Chapter 75
Ever since the announcement of the 21-to-5 competition format, Random Entertainment's official Weibo has become a place for fans to mourn and wail. Choosing one out of three was already challenging enough, as not everyone's picks were in the same group. Now, learning that they not only have to choose one out of three but also two out of seven—it's practically taking the fans' lives.
But like a breakup, you have to find a way to move on. So Random Entertainment thoughtfully launched various activities.
Although fans' votes can't directly influence the outcome of the competition, they can determine which trainees get more opportunities to showcase themselves.
Three groups with one song each isn't enough to support an entire performance, so in addition to the original stages created by the trainees, fans can also vote to decide who gets to perform solo stages. There are only five slots for solo stages, and besides that, there are duo stages with six songs in total. How the duos are formed depends on how the fans vote.
"Damn it, I knew Random Entertainment wouldn't let me off so easily!"
"My CPU is overheating, I can't figure out how to vote for the duo stages."
"Five yuan per vote... My goodness... The number five seems to foretell my fate. Will I be crying 'wuwuwu' throughout the final performance?"
"Is it too late to vote now?"
"No, the first public performance has already been decided, we're voting for the second one."
"For the duo stages, you just vote for individuals. Ten yuan gets you two picks, and you can put them in whatever stage you want to see."
"Wait, out of these 21 people, the only established CP is Pei Luming and Gao Xiayu. Are we forcing the others?"
"Solo stans will vote too. Even if they hate it, they have to vote. More stages mean more opportunities to showcase. In the end, it's still up to Jiang Juyou to decide which five will be chosen. They need to be seen by her."
"Don't mention five people, wuwuwuwuwu, my heart aches."
Three episodes have been aired, but the timeline is still in Korea. People now understand that during that month in Korea, the trainees prepared more than just one song. The show's progress might have already reached the preparation for the second public performance.
As the outside world had guessed, the trainees who entered the venue were already preparing for the second public performance. They had already chosen songs from Korean musicians, and even finished writing lyrics and choreographing. Now they were rushing to familiarize themselves with the movements.
Unlike other shows that hold media press conferences before airing, Random Entertainment held theirs after the show started.
At the same time, they also announced a fan meet-and-greet.
The voting channel was only open for a week before Random Entertainment announced the upcoming fan meet-and-greet. The condition for participation was being among the top 500 on the voting leaderboard.
This news threw the data teams who had been planning to pool resources and votes into disarray. Individual fans also started asking if they could use their own accounts to vote.
Because everyone wanted to go to the fan meet-and-greet.
Despite the chaos, fans didn't stop voting. In fact, after this news came out, the voting pool expanded rapidly.
The trainees were also notified that they would soon have external commitments.
Seeing this news, Gao Xiayu felt overwhelmed.
Due to the tight schedule, they needed to prepare for the second public performance before the first one, meaning they had to prepare two stages in two months. The workload was enormous. Gao Xiayu had been sleeping only four to five hours a day recently, keeping an eye on everyone else's work. His mind was constantly in overdrive.
He was thinking about compressing the schedule next week to focus on practicing for the stage, but then the staff informed them that they needed to prepare for a media meet-and-greet, with a fan meet-and-greet on the same afternoon.
"A whole day, we could do so much in a day," Pei Luming also complained, then collapsed onto the floor, wiping the sweat from his forehead.
The air conditioning in the practice room was on full blast, but it was no match for the heat radiating from this group of people. Everyone was drenched in sweat, their collars soaked and their clothes changing color.
Gao Xiayu also walked to the corner, picked up his phone, and said to Sang Mo at the door, "Sang Mo, turn off the air conditioning, we don't want to catch a cold. Pei Luming, get up from the floor quickly, it's cold down there."
Although they complained verbally, they still listened to Gao Xiayu and obediently got up, moving towards the wall.
Unlike their first public performance stage, for their second one, they chose a "smashing" stage to show a huge contrast. Both the song and the dance were at their most intense.
Yesterday, Chi Qiao had just finished arranging the dance, and today they started learning it. Just practicing the chorus made them feel like they were dying. They couldn't imagine how they would perform it live.
Chi Qiao, sitting in front of the mirror, took a sip of water to moisten his throat. "...The movements in the chorus part are very intense. If we're not in sync, it will look messy. Use force, but don't overdo it. Ye Xing and Yao Shuo are using a bit too much force. Stabilize your core, otherwise the movements will look like you're just flailing your limbs."
The two sitting opposite nodded and also took a sip of water.
If they were to rank the dance skills of these seven people now, Chi Qiao would be first. He's not just first among them, but first among all 21 trainees. Following him would be Pei Luming and Gao Xiayu.
Pei Luming was purely gifted by nature, while Gao Xiayu was the hardworking type. Sang Mo's dance skills were supported by his physique—long arms, long legs, and a good sense of rhythm. His movements would look good no matter what. After them were Yao Shuo and Ye Xing. They had grown a lot compared to before and wouldn't be embarrassed to debut on the spot, but compared to the others in their group, they were still a bit behind.
In terms of singing, Yao Shuo was undoubtedly the best, crushing the others just like Chi Qiao did in dance. Especially after half a year of training in Korea, where the vocal standards are very high, his skills had grown significantly.
In terms of overall ability, his incredible vocal skills could even compete with Pei Luming for the ACE position. While others might have unstable breathing when singing and dancing simultaneously, Yao Shuo could be as stable as if he were standing still singing. This is why he could compete for first place even though his dance skills weren't top-tier.
As for the others, Pei Luming, Gao Xiayu, and Chi Qiao were in one tier, while Sang Mo and Ye Xing were in another.
If Jiang Juyou were to choose based purely on skill, Sang Mo and Ye Xing would be in a very dangerous position.
But Jiang Juyou wasn't someone who only considered one aspect. She knew all too well that in the entertainment industry, skill takes a back seat. Not having audience appeal and memorable characteristics is the real taboo.
During their half-year in Korea, Random Entertainment spent a lot of money trying to find suitable images for the trainees. They put them into various concepts and tried all kinds of styles. Ye Xing's blonde hair was dyed during that time, and before that, the other trainees had also dyed their hair all sorts of colors.
While the trainees in the practice room were worrying about the upcoming media meet-and-greet, Jiang Juyou was in the conference room, frowning at the concept photos the trainees had taken earlier.
Also at the table were people from the A&R department, as well as Yang Siyu and her two colleagues. When it came to selecting trainees, Jiang Juyou certainly couldn't make unilateral decisions. She had to listen to others' opinions as well.
To avoid missing any trainee's shining points, they prepared one-on-one materials. Each person would choose a trainee from groups A, B, and C to strongly support, identifying their shining points and irreplaceable qualities, ensuring they would enter Jiang Juyou's consideration.
At this moment, the screen was showing posters of C group members. The staff on both sides immediately pulled out their prepared materials, ready to start explaining.
The screen flashed through several concept photos taken earlier in Korea. The seven of them were wearing hoodies and caps, holding skateboards and basketballs, with a backdrop of a slightly dilapidated open-air parking lot after sunset.
In the distance, there was still a tail of the setting sun on the horizon. Against this background, the seven of them posed in various ways, looking at the camera, creating an indescribable atmosphere.
"Let's begin," said Jiang Juyou.
Having sat for too long, Jiang Juyou changed to a more comfortable position, resting her head on her hand, ready to listen to their presentations.
The girl closest to the screen took the computer and displayed Yao Shuo's photoshoot, even showing a comparison image. "Among the 21 trainees, Yao Shuo has changed the most compared to others. His teeth were slightly uneven before, and he had a bit of an overbite and recessed chin. After half a year of adjustments, you can already see some changes."
In the latest poster, Yao Shuo had red hair and scattered earrings on his right ear. The wind blew his red hair, and in the twilight, he wore a gloomy expression. His eyes conveyed disappointment with the world, with a hint of rebellion.
This version of Yao Shuo was completely different from before. No wonder there were comments online about not recognizing him every time he returned to China.
Everyone knew Pei Luming had grown 7 centimeters in half a year, but they didn't know that Yao Shuo, who was the same height as Pei Luming back then, was now 183 cm tall. Due to his rapid growth, Yao Shuo suffered quite a bit, often unable to sleep at night due to leg pain, and even went to the hospital a few times because of it.
But even with aching bones, he didn't stop training. He continued dancing and working out, and his appetite increased significantly. He transformed from a skinny pole to a clothes hanger. Due to working out, his shoulder width even reached 52 centimeters, matching Chi Qiao and Sang Mo.
The initial program brought fans to all trainees, with most experiencing rapid growth. Only Yao Shuo's growth was slow because he was criticized on the show for only caring about himself, which created a very negative impact on him and Chi Qiao. Many viewers didn't have a good impression of the two, so naturally, they didn't become fans.
In the later stages of the show, Yao Shuo also had little screen time, relying solely on his previous fans' support. His small fan base has now become die-hard fans. Yao Shuo, whose confidence was shaken on the show, became low-key and quiet, trying not to steal screen time from popular members, so he continued to have little presence.
But it was this unnoticeable Yao Shuo who, after spending half a year in Korea, underwent a dramatic change in both image and aura.
"Hiss..." Jiang Juyou looked at Yao Shuo's poster, tilting her head.
The staff member nearby paused for a moment, then continued, "Yao Shuo's two biggest weapons right now are his highly recognizable aura and terrifying skills."
"This kid Yao Shuo has a bit of bluntness in him. He never speaks unnecessarily, says little but always hits the point. He'll be a highlight in variety shows after debut."
"As for his skills, there's no need to say more. A main vocalist is always in short supply. Other companies are waiting for great main vocalists, and even most members added later are usually very skilled main vocalists. We have Yao Shuo - what more needs to be said?"
The employee finished speaking, spread her hands, shrugged, and scanned the others at the table.
"In terms of appearance, we're not lacking now either. Yao Shuo's looks are also highly recognizable. He's the only trainee with monolids but such big eyes. His eyes are slightly long, with upturned outer corners, like a fox, which matches his cunning personality. But when he smiles, there's a huge contrast. He has a long eye bag under his eyes, the shape is really good - you couldn't even get such a beautiful shape at a hospital!"
She spoke with increasing excitement, clearly treating Yao Shuo as her own child to protect.
Jiang Juyou laughed after listening, "Don't get too excited." She tilted her body, obviously a bit tired, but this speech made her energized again, so she sat up straight and gestured for the other person to continue.
"In short, our Yao Shuo is the main vocalist." She finally said just this, feeling no need to add anything more.
The next person who was supposed to talk about Sang Mo sighed deeply and looked at Jiang Juyou, "Boss, can we really not change our minds and make it 21 to 7?"
At these words, the others also looked at Jiang Juyou pleadingly. For them, it was difficult to let go of any trainee. When forming teams initially, the company held several meetings to avoid overlapping positions within groups. They had gloated at the time, not realizing karma would come back to bite them.
Because there were no overlapping positions, it was even harder to let go.
Take the popular winning group C for example. While they seemed to have overlapping positions, in reality, each person could handle multiple roles and had their own strengths. After all, who could have imagined that the visual Ye Xing would actually be the Main Rapper, Gao Xiayu, thought to be the Rap position, was actually one of the main vocalists, Sang Mo, good at both singing and dancing, was also one of the visuals, Pei Luming, thought to be the mood maker, was actually versatile, filling in wherever needed, Chi Qiao was the anchor for all the choruses and dance breaks, and Chen Wu and Yao Shuo didn't even need mentioning - one a producer, the other the main vocalist.
Losing any one of them felt regrettable. They really didn't understand why Producer Jiang insisted on eliminating two.
Regarding the proposal of 21 to 7, Jiang Juyou directly refuted, "That's impossible."
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It felt like the Random Entertainment trainees had just returned a few days ago, but today was already the first public performance.
To ensure the popularity didn't drop, all performances this time adopted a live broadcast format, with the time remaining the same as before - 8 PM on Sunday.
Even before the show started, there were many discussions online, with some claiming leaked audio sources and urging everyone to listen quickly. Just this fake news alone garnered hundreds of thousands of plays, indicating how high the popularity of this show was.
Jiang Juyou was getting her makeup done, and she could hear the trainees warming up their voices from next door.
After warming up, Yao Shuo coughed lightly a couple of times and drank some water to soothe his throat. Gao Xiayu beside him looked at him with furrowed brows, "Is your throat okay?"
"Hmm... more or less." Yao Shuo said, then coughed a couple more times.
With the performance approaching, half of their group had fallen ill. Sang Mo had a leg cramp while practicing dance and accidentally twisted his ankle. Pei Luming caught a cold from the air conditioning being too strong. Yao Shuo's throat wasn't in good condition due to practicing too hard.
Gao Xiayu looked at these troublemakers, feeling frustrated and helpless, "It's okay, it's just the first performance, don't put too much pressure on yourselves."
He was saying this to them, but also to himself. At this point, he could only comfort himself.
Last week, snippets of their song choices were already released on TikTok in advance. Judging from the online reaction, Group A was the best. But according to Gao Xiayu's expectation, their song was upbeat and suitable as background music for various travel vlogs on TikTok. He had thought it would be a big hit and start a trend, but unexpectedly, the stone they threw only caused a small ripple before everything went quiet.
Instead, Group A, with the lowest popularity among the three groups, was hugely successful with their song choice. At least that snippet spread widely on TikTok, being used for fashion bloggers' transformation challenges.
Gao Xiayu had been so anxious these past few days that he couldn't sleep, afraid that their results would be fixed at this point, and even more afraid that his decision-making mistakes would affect others.
Yao Shuo went to get another bottle of water, then returned to sit beside Gao Xiayu, comforting him, "Don't panic, what are you panicking about? Didn't you say it yourself, this is just the first time."
"Did you not sleep again last night, staying up all night on your phone?" Yao Shuo had once gone to the practice room late at night to get in some extra practice, only to find Gao Xiayu lying in the dark practice room scrolling on his phone, which scared him.
"I'm anxious, can't sleep." Gao Xiayu said, taking out the phone from his pocket, turning it off, and putting it in the safe.
The others looked at Gao Xiayu, their moods not too high either. Ye Xing then said, "Don't always take all the responsibility on yourself. We're responsible too, and besides, we decided on this theme and song together."
"That's right."
"Worst case, we don't debut."
"Get out!"
After a few jokes, Gao Xiayu's anxiety was alleviated quite a bit.
-
Even before the live broadcast started, the number of online viewers had already exceeded a million. The barrage of comments dominated the screen, so dense that it was difficult to make out individual words.
The fans had been waiting since entering the venue, and the light sticks sold by Random Entertainment filled the entire place, with all sorts of varieties.
The venue for this first public performance was at the Galaxy Venue in Beijing, which can accommodate over 2,700 people. However, less than 2,000 tickets were issued this time. Upon entering, people discovered that the facilities inside had changed quite a bit.
The stage was larger than before, with the main stage expanded outwards and an additional extended stage. Most notably, an area directly in front of the first-tier audience seats was cordoned off and converted into a judges' panel, with numerous cameras pointed at it.
Nearby fans looked down, speculating whether Jiang Juyou would come there soon. Just as they thought this, Jiang Juyou emerged, escorted by staff members. She was dressed simply in a white shirt and jeans, with her hair now much shorter, cut to shoulder length.
Staff members guided her with lights, and fans along the way turned to look at her. Some even wanted to raise their phones to take a photo, but the strict management prevented them from doing so.
After Jiang Juyou sat at the judges' panel, staff members came forward to touch up her makeup and adjust the lighting.
She put on her in-ear monitor and communicated with the director, confirming that the equipment was working properly. She then said to the staff member beside her, "Check the time, let's not be late."
The entire first-tier audience above her crowded to the railing to look down, with some loudly calling out her name.
"Wife!"
"Jiang, over here!"
"Does anyone dare to shout 'Random Entertainment should shut down'?"
"...If you shout that, her fans will drown you out immediately."
Although Jiang Juyou was wearing an in-ear monitor, she could hear the outside voices quite clearly since no one was speaking to her at the moment. However, she pretended not to hear, lowering her head and appearing busy as she looked at her iPad.
At this moment, the stage lit up, and Jiang Tang, who had been the host last year, walked onto the stage and took her position at the center.
The on-site director, holding a rundown sheet, began counting down, "Alright, five—four—"
She used hand gestures for the remaining numbers.
Jiang Juyou looked at the screen beside her, which displayed the live broadcast content. After the opening animation flashed by, the image quickly switched to the live scene.
On stage, Jiang Tang was wearing a gown. When she saw the red light of the camera turn on, she smiled and said to the lens, "Time train countdown, five four three two one, welcome to Earth, dear Moonle."
The fans in the venue enthusiastically waved their light sticks in response. Some had turned the light beads into bracelets, some had properly fitted them into light sticks, and some rebels had brought in two rattles and were shaking them frantically.
The resulting rustling sound was reminiscent of flowers blooming. The fans, surprised by the sound, let out a collective "Wow."
The director appropriately cut to a wide shot of the entire venue, giving a close-up of the fans raising their light sticks.
"I've never seen such unity in Chinese entertainment."
"Oh! I see the hangover cure!"
"Jiang Juyou's stand is already in full bloom!!!"
"It's so beautiful, white and green, really looks like a flower bed!"
"Is this tinkling sound coming from the light sticks?"
"Long time no see! Sister Jiang Tang!"
The camera cut back to Jiang Tang, who was holding the microphone and introducing Jiang Juyou to the audience. In the distance, Jiang Juyou's face showed no emotion, but her toes were already curling.
No matter how many times she experienced this segment, she found it difficult to get used to.
The camera cut to Jiang Juyou, who stood up with the microphone and said, "Hello everyone, I'm Jiang Juyou, the producer from Random Entertainment—"
During her speech, the trainees quickly took the stage, and the screams in the venue grew louder and louder.
When the camera cut back to the main stage, it caught Yao Shuo coming on stage. His red hair stood out even more against his white uniform.
"Holy crap, who's that?"
"Did he dye his hair?"
"Damn, can this be broadcast?"
"—Yao Shuo?"
The camera followed Yao Shuo to the main stage until he stood in the C group lineup. Only then did everyone see the full view of Group C.
At this point, the shot widened to show all the trainees in the frame.
They were all around 1.8 meters tall, even taller than Jiang Tang in her high heels.
"This is very pleasing to my eyes."
"Oh no, will Yao Shuo be cut out in the first edit?"
"This anti-explosion measure isn't even subtle, it's too obvious!"
"Group C has such high visuals! I'm a beauty enthusiast, I love it!"
"What's going on with Yao Shuo, he's changed so much?"
Ye Xing: Bet you didn't expect it, I'm the Main Rapper!
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