Chapter 25: 025: The Importance of Song Choice
In the center of the stage, spotlights circled.
Wang Han had a trendy hairstyle today, making him look three years younger. “Welcome everyone to the Super Girl Hangzhou Division’s 7-to-5 competition, I’m Wang Han.”
You Weiwei said with a smile, “Hello everyone, I’m You Weiwei… It’s already the 7-to-5 round, time flies so fast.”
Wang Han: “Haha, the preliminary selection feels like it was just yesterday.”
You Weiwei: “Back then, tens of thousands of girls with dreams signed up, but now only seven remain. And today, two more will be eliminated~”
Wang Han: “That’s the cruelty of competition.”
You Weiwei: “Yes, today’s competition will be exceptionally exciting. Every contestant wants to give their all to secure a spot in the finals.”
Wang Han: “Exactly. Today is the final competition for the Hangzhou Division. The next round will be the thrilling finals.”
You Weiwei: “Yesterday, the top 5 from the Chengdu Division were decided. I believe many people watched the live broadcast, and today, the excitement will continue on this stage.”
Wang Han: “The rules for today’s competition are…”
The rules were similar to the previous round, but with some differences.
In the first round, the seven contestants would each sing a song, and the two weakest contestants, as determined by the judges and text messages, would enter a PK.
Then, 31 public judges from various walks of life would vote to eliminate one contestant.
In the second round, the remaining six contestants would be divided into three groups by their numbers, facing off in pairs. The winners would directly advance to the top 5.
However, if the judges felt that both contestants in a group were weak, no one from that group would advance to the top 5, and they would all be put on hold.
In the third round, from all the contestants on hold, the judges and text messages would directly decide one person to advance to the top 5, and the remaining contestants would then enter a PK.
After explaining the competition rules, the two hosts quickly exited the stage.
The stage lights briefly went dark, and the seven contestants walked onto the stage and took their positions. The lights came back on, and the audience enthusiastically applauded.
“Go!”
“Red High Heels, wow~”
“She really knows how to coordinate her outfits.”
“Did Ye Yiqian offend the stylist? Why did they lift her bangs, exposing her forehead…”
“Zheng Jingwen’s hairstyle is also strange, it makes her head look big.”
“…”
Shen Qing sat in the last row, listening to a few boys whispering about the styling, and noticed the points they were criticizing.
Did they all offend the stylist today!?
Fortunately, Shen Qing was responsible for the makeup and styling of Wang Han, You Weiwei, and Zhang Liangying, otherwise, they too would not have escaped the stylist’s clutches.
…
The warm-up medley began.
From Shen Qing’s perspective, this segment was the most fatal for contestants with weak singing skills.
Because all seven people sang consecutively, it was clear to the audience who sang well and who didn’t, making it easy to identify those who were just going through the motions.
On-site director: “No. 01 Ye Yiqian, performing: Love Needs You to Be Perfect.”
A green dress and white high heels… Ye Yiqian’s outfit today was too plain, completely lacking the spirit of her previous performance.
“Love Needs You to Be Perfect”
“But I have no strength to salvage it anymore”
“Facing the long night alone”
“I don’t want to hear who you’ve fallen in love with”
“…”
The composer of this song was Ye Henala Ying.
Stage name: La Ying.
As everyone knows, Yingzi’s singing level is quite good within the Chinese entertainment industry. Her vocal range is wide, and her technique is solid. Her songs are somewhat challenging.
Ye Yiqian’s foundation is average, so her overall performance was mediocre, with no outstanding moments but no obvious mistakes.
…
Director: “No. 02 Ji Minjia, Mountain Song is Like the Spring River Water.”
Ji Minjia was quite adept at song selection.
During the warm-up medley, the songs she chose were generally upbeat, able to quickly engage the audience’s hearing and emotions, much better than Ye Yiqian.
Today’s song, 《Mountain Song is Like the Spring River Water》, is the theme song from the Guangxi song and dance drama 《Liu Sanjie》.
It was first performed in June 1960, and later underwent some adaptations to become the version known today.
The melody of this song is very ‘catchy’; almost everyone who hears it remembers it, and even a three-year-old can hum a few lines.
The opening line, “Singing mountain songs~,” starts low, then rises, then bends, like shouting up a mountain. You’ll have it on repeat for three days and nights after hearing it once.
The reason this song has endured is that you don’t need to understand music theory. The moment you open your lungs and sing, you are Liu Sanjie herself!
“Singing mountain songs~”
“Singing from this side, responding from that side”
“Oh~ responding from that side”
“Mountain songs are like the spring river water~”
“Not afraid of treacherous currents and sharp bends”
“Yo oh~ sharp bends”
The atmosphere in the studio was much more lively than when Ye Yiqian sang earlier. I wonder what Ye Yiqian is thinking right now~
…
No. 05 Lin Shuang performed Jeff Chang’s 《Love Like a Flood》, another popular song with high recognition, a top choice for KTV.
“I never want to see you drunk in the middle of the night again”
“I don’t want other men to witness your charm”
“You should know this will break my heart”
“…”
No. 06 Zheng Jingwen sang Stefanie Sun’s 《Green Light》. From the very first note, the melody of this song was full of rhythm, rivaling Ji Minjia’s song choice.
…
The song Shen Qing chose for Zhang Liangying was also quite passionate, not only to showcase her skills but also to grab the audience’s attention with the opening line.
“No. 07 Zhang Liangying, Passionate Desert.”
As soon as the words fell, Zhang Liangying’s unique and recognizable voice came from the speakers. The Liangfen fans waved their hands and sang along.
“My passion”
“Is like a fire”
“Burning the entire desert~”
“The sun sees me”
“And hides away”
“It’s also afraid of this fire of love~”
“…”
Dong ci dong ci~
Inside the studio.
At this moment, it felt like a dance hall.
Even Shen Qing, standing in the back row, swayed his body to the rhythm of the song, his casual movements incredibly elegant.
The tens of seconds passed in a flash, leaving the audience wanting more.
Next were No. 09 He Zuoyan and No. 10 Ding Ding.
Both of them chose songs by Stefanie Sun.
Specifically, 《Meet》 and 《I Don’t Love》.
If their skills were very strong, choosing slow-paced love songs would be fine, but their abilities were on par with Ye Yiqian’s.
The effect of their singing was not ideal…
As expected, the audience below had little reaction.
…
It could be said.
In the warm-up medley segment, Ji Minjia, Lin Shuang, Zheng Jingwen, and Zhang Liangying completely outperformed the other three who didn’t choose their songs well.
Although this round wasn’t part of the official competition, their performances, to some extent, influenced the judges’ and audience’s scores.
Details determine success or failure.
This is especially true for contestants with less strong abilities.
Wang Han: “Alright, our seven contestants have finished their warm-up. Let’s immediately move into the first PK round.”
You Weiwei: “Before today’s competition began, many fans called to ask if a certain person would sing an original song again. Now, the answer is about to be revealed…”
