Huayu: From the Era of Ringtones to Becoming a Legend

The air in the conference room of Qianxing Media remained still.

Zuo Wei, Liu Sixi, and the others fixed their gazes on Lu Jiuge, their anxiety tinged with anticipation.

The double ban felt like two mountains weighing on their hearts, and no one dared to imagine how much of a turnaround "changing the model" could bring.

Lu Jiuge lit a cigarette, stood up, took a few steps, and looked back at Liu Sixi and the others:

"Since they've locked up the copyrights, then we'll completely abandon other people's songs!"

"From now on, 'The Voice of China' is upgrading its format! All contestants can only perform original works!"

boom!

One sentence, like a thunderclap, exploded in the conference room.

Liu Sixi suddenly stood up, his eyes filled with shock:

"Original content? Xiao Lu, that's too risky! Where do amateurs get so many high-quality original works? If the quality of the content is poor, the show will be canceled immediately!"

"The greater the risk, the greater the reward!"

Lu Jiuge's tone was firm:

"Traditional record companies monopolize song copyrights, but they can't monopolize the creative talent of ordinary people. We're taking this opportunity to expand and sign a group of talented musicians!"

He turned to look at Chen Bin, his tone decisive:

"Old Chen, get the finance department ready. I'm going to set up a huge prize for 'The Voice of China'!"

"The top three finishers in the competition will each receive a signing bonus of ten million yuan from Qianxing Media!"

"Furthermore, the company promises to provide each person with a top-notch production team to create no fewer than three hit songs tailored to their individual needs, and to fully promote them to the market!"

Ten million! Three hit songs!

The moment those two numbers were mentioned, the entire conference room erupted in excitement.

The person on the left is breathing rapidly.

"Mr. Lu, this is too extravagant! What if the investment goes down the drain..."

"You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub!"

Lu Jiuge interrupted him:

"Twelve record companies wanted to leave us with no songs to sing, so we used huge rewards to ignite an original song craze."

They want the show to fail before it even gets off the ground, so we'll use the hype to elevate it to a level they can't reach!

"Draft an announcement immediately, releasing all the rule changes and incentive policies!"

Lu Jiuge emphasized:

"Finally, I must add: the reason for switching to original content mode is truly out of necessity!"

"Despite our best efforts to communicate, Qianxing Media has yet to obtain song authorizations from any of the twelve record companies. We have no choice but to find another way, providing a platform for amateur creators!"

"Okay! I'll take care of it right away!"

Without any hesitation, Zuo Wei turned and left, carrying out Lu Jiuge's instructions.

Liu Sixi watched Lu Jiuge's retreating figure and muttered to himself:

"Ten million plus three hit songs—that's enough to drive music lovers across the entire country crazy!"

"But I'm still worried that if we don't receive high-quality songs, the show will become a laughing stock!"

Lu Jiuge shook her head confidently, a hint of a smile flashing in her eyes:

"Teacher Liu, there's absolutely no need to worry about that. I've prepared ten songs as backup. If we don't have any good songs, we'll just use these ten. I guarantee the show won't damage its reputation!"

"Haha, so you were prepared all along. I'm relieved!"

Hearing Lu Jiuge's words, Liu Sixi, Chen Bin, and Zheng Lin all breathed a sigh of relief.

……

Half an hour later, the official accounts of Qianxing Media, Jingjie Entertainment, and Lingyun Player simultaneously released announcements with titles that immediately went viral across the internet:

[The Voice of China upgrades to a zero-threshold original content format, with the top three contestants receiving a 10 million yuan signing bonus plus three hit songs!]

The main text details the rule changes, and the final statement, "Due to the lack of copyright authorization from twelve record companies, we had no choice but to switch to the original content model," directly exposes the conflict.

The announcement instantly changed the previously pessimistic outlook on the internet.

#The Voice of China's 10 Million Yuan Signing Bonus#

#Twelve record companies monopolize song copyrights#

#Original songs can also win millions in prize money#

The three topics surged to the top of the trending search list at lightning speed, instantly garnering over 100 million views, completely overshadowing previous negative terms.

Public opinion has completely reversed; the previous panic has turned into anger and anticipation.

"Holy crap! A ten million signing bonus? Qianxing Media is really going all out!"

"So the reason they changed it to original content was because they couldn't get the copyright? Those twelve record companies are disgusting; they're clearly suppressing newcomers!"

"Support Lu Jiuge! Why should copyright monopolies block the path for ordinary people? Original music is the future of the music industry!"

"My cousin has been writing songs for ten years without any opportunity, but now he finally has a stage, and he signed up overnight!"

"I used to feel sorry for the ordinary people who signed up, but now it seems they're the biggest winners! Ten million! That's enough for an average person to work their whole life for!"

"I cried! I can sing okay, but I can't write songs, and I'm completely blocked by the record company's copyright monopoly!"

"This is outrageous! I support Qianxing Media in standing up to them and crushing the morale of these monopolistic giants!"

……

The online trolls and haters who were previously mocking the situation were instantly overwhelmed by a flood of support.

Many passersby were attracted by the 10 million yuan prize and the original format, and spontaneously promoted the program, causing the registration channel's servers to be overwhelmed.

The backend data was fluctuating wildly; in just two hours, the number of applicants exceeded one million, far surpassing the previous peak.

The comment section of the joint statement issued by twelve record companies has been flooded with angry criticisms from netizens.

"By monopolizing copyrights and suppressing amateur creations, do you even deserve to be called a record company?"

"You used to talk about protecting legitimate products, but I think you're just protecting your own vested interests!"

"Support 'The Voice of China' and let these monopolistic giants see who truly owns the market!"

At the headquarters of Yawei Records, Zhao Mingliang, seeing the online public opinion reverse, slammed his fist on the table in anger:

"Damn it! That brat Lu Jiuge actually turned the ban into a publicity stunt!"

In the chairman's office of Tianyu Media, Qian Jiang's face was ashen as he looked at the popularity data of "The Voice of China" and gritted his teeth.

"Ten million? I'd like to see if Qianxing Media can come up with that much money! And as for broadcasting channels, no TV station dares to air it, so no matter how popular it is, it's useless!"

……

Cheers erupted throughout Qianxing Media.

Chen Bin stared at the registration data in the backend, grinning from ear to ear:

"Mr. Lu, the number of applicants has exceeded 1.2 million! Many musicians and independent singers have also submitted their demos, and the quality far exceeds expectations!"

Zuo Wei also excitedly reported:

"Public opinion has completely turned in our favor! The entire internet is now criticizing the twelve record companies for their monopoly. Mirror Media has already collected a bunch of dirt on them for suppressing newcomers. Should we take this opportunity to release it?"

"Need not!"

Lu Jiuge waved her hand:

"The focus now isn't on arguing with them, but on solving the broadcasting platform issue. No matter how popular it is, it's all for nothing if there's nowhere to broadcast it."

He picked up his coat, his eyes sharp:

"Old Zuo, come with me to the provincial capital, let's meet with some people from Zhejiang TV!"

The person on the left was taken aback:

"Zhejiang TV? Although they're not a staunch ally of Hunan TV, they do have business dealings. Would they refuse us?"

"How will you know if you don't try!"

Lu Jiuge's lips curled into a cold smile:

"If Hunan TV can lead the boycott, we can find TV stations willing to cooperate. Zhejiang TV has been competing with Hunan TV for ratings in recent years, and they may not want to miss this opportunity to create a hit show."

The two drove to Hangzhou without stopping.

The headquarters building of Zhejiang TV, the office of the deputy director.

Deputy Director Zhou Jianming put down the proposal Lu Jiuge handed him, his eyes filled with mockery and disdain:

"Lu Jiuge, do you really think a program that's been boycotted by twelve record companies and blocked by Hunan TV can be broadcast smoothly?"

"Zhejiang TV shouldn't risk offending the entire industry for a moment of popularity!"