HuaYu97: Starting as a Singer

Chapter 279 [279] Qi Yuan hadn't even made a move, yet he had already scared away a group of Heavenly Kings and Queens.

On July 17th, Warner Music Taiwan announced Qi Yuan's fourth Chinese album through the media.

[The year 2000 marked the beginning of a new century, and Qi Yuan poured his heart and soul into creating this groundbreaking work, skillfully blending the essence of Peking Opera into modern music. The fusion of centuries-old elegance with popular elements like R&B and hip-hop is not a simple patchwork, but a recombination of musical genes… Please look forward to Qi Yuan's fourth Chinese album, *Ru Yuan*!]

As a king of Mandopop, Qi Yuan's new album can attract the attention of the entire Mandopop scene as soon as a little bit of news is released.

Industry insiders are baffled, and the media has been talking about it for years. How come Qi Yuan hasn't run out of ideas yet?
Should the four majors continue to innovate?
It blends R&B and hip-hop with Chinese style, and even Peking Opera and Kunqu Opera?

With so many musical elements combined, aren't they afraid of messing it up? Doesn't Warner Music care? Are they just going to let him act so recklessly?

People also noticed in Warner Music's promotions that Qi Yuan directed several music videos.

This isn't particularly surprising. Alfa's Jay Chou is currently producing her third Mandarin album, and Alfa is heavily promoting Jay Chou's first time directing a music video.

I heard that the music video used real airplanes and tanks, lasted 14 minutes, and reached the standard of a short film, twice as long as Qi Yuan's "Love Me or Him" ​​and "Fairy Tale".

When Chou Chieh-lun saw that Chi Yuan was personally directing the music video, her first thought was that Chi Yuan and she were kindred spirits, and that they had the same idea.

When Qi Yuan comes to Taiwan, he must discuss the MV with her.

I just don't know if Qi Yuan likes that style.

Walking down the street, sometimes posing with a melancholy profile, sometimes smiling faintly as he gazes into the distance, switching hand gestures back and forth during the rap part, and occasionally fiddling with his collar to show off.

He personally thinks the music video is cool, but the record company is holding him back and not letting him express himself freely, which he finds a bit of a pity.

……

Rolling Stone Records.

Lao Duan, Li Zongsheng, and other senior executives held an emergency meeting and decided to release Liang Cuiping's second album, "Courage," ahead of schedule.

Liang Cuiping debuted last year and released her first album, "Grown Up Overnight," on September 17. Just a few days after its release, the earthquake struck, and the album's quality was also not high enough. It sold a total of more than 40,000 copies in Taiwan and was a complete flop.

This year, Guang Liang and Li Zongsheng served as producers. Guang Liang tailored the song "Courage" specifically for Liang Cuiping based on her vocal characteristics.

Considering Liang Cuiping's failure last year, even if we had the courage this year, we couldn't go head-to-head with Qi Yuan, so we had to release it ahead of schedule.

Let alone Liang Cuiping, a struggling newcomer, even veteran stars like Ren Xianqi and Zhou Huajian wouldn't dare to go head-to-head with Qi Yuan.

……

Hong Kong, a glorious place.

Huo Wenxi urgently contacted Wang Jie: "The company will release your new album soon. Get ready and start promoting it tomorrow."

Wang Jie was a little confused.

Last year, he returned to Yinghuang and released the Cantonese album "GIVING" on January 18 this year. The album was a huge success, topping the charts for three consecutive weeks and achieving double platinum certification.

The music video for the title track "Addiction" features Stanley Ho's daughter, Josie Ho, which is quite impressive.

Yinghuang Entertainment is paying close attention to Wang Jie's upcoming Mandarin album, "From Now On".

Everything is set; it will be released on August 1st.

"Mani, I don't understand why the release date had to be changed at the last minute, and so hastily."

Wang Jie was confused.

Huo Wenxi countered, "Warner's Qi Yuan is releasing his fourth Mandarin album in early August. Are you confident you can compete with him?"

Wang Jie: "..."

What a load of crap! He's not completely washed up now, but his popularity and attention are nowhere near his peak. His voice is also inconsistent. How could he possibly fight Qi Yuan?

Wang Jie obeyed Huo Wenxi's arrangement, feeling extremely aggrieved, and said indignantly, "If it were more than ten years ago, he would be the one avoiding me, not the other way around."

“You said it yourself, it was more than ten years ago. Now he’s at the peak of his career, and if you don’t avoid him, you’ll get beaten up.” Huo Wenxi shook her head helplessly.

Who can argue with him when he's the King of Asian Pop? No one in the Chinese music scene can rival him right now.

Forget about Nicholas Tse; he can't even beat Qi Yuan at cooking, let alone singing or acting.

Currently, only Jay Chou has the potential to surpass Qi Yuan.

……

On the 19th and 20th, Wang Jie and Liang Cuiping released their new albums one after the other.

On the 21st, Andy Lau also released his new album "Men's Love" ahead of schedule.

Nicholas Tse posted it on the 12th, so there's no need to deliberately avoid Qi Yuan.

Besides them, many other singers who were originally scheduled to release albums in August have changed their dates, either releasing them in July or postponing them to September.

Warner Music simply released information about Qi Yuan's new album, yet it caused a scene where superstars avoided him.

Mainland media were delighted, commenting that Qi Yuan had scared off a host of top stars before even making a move.

The social forums on the mainland are even more lively.

"Wow! The newspapers at the beginning of the year were right. There are only two kinds of kings in the Chinese music scene now: one is Qi Yuan, and the other is everyone else."

“I’m really looking forward to Qi Yuan’s new album. It’s really bold to incorporate Peking Opera, Kunqu Opera, hip-hop and R&B into a Chinese style.”

……

In addition to Warner Bros.' announcement, the newly released film "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" continues to bring Qi Yuan exposure.

This film will be released in Taiwan on the 7th, in mainland China on the 8th, and in Hong Kong on the 13th.

It has also been released in Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea and other regions.

In May, Li An took this film to Cannes, where it was nominated for several important awards and successfully won the 'Technical Grand Prize'.

These days, if a film wins an award at one of the three major European film festivals, its prestige instantly changes, and it becomes high-class and prestigious back home.

The film has garnered attention, and the theme song sung by Qi Yuan and Li Wen has also received some attention.

It's worth mentioning that Zhang Ziyi went to Hong Kong with the film crew to promote the movie, and she even managed to throw in a few English phrases.

The next day, Hong Kong's headline read: 'Zhang Ziyi is possessed by the God of Literature.'

Qi Yuan was amused by the Hong Kong media's creativity; when it comes to being sarcastic, the Hong Kong media is the best.

Fan Xiaopang was still shaken: "It seems that not knowing English is a good thing. Look, Zhang Ziyi was ridiculed by the Hong Kong media for speaking English."

Qi Yuan glanced at her: "You're overthinking it. Even if you don't speak a word of English, the Hong Kong media will still find a way to mock you."

Essentially, it's the Hong Kong media bullying Zhang Ziyi, a mainland Chinese.

Isn't it something Hong Kong people love to do to slip in a few English words?

Fan Xiaopang changed the subject: "You still have a lot of influence. The media in Hong Kong say you are the most powerful Heavenly King of the new century, and all the Heavenly Kings have to give way to you."

"You're overthinking it again. That's media that Warner paid for."

Fan Xiaopang: "..."

Does it have to be this realistic?
Qi Yuan didn't really care; whether he praised him or criticized him, it wouldn't affect anything.

"Bouquet" is nearing completion. When he arrives in Taiwan, he will once again bring a small Chinese-style shock to the Chinese music scene! Let people know what a peerless hero is, and what a powerful and righteous ruler is.

(End of this chapter)