Business Closed Loop: Starting with Ringback Tones to Take Down Giants

"It's so slow, so incredibly slow!!"

The application for innovation and entrepreneurship has been submitted for a whole week, but it has been completely ignored.

Yesterday, he submitted two finished videos, one finished song, and one demo as supplementary materials.

Professor Ding Ruru gave her affirmation.

However, it was also clarified that "there are no direct delivery opportunities this year; we will have to wait for the process to be completed."

This effectively put an end to Wang Song's hopes of taking shortcuts to obtain support funds, and the anxiety that had been hanging over him finally died.

Fortunately, the online novel is finally available for purchase.

After much procrastination, Wednesday finally arrived.

Alto singer audition.

Although there weren't many people signing up in the group, only about twenty, it was more than enough, and there might be others just joining in for the fun.

No sooner had he finished speaking than a series of footsteps came from afar, and a dozen or so students walked toward them.

The boy at the front saw Jiang Yilei and immediately stepped forward: "Hey, we're the ones who registered in the QQ group!"

"Register here!" Jiang Yilei quickly called out.

"Those who have registered, please fill in your information first, in the order of registration. Those who haven't registered, please line up here and wait for those who have registered to finish their turn."

"Come here to collect your carriage fee after the event. It's not much, but it's a token of my appreciation."

Those who signed up were immediately intrigued; they thought, "Wow, this is great news!"

Yao Beina came out carrying her violin case and nodded to Wang Song: "The equipment is set up. I'm going in to warm up."

"Thanks, senior sister."

Wang Song stepped aside to let her pass, then turned and clapped his hands at the students in line.

"Please be quiet, everyone. Senior Sister Yao is recording a new song in the studio. The recording studio needs a good atmosphere, so please bear with us."

These words were more effective than anything else; the whispers instantly ceased, and many people subconsciously pricked up their ears.

The soundproof door wasn't closed properly, and Yao Bei's clear, resonant voice drifted out:

"The old tree in front of the door sprouts new buds, and the withered tree in the yard blossoms again..."

The line moved forward slowly.

A girl with a high ponytail filled out the form, took the Walkman handed to her by Jiang Yilei, put it on, and listened for less than half a minute.

He frowned as he took it off, his tone puzzled: "Student, is this all there is to it? There's not even a simple accompaniment, it's a bit hard to get the right feel for it."

"And it's a bit off-key."

"Let me tell you."

Wang Song walked over, smiling, and handed him a bottle of water. "Hey, have some water first."

"To be honest, this is an a cappella test, and Senior Sister Yao has done it too."

"Strip away all the fancy packaging, complicated arrangements, and accompaniment, and just a melody and lyrics."

"Can we capture its core emotion? Can we move people with the most direct voice?"

Wang Song added, "If you really don't feel anything, that's okay, just drink some water and rest for a while."

"Or you could switch places with someone who didn't register; it's not mandatory."

The girl paused, looked at Wang Song's composed demeanor, glanced towards the recording studio, and put her headphones back on.

"Then I'll try again. This song, 'Decent,' is pretty good."

Wang Songchong and Jiang Yilei winked at each other, then turned and went into the recording studio.

Yao Beina had just finished recording a segment, took off her headphones, and laughed at him: "You really know how to smooth things over."

"That's called telling the truth," Wang Song said, handing over some water.

"Just tell me, haven't you heard of it before?"

Yao Beina raised an eyebrow: "That's true, it was really awful to sing."

"It's harmless," Wang Song said with a smile.

"You are the candidate for the studio's music partner head."

"If these people stay, they'll all be your subordinates. You'll have to pick and choose the ones you like."

"Although I don't understand art, I respect artistic talent."

"Who agreed to be your partner?"

Yao Beina rolled her eyes at him, but still picked up the record board.

At 2 p.m., Jiang Yilei had written down 15 names in the registration book.

"There are 11 more waiting."

That's enough.

Without hesitation, Wang Song said, "Let five more people in. After the last one finishes singing, announce the end of the preliminary round."

"What about the next six?"

"Give them more travel expenses based on the length of the queue."

"That's how it should be said."

"Thank you for your support. The preliminary round is full. We apologize for taking up your time. This is a small token of our appreciation from the studio."

Jiang Yilei nodded and went to make the arrangements.

The crowd dispersed.

Wang Song, Jiang Yilei, recording engineer Li Ge, and Yao Beina were gathered around the mixing console, with labeled demos scattered on the table.

Yao Beina wore headphones, listening quickly, occasionally exchanging words with the recording engineer, Brother Li.

"This girl has a bright voice, which is a good match for 'Decent'."

"This guy's voice is a little hoarse, but he has that kind of energy when he sings 'Wait a Minute'."

It was evening.

Yao Beina took off her headphones and pushed a piece of paper over: "These eight will do, four men and four women. We don't need to be so high and mighty."

The boys' group consists of two performers each for "Angel's Wings" and "Wait a Minute";

The girls' group has two performers each for "Say Goodbye When You Want" and "Decent".

"Perfect." Wang Song closed the notebook and said to Jiang Yilei.

"On Friday, I sent a notification in the group that everyone had passed the preliminary selection. I asked each person to pay a deposit of 100 yuan to let them know they had passed the preliminary selection and that I was confident they would succeed."

He looked at Brother Li and Yao Beina: "Thank you."

Brother Li laughed and said, "These songs are all pretty good. I'll talk to the boss and ask for a discount on the renewal fee, since it's for the students' creative work."

Wang Song smiled and said, "Then thank you very much, Brother Li."

As Yao Beina packed her violin case, she couldn't help but ask, "Will the arranger follow the same procedure next Saturday?"

"Of course."

Wang Song grinned, "Let the arranger choose the singer, and the singer can also choose the arranger. It's a two-way street that works."

"You really know how to get something for nothing," Yao Beina snorted, but there was little reproach in her tone.

Saturday, same place. The arrangement team is limited to 16 people; Wang Song can't afford to hire more than that.

Wang Song stood at the front, without exchanging pleasantries, and said, "Thank you all for your time. Today is neither an exam nor a commission."

"The rules are simple." Wang Song pressed the play button.

Eight vocal clips played in succession, announcing, "We've selected eight singers."

As the last note faded, Wang Song announced, "Now, it's your turn to choose them."

A commotion arose below.

"Choose...them?" A boy wearing glasses raised his hand. "Didn't you guys choose them?"

"Not specified".

Wang Song shook his head, "These four songs, eight people, you are free to choose which song and which voice you want to arrange."

"You can choose just one song, or you can choose multiple songs to try it out."

"But ultimately, we need to create a demo that includes vocals and is at least 30 seconds long."

He paused for a moment: "And a week later, we will select the best combination for each track based on the matching degree between the arrangement and the singer's voice."

"What if..." another student asked.

"If multiple people choose a song, how is the decision made?"

"First look at the matching degree, then look at the completion degree," Wang Song answered decisively.

"If both artists write good compositions, we will have the singers themselves participate in the judging."

"What if... no one chooses a song?" someone asked quietly.

Wang Song thought for a moment.

"That means that there is currently no suitable arrangement for that song or that singer's voice."

"We respect this result; we'll either adjust our direction or put it on hold for now."

These words silenced the room for a moment.

This is not a one-way selection process; it's a four-way screening process:

The system selects singers, arrangers, and singers based on their musical styles.

Wang Song paused and then added.

"Let's be clear: Xianming Studio has produced many works, and these four pieces are both an initial response and a future project."

Wang Song clapped his hands. "Now, those who are willing to participate, come and get your dry recording files and send them directly to the studio's email."

"We'll have the results in half a month at most, and the 200 yuan preliminary test fee will be paid once the application is approved."

Sixteen people, sixteen choices.

Some went straight for their best style, some challenged themselves with the most difficult-to-control voices, and some conservatively chose the safest combination.

Wang Song stood at the door, watching them receive their materials, discuss in hushed tones, and leave in a hurry.

Jiang Yilei leaned closer and whispered, "Boss, is this kind of laissez-faire approach going to work?"

"It has to work, even if it doesn't work."

Wang Song watched the last student's departing figure.

"We give them the choice, and they'll decide for themselves."

"The final submission will be the work that everyone put their heart and soul into and is most confident in."

"What does 'roll up' mean??? Does it mean packing your bags and leaving???"

"It's very complicated; it involves economics and management."

"Alright, what about us?"

"We don't produce; we produce the production line. That's a different model."