The Road to Superstardom: Starting as a Singer

On Sunday, September 14th, at 9 PM, Huang Weijie simultaneously released a 15-second album teaser video on his social media accounts, including Twitter, MySpace, and YouTube.

The video begins with a black screen, followed by a few notes of piano intro, and then the words "JACE HUANG" appear in white.

Then the screen gradually brightened, and Huang Weijie sat on a high stool in the recording studio, closed his eyes and sang the first line of "Baby" into the microphone, his voice clear and clean.

The screen then transitioned smoothly.

The background transforms into the street basketball court from the "Baby" music video, with dancers moving behind him.

The scene flashes again, fingers glide across piano keys, which then transform into guitar strings. Taylor Swift's figure appears behind the recording studio glass, and the two exchange a smile.

The camera zooms out, turning to the beach from the "What Makes You Beautiful" music video, showing his and Taylor walking side by side into the distance in the sunset.

Then a photo of him with Kristen Stewart and Bruno Mars from "Just the Way You Are" flashes by.

In the last five seconds, the titles of the remaining five songs and their collaborators appeared and disappeared rapidly in turn.

"Beauty and a Beat (feat. Ariana Grande)"

"Hold On (feat. Ed Sheeran)"

"As Long As You Love Me (feat.Kendrick Lamar)"

"Teenage Dream (feat.Sia)"

One Time

At the end of the video, the image freezes on Huang Weijie looking directly at the camera with a faint smile.

Subtitle: "9.15.2008｜JACE HUANG"

In the post, he tagged all his collaborators.

Replies quickly followed:

Taylor Swift retweeted and commented: "So proud of my best, best friend! Trust me, this album will definitely not disappoint you!"

Ariana Grande: "I'm so grateful to Jace for giving me the opportunity to collaborate with him. When I received the collaboration invitation from Jace, I screamed for ten minutes at home! Yes, Jace is my idol!!"

Christine retorted, "It's an honor to have worked on two of Jace's albums. As he said, we are very, very, very good friends. During our collaborations, I was already captivated by his talent! I swear, this album is a no-brainer!"

Bruno Mars, Boss Huang, Teeth Cleaner, and Blackie Bro, among others, actively shared and commented on the post.

Although they are all relatively unknown figures, it is undeniable that Huang Weijie's tagging of them did indeed boost their popularity.

Because of these reposts, some of Huang Weijie's fans also started paying special attention to them.

"After looking at the list of collaborators, Jace is truly exceptional when it comes to mentoring newcomers."

"Of the remaining songs, the one I'm most looking forward to is 'As Long As You Love Me,' which features Kendrick Lamar! The last time Jace collaborated with him was on 'Baby,' OMG! I can't even describe how excited I am!!"

"I only have one question: When will the tour start?"

"The additional 2 units of the deluxe edition are almost sold out... What level is this pre-order volume?"

"Replying to the comment above: Historic. Unless Madonna or the Beatles make a comeback!"

The online frenzy is just as intense as the offline frenzy.

In the United States, you'll almost always see those large, open LED screens whenever you go shopping, and they'll almost always feature Huang Weijie's promotional image.

This kind of facial recognition and screen-scanning behavior can be seen in busy streets of major cities across the United States. In addition to the various brands that Huang Weijie endorses providing exposure in accordance with their contracts, this is also happening in other areas.

The company and some wealthy fans are also spending money to promote him.

Putting everything else aside, this level of star power already surpasses that of most new American singers.

Pre-sale figures surged again after the trailer was released.

It has been four months since the release of their first single, "Baby".

During this period, Huang Weijie released a total of three pre-album singles, achieving two impressive chart-topping results. Even "Just the Way You Are," which had already entered the TOP10 at this time, was poised to take the top spot!

Such impressive results naturally attracted a lot of attention.

Huang Weijie has been trending on various social media platforms, but he doesn't have time to pay attention to it now.

At 11:30 p.m. Los Angeles time, which is 2:30 p.m. China time, Huang Weijie sat in front of the video equipment in his studio.

He changed into a simple white shirt, had Jesse style his hair, and then prepared for the transoceanic video call.

The connection was established at 11:35.

"Hello Jace! This is the global premiere of 'Painted Skin'!" The host's voice came through the speakers. "It's a great pleasure to connect with you across the ocean!"

The screen showed footage from the Guangzhou premiere of "Painted Skin," revealing a huge theater and a full house of audience members.

Of course, there were also the main cast and crew members seated in the front row: director Chen Jiashang, Chen Kun, Zhou Xun, Zhao Mou, Sun Li, and Zhang Liangying standing next to the host.

Huang Weijie smiled at the camera: "Hello, host, hello to the audience in Guangzhou. I'm very happy to participate in the premiere of 'Painted Skin' in this way."

Applause erupted from the audience.

The camera panned across the audience, revealing many people holding up signs with his Chinese name on them.

After some pleasantries, director Chen Jiashang picked up the microphone: "Although Mr. Huang Weijie is far away in the United States, he has a profound understanding of the core of the story of 'Painted Skin.' The lyrics of 'Painted Heart' perfectly capture the emotional core that the film wants to express! We are honored to work with him."

Then, the full version of the music video for "Painting Heart" was played on site.

On the big screen, movie clips and recording studio scenes intertwined. When the chorus started, the camera panned across the screen, showing many audience members closing their eyes and swaying gently, as if immersed in the song.

Huang Weijie kept smiling, thinking to himself, "Wow, so there are already professional spectators at this time!"

He doesn't deny that the song is a good OST, but what makes the audience so "enchanted"...

Hmm, that's a bit of an exaggeration.

After the music video finished playing, the host asked, "Weijie, what are your expectations for the premiere of 'Painted Skin' tonight?"

Huang Weijie looked at the camera: "Actually, I had seen a rough cut of 'Painted Skin' before, and I was immediately immersed in it..."

All I can say is that when facing the camera, his desire to perform is so strong that he can't help but spout nonsense.

Huang Weijie can rattle off a series of descriptions: a visual feast, a dedication that transcends life and death, and a milestone for Chinese cinema.

"I think 'Painted Skin' is not just a fantasy story; it tells about the most precious things in humanity: love, sacrifice, and the courage to face the truth."

I believe that audiences who go to the cinema will not only enjoy a visual feast, but will also take something to think about. Therefore, please support this heartfelt film!

Chen Jia looked at Huang Weijie with admiration. Who said this kid was uncultured and that the lyrics had no meaning? That's just jealousy!

At this moment, Chen Jiashang felt that Huang Weijie was very cultured. How could someone without culture talk so eloquently?

Why don't you let other artists in the industry try it?

If they don't memorize the script the team gives them beforehand, let's see if they can even make sense of it.

This kid, Huang Weijie, is from Guangzhou, which is so close to Hong Kong Island. Maybe he can speak Cantonese?

Thinking about it this way, he looked at Huang Weijie with a hint of approval in his eyes.

Before ending, Huang Weijie said to the camera, "May every heart be treated with gentleness, and may everyone find someone willing to draw a heart for them."

The applause lasted for a long time.

After the video call ended, Huang Weijie glanced at the time: 11:53.

In seven minutes, his album will be officially released worldwide.

He was the only one left in the studio.

Madeline and the other staff have gone to handle the final details related to the haircut.

Unable to fall asleep, Huang Weijie unconsciously opened his iPad to see what people were saying online.

Although someone from Jive Records dragged things down a few days ago, there are still normal people out there.

He dominated the top five trending topics on Twitter tonight—well, no, I should say he bought them all.

However, this is standard practice. When any singer has a song to release, they have to attend not only online platforms but also offline radio stations.

Huang Weijie also needs to go to bed, so he can't stay up too late tonight because he has a live interview with KIIS-FM in Los Angeles waiting for him during the day.

This kind of operation is similar to what Weibo in China will do in the future: buy trending topics and buy marketing press releases.

The goal is to attract the attention of any passerby with internet access as much as possible.

A quick glance at the trending charts revealed that the number one trending topic was: #Jace Huang Album.

Once you click on it, the real-time tweets refresh like a waterfall:

"Six minutes until #Jace Huang Album goes live!"

"To be honest, I already bought the digital album during the pre-sale, but I just can't sleep."

"I can't sleep either! I just want to hear Jace's latest song as soon as possible!"

It's not very nutritious.

Switching to MySpace, his official homepage's latest post (album trailer) already has over 50,000 comments, and it's still adding several per second.

The most popular comments are displayed at the top:

"I created a data chart: Jace's achievements since her debut—"

"Baby": Released 119 days ago, peaked at number 1 on the Billboard charts, currently at number 7, has been on the charts for 15 weeks, has accumulated 412 million downloads on iTunes, 3.2 million views on YouTube, and is RIAA triple platinum certified.

"What Makes You Beautiful": 28 days after its release, it reached number 1 on the Billboard charts (and has been there for two weeks), with 186 million downloads on iTunes, 4500 million views on YouTube, and RIAA Gold certification (close to platinum).

"Just the Way You Are": In 7 days since its release, Billboard predicts it will enter the top 3 next week, with 112 million downloads on iTunes, 2800 million views on YouTube, and over 3 radio requests.

If tonight's album maintains this quality, the 2009 Grammy Award for Best New Artist is practically a foregone conclusion.

There are over five thousand replies to this comment.

All were praises.

Because of the success of the three hit singles, both industry peers and fans have already concluded that Huang Weijie's album sales are definitely not bad, and its quality is among the best of newcomers.

To put it bluntly, it's number one!

To be precise, it's one of the best or two.

Because there is also a very strong new singer in the current Western music scene.

That's Adele, who's only four years older than Huang Weijie!

She became famous earlier than Huang Weijie, who debuted on May 20 with a single, while she debuted last June by participating in the BBC rock music show "The Holland Show".

In January of this year, she released her first solo music album, "19," which earned her the Grammy Awards for Best Pop Female Vocal Performance and Best New Artist next year!

However, Huang Weijie's sudden emergence this year has made everything uncertain.

Many people believe that Adele's strength should not be underestimated, but the truth is that Adele is currently no match for Huang Weijie.

If he weren't an outsider, if he were white.

Huang Weijie believes that he will definitely be hailed as the new era's pop king at this moment!

Moreover, it's the kind of thing that's undisputed; some media outlets even actively help package him, turning him into the next MJ.

Unfortunately, he is not white.

In this respect, the blonde and blue-eyed Adele actually has an advantage.

However, Huang Weijie said he didn't care.

Because he has the confidence that comes from his works and the tangible results brought about by fan spending.

For example, he already has two singles that have reached number one on the Billboard charts, and in the near future, his third single, "Just the Way You Are," is also very likely to reach number one.

These are things Adele has never had. She doesn't even have a number-one single yet, making her pale in comparison to Huang Weijie!

Scrolling further down, Huang Weijie saw a tweet, seemingly from a music critic, that had been widely shared:

"I'm thinking about a question: if the entire album 'Jace Huang' maintains the quality of the first three singles, it might become the most important album in the pop music scene in 2008."

It's not about how many copies it will sell, but about the possibility it demonstrates!

That means idol singers can also be excellent songwriters, and pop music can be both commercially viable and artistically ambitious. This was almost unthinkable ten years ago!

He looked at it carefully again and again before he was sure.

That's right, this comment was probably arranged by Madeline.

That last sentence was clearly intended to stir up some controversy.

After all, while uniform praise is good, it also means that others cannot participate and it is not conducive to the spread of popularity.

Conversely, if some comments are extremely controversial, they can attract a wider range of attention.

All I can say is that it was all for the album!

Huang Weijie's current popularity and brand endorsements have reached the level of a top-tier celebrity, but it's still somewhat superficial, at least in terms of his work.

This opportunity was intended to elevate Huang Weijie to the level of a top-tier star, and also to ensure the album's massive sales.

Jive has spent a lot of money, increasing its marketing and seizing trending topics; it has basically used every means of spending money.

Even someone as cautious as Madeline couldn't resist using this potentially disastrous tactic.

Huang Weijie turned off the iPad and waited quietly.

I actually felt sleepy, but I didn't want to sleep.

Time slips away little by little.

He only reopened his iPad and went to the iTunes Store page with just one minute left.

The cover of "Jace Huang" is at the top of the pre-sale section, displaying a countdown to "Coming Soon": 00:00:58.

57, 56, 55...

5、4、3、2、1！

The page refreshes the instant the countdown reaches zero.

The "Buy" button changed from gray to blue.

Almost simultaneously, it was released on all partner music platforms worldwide.

Apple iTunes, Amazon Music, MySpace Music, RecoChoku in Japan, MelOn in South Korea...

On countless users' devices, the same cover light up simultaneously.

In an ordinary apartment building in Santa Monica, California.

Emily Wardge Boning sat cross-legged on the bedroom carpet, her long brown hair tied in a loose ponytail. She wore a faded band T-shirt and sweatpants, with her laptop on her lap and her phone plugged into a charging cable.

She is 23 years old and works as a clerk in a cafe in Santa Monica. In her spare time, she takes art courses at a community college.

Tuesday, which is tomorrow, is her only day off each week, and because of Jace, she has decided to stay up all night tonight.

Like most girls, Emily first learned about Huang Weijie in May.

That day, she was working at the coffee shop as usual when the radio was tuned to a pop station, and the intro to "Baby" suddenly started playing.

She was making a cappuccino when she heard the upbeat rhythm at the beginning and Huang Weijie's voice and was immediately captivated.

How can someone have such a clear and clean voice!

Isn't this the song of angels?

When I heard "You know you love me, I know you care" next, my hand trembled even more, and the latte art was ruined.

But Huang Weijie's unique voice and the melody of the song lingered in my mind all day.

After get off work, Emily searched for this song and watched the music video.

I just felt that the Asian boy's smile was so clean and pure that he didn't seem like someone from the entertainment industry. His dance moves were crisp and clean, and most importantly... his songs were really good!

She's not the kind of person who idolizes celebrities; at most, she's a music lover. The last singer she liked was Britney Spears when she was in junior high.

But Huang Weijie is different. Emily always felt that there was something sincere in his music, which made her want to get closer to him and believe in him.

She bought the digital single of "Baby" and followed him on MySpace.

I witnessed his rise from obscurity to the phenomenal success of "Baby".

On the day "What Makes You Beautiful" was released in August, Emily did something.

She used her artistic skills to create a digital illustration of Huang Weijie in the recording studio, posted it on MySpace, and tagged him.

She didn't expect to be seen.

But the painting inexplicably became popular. Two days later, Huang Weijie liked the painting and commented that she painted it well.

No one knew that Emily greeted everyone with a smile that day, and even drew smiley faces on the coffee cups of every customer who ordered.

Emily also supported "Just the Way You Are" on the 8th of this month and participated in all the online discussions. Her friends all say that she is a die-hard fan of Jace, but Emily just smiles and doesn't say anything.

Perhaps, it was already that day in August.

Three days after the album went on pre-sale, Emily immediately pre-ordered the deluxe limited edition.

To be honest, $29.99 wasn't a small amount of money for her, but it was worth it!

At midnight, the page refreshed and the purchase button lit up.

Emily clicked without hesitation—$9.99, confirm payment.

Although she had already spent $29.99 to buy the physical deluxe edition, she couldn't wait for the delivery; she wanted to hear Jace's new song as soon as possible!

Put on your headphones and click play.

She had listened to the first song, "Baby," and the second song, "What Makes You Beautiful," countless times without lingering on them. The third song, "Just the Way You Are," was her recent favorite.

I listen to it every night before bed.

Emily's heart softens whenever she hears "When I see your face..."

Then I couldn't help but imagine myself in their shoes: what if Jace was looking at my face?

Then comes the new song.

Emily raised her eyebrows when she heard the intro to the fourth new song, "Beauty and a Beat".

My drowsiness vanished at that moment!

The loud electronic beats mingled with cheers from the crowd, and someone shouted "Jace! Jace! Jace!"

A very obvious party style.

To Emily's surprise, the music video was filmed with Jace holding the camera, making it seem as if she was facing him directly!

This unique filming method immediately drew Emily into the scene.

The scene depicts a nighttime carnival party with flashing neon lights.

Huang Weijie, holding a DV camera, walked to the pool table amidst cheers from the crowd. The camera panned across the table, revealing his name and Ariana Grande's name written on it. The shouts of "Jace" in his ears were deliberately prolonged.

The camera then pans to Huang Weijie, who smiles at the camera, and then the music begins.

"Show you off, tonight I wanna show you off~"

The lyrics end with a soft "ei, ei, ei~".

The electronic bass powerfully expresses its vitality.

Huang Weijie showcased his talents to the fullest, as the camera continuously panned across the dancing crowd—young, diverse, and full of joy.

"Baby, I'm a dancer, and I dance for you——"

A clear, crisp female voice cut in.

The camera pans to the center of the dance floor, where a petite brown-haired girl is dancing with nimble and powerful movements.

The caption reads: Ariana Grande.

Ariana Grande rapped wildly in front of the camera, seizing the opportunity to showcase herself.

After her part ended, the camera cut back to Huang Weijie, who jumped off the DJ booth and joined the crowd dancing.

During the chorus, the entire rooftop party's young people jumped together, spraying confetti, with someone recording on camera and shouting, "This is insane!"

Emily nodded unconsciously to the rhythm, her fingers tapping lightly on her legs.

This song has a magical power that makes you want to sit still!