I became a music industry godfather by writing confidantes.

Chapter 145 No Dawn Allowed

Vertical store, a hotel.

Zhao Heng, one of the Four Little Heavenly Kings, is on the phone with his manager, Liu Yuan.

What does it mean when the popularity seems off?

The agent patiently explained, "According to the current pattern of information updates on the Internet, any news can only last for two or three days. The hype will almost run out by the fourth day, until no one cares anymore. But this time, the discussion about you being the mastermind has lasted a little longer."

Zhao Heng wasn't stupid; he immediately realized, "You mean someone's trying to frame me?"

"It's obvious," Liu Yuan said. "So what you've experienced these past two days is actually two separate events."

"First, you got caught up in Zhang Jun's staged accident incident. This was an undeserved misfortune, not your fault."

"Secondly, this matter should have been over and covered by other current affairs news, but someone is still pushing it behind the scenes to maintain its popularity and discussion, preventing it from cooling down."

Zhao Heng retorted angrily, "This isn't my fault either!"

"Don't worry, we started dealing with it as soon as we noticed something was wrong three days ago, and since yesterday there has been virtually no news about it online."

"If I had known it would turn out like this, I should have clarified it on Weibo when there were first signs of trouble. Instead, I've been wrongly accused for several days now."

"What we discussed earlier"

"Ah, right, right, right. For a superstar like me to rashly issue a clarification statement would only amplify the topic and trigger a second wave of public opinion. That's public relations, isn't it?"

The agent corrected, "To be precise, it's a theory of communication studies."

He paused, then added, "I wasn't with you last week, but I did remind you. Do you remember what it was?"

Zhao Heng scratched his head in anguish and said reluctantly, "—Be careful what you say and do."

"Did you manage to do it?"

"Yes, of course."

"Think about it carefully again. In your last interview, when you were asked about your opinion on Yang Du's transition to a singer and releasing an album—"

"No, no, are you satisfied now? You already know, so why ask me?"

"Now you know why I told you to be careful and cautious?"

"I understand, I understand. It's so annoying, like being a mother hen. I'm going to play games now. Wait, have you found out who's behind this?"

"If I haven't been misled, it's your fellow disciple, Gu Xingran."

"#!"

Just as I hung up the phone, a voice suddenly came from beside me: "Brother, did Uncle Liu nag you again?"

A mineral water bottle flew onto the assistant.

"Can't you speak properly?" Zhao Heng tried to save face. "He's my manager, I'm a rising star, he's reporting on my work, okay?"

"I understand, I understand."

"If you can't speak properly, then don't speak at all. If you weren't my cousin, I would have fired you long ago." Zhao Heng felt a throbbing pain in his temples. "Why are you here? Didn't I tell you to get some rest?"

"Oh, right, I almost forgot about the important matter," the assistant said. "Brother, Xu Xiao released a song."

Zhao Heng was taken aback: "Xu Xiao releases a song? Now?"

"Yes, it was released simultaneously on major music platforms just a few minutes ago, and it should be trending on social media now."

"Is this woman crazy, releasing a song at this time?"

As one of the four little kings of the Chinese music scene, Zhao Heng's professional ability is beyond doubt, but this is not a good time to release a song.

It is now January 25th, with only 11 days left until Lunar New Year's Eve. In a few days, the entire internet traffic in China will be taken over and filled by all elements related to the Spring Festival, such as the Spring Festival travel rush, the Spring Festival Gala, and New Year's goods, until the ninth day of the Lunar New Year when people return to work.

Entertainment gossip and social hot topics alike must all give way to the most important Spring Festival for the Chinese people.

The recommended playlists on platforms like Tencent and NetEase Cloud Music will be changed to lively and festive New Year greeting songs.

In fact, a peculiar phenomenon appears on the list of successful candidates every year starting before the eve of the twelfth lunar month.

New Year's greeting songs released in previous years will start to return to the charts due to excellent streaming data. Popular hits with high national recognition can even break back into the top ten, or even return to the top spot.

Therefore, it is inevitable that the chart data will be affected and diluted when a new single is released at this time.

"What was her team thinking? Oh well, it's none of my business anyway, let's listen to the song first."

Paying attention to the latest works of fellow artists is an essential lesson for every top-tier singer; they might just find inspiration and useful information in it.

Zhao Heng opened Penguin Music. As a VIP member (Purple Diamond, V12, Super VIP), he could directly enjoy the highest sound quality, equivalent to master tapes.

He searched and entered Xu Xiao's personal homepage, and sure enough, he found a new song called "Crazy for Love".

Click to play.

As soon as the intro started, Zhao Heng was stunned for a moment.

What style is this?

He subconsciously glanced at the song information again; the song title was "Crazy for Love," and the singer was Xu Xiao.

That's right, it's Xu Xiao's song.

But what's with this prelude?

This is completely different from Xu Xiao's usual style; it's like the sun has risen in the west.

"I haven't heard that Xu Xiao is considering a career change?"

Amidst the confusion, the song officially began.

"I came from spring, and you said we should part ways in autumn—"

"Depend on!"

Zhao Heng cursed under his breath.

As a singer, Zhao Heng's criteria for listening to music differ from those of music critics. Music critics analyze lyrics, composition, arrangement, harmony, and vocal style.

He considers the overall structure, but he mainly focuses on the singing style.

He could tell from just one line that Xu Xiao was actually holding back while singing.

You must not know this at all!

In the past, Xu Xiao was like a burning torch, fiery, exuberant, with layers of vocal transitions and full of passion. But now she is as gentle as a pool of spring water, quiet and composed.

If you didn't know beforehand that this was Xu Xiao's new song, who would recognize it?

Why is it always like this? You are so deeply hidden in my heart—

As the melody slowly progressed, Zhao Heng sat up straighter and straighter, then realized that this song maintained Yang Du's consistent standard, with a superior and catchy melody.

Although the arrangement may seem very rudimentary at first listen, the amazing thing is that this technique of leaving a lot of blank space makes "Crazy for Love" sound like a story being told in a gentle and detailed way, as if there really is someone singing and telling you their story.

"I want to ask you if you dare to love me the way you said you would—"

As the chorus progressed, the arrangement finally became a bit more generous, with the string section becoming relatively ornate. However, Xu Xiao's singing remained restrained, lacking angry vocals, vocal transitions, and that signature build-up and outburst.

"He's got something."

Zhao Heng was already used to Xu Xiao's previous style and singing, but now that "Crazy for Love" was out, it was surprisingly amazing.

Of course, it's not that the previous Xu Xiao was bad. It's like eating fruit in the summer. Watermelon is great, but if you eat it for ten days in a row, you'll get a little tired of it.

At this moment, a cucumber suddenly appears, and its refreshing taste is even more pleasant than usual.

Now, this song "Crazy for Love" is like a refreshing cucumber.

Five minutes later, the song ended.

"Xu Xiao is about to have another masterpiece." Zhao Heng thought to himself as he clicked the song on repeat.