The Road to Superstardom: Starting as a Singer

After the event, back in the car, Jace's assistant excitedly handed her a camera: "Jace, look! These photos are fantastic!"

Huang Weijie took the photos and flipped through them: his smiling profile under the spotlight, his focused expression while talking with sports stars and entertainment industry colleagues, and the dazzling sea of ​​"Jace" fans below the stage...

Each one captures the madness of tonight.

"The photos are great, but we still need to check for any flaws, Jesse. Thank you for your help."

Huang Weijie smiled and handed the camera to his assistant.

When he was hiring an assistant, he made an extra requirement: the assistant had to be able to edit photos.

This isn't because he lacks confidence in his looks, but because whether a photo is beautiful or handsome often depends not only on appearance, but also on angle, exposure, composition, and color...

There are too many factors.

Aside from a few exceptional individuals, the first hurdle most celebrities have to overcome to become stars is their appearance.

You have to be good-looking to become a star.

If someone isn't good-looking, then they can only be called an actor.

Therefore, even if most celebrities are without makeup and don't dress up deliberately, there is still a significant difference between them and ordinary people when they stand together.

Even so, why are there so many unflattering photos of celebrities online?

Aside from irregular sleep patterns, a major reason isn't that the celebrity is ugly, but rather that the photos taken have mediocre composition, colors, and angles...

Furthermore, since it wasn't edited and was posted by a passerby, it just looks like an ordinary man or woman.

Back at the hotel, Huang Weijie opened his laptop and logged onto Baidu Tieba.

Entering the "Huang Weijie Bar" forum, it was already flooded with leaked photos from tonight's press conference and excited posts from fans.

He didn't rush to read the messages; instead, he created a new post with a simple title: "Thank you at the Workers' Stadium today."

Then, we carefully selected a few photos taken by the team that showed the team in good condition and uploaded them.

In the main text, he wrote: "Just got back from the Workers' Stadium, still feeling a bit overwhelmed. I heard everyone shouting, it was incredibly loud (laughs). Thank you to everyone who came, and to all my friends who supported me on Tieba and elsewhere. The Olympics are coming, let's cheer each other on! These photos are a small gift for you all, goodnight."

In 2008, when blogs were still relatively formal and social networks were not yet as ubiquitous as they would become in later years, forums like Baidu Tieba were the core of fan communities and the base for emotional cohesion and information dissemination.

These young people who scream for him, make light boards for him, and "fight" for him online are the most valuable foundation for him to establish himself in this market in the future.

To keep them together, we need not only the spotlight on stage, but also this kind of warm sharing.

While Huang Weijie was checking posts on Baidu Tieba, press releases about the evening's press conference were being released frantically from all sides.

Some were purchased by Huang Weijie's team, some by other celebrities who jumped on the bandwagon, and some were promoted by Nike...

But the main focus is still on Huang Weijie.

Sohu Entertainment Headline: "International Supernova Jace Ignites Workers' Stadium! Nike Olympic Launch Event Turns into Fan Meet-and-Greet!!"

Sina Entertainment News Flash: "Red-Clad Boy Makes a Stunning Entrance! Huang Weijie's First Performance at Workers' Stadium Sparks Fan Screams!"

NetEase Entertainment Special Feature: "A Memorable Moment is Born! Fan Bingbing and Huang Weijie Frame Each Other Closely and Chat – Two of the Most Handsome Faces in One Frame!"

Tencent Entertainment Focus: Huang Weijie's "First Moment" Upon Returning to China: A Press Conference Defining His Idol Role!

Southern Metropolis Entertainment Weekly cover preview: "More than just handsome! Huang Weijie's appearance at the Workers' Stadium showcases the vision and emotional intelligence of a new-era idol!"

Phoenix Entertainment Commentary: "More Than Just an Idol: The Resonance of Olympic Sentiment and Youth Culture Behind the Huang Weijie Phenomenon"

Beijing Youth Daily Entertainment Edition: "Fan Bingbing Takes the Initiative to Talk to Him, Yao Ming and Liu Xiang Take Photos with Him—Why is Huang Weijie So Popular?"

……

In short, the repercussions of this press conference continued to spread over the next few days.

The headlines of major portal websites and entertainment sections were almost entirely dominated by photos of Huang Weijie appearing at the Workers' Stadium.

Although the "shocking headline" was not yet fully developed at this time, many clickbait headlines still attracted a lot of clicks from netizens.

Meanwhile, the photos taken directly by Huang Weijie's team were wildly shared among fans, with four particularly memorable images even going beyond the fan community and becoming a topic of conversation among the general public.

The first amazing picture is Huang Weijie standing next to Yao Ming in a photo.

The basketball superstar, standing at nearly 2.26 meters tall, and the teenage idol, standing at 1.78 meters tall, formed the "cutest height difference." Huang Weijie looked up and smiled, while Yao Ming considerately bent his knees, creating a harmonious and amusing scene.

Fans flooded the comments section:

Standing next to Yao Ming, he looked like a little prince!

[The height difference is so cute, but their presence is just as strong!!]

[I can also have the cutest height difference with Jace!]

【…】

The second amazing picture shows Huang Weijie and Fan Bingbing whispering to each other in the guest seats.

Fan Bingbing covered her mouth with her hand, while Huang Weijie leaned slightly to listen, both of them with smiles in their eyes.

The photo quickly spread on entertainment forums.

[The most beautiful people in the world are in the same frame!]

Who else?!

What are they saying? I'm so curious!

【Aaaaaah! Fan, stay away from my Weijie!!】

【…】

The third amazing picture is of Huang Weijie scratching his head and laughing embarrassedly when he lost the game.

The boy's adorable appearance instantly captured the hearts of countless fans.

Ahhh! He's so well-behaved and cute, I want to hug him so badly!!

[Me too, sister! I really want to hold him in my arms and give him a good rub!!!]

[Haha, who wouldn't love a handsome but goofy guy?]

【…】

The fourth amazing picture has been set as a screensaver by many fans.

That was a close-up of Huang Weijie standing in the center of the stage, the overhead lights shining on him, looking down at the sea of ​​fans below, with that sunny and refreshing smile.

This picture has generated a huge number of comments on Baidu Tieba:

Bright eyes, a clean smile! This is the kind of idol I like. Those South Korean idols are all just flashy, cheap bastards!

Do you know what it means to fall in love at first sight? This is love at first sight!!

I'll remember that smile for the rest of my life!

Oh my god, it looks like he's making eye contact with me!

Holy crap, he's so handsome?!

[The pride of Guangzhou!]

Damn, this guy is really handsome; even I have to avoid him.

[Isn't that me? Huang Weijie from Guangji is here!]

[This comment is really interesting. The guy below is avoiding the topic. Are you avoiding him? He's just a 16-year-old kid, isn't he even fully grown yet?]

[Should I kill this grumpy guy online?]

[Brother, do you think you're being cool by commenting like that?]

……

Following the incident at Workers' Stadium, Huang Weijie's Baidu Tieba account saw a surge in followers overnight, and related videos quickly garnered over a million views across various platforms.

The photos taken by his team at the scene were turned into wallpapers and memes by fans and spread wildly in QQ groups and forums.

A senior executive at Nike China said privately, "The attention Huang Weijie brought far exceeded our expectations. Our marketing colleagues are all amazed that the results of this collaboration are even better than we imagined."

For Huang Weijie, this press conference was not just a commercial appearance, but also a real declaration of his existence to the public and the mainland entertainment industry!

The road ahead is still fraught with challenges, but at least for now, he has the most passionate starting point.