After offending capital, my songs became more and more popular.

Chapter 131 Longing for Return! Military and Civilians as One Family! A work worthy of inclusion in primary and secondary school textbooks!

"A night at the naval port~"

"Quietly~"

The waves gently rocked the warship.

……

Different songs have different singing styles. For example, in "Me and My Motherland," the bel canto tenor voice perfectly highlights the feeling of "the voice of a great nation." In "Wanjiang," the operatic singing style is stunning and steals the show. "Ode to Young China" is sung with the most dazzling timbre to express the unrestrained spirit of youth!

"Night at the Military Port" aims to evoke the gentle feeling of fishermen's songs and nursery rhymes, like the soft waves of the sea.

Some might say that the sound is very contemporary, but it's an outdated singing style. But classics are timeless!

To be honest, when Shen Ming'en picked up the microphone and sang the first few lines of "Night at the Military Port," many people who couldn't stand to see him succeed were already laughing their heads off...

"puff……"

"What are all these...?"

"What style is this?"

"The musical style of the 80s?"

"What an old-fashioned way of singing, hahaha..."

Backstage, many creators of mainstream content were secretly discussing things behind the scenes when the cameras weren't on them, saying things like that.

Clearly, everyone felt that Shen Ming'en's song was a bit too old-fashioned...

This musical style doesn't seem to be mainstream. These days, no matter what style it is, it has to lean towards popular music. After all, popular style is the main theme of the market, and these mainstream singers also incorporate more of this element when creating their works.

Logically speaking, Shen Ming'en should be the most skilled at incorporating "trendy" elements...

After all, both his "Ode to Young China" and his earlier "Chinese Language" are mainstream works with very popular elements.

But now, he has completely abandoned all "popular" elements and chosen a song style that even sounds a bit "old-fashioned"...

It's just like those restaurants that sell grilled skewers in the summer. At first, the skewers they made with smoke and fire tasted pretty good, but then they insisted on going for something fancy, using all sorts of high-quality ingredients and talking about "restoring the original flavor of the ingredients." So they made lamb carcasses without cumin, and the charcoal they used didn't have much flavor at all...

Later, when business went badly, he had no idea why.

Why else?

I came here for barbecue, I came here for that smoky, fiery smell, I came here to eat from a roadside stall!
You insist on making it all high-class and sophisticated, but it just doesn't have the right feel, you know?

Although this example is somewhat unrelated, Shen Ming'en is really no different from those people now!
People come to see his performance and listen to him sing, specifically to hear him sing patriotic songs. This second round is for hearing him sing the same strong, energetic style as "I Love This Blue Ocean" from the previous round...

What did Shen Mingen end up doing?
Do the opposite!
How can a city gate tower and a hip bone/elbow be the same?

It's perfectly normal that the audience doesn't accept it!
"Ming En's chances this time are probably slim..."

Many of the main creators behind the scenes were shaking their heads and saying this when they discussed it with each other.

yes……

Capital was already targeting him, and this stage was already difficult for him to compete in, but he ended up blocking his own path.

it's good now……

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he has virtually no chance of advancing further.

It's quite a sad story...

Yatarion, the Thunder King, is so incredibly talented, yet he is cruelly suppressed by capital...

While they cherish talent, they are quite happy that Shen Ming'en will be eliminated in the next episode, meaning they won't be forced to take on more difficult challenges.

It's worth mentioning that among the group of singers backstage, only the veteran tenor Yue Huochuan wasn't smiling like the others...

Instead of laughing, he frowned more and more as he listened to Shen Ming'en sing.

"Teacher Yue, what's wrong?" The creator standing nearby asked upon seeing this.

"No..." Yue Huochuan shook his head and said casually, "I just feel that this style of music sounds a bit familiar."

Most of the people present were not very old, except for Yue Huochuan, who were mostly in their thirties or forties...

There's no way around it; after all, once you get past that age, it's hard to keep up with the energy, and it's difficult to participate in such an intense creative process as the "Chinese Music Awards: Red Song Season."

Perhaps it's also due to their age; they don't know much about the 80s generation, many of whom were still children at that time...

Yue Huochuan is fifty-six years old this year. Although he hasn't celebrated his birthday yet, he is someone who has lived through that era.

Having lived through that era, I know how popular that style of music was back then...

Perhaps, indeed, many young audiences today look down on this kind of music and will even skip the song without hesitation when they hear it, but people his age would find this kind of music very charming.

The things the older generation likes have never changed, and never will. The only problem is that this song might be liked by too many people of his age...

Of course, this is only one aspect.

On the other hand, Yue Huochuan noticed that there were some things in the song that sounded very familiar to him, but he couldn't name them.

"I hope I'm just overthinking it..."

Yue Huochuan shook his head, banishing all the strange thoughts from his mind. He also hoped, like everyone else, that Shen Mingen would not have any "backup plan" this time and would be eliminated.

Meanwhile, Shen Ming'en's performance continued...

……

"A young sailor~"

"Her head resting on the waves~"

A sweet smile appeared on her face as she slept.

……

The musical style may lean towards the 80s, giving the audience a "old-fashioned" feeling, but the "sense of the times" in the songs is full.

Old things may not be accepted by many people, but old things always have their charm.

Shen Ming'en's song, for example, gives you the feeling of listening to a cassette tape...

cassette tapes...

What a timeless term!

Pagers, cassette tapes, and CDs are now virtually nonexistent in the market, but they still symbolize an era and can instantly transport people back to that time when they reappear.

Take this song "Night at the Military Port" for example. Even though its style is quite different from many mainstream pop songs, the content and connotation expressed in its lyrics and melody are in no way inferior to any popular work.

Shen Ming'en's singing created a quiet and peaceful atmosphere. Compared with his previous "hardcore" style, this song is more lyrical and more down-to-earth, as if it contains a deeper meaning of "harmony between the military and the people".

Without realizing it...

Some audience members actually seemed to be listening.

Especially when hearing the line, "The young sailor, his head resting on the waves, sleeps with a sweet smile on his face"...

This lyric is very evocative. If a language arts teacher were to use it for reading comprehension in class, some students would definitely tell the teacher:

"These lyrics reveal the inner world of soldiers, which combines strength and gentleness, showing both their iron will to defend their country and their yearning for a peaceful life!"

Listen!

How profound!

How profound!

How thought-provoking!
How thought-provoking!

The gentle melody and singing style seemed to imitate the tranquil waves under the night sky.

The ocean will not always be turbulent, nor will it always be as ambitious as in "I Love This Blue Ocean." It can also be as quiet and peaceful as night falls in "Night at the Naval Port."

The officers who stand on the coast to defend our country deserve praise, and so do the officers who take a short rest after intense training. When you praise the officers, you can't just praise their sacrifices. The image of them collapsing in bed exhausted after each day's intense training, dreaming of a prosperous and peaceful motherland, and their sweet smiles, is even more worthy of praise.

Peace is not about fighting and killing; it is about national prosperity and peace!
What an enviable scene! Hearing it evokes images in one's mind, and then the corners of one's mouth keep turning up...

For a moment, some people who were a bit older, had some experience, and had weathered the storms of time couldn't help but close their eyes.

Even under these circumstances, Shen Ming'en continued to sing softly:

……

"Sea breeze, you blow so gently~"

"The waves gently rock me~"

"Sailors on long voyages, how arduous their work!"

"Back to the motherland, in the embrace of our mother~"

"Let our sailors get a good night's sleep~"

……

What kind of feeling does the song "Night at the Military Port" give you when you first hear it?
It's a feeling like when I was a child, lying in my mother's arms, listening to the lullabies she hummed as she lulled me to sleep.

It's that kind of... nursery rhyme, yes, that's the feeling of a nursery rhyme!

Generally speaking, nursery rhymes are not recorded in a clear and complete manner; they are passed down orally from place to place.

For example, in the provincial capital of Shandong, there's a rather quirky saying: "Your grandma's head is like a ball, you could kick her all the way to the department store..."

For example, there's something like "Night at the Naval Port," which sounds like it has a regional flavor...

[This sounds a bit like... a fisherman's song by the sea?]

In the online live stream, millions of people were watching simultaneously, from all over the country. Some viewers with the "Hainan" IP address seemed to recognize the style and left comments below.

[I was just about to say this, it's a bit like those fishing songs my mom and her generation used to hum...] [Sparrow food, it's like that "li ya li li mei" feeling...]

This song sounds quite down-to-earth, like it's from a fisherman's perspective, looking at the navy officers...

Comparing sailors to family members returning from a long voyage...wow, that's quite an interesting metaphor!

[Shen Ming'en, are you now making people do reading comprehension exercises when you write songs?!]

[Hahaha... It's getting more and more sophisticated, really more and more sophisticated!]

……

Whether a work has substance or not is most directly apparent to the audience. In the internet age, there's no such thing as something "hidden away." Gold will always shine. If you've sincerely invested in it, you don't need to worry about the audience not noticing.

For example, with Shen Ming'en's "Night at the Military Port," when most viewers were disappointed because the song's gentle intro was not as strong as "I Love This Blue Ocean," some viewers had already noticed that the melody of this song was very similar to the Hai Nan fishermen's song.

The subsequent song indeed continued this style, and blended it in a very moving way...

This song, as it stands, almost perfectly blends the "sea flavor" of the fishermen's songs with the "soldier flavor" of the military songs, creating a "poetic and picturesque" artistic conception.

This aesthetic expression not only aligns with the creative concept of "using the sea as a mirror to reflect life" in Hai Nan Yu Ge, but also imbues military songs with a fresh folk cultural gene.

It's refreshing and novel!
"Oh……"

After the entire verse and chorus were sung, many audience members at the venue, perhaps not as clearly aware of the "details" of the song as online viewers, still felt somewhat impressed by Shen Ming'en's "quiet and gentle" delivery.

That's a really vivid image!

Images of a quiet and peaceful naval port under the night sky involuntarily surfaced in my mind...

This kind of thing is the rarest and also the most challenging to create!

None of the previous mainstream composers could do this, but Shen Ming'en did it with a gentle piece of work!
It's incredible!

"Clap clap clap..."

Some people in the audience spontaneously raised their hands to applaud Shen Ming'en...

Applause always has a chain reaction; once one drum starts beating, the entire audience starts applauding for Shen Ming'en.

To say it was thunderous applause wouldn't be accurate. It's not that people weren't enthusiastic, but rather that really loud applause could easily disrupt the atmosphere...

Everyone is now feeling reluctant to ruin this atmosphere.

It's like the naval officers returning from a long voyage, resting in the naval port under the night sky before them. Who would have the heart to disturb the exhausted officers who have finished a day of training?

That's exactly how it feels!
The more the audience realized this feeling, the more amazed they were by Shen Ming'en's "Night at the Military Port"!
The imagery created in the song makes the audience reluctant to disturb or disrupt it; that's how terrifying it is!

"This……"

This scene left Haki Ling, who was sitting in the audience, completely stunned...

No, just now, before Shen Ming'en sang "Night at the Military Port," when the intro had just started, wasn't there a slight awkward silence in the audience because the song he was singing was a gentle melody?

During his performance, the entire audience was almost completely silent, a stark contrast to the usual cheers and enthusiasm...

Hajiling thought the conversation had completely fallen silent...

They're even gloating over this!
Why is it that as soon as Shen Ming'en finished singing a complete verse and chorus, everyone in the audience seemed moved and applauded him?

What the hell? !
Does silence touch the heart?
Not only was Hajime stunned...

Backstage, a group of patriotic content creators were thinking: "???"

They all looked completely bewildered!
Their question wasn't about not understanding why the audience was applauding, but rather...

Damn, I never expected Hakeem's song to be of such high quality!
The saying goes, "The layman sees the spectacle, the expert sees the details." Laymen may not know why the audience applauded, but surely they do!
Yes!
Shen Ming'en's "Night at the Military Port" may not be as tough as his previous song "I Love This Blue Ocean," but this song is more immersive. It's so delicate that it seeps into your pores like invisible threads!
It is presented from the perspective of fishermen, making it more down-to-earth and easier for everyone to connect with the characters!

Perhaps, indeed, the style of this song isn't so much... "popular".

But who said that only what is popular can truly resonate with you?
Just now, not only the audience at the venue, but even those backstage were completely engrossed in listening...

strange!
It’s so outrageous!
They truly never imagined that they would be so moved by such a song!
There are many things they can't understand, but the one thing they can understand is that all these signs, without exception, indicate that Shen Ming'en's "Night at the Military Port" is of exceptionally high quality!
This time...

They've popped champagne at halftime again!
And they weren't the only ones popping champagne at halftime...

And then there's that rabble in the teahouses of Shanghai!

“ber…”

"This song..."

"This……"

"Well, oh dear..."

Being laymen, despite working in the industry, these capitalists were mostly clueless about music theory. Like the woman in the suit, Ms. Liu, and the overweight man, they couldn't understand what was so good about Shen Ming'en's song. But like those mainstream singers, they just felt…

I was completely engrossed in listening!
That's so weird!
There's a feeling that, as you listen, you want to close your eyes and savor the experience.

And it is precisely this feeling that they find most unacceptable!
They knew what that feeling meant...

They also know that if they feel this way, then the audience will definitely feel this way too, and at that time the audience will definitely cast all their votes for Shen Ming'en!

Then!
They might be featured in this episode...

They still can't get rid of Shen Ming'en!
This...

like……

They got excited too early again, and they started popping champagne halfway through the game!

"President Qin..." The white-haired man beside him looked at the comments and bullet screens of online viewers that kept appearing on the wall-mounted TV, and couldn't help but twitch his lips. He said to President Qin, who was brewing tea not far away, "Is this song... really in the style of Hainan Fishermen's Song?"

Of everyone present, only Mr. Qin was from Hainan. The first episode of this season of "Chinese Music Awards - Red Song Season" was themed around praising the Navy, and that was the reason why...

Many people online say this song sounds like a Hainan fisherman's song, but they're not from Hainan, so they definitely wouldn't know.

"No way..." Ms. Liu, the woman in the suit standing next to her, curled her lip and said bluntly, "To me, it's just a very ordinary and bad nursery rhyme, and it's very old-fashioned. How can it be as sophisticated as they make it sound?"

“9494…” The fat man next to him couldn’t help but chime in, saying, “These people are so used to praising Shen Ming’en that they might be overanalyzing him.”

At this point, they clearly hadn't realized the seriousness of the situation...

Completely oblivious, from the moment the intro to Shen Ming'en's "Night at the Military Port" began, President Qin's face had been devoid of any smile...

Outsiders might not know, but as a native of Hainan, Mr. Qin knows the Hainan fishermen's song style melody in this song all too well!
What I know even more is that the theme of "longing for home" seems to permeate this song all the time, and it originates from the fishing songs of Hainan!
Fishermen's songs, as the name suggests, are songs sung by fishermen.

What do fishermen do?

They make a living by fishing at sea!

The sea is turbulent, and while it holds boundless treasures, it also harbors countless dangers...

Going out to sea inevitably involves risks, and the songs that family members hum often carry a tone of anticipation for their safe return.

What surprised and baffled President Qin was...

This theme of "longing for home," which is passed down orally among fishermen, has actually been used by Shen Ming'en in his mainstream works!

He used a personification style to compare the "sailors" in "Night at the Naval Port," that is, our dear navy uncles, to relatives on a long voyage, hoping that they can return safely every time they go to sea!

The phrase "the military and the people are one family" seems to be directly embodied in the song!

This kind of topic...

It's fucking invincible!
Every lyric in this song sounds so ordinary and plain, but each line, taken out of context, has its own meaning. It's just like giving everyone a Chinese language lesson and testing their reading comprehension!
You asked if people dislike Chinese class or reading comprehension?

Definitely annoying...

What student wants to do reading comprehension?

But you ask if the country likes this kind of Chinese language class, this kind of reading comprehension?
That's for sure!

Motherland loves works like this that are thought-provoking and have an "educational" effect on today's students!

Mr. Qin seemed to have already figured out where the song "Night at the Military Port" could be used...

It's being used in music classes for primary and secondary school students across the country!

You think so!

Think about it carefully!

Doesn't the melody of this song sound like something from a music textbook for primary and secondary school students?
And if it could be included in the textbook...

Then the significance of this song is extraordinary!
But it's far superior to any of Shen Ming'en's previous works!
It's true that those who stand tall see far; in President Qin's eyes, this song was truly terrifying to this extent!
And the more terrifying it is...

This means that, no matter what, they cannot eliminate Shen Ming'en because of this song!
Please!

You can eliminate Shen Ming'en for any song, even if it's because of "Me and My Motherland" back then. At most, there will be some public opinion online, which can be suppressed by hiring some online trolls...

But if you eliminate him based on a piece that's suitable for inclusion in textbooks...

Then you'll see if the country agrees!

"Snapped……"

Realizing this, President Qin couldn't help but raise his chubby little hand to cover his large face...

no!
He really didn't expect that this bastard Hajime could create such a patriotic song that could almost be used in textbooks during this tense "second round battle"!

Outrageous...

This guy is just too outrageous!

They are really on the verge of a breakdown because of Shen Ming'en!

……

(End of this chapter)