1990: Starting from Baojia Street

On the way to the cafeteria, Mariah Carey heard the sound of machinery working in Warehouse No. 7. She asked curiously, "What kind of project is being carried out there?"

Zhou Yan nodded. "Warehouse No. 7 is going to be converted into a comprehensive music building, including a concert hall, recording studio, and practice room. Construction has already started for some time."

Mariah Carey asked in surprise, "You want to build a concert hall yourself?"

"What is the problem?"

"No problem, but it's a little weird. Will your concert hall be open to the public after the renovation is completed? I mean, will it be open to other orchestras for commercial performances like other concert halls?"

"It's possible, but after the renovation of this concert hall is completed, it may only be enough for our own use."

"You guys use it for yourselves? Do you mean the piano youth orchestra? There will be so many performances?"

"Of course, it's not just the Piano Youth Orchestra. Our studio has also signed many musicians, and they also have performances."

"Oh, I see."

Mariah Carey knew very little about the studio's affairs. She still didn't even know that Wang Lihong was a singer signed by Zhou Yan.

The renovation of Warehouse No. 7 will take one or two years. When the renovation is completed, Zhou Entertainment and the studio will definitely sign more singers and the demand for performances will be high. The concert hall can be completely reserved for their own use.

"When the concert hall is renovated, let me come and experience the effect of your hall," Mariah Carey said again.

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "Our concert hall is too small for you. If you want to hold a concert in China, you can choose those stadiums."

Given Mariah Carey's popularity, it would be a waste to hold a concert in a concert hall. Tickets would definitely be sold out in a stadium with tens of thousands of people.

"But since I'm here at your place, you will definitely give me a discount on the venue fee, right?"

"If you want to come, I'll give you the venue for free."

Mariah Carey laughed and said, "It's a deal then. I'll hold a concert once the concert hall is renovated."

"no problem."

……

Not long after the two of them arrived at the cafeteria box, Faye Wong and Anita Mui also arrived.

Faye Wong and the others were not surprised to see Mariah Carey, because Zhou Yan had collaborated with Mariah Carey a lot, so it was reasonable for her to come.

Mariah Carey had some impression of Faye Wong because she had seen the cover of Time magazine before.

Normally, Mariah Carey would not remember a stranger on the cover of Time magazine, but Faye Wong is Chinese and a singer, so Mariah Carey paid more attention to it.

When she saw Faye Wong at that time, Mariah Carey also wondered whether Faye Wong and Zhou Yan also knew each other. Now it seems that her guess was correct.

Not long after Faye Wong and Anita Mui sat down, Zhang Xueyou and Zhang Guorong also arrived.

This time Zhou Yan didn't need to speak, Anita Mui had already started to help introduce them.

Many of Zhou Yan's celebrity friends came to this concert, but as there were still a few days before the concert started, only Anita Mui and a few others arrived first.

These friends in Hong Kong are very active this time, which is actually related to the return of Hong Kong.

At critical moments, it is very important to find the right direction.

Everyone at the table was from the music industry. Except for Zhou Yan, the others were all singers, and they had a lot of common topics.

Mariah Carey is not very familiar with Chinese singers, but Anita Mui and others are quite familiar with Mariah Carey, and her songs are also very popular in Hong Kong.

"Maria, your new album is about to be released, right?" Anita Mui asked.

"Not until September," Maria replied.

In fact, Mariah Carey and others have also considered adjusting the release time of the album. Even if not advancing the release time of the entire album, they would like to advance the release time of the single.

The best thing would be to make "Bleeding Love" the first single, so that it can take advantage of the popularity of "About Time".

But after much consideration, they gave up the idea and continued to release the film according to the original plan.

In fact, if they release a new album in September, it may not be impossible for them to miss the popularity of "About Time". Hasn't "About Time" been released in North America yet?

If "About Time" can finally be released around September, and at that time it is promoted in North America, the popularity will be even higher than it is now.

"There's another song composed by Y in the new album, right?" Faye Wong asked with a smile.

This matter has been very popular in the United States, and the Chinese media has also reported it a long time ago.

"Of course, 'Bleeding Love' is the title song of the new album." Mariah Carey smiled and asked Zhou Yan, "When will 'About Time' be released in North America? It's a pity that the movie has been taken down in China, otherwise I could have gone to the cinema to see it this time."

"The release date has not been decided yet. Tomson is negotiating with someone. And even if it is not released in China, you won't be able to understand it without English subtitles."

“I don’t need to understand it, I just need to listen to the song.”

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "If you just want to listen to music, you can go to those audio-visual stores on the roadside and look for some pirated CDs or videotapes."

Hearing Zhou Yan say this, everyone at the table laughed.

How could the original author recommend others to buy pirated discs?

Although everyone knows that piracy in the mainland is rampant and difficult to control, everyone is tacitly aware of this matter and will neither boycott it crazily nor openly support it.

In fact, as singers, they certainly hope that everyone can support genuine products, so that they can earn more money.

But the reality is difficult to change, and everyone has become accustomed to it.

When Mariah Carey first heard Zhou Yan say this, she was stunned for a moment, thinking to herself, has piracy in China reached such an extent that even creators are advised to buy pirated copies?
However, when she heard Faye Wong and the others laughing, she realized that Zhou Yan must be joking with her.

"I'd better wait until the movie is released in the United States. Then I'll bring more people to support your box office."

"Thank you in advance."

"You're welcome. You promised to let me use the concert hall for free."

Hearing her say this, Anita Mui asked curiously, "What concert hall?"

Zhou Yan explained with a smile, "Warehouse No. 7 in the park is going to be transformed into a multi-functional concert hall. Maria just said she wanted to hold a concert here, and I told her to use it for free."

"No wonder I heard all that banging over there just now. It turns out they're doing some renovations. When will this renovation be completed?"

"The planned construction period is until the end of next year, and it will be ready for use at the beginning of the year after next at the latest."

"We'll come and take a look when you open your business," said Zhang Xueyou.

Anita Mui smiled and said, "Don't come to watch, just hold an indoor concert when the time comes."

Then she turned to Zhou Yan and said, "You must treat us all equally and not charge us any money."

Zhou Yan said generously, "No problem, just come to the concert, I won't charge you a dime for the venue fee."

Zhang Xueyou gave Zhou Yan a thumbs up, "So heroic."

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "Although I don't charge a venue fee, I can charge admission fees."

Hearing Zhou Yan's words, everyone else rolled their eyes. "Wow, I thought you were generous and didn't charge us the venue fee, but it turns out you wanted us to work for you for free." Wang Fei rolled her eyes the most.

Zhou Yan laughed, "I'm just kidding. When the concert hall is renovated, you can just come and perform. I won't charge you any venue fees - I'll keep the ticket money for you, too."

"Oh really."

"real."

Zhou Yan was not joking with them. If the people present really wanted to hold an indoor concert here, he would definitely not charge them venue fees.

How much money can a concert hall like this earn even if it charges a venue fee? If this amount of money can really be used as a favor, then Zhou Yan is certainly willing to do it.

Moreover, the people at the table are all superstar singers. They can come here to hold concerts and help the concert hall gain popularity. This popularity itself is more valuable than the venue fee.

Moreover, a multifunctional concert hall has other businesses besides concerts. By signing some business with these singers, we can make the money back.

Zhang Xueyou and his friends certainly don't care about the venue fee. It's just a fancy sedan chair with people carrying it. When the concert hall is renovated, they will just come to show their support in another way.

In addition, there are not many places in Yanjing that can hold indoor concerts. After the renovation of Zhou Yan's place, it is also a very good choice. It is at least much better than Yanjing's grand theater and concert hall.

……

After dinner, the guests did not stay long and left early.

Mariah Carey also made an appointment with Anita Mui and others to go out and play for a few days. She came to China alone and was unfamiliar with the place. Zhou Yan didn't have time to accompany her, so it was just right for Anita Mui and others to go with her.

Zhou Yan introduced them to each other tonight, and also wanted Anita Mui and others to take Mariah Carey around Yanjing.

Celine Dion will also come the day after tomorrow, but the couple will come together, so Zhou Yan doesn't have to worry.

Unlike Mariah Carey, Celine Dion and her husband have been to Yanjing and are quite familiar with the city. When they go out to play, they will directly find a local guide in Yanjing and don't need others to worry about them.

In addition to them, members of the Backstreet Boys will also come to China, but their schedule is tight and they will not arrive until May 1st.

There is another difference. Whether it is Mariah Carey or Celine Dion, they did not arrange any other work when they came to Yanjing. Apart from watching Zhou Yan's concert, they just wanted to stroll around Yanjing.

Celine Dion and her husband had been to Yanjing before, and this time they even planned to visit other cities.

But the Backstreet Boys are different. In addition to concerts, they have many other activities, such as TV interviews, album signing sessions, etc. They are basically working all the time and have no time to play.

They are still young and need to work hard. It is not the time for them to enjoy themselves yet.

……

On Wangfujing Street, Wu Huaiyu was strolling around with his girlfriend.

The weather was pretty good today, but they had been out for most of the day and his feet were almost numb.

Women are weak most of the time, but they can always show extraordinary physical strength and endurance when shopping.

Seeing his girlfriend still in high spirits after shopping for most of the day, Wu Huaiyou could only complain in his heart and sigh at her strength.

"What are we going to eat in the evening? Why am I feeling a little hungry not long after lunch?" my girlfriend muttered.

Wu Huaiyou rolled his eyes. His girlfriend had ordered all the lunch, but she only took a small bite of each item and he ate most of the rest. It was no surprise that she was hungry now.

"How about roast duck? Shabu-shabu..."

Wu Huaiyu stopped talking halfway, staring blankly ahead.

Not far from them, two women wearing hats and sunglasses were walking towards them, talking and laughing.

Seeing her boyfriend staring at the two women in a daze, the girlfriend was a little unhappy, "What are you looking at?"

"Look……"

"You still watch!"

At this time, Wu Huaiyou couldn't hear his girlfriend's voice at all. He just took out a camera from his bag and started taking pictures of the two women.

The girlfriend was so furious at this point. Not only did this guy watch, he even took pictures?

Usually he refuses to take photos of himself!
After the two women were photographed, they didn't care and even waved to the camera with a smile.

Wu Huaiyu's crazy shooting used up all the film in his camera.

He actually wanted to continue filming, but he had run out of bullets and couldn't continue fighting.

It was at this moment that he realized that his girlfriend was staring at him angrily, her eyes seemed to be spitting fire.

"Xiaoqin, you misunderstood. Those two women are not ordinary people."

"Well, I can see that they are all beauties."

"No, didn't you see that the one in the black hat is Anita Mui?"

"Anita Mui?" Xiaoqin's eyes widened. "Is what you said true or false?"

"Of course."

Before Wu Huaiyu said it, Xiaoqin didn't think that woman looked like Anita Mui, but after he said it, the more Xiaoqin thought about it, the more she felt that woman looked like her.

Although the woman was wearing a hat and glasses, her mouth was exposed, and she really looked like Anita Mui.

Anita Mui's lips are very thick and distinctive.

"The woman next to him..."

"I don't know, he seems to be a foreigner, maybe Anita Mui's friend."

After saying that, Wu Huaiyou quickened his pace and walked out onto the street.

"What are you doing?"

"I have to go back to the agency now."

Wu Huaiyu is a journalist. Their newspaper is neither a tabloid nor a serious news newspaper, but a lifestyle newspaper in between.

They report everything from international events to street anecdotes.

Of course, they would also report news like Anita Mui's appearance in Yanjing.

Wu Huaiyou wanted to rush back, develop the photos quickly, and then write an article as soon as possible. Maybe he could get a good performance bonus for this month.

……

Mariah Carey and Anita Mui were strolling on the street, and they didn't try to avoid other people's eyes at all, so they were easily recognized.

While they were playing around, they were also photographed by many media reporters.

In addition to the two of them being photographed going out, many other celebrities were also photographed within a few days.

So in the past two days, many of the news were about big stars being photographed on the streets, and the most eye-catching ones were naturally the appearances of Mariah Carey and Celine Dion. (End of this chapter)