Rock and Roll: Glorious Years

"What? Another new song?" Pan Jianhu was both delighted and genuinely worried about Bian Lang's sudden release of a new song.

After all, releasing seven songs a month is a bit of an understatement to call Bian Lang a workaholic in the rock scene. For rock musicians, releasing an album every three years is the norm.

As for my concerns, it's that Bian Lang's inspiration might be depleted too quickly...

"Brother Tiger, I know what I'm doing. Give me half a day to rehearse, and you figure out how to drive that guy surnamed Ma even crazier."

"Bian Lang, are you planning to just beat this guy to death?"

"No need..."

With this in mind, Bian Lang had quite a few songs to choose from: Tang Dynasty, Spring and Autumn Period, Overload...

But these songs will inevitably be criticized to some extent. This time, he wants to produce a song that will prevent marketing accounts from stirring up trouble and that even casual listeners will not be able to say a word against it just by looking at the song title.

After considering the similar histories of Earth and the original Chinese civilization, Bian Lang instantly made his choice.

"Tiger, can you find me someone who plays the saxophone really well? Do you want a keyboard...?"

"Yes, I'll take the keyboard. Shuting can handle the rest." He missed "Dye the Night Black" last time, but he's determined not to miss it again this time.

Pan Jianhu mentally went through all the familiar wind musicians, eliminating those who were far away or whose skills were unstable, leaving only his old friend from the Yunnan Arts University's orchestral department.

Given that classical musicians are at the top of the hierarchy in the music industry, and rock musicians are generally not well-regarded by classical musicians, Pan Jianhu probably wouldn't have approached him under normal circumstances. However, given the current situation, he was prepared to be extorted first.

As he expected, the other party refused outright after receiving the call and hearing that it was for accompanying a rock band: "Old Pan, it's not that I'm being disrespectful, but as you know, I'm still involved in teaching in the orchestral department, and there are some things I can't do too openly."

"Old Yuan, don't you hate those people who spout nonsense online under the guise of academics? This time it's that Sima Nan. Didn't he say that Bian Lang only worships foreign things? So Bian Lang wrote a song in response to him."

For a professionally trained performer like Yuan Hao, online arguments are unlikely to stir his emotions. Even though he knows Bian Lang is a student from Yunnan Arts University, he still insists on his own way of doing things.

"Bian Lang is also a student of our Yunnan Arts University, but you know perfectly well what kind of person Sima Nan is. What's the point of arguing with someone like that?"

Pan Jianhu had expected this, and he directly stated his prepared remarks: "Old Yuan, I'm being evasive with you. You can retreat to your own little corner of the world and live a carefree life, oblivious to the changing seasons. But think about it, with all this commotion online, if those trolls eventually drag the school into it and attack the entire institution, can you afford to be indifferent? Do you think the other leaders and students can afford to be indifferent?"

"They dare? This is a place to nurture artists, not a place where those ignorant trolls on the internet can question us so easily... Send me the sheet music, I'll think about it..."

Pan Jianhu knew that the only thing that could persuade this man was his inviolable feelings for the school.

Bian Lang was quick; he wrote down the lyrics from memory in just two minutes and handed them to Pan Jianhu.

Pan Jianhu hadn't even had a chance to look at it before taking a picture and sending it to Yuan Hao. Only after sending it did he realize it was just lyrics, and then he urged, "Bian Lang, hurry up with the sheet music. You know those classical musicians, even if you write lyrics as well as the Eight Great Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties, they still only care about the melody."

"Okay, I'll write it for you right away..."

But Bian Lang had only just started writing from memory when Pan Jianhu received a call from Yuan Hao: "Is it at your company? I'll go home to get my saxophone, change my clothes, and come over."

"No, Lao Yuan, I haven't sent you the song yet. Don't come back and change your mind..." Before Pan Jianhu could finish speaking, Yuan Hao interrupted him, "With these lyrics, if my old man hears the recording and releases it, and he knows I refused the invitation to provide the first version of the accompaniment, he'll break my legs!"

After hanging up the phone with a laugh, Pan Jianhu finally looked at the lyrics. He was stunned just by the song title. After reading all the lyrics, he looked at Bian Lang with some wariness and laughed, "Bian Lang, this is cheating! After this song is released, anyone who wants to mess with you will have to think twice before doing so, and whether they have the ability to withstand the songs you write!"

"Tiger, you should think about it too. After we finish rehearsing, should we record a video and upload it, or should we just do a live stream? We can talk about recording the song later..." Bian Lang didn't have any particular quirks; it all depended on which format would be more effective.

Pan Jianhu thought for a moment and then said, "Let's rehearse first. I'll have Shuting gather some resources to see what's the best way to do it. You're not exactly unknown now. Whether it's videos or live streams, the platforms need to show some sincerity."

Bian Lang nodded in agreement, admitting that he hadn't thought about these things as meticulously as Pan Jianhu. However, after finishing the score, he logged onto Weibo and directly tagged Sima Nan with his own account, saying, "Hello, Mr. Sima Nan! I have received your suggestion, and I will write a rock song that resonates with our Chinese culture as soon as possible. I hope to receive your feedback then!"

Previously, the online battles were fought between rock music fans, Sima Nan's fans, and uninformed bystanders who turned against the group. Although the rock music fans were strong individually, they were not very organized, and their motivation would wane after a while.

However, the person in question, Bian Lang, spoke out, and directly confronted Sima Nan. Although his tone was humble, anyone with eyes could see that this was a challenge!

Rock music fans were like special forces soldiers scattered on the battlefield who suddenly received an attack signal and then continued to post online.

At this moment, Cloud Village, Shrimp Seeds, and Bilibili all received messages from Chen Shuting.

While the two music platforms were still weighing whether the negative comments from casual listeners would affect their platforms, Bilibili, with its younger audience, had already started negotiations. Learning from the previous experience, Chen Bing brought in the company's top account executive to talk to Chen Shuting.

His bottom line was that Bianlang's live broadcast debut and video premiere would be free to use any resources on the platform, and no need to ask for permission for a fee under seven figures!

"Such cool lyrics, used to tell such a cool story, this will definitely go viral across the entire internet! I don't know how Sima Nan will end this. If the official media makes a judgment, then Goose Egg will have no choice but to admit defeat!" Chen Bing looked at the lyrics sent by Chen Shuting and was already silently mourning for Sima Nan and Goose Egg.

Thinking about the latter scenario and the possible consequences, he called the operations director: "Old Xue, after you've finalized things with Bian Lang, have someone keep an eye on Sima Nan's account. Bian Lang's tactics this time are really tough, you understand..."