this will be their first choice for promotion," said Lu Yanhe. "This fills a gap in the current Chinese music scene."

Chen Ziyan said, "If this show doesn't have many viewers, then it can't become everyone's stage for promoting their songs."

"It all depends on human effort," Lu Yanhe said. "Compared to the endless stream of cover songs on music variety shows every year, new songs are definitely something that can give everyone a refreshing experience, right?"

“A new song means there is no existing audience and it has not been tested by the audience. It is very likely that after one episode, there will not be a single song that can become popular.”

"Therefore, this requires a director team with taste, aesthetic sense, and the ability to select songs, so I found Hou Jun," Lu Yanhe said.

“Most of the singer-songwriters are not very famous, so they may not be able to attract enough viewers to watch the show.”

"So this program not only recruits singer-songwriters to sing new songs, but all singers, as long as they have songs that have not been publicly released, are invited. Of course, the prerequisite for appearing on this program is to pass the review of Hou Jun and his team," Lu Yanhe said. "We don't want songs that are not good."

Chen Ziyan: "Would a well-known singer be willing to premiere their new song on such a stage?"

“I have already invited Song Linxin and Qin Zhibai,” Lu Yanhe said. “Not only the two of them, but also Hou Jun. Their connections in the music industry can help us attract some singers first. Of course, we can also specifically invite those top singers to write songs. It will inevitably cost money in the early stages, but as long as we can make this show a success, singers will be scrambling to get on our show, just like the current ‘Idol Era’.”

Chen Ziyan and Lu Qingzhen exchanged a glance.

“Not every popular show will attract those top singers,” Lu Qingzhen said.

"What if one day, the charts of this show become one of the standards by which viewers evaluate a song or a singer?" Lu Yanhe asked. "Just like the annual charts of 'Idol Era' have become one of the important indicators of whether an idol artist is successful."

Lu Qingzhen: "That's because before that, idol artists grew up in a completely unregulated way, and there was never a unified evaluation system."

"Does Chinese music these days... even have one?" Lu Yanhe asked. "Film and television dramas have three major awards, but music, let alone three major awards, does it even have one award that is widely known and recognized by the audience today?"

Lu Qingzhen and Chen Ziyan both breathed a sigh of relief.

"Alright, we've asked all our questions, and it seems you've thought it through very clearly," Chen Ziyan said.

Lu Yanhe nodded.

"Actually, I didn't think about many things very clearly at first, but after you asked me questions, the answers came to me. The more I answered, the clearer it became."

“You always manage to see some gaps, and you also have the ability and strength to gather a group of people to fill those gaps.” Lu Qingzhen shook her head. “I have nothing to say. I don’t think there’s anything more to question about your ideas. I’ll just help you fill in the gaps and move things forward.”

Lu Yanhe: "Sister Qingzhen, I don't know what to say when you praise me like this."

“No need to say anything,” Lu Qingzhen said. “Although I know this show won’t lack sponsors, if you’re not satisfied with the sponsorship efforts from Aurora Video, feel free to contact me anytime. After all, this isn’t an original variety show produced by Aurora; the program rights are in Linghe’s hands, so they might not be willing to allocate their platform’s sponsorship resources to this show. On the other hand, they can do things like this. Recently, there was a drama that reached S-level ratings and held the number one spot for several days, yet it didn’t have a single pre-roll ad.”

Lu Yanhe was somewhat surprised when he heard this.

"What's going on? What show is this?"

"It's a copyrighted drama, a contemporary romance starring Liu Zefan," Lu Qingzhen said. "Nowadays, platforms generally give their own advertising resources to their own projects."

Lu Yanhe suddenly realized.

“Given your cooperation with Aurora Borealis, they shouldn’t do something so foolish, but you should still be careful,” Lu Qingzhen said.

Lu Yanhe: "I know that if they don't hold the copyright, they won't use the best resources to make this program. So, I don't intend to let Linghe monopolize the copyright of this program."

Are you planning to share it with them?

“It’s not free. We’ll see how we negotiate. They’ll come up with a plan,” Lu Yanhe said. “In short, all I need to do is ensure the independence of my program production, and have enough autonomy and decision-making power. That’s enough.”

Lu Qingzhen nodded.

After communicating with Chen Ziyan and Lu Qingzhen, Lu Yanhe left.

Chen Ziyan escorted him downstairs, helped him into his car, and watched him leave before returning to her office.

Lu Qingzhen was still waiting for her in her office.

Chen Ziyan asked with a smile, "Tell me, do you think what I've been telling you makes sense? As his manager, do you feel that you're not capable enough and can't keep up with him?"

Lu Qingzhen: "I can only say that he is really too exaggerated. Even those plagiarists can't copy ideas as quickly as he can."

Chen Ziyan: "It's normal for someone with this ability to be very capable. He even told me in a serious tone that he didn't think he was a genius, but just an ordinary person with the same flaws as everyone else."

“Alright.” Lu Qingzhen nodded. “In his world, he can think whatever he wants.”

Chen Ziyan smiled and sighed.

"If someone told me now that he could build an entertainment empire in the future, I wouldn't be surprised."

“What’s so strange about that? In my eyes, this entertainment empire is already taking shape,” Lu Qingzhen said.

Chen Ziyan: "Later, pull up the information of all the singers signed in the company. We need to prepare in advance. Notify everyone, whether they have plans to release songs or not. When the show starts looking for people, they will need songs to audition. We can't have nothing."

Lu Qingzhen: "Most of the singers who sign with our company do not sign music contracts."

“We’ve signed some people who aren’t newcomers. They’ve been in the industry for so long, don’t they have their own connections and resources? The message is that they need to work hard themselves,” Chen Ziyan said. “If they can get on this show, maybe they can become popular again like Cheng Hai and Zhang Pingqing in ‘The Birth of an Actor.’ Once they become popular again, it will be our turn to show our skills.”

Lu Qingzhen nodded.

"Actually, the music companies should be the ones most interested in this show."

"Those music companies seem to have basically disappeared from the entertainment industry now."

“Maybe through this program, they’ll resurface and start making a name for themselves again,” Chen Ziyan said. “The most important reason why music companies can’t make a name for themselves now is that they can’t produce new talent. Big names often go their own way, leaving us with some half-baked singers who can’t even make a name for themselves in the industry, so who cares? Some traditional, established music companies don’t bother with new talent either. After all, the reality is that they lose money on every project they make. They might finally make someone famous, but then that person leaves immediately. It’s better to rely on the song copyrights they’ve accumulated in the past and live off their past achievements. That’s enough. The ecosystem is ruined, so all we can do is patch up what we’re already struggling with.”

Lu Qingzhen: "That's the right answer. Although several online music platforms seem to be doing very well, new songs, unless they are from top-tier artists or big-name singers with their own fan base, simply don't sell well, which is a pity."

"Now do you realize the significance of the charts on 'The Voice of China'? The show itself is secondary. The key is that if such a chart can be created, everything might change," Chen Ziyan said. "Consumption in any cultural and entertainment field is essentially herd consumption. Wherever the hot topics are, that's where the consumption happens. Even if the fire is scattered, it will never attract as much attention as a bright moon, even if there are a sky full of stars."

Lu Qingzhen: "That's right. If a ranking list can really be established, it will generate concentrated popularity, attention and pursuit, as well as more people and more works competing, pursuing and defending their positions."

“Everyone understands the principle, but not everyone can put it into practice,” Chen Ziyan said. “If ‘The Voice of China’ is also successful, Yan He will have basically mastered all the mainstream film and television formats on the market.”

"A true all-rounder: screenwriter, director, and actor; lyricist, composer, and singer; performer in variety shows and music shows." Lu Qingzhen nodded. "Exaggerated."

"Then he said he was just an ordinary person." Chen Ziyan shook her head speechlessly.

It's clear that she's quite "concerned" about Lu Yanhe's self-evaluation.

Lu Qingzhen laughed loudly.

(End of this chapter)