Chapter 106: Big Gamble
In the conference room, a discussion meeting about the production of Wax&Wane's subsequent album is taking place.
The camera following Lin Chiran faithfully recorded everything.
Qu Qinghuan flipped through the plan and said, "If we follow the original release schedule, we should put the preparation of the new album on the agenda now."
The staff member at the meeting said to Lin Chiran: "It has been a month and a half since the release of the second single. According to the original plan, it is time to start preparing for the new album. Considering that one member is currently on hold, the new album will be produced as a four-person team. Regarding this, what do you think, Producer Lin?"
Lin Chi Ran didn't turn over the business plan in front of him. He tapped the table with his index finger, thought for a moment, and said, "Stop for now and don't start the preparation for the third order."
Qu Qinghuan glanced at the business plan in front of him and asked directly: "Just wait like this?"
Lin Chiran is very clear about this issue. The date of An Juesui's return is uncertain, and the window period created by waiting is very disadvantageous for Wax&Wane, but he has some other ideas.
Closing the plan, Lin Chiran paused for a second and said, "Skip the third single and start preparing for the first album next month."
This one sentence stunned everyone, and the focus shifted from whether to wait for An Juesui to whether to produce a single or an album as the next work.
"The album has more tracks, so it will take longer to produce. It also involves issues like lyrics distribution, choreography, etc..." The people present were discussing this, and a few couldn't help but look towards the camera, seemingly wondering if this scene was suitable to be recorded.
It’s not that Wax&Wane are not suitable for releasing albums, but that they are too suitable. With their current popularity and sales, they have fully reached the level to hold independent concerts. In various offline activities, the audience’s feedback on their live performances is also very good.
The reason why this plan has not been proposed yet is that the number of Wax&Wane's original songs is not enough to support the entire show. Releasing an album at this time would solve the immediate problem, but for An Juesui who is recuperating, missing an album is definitely more troublesome than missing a single.
Everyone present knew how much Lin Chiran valued the five members as a producer, and they were quite puzzled to hear him suddenly propose this plan.
However, all in all, this decision brought more benefits than disadvantages to the entire group, and after final discussion, they decided to prepare for the album.
After the meeting, Qu Qinghuan came over, looked at the camera with interest and said, "Is it okay to film this?"
The photographer smiled and answered seriously, "'Thousands of Faces' is all about authenticity, and we've got permission for the filming, right, Producer Lin?"
Lin Chiran nodded. This was the invitation he accepted some time ago.
"Thousands of Faces" is a very famous and stable character documentary that has been broadcast for more than 20 years. It records the real faces of outstanding people from all walks of life in their work and life, with the main purpose of presenting every face truthfully without any script interference.
The program will be filmed for half a year or even longer, and will eventually be compressed into one episode, which will be broadcast all at once after post-production is completed.
Half a year may sound a bit exaggerated, but in fact, we choose some important time points and shoot the materials for one or two weeks each time.
This is obviously not easy for the people being photographed.
No matter what conflicts and disputes may arise during the shooting, the camera of "Thousands of Faces" will faithfully record every moment. Even if it is disguised, it will be difficult to last for the entire shooting period. It is a big challenge to completely expose the truest self in front of the camera.
If it weren't for the exchange condition of reserving a seat and segment for "Night Talk with Rong", Lin Chiran wouldn't have wanted to take on this filming job, even though this program has a very high level of attention.
There is no other reason. "Thousand Faces" is really keen on digging out the true side of the subjects, and Lin Chiran happens to be like that. Some things are not suitable to be fully revealed in front of the camera, but he finally chose to take it. Perhaps he thought this was an opportunity.
Qu Qinghuan had also received an invitation, but he couldn't stand being followed by the camera all the time, so he decisively refused. At this time, he was chatting eagerly with the photographer, with a bit of gloating in his heart.
Lin Chiran shook his head helplessly, and when he was about to leave, he was stopped unexpectedly.
Qu Qinghuan changed the subject and said to Lin Chiran, "The kid has been in good shape recently. Are you so confident that he can come back on time to participate in the album production? Or... delay it?"
Lin Chi Ran met his inquiring gaze and said, "The state keeps fluctuating."
"That's just stalling for time." Qu Qinghuan said confidently, throwing the original plan on the table. His tone was less casual, and he looked at the camera behind Lin Chiran and said bluntly: "You are gambling that he can come back before the recording."
"That's right." Lin Chiran confirmed, noticing Qu Qinghuan's gaze, but didn't say anything extra.
Qu Qinghuan looked at him deeply for a few seconds, and suddenly laughed: "Why didn't I see that you were so stubborn before...Okay, I've wanted to make an album for a long time."
stubborn? Lin Chiran smiled helplessly, he didn't think so, but delaying the time was indeed, as Qu Qinghuan said, one of the purposes of putting the album on the plan ahead.
The number of tracks planned for an album is two or three times that of a single, and the preliminary preparations take up more time than for a single. For this purpose, Lin Chiran will also serve as a producer, reserving enough time for An Juesui and the opportunity to intervene in the album production at any time.
As long as he can resume his activities before entering the mastering stage, it will not affect the album production. It can also be the first task after resuming activities, smoothly connecting to the most important arrangement regarding Wax&Wane's future activities.
Another reason for making this decision is that Lin Chiran believes that releasing new singles as a four-member group to maintain popularity, although it can stabilize the present, it will do more harm than good for the future development of Wax&Wane.
This is an idol group that cannot be missing any one member, and no one is replaceable.
For a long time, they conveyed this idea to their fans, and thus gained a large number of supporters who liked the entire group. Although releasing records as a four-member group was profitable for a while, it shook the foundation of their concept.
But what will be the final outcome of this choice? An Juesui’s own condition is the most uncontrollable. Lin Chiran has been paying attention, but he doesn't put too much pressure on it.
Based on his understanding of An Juesui and his judgment of recent situations, Lin Chiran finally concluded that this plan was feasible.
Just as Qu Qinghuan said, this is a big gamble. The gamble is whether he, as a producer, can make a decision without hesitation to push the group to a higher level at the most critical moment.
If Wax&Wane wants to become the top idol group, the members' long-term efforts have laid the foundation. What they lack now is a key opportunity to break through the bottleneck.
Isn't it that to survive from the brink of death and to turn danger into safety, is this what touches people's hearts the most, making the viewers unable to help but participate in it, and enough to make everyone remember their stories deeply?
In this way, everyone is doing what they can to help the story reach its ideal ending.
Shortly after the record production planning meeting, Lin Chiran headed to the destination of his next job under the close camera of "Thousands of People, Thousands of Faces".
In the huge theater of Luming International Cinema in City A, countless cameras are aimed at the stage. Currently being held is the premiere of the film "Notes of Time and Space", starring Qi Puxin.
Lin Chiran once took on the lyric writing work in collaboration with Meng Yu and Lu Shun's band Grey Vertigo, and the final song they produced, "Time Machine", became the theme song of this movie.
As the lyricist of the theme song, he also came to the movie premiere to support a few good friends.
During the guest introduction session, as soon as he appeared, there were countless exclamations from the audience.
Qi Puxin joked, "Chiran, we haven't seen each other for a long time. Do you want a hug?"
"Long time no see... Didn't we have dinner together a few days ago?" Lin Chiran felt a little funny. He hadn't met Qi Puxin in such an occasion for a long time. The two hugged each other very naturally, which caused cheers from the audience.
Meng Yu watched in amazement, poked Lu Shun who was standing next to him, turned his head and covered his mouth, and asked in a low voice: "Is this the legendary idol business?"
Lu Shun had a horrified expression on his face, and after a long time he spoke to him with difficulty: "You'd better surf the Internet less. Chi Ran has always had a good relationship with the leading actor." If Lu Shun remembered correctly, Lin Chi Ran had become very close to Qi Puxin not long after he became a trainee.
Before he was caught and taken home by his parents, he often heard this name from Lin Chi Ran. He had some impression of it. That was before the two of them signed a contract with Shenghuang. The fact that their relationship has lasted until now is not just about being an idol.
"Didn't you ask me to post things and manage my account occasionally?" Meng Yu raised his eyebrows: "Why do so many people in the audience look shocked? Isn't this just a normal greeting?"
Hearing the three words, Lu Shun looked at him in horror: "What do you usually watch...?"
Meng Yu was proud: "You don't know this, I flipped through the comments..."
Just when Lu Shun felt desperate, fortunately the host called Meng Yu's name and successfully got him to give up sharing all kinds of weird experiences.
"Mr. Meng, as the composer and singer of our movie theme song "Time Machine", may I ask you how you went during the creative process..." The host smiled politely, asked questions professionally, and interacted with the audience from time to time.
It’s just that Meng Yu really didn’t play by the rules and went off track several times. Fortunately, others worked hard to pull him back, and finally it was his turn to interview Lin Chiran.
"If there really is a Time Machine, I probably wouldn't be able to resist using it. After all, going back in time is very tempting, and I don't have to worry about eating too much hotpot." Lin Chiran chuckled and joked, then talked seriously about the topic raised by the host, cleverly integrating the theme of time travel in the movie.
The answers were humorous and impeccable, taking into account the enthusiasm and curiosity of everyone on and off the stage, while precisely controlling the scale, not stealing the limelight from the main creators, and helping to promote the film.
Even the crew members who had never dealt with Lin Chiran felt the appropriateness and thoughtfulness in his speech and felt more favorable towards him. By the end of the event, even the director took time out of his busy schedule to come and say hello and chat.
After the premiere, the creators had a full schedule and rushed to the next event.
Lu Shun only attended the premiere and then had some free time. He walked towards Lin Chiran, noticed the photographer who had been following him, and asked in surprise, "You took on 'Thousand Faces'?" Some things were not convenient to say in front of the camera, so he had to try hard to express his doubts with his eyes.
Lin Chiran couldn't help laughing when he saw him blinking frantically. He gave a positive answer and made an appointment with Lu Shun to have dinner together and talk in person later.
In the following week, the tracking camera of "Thousands of Faces" almost became a symbol for Shenghuang employees to capture Lin Chiran. As long as they saw the station logo and the camera, Producer Lin must be there, and it became a topic of conversation among the employees after dinner.
Wu Wen, who communicates a lot with Lin Chiran at work, appears in the camera quite a few times.
Normally, the camera is facing the artist, so it’s bound to feel awkward if you suddenly have to be in the camera. Not intentionally, but unconsciously, words and actions are slightly different from usual. People all want to show a more perfect side of themselves, which inevitably leads to disguise and embellishment.
Wu Wen seemed to suddenly realize how difficult it was to fully show his true self in front of the camera, and he couldn't help but look at the producer with admiration.
Seeing him suddenly show this expression, Lin Chiran could probably guess what Wu Wen was thinking. He laughed, sighed, and said to him: "I was also an idol for a few years."
Hearing the word "for the time being", Wu Wen didn't know whether to laugh or cry. The scene that he couldn't ignore all this time didn't seem to have such a strong presence anymore, and it suddenly became less noticeable.
Seeing that he was no longer concerned about these things, Lin Chiran focused on talking with Wu Wen about Wax&Wane's recent work arrangements, and confirmed An Juesui's status.
"The frequency of attacks has decreased a lot recently and can be slowly brought under control. An Juesui said that he can feel that his condition is improving." Wu Wen couldn't help but sigh when he talked about this.
As they only know about this through doctors' descriptions and information, it is difficult for them to empathize with the struggles of those who are going through it. But everyone could feel the faith that An Juesui revealed, which supported him to slowly get out of the predicament and also became part of the reason for other members to persevere.
After a period of adaptation, the work of the other four members of Wax&Wane gradually improved.
More and more people have come to know, understand, and love them through various fields, and have gradually come into contact with the group from an individual perspective. They have been attracted by Wax&Wane as an idol group, and are digging into their past like reading a story, looking forward to the day when the five of them will be on the same stage again.
The plans that Lin Chiran made for them were realized one by one, and there was also an unexpected surprise.
[Golden Music Awards nominees announced, Wax&Wane may be the biggest winner? 】
[Seven hundred thousand record sales, five Golden Music Award nominations, the most powerful new idol in history! 】
Ever since the Golden Music Awards announced the shortlist, titles like this have appeared one after another. As an idol group, Wax&Wane really gave everyone a big surprise.
Wax&Wane's "Escape" was nominated for Best Newcomer, Meng Yu's "Escape" was nominated for Best Composer, Lin Chiran's "Eye Line" was nominated for Best Lyricist, Qu Qinghuan's "Eye Line" was nominated for Best Single Producer, and Han Ruoming's "Eye Line" was nominated for Best MV.
Although it is still only the shortlisted stage, fans are very excited. There is no better recognition and proof of strength than this.
Ever since the nominations were announced, Wu Wen's phone has been ringing non-stop, with people coming to congratulate him, inviting him to business cooperation, or testing the waters, leaving him very busy.
Lin Chiran was much calmer and was enjoying his dinner leisurely. It would be even better if he could ignore the person who was talking nonstop opposite him.
Meng Yu burst into unprecedented enthusiasm. He was so excited that he wanted to pull the person next to him to dance, and he kept talking: "I told you that gold will shine sooner or later! Pull me out for a walk, whether it's a mule or a horse, and look, it's done! It's done, hahahahaha!"
Lin Chiran didn't even raise his eyes and just ate his dinner quietly.
Lu Shun tugged at Meng Yu's sleeve, trying to pull him to sit down, but was hugged by the excited Meng Yu and almost bitten. He looked at the two people opposite him with a look of despair: "Can't you help me?"
Lin Chiran looked up, pretended nothing happened, and continued eating.
Qu Qinghuan laughed extremely wildly, pointing and talking as he laughed: "Meng Yu passed the imperial examination. Hey, don't stop him, let me record it with my phone." Then he took out his phone and started taking pictures crazily.
Just before Lu Shun's face was about to turn as black as charcoal, Lin Chiran finally stood up leisurely and took a lot of effort to pull Meng Yu away from Lu Shun.
Meng Yu was like a madman. As soon as he was pulled away, he wanted to pounce on Lin Chiran again. However, Lin Chiran, who had expected this, threw him onto Qu Qinghuan, and he heard two wails.
"Lin, Chi, Ran!" Qu Qinghuan covered his head that was hit by Meng Yu and gritted his teeth: "Why did you suddenly throw him to me?"
"Bah! Producer Qu, you talk as if I agree! Can you take your beautiful hair out of my mouth?" Meng Yu said as he tried to get up from Qu Qinghuan. However, the two were stuck in an extremely delicate position and it took them a long time to separate.
Finally, Meng Yu calmed down. Lin Chiran smiled with satisfaction and said in a chilly tone, "So who can tell me why there are four people at a dinner for two people?"
"Yes, why?" Meng Yu repeated relentlessly, obviously overwhelmed by ecstasy and having lost his mind.
Qu Qinghuan pointed at Meng Yu and said, "He asked me to come."
Lin Chiran nodded, then looked at Lu Shun beside him.
At this moment, Lu Shun just wanted to find a hole to hide in. He looked away in embarrassment, but he couldn't bear it anymore and said with a sad face, "I accidentally let it slip..."
"So I'm here!" Meng Yu was so energetic that he looked completely different from usual. He pulled Qu Qinghuan aside and asked him again, "Have you listened to Time Machine? Have you read The Notebook of Time and Space?"
Qu Qinghuan couldn't bear to look at it anymore: "You asked me eight times! Eight times!"
Seeing that the two were about to quarrel again, Lin Chiran wiped the corner of his mouth and said to Lu Shun: "Let's change places."
Lu Shun's subtle gaze fell on the two of them, and he nodded imperceptibly. After packing up his things, the two of them slipped away while Qu Qinghuan and Meng Yu were not paying attention.
When Qu Qinghuan and Meng Yu came to their senses, they didn't see even a shadow of the person, but their stomachs started to growl with hunger.
Meng Yu took a bite of the food and said disdainfully, "The food is cold."
Qu Qinghuan tried to hold back, but couldn't help but sneer: "You didn't order the day lily, so how come you don't know it's cold?"
This one sentence successfully ignited Meng Yu's fighting spirit. The two of them once again forgot about eating and fought each other.
If Lin Chiran and Lu Shun were still here, they would probably applaud them when they saw this scene. The fact that the Golden Music Awards Best Composer nominees and the Best Single Producer nominees exposed each other's secrets would surely be welcomed by all the gossip tabloids, and they would ride shared bicycles at night to film this classic scene of kindergarten kids pulling each other's hair.
It's a pity that neither of them seems to be able to laugh now, even though they learned that "Time Machine" caused a huge discussion as soon as it was released, and its box office was far ahead of others, and the word of mouth also brought about the popularity of the movie's theme song "Time Machine".
Lu Shun rubbed his eyes, looked at Lin Chiran's screen in disbelief, stared at the man on it, and said, "How dare he mention Uncle Lin?"
As he spoke, Lu Shun turned to look at Lin Chiran, hesitated, and asked, "Did he come to you and say anything?"
Lin Chiran had a complicated expression and shook his head.
Lu Shun murmured to himself: "What do you want to do..."
There was a piece of news on Lin Chiran's screen. If it weren't for the people from Shenghuang who noticed it, it would have been difficult for him to discover that Bai Yan had appeared in the entertainment industry again.
The last time I heard this name was when SLANT just debuted. It took him ten years to get over what Bai Yan had done.
This time, he appears as a star artist. Does it mean that the things in the past will be put in front of the world again?
This is an ordinary interview. The only highlight is probably the name of the king of singers who was once remembered by everyone - Lin Jing.
This little-known actor Bai Yan mentioned that in the entertainment industry, the person he is most grateful to is this singing king who had indirectly helped him and whom he still cannot forget.
Looking at this line of words, Lin Chiran felt it was extremely absurd.
His father, Lin Jing, died twenty years ago. And Bai Yan obviously has nothing to do with Lin Jing.
If I have to say, the only relationship is Lin Chiran.
Ten years ago, Bai Yan and Lin Chi Ran debuted together. As his closest teammates, he was the one who stabbed him the deepest.
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