HuaYu97: Starting as a Singer

Chapter 147 [147] Spring Festival Gala Song "Heaven and Earth Dragon Scales"

"So many schedules?" Qi Yuan sighed.

Since the release of his second album in September, he seems to have barely had any rest.

"Who made you so popular? Other singers would love to be this busy but don't have the chance," Zhang Hao joked.

The Spring Festival Gala and the Top Ten Hits Songs—which of these isn't reserved for big shots?

The Top Ten Gold Songs Awards are usually only given to Cantonese songs, but Qi Yuan made it in last year with just one Cantonese EP, which would make a bunch of local Hong Kong singers green with envy.

Cheung Ho continued, "You still have to participate in the Hong Kong Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Awards on February 6th. If you go, you're sure to win a big prize. Right now, it's the rising period of your career, so it's good for your career to work hard and win more awards."

The Top Ten Jade Solid Gold Songs and the Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs are authoritative awards in the Hong Kong music scene, not some third-rate, low-quality awards.

Qi Yuan first went back to Beijing and met with the Spring Festival Gala director team and the Spring Festival Gala team.

Liu Tiemin, the chief director of the Spring Festival Gala, approached Qi Yuan and said, "Ren Xianqi changed his song. He suggested replacing 'Too Softhearted' with 'The Girl Across the Way,' which was unanimously approved. Would you like to change the song?"

“I heard that Ren Xianqi changed his song. ‘Too Softhearted’ is too sad and not suitable for the Spring Festival Gala stage. He made the right choice. Why should I change mine? Isn’t ‘Yellow Race’ pretty good? It has a good theme and is full of youthful vigor,” Qi Yuan asked doubtfully.

The open-mindedness of this year's Spring Festival Gala directing team exceeded Qi Yuan's expectations.

In the past, the songs a singer would perform were decided before the singer was invited, and they were rarely changed afterward, mainly to avoid mistakes.

This year's Spring Festival Gala was truly special.

The Spring Festival Gala was broadcast online for the first time in 99, and this suggestion was made by Liu Tiemin.

The chief director is not conservative and is willing to keep up with the times, and the other directors are equally willing to innovate.

Director Zhou Xiaodong, who was in charge of choreography and sound, strongly suggested that all the singers perform live, changing the practice of lip-syncing that had been used in previous years.

With a production team like this, it's no surprise that Ren Xianqi's request to change songs was approved.

It's not surprising that Liu Tiemin asked Qi Yuan if he wanted to change the song.

Next, Liu Tiemin laid his cards on the table: he believed Qi Yuan could write better songs and wanted to squeeze out as much of Qi Yuan's potential as possible.

"The song 'Yellow Race' has a good theme, reflecting the ambition of young people and the national pride of the yellow race. However, the song is more of a release of passion and is a little thin."

You are a talented songwriter from mainland China. Could you rewrite a song with a grander theme and deeper emotions, based on the Chinese style you pioneered?

It should reflect a love for the motherland's mountains and rivers, a praise for national pride, and even better if it incorporates reflections on the fate of the Chinese nation and the inheritance of its culture…

When Liu Tiemin finished speaking, he was even embarrassed to continue.

His demeanor was exactly like that of a demanding client who would make things difficult for anyone.

Qi Yuan thought about it for a long time.

Liu Tiemin was about to give up when he heard Qi Yuan say, "Okay, I'll try my best. But I have one request: I might need to take a few days off during the rehearsal period. I need to go to Hong Kong to receive an award on the 24th and the 6th of next month."

While Qi Yuan was thinking, he thought of a song that was particularly suitable for the Spring Festival Gala and also met Liu Tiemin's requirements.

This song was originally destined for the Spring Festival Gala, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, the person who sang it missed that year's Gala.

It would be good if Qi Yuan could make up for this regret.

The only downside is that this year isn't the Year of the Dragon.

That's right, the song Qi Yuan was thinking of is called "Heaven and Earth Dragon Scales". The fact that this song didn't make it onto the Spring Festival Gala that year is a regret for many viewers.

Just then, Qi Yuan couldn't find a reason to take leave to go to Hong Kong to receive the award.

He agreed to the director's 'excessive' request. The director couldn't possibly be completely ungrateful, could he?
Sure enough, a flash of surprise crossed Liu Tiemin's eyes, but he quickly regained his composure: "I knew you had this ability, but today we'll rehearse 'Yellow Race' first."

The Spring Festival Gala, a mega-event that attracts nationwide attention, cannot afford to make mistakes. Qi Yuan needs to write a new song, and rehearsals for "Yellow Race" cannot be stopped.

In case Qi Yuan can't come up with a new song, or if the new song isn't as good as "Yellow Race", then "Yellow Race" can be used to fill in. We need to be prepared for both possibilities.

Qi Yuan didn't try to show off; he just shouted that he would immediately produce a new song.

He quietly participated in the Spring Festival Gala rehearsals for a few days, and then asked Liu Tiemin for two days off to go to Hong Kong to attend the Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Awards Ceremony.

This year's awards ceremony was held at the Xiangjiang Stadium.

Compared to last year's Top Ten Chinese Literature Awards, there were far fewer familiar faces at the event.

After all, the Top Ten Songs Awards are mainly given to Cantonese songs, while the majority of singers in the Chinese music scene sing Mandarin songs.

Qi Yuan's popularity remains as high as ever. As soon as he appeared, the fans in the venue began to cheer for their idol.

The Top Ten Golden Melody Awards remain largely unchanged, basically dominated by the Four Heavenly Kings, Princess Consort, and Zheng Xiuwen.

The Hong Kong music scene really feels stagnant; the veteran artists have won all the major awards, and newcomers don't even have a chance to stand out.

This year, Lai Ming withdrew from accepting awards, which freed up some spots for newcomers in Hong Kong.

Qi Yuan's "Loving Too Late" successfully won the Top Ten Golden Songs Award.

Qi Yuan also won another trophy, but it was shared with Li Zongsheng and Zhou Huajian: the bronze award for most popular Mandarin song, for the song "I've been feeling rather annoyed lately".

Qi Yuan originally thought that this was no longer her business.

Unexpectedly, the host called his name again at the end: "The most important Golden Melody Award winner has been revealed: Qi Yuan, 'Too Late to Love'."

This is the most prestigious award among the Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs, bar none.

Qi Yuan is unlikely to receive the Golden Needle Award, another lifetime achievement award, because the requirements are too stringent. It requires a long-term career in the Hong Kong music scene and the production of multiple high-quality Cantonese albums...

The princess has been in Hong Kong for so many years, but she has never won this award because she has started releasing Mandarin albums and will continue to focus on Mandarin albums in the future.

The Golden Melody Award is the most prestigious award that Qi Yuan could ever receive.

The main reason is that the song "Loving Too Late" has such a great message and is excellent enough.

"I'm really surprised. I never thought I could win this Golden Melody Award. Thank you..."

Qi Yuan delivered his acceptance speech in a very formal manner. After the awards ceremony, he declined some invitations from friends in Hong Kong and immediately flew back to Beijing.

After returning to the capital, Qi Yuan took another stroll around the Forbidden City before leisurely releasing the song "Heaven and Earth Dragon Scales".

Qi Yuan brought the song to Studio One of the old CCTV headquarters and found Liu Tiemin backstage: "Director Liu, I have lived up to my mission. I went to Hong Kong to receive a few trophies and took a stroll around the Forbidden City. After working so hard for so many days, I've lost a lot of hair, but I've finally finished creating this song."

Liu Tiemin was stunned when he saw the lyrics. After a few seconds, he looked down at the lyrics and then at Qi Yuan.

Holy crap! This young man's got some serious skills!
P.S.: One more chapter will be later. I've been really struggling with writer's block these past few days.
(End of this chapter)