HuaYu97: Starting as a Singer

Chapter 381 [381] Global First Day Battle Report Released, Industry Shocked!

Li Wen's manager felt that Qi Yuan's extravagance was justified, as Li Wen, who had been in the Western music scene for a while, understood the rules there.

No matter how good an album is, it can't make someone a superstar.

This is true for the Western music scene, and it's also true for the Chinese music scene.

Which singer dares to call themselves a superstar after releasing just one album? No one.

Back then, Qi Yuan's "Little King" and Ren Xianqi's "New Asian King" were both products of packaging and marketing. Fans could just shout for fun, but mainstream media and the public wouldn't recognize them.

In 98, Qi Yuan and Richie Jen's album was a success, officially ending the era of the Four Heavenly Kings, and their status as Heavenly Kings began to be recognized by everyone.

The same is true in the United States. If an album is released and becomes successful, the benefits can last for two or three years. Then, another album is released and becomes successful, which can last for another two or three years.

Two albums, and it's reasonable for them to be crowned king and queen within four or five years.

From this perspective, Qi Yuan's extravagance reached its extreme.

If you break down the ten songs from "23", put five into the first album, and then release the second album two or three years later, putting the remaining five into it, Qi Yuan would have a real chance to become a superstar.

So Qi Yuan used all his energy to release one album? Is he really that confident? Which singer dares to say they can consistently produce good songs?
Of course, there are advantages to having great strength and making bricks fly!

October 4th, Thursday.

The Billboard Hot 100 singles chart still holds the top spot for Destiny's Child's "Independent Women Part 1," a testament to the combined success of its Grammy Award and its global box office hit.

The media didn't have time to cheer for the defending champion of Destiny's Daughter, because their attention was drawn to the name of Qi Yuan.

The unexpected debut of "23" stunned Warner Music, record companies across the United States, the media, and musicians.

First up is the first song on the album, "Viva La Vida," which debuted at number four on the Billboard Hot 100.

"Perfect" debuted at number nineteen.

With the boost from physical sales, "Unstoppable" jumped from 50th to 39th place.

Qi Yuan's collaboration with Latin pop star Shakira, "Somebody That I Used To Know," debuted at number ten.

"See You Again" debuted at number 62.

An album with five songs debuting in the top 100 of the Hot 100 Singles Chart? Two of them in the top ten? Plus, the previously released single "Waving Flag" is stuck at number three.

One person occupied three of the top ten spots and six of the top one hundred spots?

You call this a debut album for a new artist? What new artist's debut album is this awesome?

Even Linkin Park, Warner Music's breakout star from last year, couldn't do it, and neither could top boy band Westlife.

Such a record is rare in the history of American pop music.

There's no way to imitate Qi Yuan's extravagant spending style, not even the King of Pop Michael Jackson or the globally popular Beatles.

Every single song on the entire album is a masterpiece, something no other singer in the history of pop music has achieved.

Even if they could do it, they wouldn't do it that way for long-term benefit.

Only Qi Yuan dared to play this game, and was willing to play it this way.

While the album was enjoying great success, Warner Music was spending lavishly on press releases and cash in multiple countries, including China, Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

[In the world of music, please remember this name—Qi Yuan!]

[Chris Qi releases his first English album, welcome everyone to witness Qi's journey!]

[A shining new force in the 21st-century world music scene!]

...After holding back for more than a week, Warner Music finally dared to boast.

Who dares to disagree with this result!

Those media outlets that had previously been clamoring for the Asian fever to cool down have all fallen silent.

Columbia Records is stunned, as are Destiny's Child and their manager.

Those damn media outlets pushed them out to suppress Chris, how are they supposed to suppress him? The best song on their album is "Independent Women Part 1", the other singles aren't particularly strong.

Look at Chris, every album he releases is a masterpiece.

Nobody told them Chris's album was this good!
Beyoncé, a key figure in Destiny's Child, is on the verge of a breakdown.

The agent reassured them: "He can do his thing, we can do ours. You two should do more radio appearances to promote yourselves and solidify your top position, then you'll win."

No problem. As long as they hold onto their championship title, no matter how strong Qi Yuan is, it won't matter.

No matter how much Warner Music boasts, they only need to say one thing: We are number one.

People only remember the first place, not the second, third, and fourth place.

……

Warner Music headquarters.

Zhang Hao spent a long time discussing publicity with Warner Music, and the content of the discussion made Zhang Hao quite nervous.

Qi Yuan's album has so many great songs that it's hard to know which ones to recommend. Can you believe it?
Five songs from the album are not currently on the charts, not because they are not good enough, but because the promotion is insufficient.

It's impossible to spread all promotional resources across ten songs; that would be too scattered and ineffective.

Concentrating our efforts is the key to accomplishing great things. We should focus on promoting one or two songs first, fully utilizing their potential before promoting others.

Qi Yuan's feelings were also a bit complicated; it turned out that having too many good songs was actually a problem!
Qi Yuan gave Zhang Hao and the Warner Music staff a suggestion: "Promote 'Viva La Vida' and 'Somebody That I Used To Know' first."

"Viva La Vida," a hit song by Coldplay, and a Billboard number one single.

"Somebody That I Used To Know" topped the charts in 21 countries and is a heartbreak anthem.

First, focus resources on promoting these two songs, especially "Somebody That I Used To Know." Shakira and Epic Records, the record label behind her, will definitely put in the effort.

Shakira is set to release her first English album at the end of the year, and the hit song she collaborated on with Qi Yuan is a great benefit to her.

Having decided on the songs to be highlighted, Warner Music began increasing its promotional efforts for these two songs on major radio stations in the new week.

Warner Music contacted Epic Records, and they were very enthusiastic. Shakira herself went to the radio station to promote the song.

Qi Yuan also launched a frenzied publicity campaign, appearing on television programs and radio stations one after another, sometimes running several shows a day.

While heavily promoting the game, Warner Bros. released the global first-day sales figures for "23".

The first week's data is delayed; only eight days have passed since the release, and we won't have the sales figures for the first week for a few more days.

Nevertheless, the first day's battle report was still quite alarming.

美国首日销量19万1千3百25张，华国（两岸三地）11万5千张，英国8万2千张，霓虹10万张，南韩2万2千张，法国……

所有国家的销量数据统计在一起，《23》第一天在全球范围内一共卖出了70万6千3百52张。

The entire industry was shaken!

Dude, this is an album! Not a cheap single. The cheapest one starts at $18.99. You're selling 70 copies a day? You're aiming for 1000 million, no, you're aiming for 1500 million or even 2000 million?
(End of this chapter)