Huayu: From the Era of Ringtones to Becoming a Legend

Liu Feng's promise to speak on his behalf subtly changed the atmosphere in the recording studio.

Su Jianghe and Qiu Jian exchanged a glance, both reading the same conclusion from each other's eyes:

Although I don't understand Lu Jiuge's tactics, they are likely to stir up a storm, but the outcome is probably more bad than good, so I shouldn't take sides!

"Xiao Lu!"

Su Jianghe hesitated for a moment before speaking, not responding to Liu Feng's words, but instead changing the subject:

"Now that the song is ready, when do you plan to release it? Luo Zhiqiang's new song has been generating buzz for days."

Lu Jiuge did not answer immediately, but instead called Zuo Wei in.

"What's on the left?"

When the well-known paparazzi "Left One-Knife" pushed open the door and entered, Liu Feng and the other two, along with Li Huizhen, were all taken aback and subconsciously showed a wary expression.

"Teachers, don't panic!"

Lu Jiuge explained with a smile:

"Old Zuo is now a shareholder and general manager of my Mirror Media, responsible for the company's overall operation and public opinion response. They're all on our side."

"Old Zuo, tell me, when would be the best time to release our new song to counter Luo Zhiqiang?"

Zuo Wei nodded to Liu Feng and the others as a greeting, then turned to Lu Jiuge, his tone grave:

"President Lu, the time has come, but the risks are also greater than anticipated!"

"How so?"

"Luo Zhiqiang's Road to Glory has been online for three days and has been downloaded 1.2 million times. The data is not explosive, but the word-of-mouth is well controlled."

The person on the left has opened the folder in their hand and is pointing to the data chart on it:

"The key is Yawei Records, the record company behind them. They held an internal meeting this morning, and our people heard that they're preparing to join forces with several mainstream channels to launch a coordinated attack on you, completely crushing any potential momentum of your challenge song!"

Liu Sixi frowned:

"What do you mean?"

"It's a ban."

Zuo Wei put it very directly:

"They're blocking our new song's promotional opportunities, completely cutting off our distribution channels at the source! If they really team up with several other companies, even if our song is free, its reach will be drastically reduced!"

The recording studio fell silent.

Li Huizhen's fingers tightened slightly.

Su Jianghe and Liu Feng exchanged a glance:

These are the real industry rules, and they can't be broken just because a song is good or bad.

After listening to Zuo Wei's report and analysis, Lu Jiuge smiled.

"New song coming tomorrow!"

"tomorrow?"

Qiu Jian raised an eyebrow, puzzled, and asked:

"So hasty? Aren't you going to wait until their first wave of attacks is over?"

"I can't wait!"

Lu Jiuge waved her hand, her expression turning serious:

"They just finished their meeting, and it will take at least three days for the official documents to be issued and for the channels to implement them. This window of opportunity is the perfect time for our explosive attack!"

After speaking, Lu Jiuge turned to look at Li Huizhen:

"Furthermore, if Sister Huizhen confirms the signing tomorrow, we'll make it official. Signing a comeback diva and releasing a battle song—two bombshells exploding at once—they can't keep it a secret no matter what!"

"I'll follow Mr. Lu's arrangements!"

Li Huizhen understood the risks involved, but she also saw Lu Jiuge's determination, so she was willing to take the gamble!

Liu Sixi then asked:

"How do you release the song? Still using a free license?"

"Yes, and it needs to be even more thorough than before."

Lu Jiuge paced back and forth several times, her attitude resolute:

"This time, I'm not only authorizing, but I'm also taking the initiative!"

"Teacher Liu..."

As soon as she finished speaking, Lu Jiuge paused for a moment:

"Forget it, this matter carries too much risk. Let's leave it to Lao Zuo this time!"

"Old Zuo, contact all the pirated CD workshops, record stores in the county, and night market vendors we can reach, and tell them they can burn and sell this song as they please, I won't take a penny!"

Zuo Wei paused for a moment, then prompted:

"Mr. Lu, these pirates are ruthless and predatory. Are you going to let them copy whatever they want? Can you control the risks?"

Liu Sixi knew that Lu Jiuge had assigned this matter to Zuo Wei to protect his own reputation, but as a shareholder of Qianxing Entertainment, he couldn't hide behind the scenes at this time and actively seek opportunities.

"Zuo Wei is right. I think it's safer for me to handle this, just like with the previous two songs, by contacting several major pirate CD distributors to collaborate!"

"No!"

Lu Jiuge's eyes were sharp:

"When mainstream channels want to block me, the bigger the company, the more concerns they have!"

"As for the situation, I don't intend to control it!"

"I don't believe that they can control the media, control large distributors, and control the street stalls in the night markets of thousands of counties across the country."

Can we control those mobile vendors who drive modified tricycles with loudspeakers all over the streets?

He paused, then lowered his voice even further:

"I want this song to rise from the bottom, the kind of music record companies look down on. What will they do when it's playing everywhere?"

Just as Lu Jiuge finished speaking, a line of text appeared in her mind on the system interface:

[System notification: Malicious industry targeting detected; negative faith value conversion efficiency increased by 300%. Host, please remain committed to this path.]

Upon receiving this information, Lu Jiuge's eyes became even more determined.

After listening, Liu Feng let out a long sigh.

He looked at Lu Jiuge as if he were seeing this young man for the first time.

"You little brat..."

Liu Feng shook his head:

"Are you trying to flip the table?!"

"They didn't even leave me a seat at the table in the first place!"

Lu Jiuge smiled:

"In that case, I'll just have to set the table and eat by myself!"

After chatting with Lu Jiuge for another half hour, Liu Feng and the others left, while Li Huizhen stayed behind.

She wants to use the battle as an opportunity to understand as much as possible the way of thinking of the new and old boss, Lu Jiuge.

……

The next morning at nine o'clock, "A Kind of Love Called Letting Go" was simultaneously released on all online music platforms.

As before, it comes with a prominent statement declaring that it is free to use across the entire network.

But this time, the wording of the statement was even more provocative:

This song is open to all commercial and non-commercial use licenses, including but not limited to:

Pirated copies, street performances, commercial covers. Only requirement: retain the original singer's credit. Respectfully submitted by Lu Jiuge.

This statement was like a slap in the face to the traditional record industry.

Zuo Wei's team was already prepared.

Hundreds of marketing accounts simultaneously published articles, each with an increasingly sensational headline:

[Lu Jiuge declares war on industry rules! Free licensing for new songs, feel free to pirate!]

[There's a kind of love called letting go vs. The Road to Glory: A head-on clash between grassroots and capital!]

Just how arrogant is he? He dares to let pirates sell his songs freely!

Wang Guangjun and Ban Kaiwen, along with their brothers from the "Funeral Love Family," frantically spammed links on various platforms.

Lu Jiuge gave them a task in advance: Focus on online forums and QQ groups at the county level and below, and spread the download link and a slogan:

Lu Jiuge's songs represent those from the lower classes, and those from non-mainstream backgrounds!

After a day of promotion and buzz, by noon the next day, the data for the song "There is a kind of love called letting go" started to go crazy.

But this rampage is completely different from the Walking In The Sun period.

On the new song charts of the three major music platforms, the song "There is a kind of love called letting go" can't even make it into the top 30, clearly indicating that its popularity is being throttled.

On the other hand, the data from the backend of the QQ groups for forums below the county level, which Wang Guangjun monitors in real time, shows the exact opposite.

"I heard it on a pirated DVD, so I specifically searched for it. That's awesome!"

"This song is in a compilation album that sells for five dollars a night at the market; the vendor said it was just added today!"

"Every hair salon in our county is playing it. The hairdressers say this song doesn't have copyright, so they can use it freely!"

"Lu Jiuge is really daring! Isn't she going against the entire industry?"

"Upstairs, whose side are you on? Brother Jiu is serving us and getting to listen to music for free, we should all support him, but you're making sarcastic remarks?"

"That's right, we must unite, support Brother Jiu, and fight those arrogant record companies to the end!"