Huayu: Traffic is king

Chapter 187 Anti-Korean Vanguard? The King of Chinese-Language Literature!

The news of Gu Jingyi joining TikTok has spread across the internet.

It was just the first greeting video after the account was opened, and it was only a minute long.

The video gained over 1000 million followers within 24 hours of its release, breaking the platform's record for the fastest single-day follower growth for an artist.

Moreover, judging from the second day's upward trend, it did not experience a precipitous drop like other artists.

Industry analysts predict that Gu Jingyi may reach the top spot in her first week, easily surpassing 3000 million followers within a week and quickly joining the ranks of the platform's most followed celebrity accounts globally.

If successful, Gu Jingyi will be the first Chinese artist to achieve this feat.

After the news spread, many people mocked Huace for shamelessly seeking attention.

Is it really that easy to gain over 3000 million followers in a week by joining an overseas app?
Although Gu Jingyi joined Douyin in China, he has earned the nickname "Douyin Emperor" due to his high popularity and large user base.

However, this nickname only proves that Gu Jingyi is extremely popular in China.

Overseas popularity is a completely different concept from domestic popularity. Overseas popularity includes Southeast Asia, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Europe and the United States, and many other places.

The popularity of mainland Chinese entertainment is relatively closed off, except for domestic audiences. It's almost exclusively in Southeast Asia, where they are keen on importing mainland dramas, where their popularity is surprisingly high.

Any male actor with even a small following in the Chinese entertainment industry enjoys popularity in Southeast Asia that rivals that of his home country.

South Korea is xenophobic, deliberately releasing imported mainland Chinese dramas in the early morning hours.

With neon lights closed, there is a greater focus on local dramas.

For artists who are purely domestically trained in the Chinese entertainment industry, it is difficult to spread their popularity.

This is why some people in the Chinese entertainment industry believe that it will be difficult for Gu Jingyi to gain more than 3000 million fans on Douyin (TikTok).

This is top-tier data globally. Can Gu Jingyi achieve that?
Even if Gu Jingyi had overseas training experience, more than a year has passed. In South Korea, hundreds of artists debut every month; who can remember a trainee who withdrew from the competition?

Soon, Gu Jingyi proved those who had "spoiled" him wrong with his achievements.

On October 28th, the video of the "Butter" performance was officially released.

Gu Jingyi has officially entered the international K-pop scene, and her popularity has soared.

Previously, most of his popularity came from people in China who follow K-pop, as well as from fans in South Korea.

The fans who are enthusiastic about "talent shows" are mostly Asian, while Westerners' understanding of K-pop is limited to BTS.

Since his debut, Gu Jingyi's popularity has been concentrated in the Chinese entertainment industry and South Korea.

But music shows are completely different; overseas fans are most interested in music shows. Although those music shows have low ratings in South Korea, their online viewership and popularity overseas are quite high.

K-pop has always been more popular abroad than at home, as evidenced by the release of Gu Jingyi's full performance of "Butter" the following day.

Once the show aired, Gu Jingyi officially entered the view of all international K-pop fans.

Especially in Europe and America, people had already heard of Gu Jingyi. Even if they didn't know who Gu Jingyi was, they had at least heard of his hit song "Butter," which had a phenomenal streaming success.

Despite its many flaws, South Korea has a strong sense of national pride and is prone to defensiveness.

However, as one of the pillars of the national economy, K-pop does have a significant advantage in terms of music performances and camera work.

Gu Jingyi's "Butter" performance easily surpassed 10 million views on YouTube within 24 hours and reached 30 million+ within 48 hours.

They thought this was the peak, but unexpectedly, a large number of international fans came to the stage. The performance garnered millions of likes and hundreds of thousands of comments. It became one of the most popular music-related videos globally that week and even that month, and the impression of Gu Jingyi in Europe and America changed from "Who is Gu?" to "Such a hot butter boy!"

Gu Jingyi broke the stereotype of being a "famous singer but not a famous singer" in Europe and America, and suddenly became famous. Although she did not become a global superstar like Justin Bieber with her song "Baby", she has become a highly anticipated world-class new generation singer.

In China, Weibo's trending topics were dominated by #GuJingyi'sSingingStage# and #GuJingyiFirstPlace#.

"I was right. I knew Emperor Jing was going to South Korea to do something big."

"A Chinese artist released an English song that topped eight major music charts, including Melon and Bugs, for a consecutive week. Then, he went to South Korea to promote his music, winning first place despite having no home advantage. You might not understand how great Gu Jingyi is. Winning first place on a South Korean music show depends on many factors. Gu Jingyi, without any broadcast or pre-voting, won first place solely through digital music streaming, sales, and social media boosts. His greatness needs no further explanation!"

"It's because our 'Butter' song exploded on the music charts! It achieved double platinum sales certification in just one week after its release. The refreshing 'Butter' has a really strong staying power, it's super amazing."

"Only a phenomenal song like 'Butter,' which broke into the 'Billboard Hot Top 10' without signing with a Western company and with almost zero promotion, could achieve this. In the 'M!C!' rating, digital music accounts for 50%. In our Jingyi's 100-point system, apart from losing 20 points due to two broadcasts we didn't participate in and the pre-release voting, we almost lost 80 points, completing the task in an unconventional way."

"Good heavens, Emperor Jing has brought glory to the country!"

"LOL, the reaction in South Korea is even bigger than here. Apparently, some trolls in South Korea are already advocating for a change to the scoring system on South Korean music shows. If digital music accounts for half of the score, it will squeeze out the chances of their local idols and singers winning first place."

"Really? Hahaha! This is what happens when you're so naive and ignorant. Gu Jingyi needs to go to South Korea to promote his music? I heard that iQiyi is already making the first idol music show in China. I wonder if the idol industry in China can develop as well as in South Korea."

"Upstairs, that's obviously impossible. In China, whether it's the idol industry or the new generation of actors, the pool of popularity has been completely drained by Gu Jingyi alone. All the idols of Gu Jingyi's generation will become the soil that nourishes Emperor Jing's growth."

"66666, Consort Jing has really managed to get the real emperor."

"To launch a counterattack against the odds in South Korea, we still need to rely on our own people."

"Oh my god, the K-pop fans on my homepage collectively broke down yesterday. Then they started throwing in all sorts of nonsense, saying that even before Gu Jingyi debuted, she already had a high level of fame in the K-pop scene, similar to Lami from SM Entertainment. Back then, the entire YG family of fans were waiting to 'deliver' Gu Jingyi."

"I'm just a casual observer and don't follow K-pop. Wasn't he a trainee in South Korea before? How did he come back to China and debut? How did Gu Jingyi become so popular? He's monopolized all the trending topics and buzz this year."

"Are you asking about Gu Jingyi, the only 'Purple Star' in the Chinese entertainment industry? He was a hidden trainee at YG Entertainment, and his first public appearance was on an internal survival audition program. He only had a little over a minute of solo screen time in the first episode, but his looks and talent made him an overnight sensation on South Korean forums. If you haven't heard of that show, that's okay. Winner and IKON, two of South Korea's top 'monster rookie' boy groups, were selected from this show. Gu Jingyi was one of IKON's two core members at the time, with outstanding talent, a natural center and idol."

"Then why didn't someone as talented as him debut with IKON and instead participated in the South Korean show 'Produce 202'? No matter how much you hype him up, isn't he still a 'rejected' talent? Just like Song Yeon-bi from JYP, years of training experience and a lifetime of South Korean sentiment."

"Are you Chinese? You seem to know a bit about K-pop. From planning to formation, IKON was all about 'BL' and Gu Jingyi as their dual core. Gu Jingyi didn't debut because of power struggles within YG's upper management. This is a picture of YG's upper management changes from 2014 to 2018 (attached). Do you understand? Gu Jingyi was a victim of the power struggle!"

"Don't argue with the sour chicken. Gu Jingyi's looks and strength are top-tier, the best of the best for a 'world's leading man.' K-pop fans all know that some people are great because they are only great in this version, but there are also people who are great no matter where they are. They can ignore the environment and external factors. Gu Jingyi is the latter. He can succeed anywhere."

"Jingfei fans, don't give the haters a second glance! 'Butter' is climbing the Billboard charts again. Hurry up and do some data analysis for Gu Jingyi! Tenth place shouldn't be the song's limit. Let's see if it can break into the top five; it might just make history!"

"Sisters, we really need to push forward! Every step forward in the rankings is a step forward in Chinese history."

Gu Jingyi's name is synonymous with online traffic in China; wherever he is, he's on the front page of news.

Passersby clicked in and, after some explanation, learned just how valuable it is to win first place on a music show without any prior promotion.

It's similar to the top student in the grade who deliberately didn't write an essay, and even after losing 40 points, still surpassed the second-place student who completed the entire paper but scored more than ten points lower.

This time, Gu Jingyi is competing against top boy groups like SVT, and top girl groups like Red Velvet and Black Pink.

They all performed their songs through the normal channels, and received high scores on variety shows, radio broadcasts, and pre-recorded audience ratings.

Even so, she still lost to Gu Jingyi.

It's not very aggressive, but extremely insulting!
Gu Jingyi was directly dubbed "Gu Hancheng" by some busybodies, as he single-handedly outshone all South Korean celebrities.

If Heaven had not given birth to Gu Jingyi, the world of folk songs would have been plunged into an eternal night.

Although these memes contain exaggerated elements, they have attracted even more attention.

Gu Jingyi's Super Topic, Gu Jingyi's Fan Leader's Weibo, Bilibili Video Sharing, Gu Jingyi's Music Show Stage Performance, and the Audio of the Song "Butter".

Riding this wave of opportunity, they soared higher and higher.

Chinese women possess the strength and resourcefulness to handle anything that rises to the level of national honor. Even if they aren't fans of Gu Jingyi, as long as they don't "shove" him up, they'll do it.

Fangirls are all working together to achieve one goal: to move up a few places in the Billboard Hot 100 singles rankings.

To make history, we must let Gu Jingyi, like a "calling card" for China, reverse the smears that the colonialists and foreign powers have smeared on the Chinese people.

The most direct example of this is the surge in sales and plays of Gu Jingyi's single "Butter," with even some people who scoffed at idol singers listening to it in its entirety in order to climb the charts.

Tear! From initial disdain to a complete revelation of the "truth" after listening!
Gu Jingyi's reputation has also changed from "that idol singer with good looks and talent" to "undoubtedly the top new generation singer!"

He attracted a wave of "straight male fans," though perhaps not as enthusiastic as his female fans.

However, they are the main consumers of trendy brands and will also support Gu Jingyi's works.

Gu Jingyi's Weibo followers also surged from 2600 million to 3200 million.

Thanks to the rival for the timing, Gu Huang's ability to turn the tide has been converted into traffic.

The "Good Gu" pre-sale has been restocked several times, and all of them sold out within a minute.

This small streetwear brand made millions from this one wave.

Flowers bloom inside the wall, and their fragrance spreads outside as well.

On October 29th, Gu Jingyi uploaded her second video since joining TikTok.

This video, tagged with #ButterChallenge#, garnered over 100 million views within 24 hours. The number of related imitation/parody videos on TikTok has grown exponentially, also surpassing the million mark within 24 hours.

The hashtags #ButterChallenge#, #GuJingyiButter#, and #GuJingyiRedVelvet# have dominated the top of the trending charts globally and in many countries/regions.

Besides Gu Jingyi, the biggest beneficiary of this "Challenge" is also Hong Beibei.

Commenters overwhelmingly praised the scene, saying, "The visuals are so pleasing to the eye! A 185cm tall, handsome man paired with three beautiful women—what an amazing combination!"

"Bae Joo-hyun's aloofness, Park Soo-young's radiance, Yeri's energy, and Gu Jingyi's nobility—perfect!"

"The ending pose is a killer move! Gu Jingyi is the ultimate winner in life, being pointed at by three beauties at the same time."

Domestically, passersby were all peaceful, admiring the good looks and the interactions between Gu Jingyi and his female co-stars.

But for the fans of Jingfei, they also have to busy themselves with controlling comments everywhere.

Major marketing accounts are using Gu Jingyi's Challenge as a traffic driver, spreading it everywhere.

Some comments were certainly praising Gu Jingyi, but some marketing accounts from rival companies deliberately pointed out that Gu Jingyi's interactions with Park Soo-young seemed a bit off. It was suspected to be a publicly funded romance, or a sign of an idol's misconduct.

The fans are all busy controlling comments and boosting data.

[#Gu Jingyi's Overwhelming Top Achievements#**Congratulations to Gu Huang for sweeping the globe with "Butter" Challenge! Dominating the charts on TikTok, YouTube, and Weibo! Over 100 million views in 24 hours, a clear number at the top! Gu Huang's stage presence and dominance are off the charts! His languid elegance captivated the audience! International influence confirmed! A true Global Superstar! Looking forward to more amazing performances from Gu Huang! [Heart][Thumbs up][Fireworks] (Images: Nine-grid data chart + stunning GIF of Challenge)]
[Ahhhhh, Gu Huang is killing me! This wave, this facial expression control! Top-tier Alpha aura in full force! Just standing there doing nothing is a work of art! Red Velvet is a peripheral beauty, I admit it! [Kneeling][Kneeling][Kneeling]]
Lee Soo-man not only "broke through" but also got carried by Gu Jingyi. Red Velvet also gained international exposure thanks to this.

During this period, "Challenge clips" were similar to promoting songs, naturally using the most memorable parts.

Gu Jingyi only used the most representative dance moves in #ButterChallenge#, namely the slide + finger dance and chest wave in the chorus.

It seems simple and easy to get started.

Just like Twice's songs, they're not hard to pick up. But there are many details that are difficult to pinpoint.

It's difficult to capture the same youthful spirit as the original singer.

The huge success of "Butter" on TikTok, following its success in the Challenge, has also indirectly silenced previous doubts:
"The choreography is all hand gestures, which is incomparable to the synchronized dance of the past. Is it that they have compromised their skills to cater to the European and American market?"

When this song was first released, the dance moves were too light and the performance was far removed from the skill that Gu Jingyi showed in "Idol Producer" and the dance song "No Feeling".

Sour Chicken directly started a thread on Douban to criticize Gu Jingyi, launching a full-scale mockery.

Although the dance choreography created by fans was based on the song itself, a light-hearted song doesn't need to be made difficult just to show off skills.

However, some casual viewers were misled by the rhythm, believing that Gu Jingyi was in "power-saving mode" during "Butter." The dance skills he displayed were standard "YG boy group style."

Lin Ze burst out laughing when he saw it and immediately took a screenshot and sent it to Gu Jingyi.

Gu Jingyi was utterly speechless. Since when did the quality of a song have to be judged by the dance?
Wouldn't IU have been kicked off the position of South Korea's number one female solo artist by Kim Tae-yeon long ago?
G-Dragon, stop shaking your head and just go clubbing with a big stick.

Unexpectedly, on the second day of the third week after the release of "Butter", "Challenge" became a huge hit.

On PANN, posts related to "Butter" are popping up everywhere.

Title: "Those who think Butter's dance is easy, come on in! A frame-by-frame analysis of just how insane this dance really is!"

[Original Poster]: Recently, there's been a huge trend of dance covers of "Butter" on TikTok. I've watched many of these covers and found that many people haven't grasped the essence. Having just come from the dance studio, I'll use Gu Jingyi's performance from "M! C" to explain the song's difficulty. Why do so many covers fail to capture its spirit?

[Original Poster]: The hand gesture dance has a hidden meaning; pay attention to 0:46. Gu Jingyi's crossed thumbs symbolize the smooth texture of melted butter.

[Original Poster]: Next, Gu Jingyi's sliding step transition. Okay, here's the key point. As shown in the picture (attached: close-up of the toe rotation), did you notice? Gu Jingyi's shoe tip is at a 5-degree angle to the ground; the toe lightly touches the ground before flipping over. The movement is very elegant, and it looks like a feline's lazy grace. These are some random screenshots I took from TikTok, pieced together to create a nine-grid image (as shown). The toe angles of the flips are all wrong, making it look somewhat awkward.

[Original Poster]: In short, Gu Jingyi (Xi) truly deserves to be called "the strongest green card in K-pop history." His dance skills are extremely strong; the seemingly simpler the choreography, the more difficult it is. A simple, rhythmic dance only needs a basic shape to be convincing. However, with this kind of simple, casual dance, even a slight deviation in the details can lead to completely different results.

[Original Poster]: Gu Jingyi (Xi) is a true "dance machine." His stage presence is unparalleled. The only current main dancer I can think of who can compete with him is EXO's Kai. While SVT's Hush often appears on lists of top main dancers, his facial expressions aren't as good as Kai's.

[Original Poster]: In my opinion, Gu Jingyi's facial expression management is even better than Kai's. Because he needs to sing an entire song by himself, without making a single mistake on a single word or a single wrong move. Under this difficulty, he also contributed to the topic of "effortless sexiness" (attached picture: Gu Jingyi raising his eyebrow). Wow, I'm seriously swooning over his handsomeness.

As soon as this post was published, it became a trending topic due to the author's detailed analysis and the fact that the topic was related to Gu Jingyi.

More and more netizens commented below, agreeing with the dancer's point of view.

"Gu Jingyi's stage presence is amazing!"

"His movements are clean and crisp, his languid ease is natural; his reputation as the strongest green card holder is well-deserved."

"Damn it, Gu Jingyi's biggest regret is that he has no good platform to showcase his singing and dancing skills. It is said that the music environment there is still dominated by male ballad singers, who tend to sing while standing still."

“At times like these, we should give Ahn Joon-young a good scolding.”

Gu Jingyi opened the post sent by Kim Jisoo, his smile even wider than AK's.

That's right, he's just that awesome.

I remember when the stage performance of this song was first released, it was joked that Gu Jingyi made money just by twisting his body because the dance moves were simple.

Now, because of the huge popularity of "Challenge", more and more people are making videos for the sake of traffic.

More people noticed the cleverness of the dance in the song, and Gu Jingyi felt as if a wrongful accusation had been redressed.

The single also capitalized on the "Challenge" hype, significantly boosting Gu Jingyi's popularity in Europe and America.

The explosive growth of short videos has, in turn, driven up the demand for audio content.

Butter has climbed back up the Billboard charts from outside the Second Ring Road.

The song "Butter" is currently ranked seventh on the Billboard Hot 100.

Many in the industry are studying the successful model of this "Challenge." It will soon be rapidly replicated and become the standard practice for idol comeback promotions in China, South Korea, and even globally in the coming months.

Gu Jingyi really won big this time, combining innovation with foresight.

"That's amazing! They combined short videos and music performances so well."

"Advanced concepts, accurately grasping the pulse of the times"

"It seems like they've found a strategy that works for Chinese idols: if they don't have enough stage opportunities, they can make up for it with connections."

"Challenge is definitely the future trend."

These comments were repeatedly mentioned on Weibo, when everything seemed splendid and beautiful.

The rivals quietly withdrew, refraining from criticizing Gu Jingyi's performance.

Instead, the criticism was directed at the "Challenge" collaboration, with some arguing that Gu Jingyi's interactions with Park Soo-young and Joy were too ambiguous.

The brilliance lies in the fact that it didn't criticize Gu Jingyi's work, but rather pointed out that Gu Jingyi was suspected of being in a relationship.

The fans caused turmoil, while their rivals watched the show unfold.

"Jingyi, should the company directly deny your relationship with Park Soo-young?"

During a break, Lin Ze told Gu Jingyi about this while filming "Better Days".

"Hmm...okay."

Gu Jingyi hesitated for a moment, but still agreed.

He and Park Soo-young had agreed from the beginning that it was a mutually beneficial arrangement, but this scandal has really blown up.

He could only deny it and say he'd deal with it later...

HuaCe reacted quickly, immediately clarifying the relationship between Gu Jingyi and Park Soo-young.

They've found a new way to confuse the public.

When interviewed by the media, he was asked how he viewed the success of his work on TikTok.

Gu Jingyi just smiled and said some polite words, but someone was already digging a hole for him.

How do you feel about being popular on TikTok?

Gu Jingyi smiled calmly and remarked, "If I weren't popular, I wouldn't be able to endorse TikTok."

"You have been hailed as 'the strongest TikTok onboarding ever, bar none'."

"The Light of Chinese Culture: Gu Jingyi Ushers in a New Era"

In this life, I hear those flattering tones.

Gu Jingyi is not actually a 20-year-old young man; he humbly stated that these are all labels the media have given him.

In fact, he himself never thought that way.

"What! But everyone thinks that Teacher Gu is a pioneer in opposing Han Kuo-yu!"

A reporter stood up and said excitedly.

"Don't talk nonsense. I'm not some anti-Korean pioneer. I'm the new generation's leading figure in the Chinese entertainment industry, dedicated to making it better."

These words, though harsh, are the absolute truth.

Gu Jingyi has redefined the value of "top influencer," and his TikTok data has become the latest and most hardcore benchmark for global commercial value.

If you call him "the leading figure of the new generation of Chinese entertainment industry leaders," no one would disagree.

Both of them are doing the same thing: Jay Chou inspires cultural confidence in young people.

Gu Jingyi, on the other hand, "learned from foreign barbarians to govern barbarians."

What South Korean vanguard? Please call Gu Jingyi "the leading figure of the new generation in the Chinese entertainment industry".

(End of this chapter)