Respawn Entertainment: Days of Glory

Chapter 998 Starlight Before the New Rolling Stones
"Holy crap! Is this the kind of content you can watch for such a small amount of money?!" The Chu army erupted in a frenzy of excitement!
Although I had seen the couple showing affection online before, nothing beats seeing it in person. The clicking of phones in the audience was deafening, and the shutters of the photographers who were already in position were practically sparking. Those who couldn't make it could only watch and sigh.

A kiss before the performance ended a dozen seconds later. After their lips parted, Bian Lang said softly, "I'll be right here with you in the audience. It's okay, hang in there!"

Guo Sichu nodded shyly, and then the Rolling Stones musicians, who had been watching the excitement and were already clapping, took their places and prepared to start the performance!
Da Yong put his arm around Hua Yan and said earnestly, "You should learn from this, kid. Find a time when you have a performance and win over Zi Li..."

"I'm just a little unsure!" Hua Yan said, sounding a bit hesitant.

Then Da Yong slapped him on the back of the head: "Think about it, what else do you have to think about? Get married and have kids early. Look at me, my son is showing off at kindergarten every day, it's awesome! If Bian Lang and Guo Sichu get together, just imagine how old they'll be when the kids grow up..."

Da Yong's words, spoken from experience, did not intimidate Hua Yan at all: "Brother Yong, if Brother Lang and Sister Chu really get together in the end, it's not going to be a matter of just the next two years. With the intensity of the Rolling Stones' performances and their lifestyles, having a child won't be easy!"

"It's also..."

If Bian Lang heard this, and it wasn't him who was being said, he would definitely give examples of the two in his mind: "Nightwish's Floor Sister and Luo Qi are both great mothers who went on stage when they were more than seven months pregnant!"

Bian Lang didn't linger. After helping to pull the curtain closed, he jumped off the stage. Even then, the fans and music lovers in the audience who hadn't seen him win were still shouting, "One more!" It felt even more energetic than when they were chanting for an encore.

As soon as Bian Lang landed, Fu Yiran and Qiu Yue, who arrived later, gave him a thumbs up: "I really admire you two! Aren't you afraid that... ptooey, ptooey, look at my foul mouth, you two should just get married on the spot!"

Bian Lang smiled but didn't reply, and went to greet the others.

Guo Sichu's friends from the entertainment industry did come quite a bit, but some who weren't particularly interested before didn't stay in front of the stage to watch the performance. But now that Guo Sichu, the main character, was in the spotlight, the previously empty isolation area, which was usually filled with photographers and security, was now dazzling with star power.

To put it bluntly, even minor celebrities who managed to get in through connections and wanted to get some exposure didn't dare to stand in front.

Because the very first row, closest to the stage, is reserved for emperors, empresses, and A-list celebrities. Even people like Xia Yuxi and Liu Xiaokui felt a little trembling standing in the front row…

Liu Xiaokui: "Xia Yuxi, this scene is almost like an awards ceremony!"

"More than that, there's no way we could possibly get this many celebrities at an awards ceremony... Sister Chu Chu's popularity is truly unbeatable!"

A quick glance revealed that An Feng and his group were all film industry heavyweights, and Qiu Luo, who had been brought in to accompany them, barely dared to speak. Fortunately, Fu Yiran helped with the introductions, and An Feng's casual conversation with Andy Lau made him feel less flustered.

After his identity as Bian Lang's good friend was revealed, his popularity soared. Immediately, a newly crowned Hundred Flowers Award-winning actress approached him to try and get on his good side: "Director Qiu, do you have any new films in the works right now?"

Seeing the changes in Bian Lang over the past year, Qiu Luo also benefited a lot. He always thought about how he could help his brother, but now, apart from helping Rolling Stone make documentaries, there was nothing else he could do to help.

Originally, he could have become an assistant director to learn from the experience when "Pirate Radio" started filming, but after he told Director Geng about it, Director Geng's exact words were: "It's not suitable for you. European directors are good at making art films, but for commercial films, they need Hollywood a lot more. The key is that Bian Lang needs a trustworthy person to keep an eye on the progress and so on, and you're not good at those things."

"I'll help you find a producer familiar with Europe to oversee things; that's more useful than you going yourself. While Bian Lang can't perform this year, you should find a few screenwriters to work with him, turning his stories into scripts, and then find a suitable project to test them out. With Bian Lang's current fame, finding funding for your scripts won't be difficult. To put it bluntly, consider it using other people's money to practice on your own."

That's a very true statement, but if the story flops, it would be a waste of Bian Lang's reputation and the relationship between Qiu Luo and Bian Lang. However, Qiu Luo has a certain ruthlessness and feels that he can handle the story of "Waiting Alone," which is why Fu Yiran said those things to Bian Lang.

A while ago, he ran into Bian Lang and Bian Lang mentioned this matter to him. Now that Bian Lang had agreed, he felt more confident to bring it up. Although Bian Lang might just be being polite and trying to get closer, he would still need to find actors if filming actually started, and he couldn't keep bothering Bian Lang later.

"There's a script that Bian Lang came up with. Once it's finished, we should be able to start filming in the second half of next year. It's an urban romantic comedy..."

The actress who won the Hundred Flowers Award was just asking casually to get closer to her, but unexpectedly, she actually got some useful information out of her.

"As for Teacher Bian's script, if there's a suitable role available, Director Qiu, please remember to give it priority consideration."

This actress, Wen Xin, is quite sensible; she certainly doesn't lack film offers now. However, in China, it's extremely difficult for actresses with such acting skills to rise to a higher level. Without a lot of luck, they can't compete with the new generation of actresses who have access to abundant resources.

Although there are too many unknowns about Bian Lang's script, it will definitely generate a lot of buzz. Even if the film is not good, it will still be known as a bad movie with a catchy theme song. So she decided to take a gamble.

Even if there's no improvement in one's career, it's definitely not a bad thing to strengthen the relationship with Guo Sichu and Bian Lang.

If it were someone else, they might have thought Wen Xin's words were just polite talk between adults, but Qiu Luo actually believed them: "Okay, I'll let Teacher Wen know as soon as there's any progress."

Then look at Xie Xinyan and his group; they're all top-tier or higher figures in the music industry. He was chatting with Prince Hong when the "crash bandwagon" of the little witch, who was patting him and screaming, completely stunned: "Guys, I don't even know where to look! You can imagine, these are names that even someone like me who listens to niche music knows. You can imagine their fame and status..."

Ahhhh! Prince Hong and Prince Xie... This is an old Ferrari... No, it's not old yet..."

Xie Xinyan and the Little Witch were familiar faces. After hearing her introduction, Xie Xinyan even took the initiative to face the camera and bump fists with the Little Witch: "Little Witch, introduce me in a cool way!" "Of course..." After the Little Witch finished speaking, she checked the time and felt that there was still a while before the show started, so she thought of interviewing Xie Xinyan: "Crab King, I'd like to interview you. Seeing so many colleagues at the Rolling Stone event, what's it like..."

Xie Xinyan is much more adept at handling situations than those tough guys in the rock scene, but his answer to this question was also heartfelt: "It's great. Everyone's not here for awards or anything, we're just happy to get together for music. It really feels like a festival..."

Many of the celebrities who came tonight probably had some ulterior motives at the beginning, but after arriving at the venue, many of them changed their mindset to Xie Xinyan's.

"Thank you Rolling Stones, thank you Bian Lang, for giving us a less serious environment to enjoy music and get together properly..."

As the little witch listened, she gave Xie Xinyan a thumbs up: "He really deserved to be so popular back then. If you asked this question to people in the rock and roll circle, who knows what kind of nonsense they would say."

This reminded her of what some musicians said in the preparation room during "The Big Band." It had absolutely nothing to do with emotional intelligence; you could even say they spoke without thinking. But it was precisely this outspoken honesty that became a major highlight of the show.

During the show's debriefing, she was invited to share her thoughts as an audience representative. One of the planners present suggested, "Next year, if we invite some pop stars or purely attention-grabbing bands, that sense of conflict would definitely be a highlight!"

The idea was good, but it was immediately rejected: "Bian Lang won't agree!"

When the planners tried to argue further, Niu Bo made the final statement: "The Big Band was born from Bian Lang's ideas. No one can change what he insisted on. You planners shouldn't be unconvinced. With the current quality and popularity of The Big Band, who among you could have been as certain as Bian Lang before filming even began?"

This statement is somewhat unreasonable; who has the ability to compare with Bian Lang? But it is also the absolute truth!
Finally, looking at Bian Lang's group, they were all from the rock scene. There weren't many people from within Rolling Stone; most of the musicians performing today had blended into the fan group. Those standing with Bian Lang were mostly veteran rockers from outside the Rolling Stone system, like Commander Chuanzi.

After checking the time, the commander still asked with some concern, "It's not that I don't trust Guo Sichu, it's just that I think if today's performance goes well, it will be a huge good thing for the entire rock music scene!"

In the commander's view, their previous stagnant ideas had been completely changed after Bian Lang's actions over the past year, which could be described as "surpassing the master with a flurry of punches." They would not compromise on their pursuit of musical works. However, their previous attitude of looking down on pop singers and refusing to cooperate was indeed something that needed to be changed.

Not to mention Guo Sichu's situation, Xia Yuxi's performance after taking over Hedgehog has impressed even these old guys.

"What? You don't mean you want to collaborate with pop singers later?" Bian Lang was a little surprised that the commander would think that way.

"If you really have the ability, why not?"

"Yeah, it's not so bad after all!"

Actually, many pop singers came here today to see if this matter can be resolved. If it can be resolved, many washed-up and unemployed singers might be able to try this new path.

Looking back at the original Earth, although Adam Lambert could not be equated with Queen like Edwards, for Queen fans, he was definitely a very qualified lead singer.

Most importantly, it allows fans who didn't get to hear Uncle Ya live to fulfill their dreams, which is of paramount importance.

As for China, it seems there haven't been any mainstream rock singers who have actually succeeded. To give an inappropriate example, Lao Cui has a terrible voice, and many people have covered his songs over the years, but no matter who covers them, they always lose that flavor.

Let's talk about Black Panther. They've had 11 lead singers so far, and not a single one has been able to capture the essence of Dou Xian's rendition of "No Place to Hide." As for other covers, Han, Sun, and Tao's singing skills are undeniable, but what was the result?

However, Rolling Stone's situation is completely different from the ones mentioned above.

In terms of singing ability, Bian Lang has absolute confidence in Guo Sichu. His only concern is her understanding of rock music and the songs themselves. After all, Bian Lang's own understanding and emotional resonance with these songs is something he can't share with Guo Sichu.

Another reason is that they're called bands, not singers. Some genres require strong vocal skills, like old-school heavy metal. Other genres don't, like post-punk and dream pop.

The key is that the vocals must fit the overall style of the band. If you listen to a lot of rock, jazz, and classical music, you'll realize that vocals only play a very small role in the overall musical landscape. No music is great solely because of vocal prowess.

If they participated in a singing competition, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, and John Lennon would probably be eliminated after only a few rounds.

For example, imagine having Runtu sing "Kill That Man from Shijiazhuang," what would that feel like...?

To say that Bian Lang wasn't nervous at today's event would be an exaggeration!

So, whether for Guo Sichu or for Rock Records, the opening song Bian Lang prepared for Rock Records this time was a carefully selected new song. Moreover, it was a song that was previously performed by Ms. Deng, an unavoidable peak among female singers in the Chinese music scene!
Now, it remains to be seen whether Guo Sichu's performance will satisfy everyone!

(End of this chapter)