At 8 p.m., "The Voice of China" officially premiered.
"Dear viewers, welcome to this episode of 'The Voice of China'."
The host, dressed in a white suit, introduced the singers and songs participating in this episode with a smile. The first group to appear was Hu Pingyuan and Gu Yi, who sang "Like Flowing Water," a song that became a hit in the 1980s and is a typical representative of the Mandarin Duck and Butterfly School.
Ji Yan was also watching the two perform intently in the dressing room.
Hu Pingyuan's singing style is very gentle, and he interprets the song "Like Flowing Water" in a very light and gentle way. With the stills from the movie "Like Flowing Water" on the big screen, it is as if people have returned to the last century and felt the pain of unrequited love between lovers.
The only problem was that his singing was too flat. It was gentle from the beginning to the end, without much variation. Even Ji Yan noticed this, and the judges on the panel naturally noticed it as well.
Sure enough, the judges pointed out this problem to Hu Pingyuan.
Gu Yi then performed the song in a more modern way, and his expression was clearly more appreciated by the judges. In the competition between the two, Gu Yi successfully advanced to the later elimination rounds.
"It's a pity that Hu Pingyuan wasn't assigned to the same group as Ji Yan."
"+1, anyone who's paired with Ji Yan can easily beat him."
"The lineup for 'The Voice of China' is very strong, and the stage is also good. The only problem is the song selection. It would be better to let the singers sing the songs they are good at. Why choose classic old songs? Old songs are not so easy to surpass."
Compared to previous episodes, this episode of "The Voice of China" saw a significant increase in viewership, with many viewers watching the show attentively, while others tuned in specifically for Ji Yan.
The live stream of "The Voice of China" was flooded with the message "Ji Yan, get out of the entertainment industry," which overwhelmed the performances of other singers.
"The next group is Zhao Ying and Wu Xingxia's 'Jianghu,' and the group after that is 'The Traveler,' right?"
"Ah! Don't let me hear that! I still can't quite accept the reality that Ji Yan is going to sing 'The Traveler'."
Since the announcement of the contestant list for this season of "The Voice of China", Ji Yan's name has appeared on various trending topics several times. In terms of popularity, he may not be ranked among the top in the entertainment industry, but in terms of how well netizens know him, it is no exaggeration to say that he is far ahead of the competition.
Which surfer hasn't heard his hoarse scream?
If you put Ji Yan's songs in a goose's nest, even the geese wouldn't dare to snatch people's butts, okay?
No matter how much netizens disliked hearing Ji Yan sing "The Traveler," what was bound to happen would happen. After the contestants in the "Jianghu" group finished their performance, the host returned to the stage to introduce them to the audience—
"The next song, 'The Traveler,' is the title track from the 'Blue' band's debut album, 'Rhapsody,' and is sung by Ji Yan, a member of the 'Wings' boy band and a rising star singer."
The intensity of the "Ji Yan get out of the entertainment industry" message on the screen reached its peak at this moment, with huge characters blocking the screen and making it impossible to even see the figure clearly.
...
Just before Ji Yan appeared, the stage lights suddenly dimmed, and in the next instant, starlight rose from the ground, revealing a figure in the center of the stage.
When the other person came on stage, they seemed to have their eyes closed. The moment they opened their eyes, the camera zoomed in, and their clear black and white eyes seemed to be overflowing with starlight, attracting everyone's attention along with their face.
"！！！！！！！"
"Holy crap!! Is Ji Yan really that good-looking???"
"!!!!! I thought that picture circulating online was photoshopped!!!"
"It's amazing! Absolutely amazing!!!"
Fang Yu's picture did go viral before, but Ji Yan's subsequent reaction was lukewarm. He didn't post any selfies or promote himself as a handsome young man, so many netizens had long forgotten about it. Ji Yan's haters said the picture was heavily edited, and netizens assumed it really was, since Ji Yan doesn't actually look like that.
As it turns out, Ji Yan himself does not actually look like that.
Because the real person looks many times better than the photos!
"With looks like that, what more could you ask for? Holy crap, she's so good-looking! I think she's the absolute top in terms of looks in the idol industry!"
Netizens were prepared that once Ji Yan started singing, the handsome imagery would probably be completely ruined, but so what? He's really, really handsome!
This is a world that judges people by their appearance.
The word "good-looking" quickly went viral, scrolling wildly across the screen along with "Ji Yan, get out of the entertainment industry".
The accompaniment to "The Traveler" slowly begins.
The variety show "The Voice of China" invested heavily in stage design and sound effects, with accompaniment comparable to a large concert. However, once viewers thought of Ji Yan's horrific voice cracking, which was worse than killing a chicken, they all turned down the volume.
However--
When the first sound rang out, the audience thought they were hallucinating.
—This is the best voice to appear on the stage of this episode of "The Voice of China," no, it may be the most touching voice since the show started.
Many singers have covered "The Traveler," and each singer has their own interpretation of the song, but the fact that the original version is unsurpassable is a consensus in the music industry.
Every line sung by Ji Yan makes one feel as if they are entering a journey through time. He may not be as soul-stirring as Ning Wei's performance, but his singing is equally chilling.
Those who watched the live video broadcast felt it most deeply—
The frenzied comments of "Ji Yan, get out of the entertainment industry" and "Looks good" seemed to come to a halt the moment Ji Yan started singing. The comments disappeared completely, and the screen only showed the young man singing quietly. His face, the background of the starry sea, and his singing together formed the most beautiful scene on the stage of "The Voice of China".
I look up at the stars.
"A solitary traveler."
"The poet praises my journey."
"A wandering, drifting soul."
"On the next morning."
"I will forget love and hate."
Ji Yan's style is different from Ning Wei's. He contains strong emotions in this song. Although he does not make any big movements on stage, the audience can deeply feel that he is releasing himself and venting through this song, conveying his beliefs with his voice.
Even as the chorus began, the powerful feeling hadn't faded. When Ji Yan waved to the audience, even though he wasn't singing, the live stream chat remained completely silent. No one typed a single word, and no one wanted to break the atmosphere. This was the charm of the song "The Traveler," and also the charm of Ji Yan's performance.
Although it's a song by the "Blue" band, Ji Yan found a sense of resonance in it.
After the song ended, the audience was completely silent. Ji Yan bent down slightly and walked towards the stage. Regardless of the audience's reaction, he had sung what he wanted to express, and that was enough.
But the moment Ji Yan stopped at the judges' table, a burst of extremely enthusiastic applause suddenly erupted in the audience. The audience shouted his name in unison, their voices loud. Ji Yan himself was startled by this sudden situation, and his legs wobbled involuntarily.
"So silly~"
"!!!! This really scared me? This is Ji Yan singing??"
"Explosive, invincible, and so good! When will Snow Mountain TV release this episode's songs? I want to listen to them on repeat!"
"Is the Ji Yan singing on stage really the same Ji Yan with that hoarse voice? Did Snow Mountain TV pay someone to sing for them?"
"This song is really, really, really good. God, apart from Ning Wei's live performance, I swear this is the best version of 'The Traveler' I have ever heard."
"+1. But what I'm more curious about is what Ji Yan went through? In my memory, he's always sung terribly, okay?"
"I don't care, I've really become a fan of Ji Yan. He doesn't have any special singing techniques, but his expression is so strong."
"It sounds so good! It sounds so good!!"
No one expected Ji Yan to deliver such a performance on the stage of "The Voice of China." The official Weibo account of "The Voice of China" seemed to have a reason for not releasing any behind-the-scenes footage of Ji Yan before the broadcast; they initially thought it was because Ji Yan sang so badly that the production team was embarrassed to show it. But the result was unexpected—
Standing in front of the judges' panel, Ji Yan appeared somewhat nervous about his performance, with sweat on his forehead and a less-than-composed expression. While this might be seen as a drawback by fans, considering the stage performance he had just presented, this side of Ji Yan seemed more authentic.
Ji Yan waited for about half a minute, but none of the mentors spoke up.
The comments section was filled with question marks.
"It's not that I don't want to say it, it's just that I haven't figured out how to praise you yet."
The singer Qin Xian, who was in the center of the five judges' panel, smiled at Ji Yan and said, "You are the biggest surprise I've encountered since joining this show."
Viewers who have been following "The Voice of China" know that Qin Xian's comments are always strict. He rarely praises people and criticizes them more often. The fact that he said this is enough to prove how outstanding Ji Yan's performance of "The Traveler" is.
"There are still some rough parts in terms of technique, but 'The Traveler' itself is not a song that requires too much skill. However, if you want to continue on the path of a singer, you still need to continue to hone your skills and learn to handle songs of any style."
At the end of his review, Qin Xian asked Ji Yan, "Could you sing one of my songs? This is my personal wish as a fan."
Ji Yan nodded slightly. Qin Xian was also a veteran king of the music scene with countless popular songs. He had learned a few of Qin Xian's songs.
Once he starts singing, Ji Yan is able to fully immerse himself in the song. Even though it's a cappella, he still delivers the performance flawlessly.
"It was live!! His breathing was so clear!!"
"Ahhhh, Ji Yan is so handsome!!!"
"Why are there people who are good-looking and sing so well? What exactly happened to Ji Yan from 'Idol Generation' to 'The Voice of China'?"
Although Ye Zhiyao has not yet taken the stage, Ji Yan has already won the hearts of the judges and the audience. On topics related to "The Voice of China", Ji Yan and "The Traveler" are being hotly discussed and quickly became a trending topic on Weibo.
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