Before the release of his new album, Ji Yan appeared on the stage of the latest episode of "The Voice of China".
The show has now entered the elimination rounds. In the final six episodes, the winner will be chosen from the 24 contestants who advanced from the first six episodes.
The elimination rounds will still be broadcast live. In the first episode, 24 contestants will take turns to compete in one-on-one battles. Unlike the previous six episodes, the contestants will not know who their opponents are in advance. The answer will be revealed to the contestants and the audience two hours before the competition.
Ji Yan received his song "The End of the Sky" in advance. It is a song that became popular in the early 1990s. The original singer was "Spaceship", the first generation of rock bands in China. The song is lively and exciting. The lead singer, Luo Ke, has a slightly hoarse voice, which is a very rare voice in the current music scene.
From its inception, "Spaceship" has been inextricably linked to the theme of freedom, a free, wild, and unrestrained style.
“This song… is a bit difficult to sing.” Xie Mingxuan frowned slightly. “The feeling of a spaceship is something that most people can’t capture.”
“You seem to have a special connection with the band,” Lu Wei said. “This song needs some serious thought.”
The stage of "The Voice of China" is filled with classic old songs, more than half of which are lyrical and gentle. Of course, there are also some songs with unusual styles. "The End of the Sky" is a typical example. Ji Yan is a singer known for his emotional performances. He explored the emotions in the song "The Traveler" very thoroughly, while "The End of the Sky"...
Ji Yan felt that he had to sing out the crazy and mad feeling in it.
Spaceship became a sensation in the late 1980s, but has now largely disappeared from the music scene. "The End of the Sky" can be considered Spaceship's classic representative work. At that time, Spaceship was gradually moving from a niche to a mainstream band, so "The End of the Sky" not only has Spaceship's own style, but is also within the scope of popular music.
Ji Yan carefully researched the life story of the band "Spaceship" and spent time listening to several of their representative works. From their early days to the time when the song "The End of the Sky" became popular, he listened to each song many times.
In conclusion, every band that becomes popular has a reason for being popular.
He even felt that "Spaceship" was another style of "blue," that "blue" was an erupting volcano, and "Spaceship" was a volcano about to erupt. They hid their demands for music under a frenzied shell, but there was something resonant in their music.
That's why the song "The End of the Sky" came about.
Ji Yan also found photos of the "End of the Sky" concert online. It was "End of the Universe's" farewell concert, and a torrential downpour began. In the rain, "End of the Universe" and tens of thousands of audience members sang the song together. The glistening raindrops mixed with glow sticks, making the venue appear anything but dark. Lead singer Luo Ke's hoarse voice strained as he belted out the song—
"I set sail on a lone boat to the edge of the sky."
"Could there be a brand new universe there?"
"Maybe there will be a cute kitten or puppy."
"In this world, you and I are both wandering alone."
This was the last song of that concert. When he sang this song, there was no rhythm left in his voice. His voice was in terrible condition, and he was just shouting on instinct. But no fans cared. Even Ji Yan, who heard the concert live again many years later, didn't care. He felt a power in Rock's voice.
Suddenly, Ji Yan knew how to sing this song.
He locked himself away for half a day, and when he went back to sing, his feelings were completely different. Every time he sang, he couldn't help but recall the final live performance of the Space Shuttle band. On stage, Rock seemed to have really taken all the audience to the end of the sky, wild and free.
He likes this song, and he respects every song he performs on stage.
"Hey, Yan'er, don't overwork yourself." Fang Yu knocked on the door and brought out a bowl of grapes. "Come out and eat."
He thought Ji Yan should be deep in thought and in great distress, but the moment he opened the door, Ji Yan looked very relaxed, as if the struggles of the past few days were just his imagination.
Fang Yu asked, "Is it all done?"
"I think I'm starting to feel it." Ji Yan ate a grape. "It's so sweet."
“Sister Ying brought this. There’s another box of fruit over there. She told you not to overwork yourself and just do your best.”
"Where are Lao Xie and Luwei?"
"She went for a walk; I'm here all alone."
Four days of the week have already passed, and tomorrow he has to go to Snow Mountain TV for rehearsal. Ji Yan was a little sleepy after eating grapes, so he lay down on the sofa and dozed off for a while. Fang Yu covered him with a blanket and quietly left the room.
Ji Yan put in a lot of effort before rehearsals, so his rehearsal time was not long, and his voice got plenty of rest. Before he knew it, it was Saturday again, and the new episode of "The Voice of China" was about to air.
With a total of 24 singers featured in this episode, and the added element of revealing the competition lineup two hours before the broadcast, this episode of "The Voice of China" garnered significant attention even before its premiere. At 6 PM that afternoon, the official Weibo account of "The Voice of China" released the list of competing singers—
Shen Le and Li Ge – "You from Ten Thousand Years Later"
Liu Jing and Zhu Ziyi – "A Date"
...
Ji Yan and Chen Li – *The End of the Sky*
...
Ji Yan is already one of the most popular contestants on "The Voice of China". After six episodes, "The Voice of China" evaluated the 24 songs that had been sung. Ji Yan's version of "The Traveler" stood out among all the songs and won the most love from the audience.
But now, when the list of contestants and the songs were announced, the show's audience and Ji Yan's fans all had a "..." expression on their faces.
Ah, "The End of the Sky".
"It's 'The End of the Sky'."
"The End of the Sky..."
"It's hard not to suspect that the 'Singer' program team did it on purpose. Can an ordinary person sing 'The End of the Sky'?"
"The 'Traveler' from the last episode is my god, and the 'End of the Sky' from this episode is my dad's god. They are really not easy to sing."
"Ji Yan's luck with the draw is just too bad, isn't it? Chen Li is so strong, it'll be hard for him to beat him, won't it?"
With a total of 24 singers participating in this episode, the mentors' commentary time was compressed to the minimum, and the mentors only needed to make choices based on the contestants' performances.
Ji Yan and his opponent Chen Li performed in the last group. In the first six episodes of "The Voice of China", Ji Yan's version of "The Traveler" received the highest praise, followed by Chen Li's performance of "Dream Lover". The latter is a professional singer and a recognized powerhouse vocalist.
Ji Yan remained very laid-back about it. He did the same in both episodes of "The Voice of China" he participated in. He didn't bother to find out who his opponents were or how strong they were. He just focused on singing the songs he wanted to sing.
The night seemed to drag on. Ji Yan waited in the lounge for a long time, listening to classic songs being performed in different ways. After the third-to-last song was finished, the staff came to remind Ji Yan to prepare. Ji Yan cleared his throat and took a sip of water.
The second-to-last song was quickly finished, and Chen Li was the first to perform in Ji Yan's group.
Ji Yan was very familiar with the melody of this song, so when Chen Li started singing, Ji Yan couldn't help but hum along. As expected of a powerful singer, Chen Li perfectly captured the passion of "The End of the Sky". After Chen Li finished singing, the applause from the audience was exceptionally enthusiastic, and even Ji Yan, who was preparing backstage, could hear it.
"Next, please welcome the next singer – Ji Yan!"
"Here he comes." Fang Yu, with a grape in his mouth, hurriedly tidied up the sofa, waiting to see Ji Yan appear.
Meanwhile, on the other side of City A, Duan Yiran angrily complained to Du Jian, "Why do I have to help him see when Ji Yan will appear? Am I his slave?"
Du Jian retorted, "Aren't you one of them?"
"Then you are too."
Du Jian: "...Are you here to complain, or are you here to get scolded?"
Du Jian didn't even want to complain. Duan Yiran said he was unhappy, but he still obediently helped Ning Wei watch "The Voice of China" all night. He would remind Ji Yan when he appeared. This was a habit they had developed before their debut. Duan Yiran was actually quite happy about it.
...
All the cameras in the room were now focused on Ji Yan.
In this performance, he wore a dark trench coat, and black Martin boots made his legs appear even longer, almost blending into the black background of the stage. As soon as Ji Yan stood still, the stirring accompaniment of "The End of the Sky" suddenly began, and the static feeling of the stage completely disappeared at that moment.
Ji Yan's eyes were indifferent.
Then, he began to sing softly into the standing microphone—
The first line of "The End of the Sky" is melodious and lingering. From the second line onwards, the pace of the speech quickens, creating a rhythm that leaves one breathless, with a slight tremor in the tone.
When singing the first part, Ji Yan sang with restraint because the first half of the song had a melancholy feel, like dark clouds gathering before a heavy rain, heavy and gloomy, and his voice at that moment also had a touch of melancholy.
Mentor Qin Xian leaned forward slightly.
Ning Wei's eyes lit up as she watched the television.
Ji Yan's singing skills are naturally not as good as Chen Li's, but when he sang this song, the shock of "spaceship" seemed to return to this stage.
—A volcano about to erupt.
A song that's about to reach its climax.
The audience was quiet, without applause or shouts. The stage was also quiet, with a dark, inky backdrop. Only Ji Yan, in the center of the stage, was bathed in light.
The music returned to its passionate state.
In that instant, Ji Yan pulled the microphone away, gripping it tightly in his hand. He threw his trench coat behind him, and along with the accompaniment of "The End of the Sky," the power in his voice rose. In that instant, it was as if the thick clouds had been parted, and his stirring voice was accurately conveyed to every audience member in the venue—
I have reached the end of the sky!
There is solitude, and there is freedom!
There was also music and screaming!
Even though his skills were not as good as Chen Li's, and he was not as powerful as Chen Li, at this moment, they had come to the end of the sky with him!
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