A band, or a battleground?

Then she sat on the bench in the tea room and waited.

Waiting was too boring, so she took out her phone and dealt with some work messages—although she was becoming increasingly humble in front of Chunri Ying, she was still a mid-level manager with real power at Jufeng Music.

After processing work information for a while, Sun Man suddenly heard a noise.

The tea room window wasn't closed properly. A faint sound came through the crack in the window, like people talking and laughing...

Sun Man walked to the window, opened it, and could hear it even more clearly.

The sound was coming from next door.

She peeked out and saw that the window of the next room was closed. Through the window, she couldn't hear what was being said. Even with careful listening, she could only make out the sounds of people talking, and it seemed to be mainly female voices.

By the way, since only Shen Yihan is in the living room downstairs, it makes sense that the three girls from the Spring Shadow Band are in the next room.

Sun Man restored the window to its original state and sat back down on the stool.

"Is this really reasonable?" she couldn't help but mutter to herself.

There's no need for the band members to go to the next room to chat. Why can't they talk about it in the living room? Or are there other guests next door besides the Kasuga Kage Band?

Sun Man felt her mind was a jumbled mess, and she couldn't sit still. So she couldn't help but stand up, lean against the wall, and press her ear against it, trying to hear something.

However, she listened intently for a long time, but it was all in vain.

Until the door to the tea room suddenly opened.

Sun Man quickly straightened up.

Qi Yuan looked at her and asked with a smile, "Isn't it uncomfortable sitting here? Do you want to get up and move around a bit?"

Sun Man forced a smile and replied, "Yes, I got a little stiff after sitting for so long, so..."

"Please sit down. We have some free time now, so we can talk about the contract."

Upon hearing Qi Yuan's words, Sun Man immediately perked up.

Then the three girls from Chunriying, along with Teacher Su, also entered the tea room. Fortunately, the benches here were long and narrow, and several people could sit on one bench.

Sun Man began explaining the contract to them. But as she spoke, she couldn't help but wonder—what exactly had happened in the next room?

Suddenly, a question from Qi Yuan forced her to concentrate on dealing with it.

"This contract does offer a lot more flexibility, and the three-year term is good. But I'm a bit curious about the song copyright; what exactly does this 'operation right' mean?"

Sun Man explained, "The copyright is still yours, of course, and the operating rights here are only for three years. The main thing is that, as artists of our company, it's our company's obligation to help you build your fame. The company is also trying to increase the popularity of your songs and your overall profile..."

Qi Yuan asked bluntly, "Then does the company have the right to give our songs to other artists under its management to sing?"

Sun Man was momentarily speechless.

Ning Qianyu, standing nearby, remarked leisurely, "It seems they can give our songs to others to sing without our permission."

Sun Man quickly waved her hands: "No, no, no, if the company wants to let others sing your songs, it will definitely discuss it with you first. And even if others sing your songs, they will still have to pay copyright fees, and the company will definitely share those fees with you."

Qi Yuan asked with a smile, "Do we need to get your consent?"

Sun Man gritted her teeth and replied, "Yes, we must get your consent!"

Qi Yuan: "That's good, but we'd like to ask about the revenue sharing from the performance..."

The next half hour was quite difficult for Sun Man. Fortunately, the four young people and Teacher Su were relatively friendly and spoke politely, which was better than being scolded by President Lin in her own company.

However, after the conversation ended, Chunri Ying still did not agree to sign the contract, only saying that she needed to "think about it" more, which made Sun Man even more uneasy.

She walked out of the villa, out of the villa complex, and got into a mid-to-high-end sedan parked by the roadside.

The subordinate in the driver's seat suddenly said, "Sister Sun, I just saw people from Tianhua."

Sun Man, who was looking down at the time, immediately looked up at him upon hearing this and asked, "Who from Tianhua?"

"It seems to be the person in charge of the Star Element band."

"Liu Weiting?" Sun Man quickly asked, "When did you see her?"

About half an hour ago.

"Half an hour..."

Sun Man recalled that it was when Qi Yuan and the others walked into the tea room and started talking to her.

Before discussing the contract with himself, in the villa dormitory of Haruhi Kage, in the next room, there was indeed a colleague!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Liu Weiting knocked on the door, and after receiving the instruction to "come in," she pushed the door open and walked into the big boss's office.

Shen Xingyun, the big boss of Tianhua Entertainment, is a fifty-year-old middle-aged man. His temples are slightly gray, but his figure hasn't changed much, and he doesn't have many wrinkles on his face. Among a group of portly capitalist colleagues, Boss Shen can be described as a crane standing among chickens.

Liu Weiting solemnly reported, "Reporting to President Shen, I discussed the contract with the Spring Shadow Band today, but the situation is a bit complicated."

Shen Xingyun raised an eyebrow: "How is it complicated?"

Liu Weiting said, "When I was talking to them, I discovered that they were colleagues from Jufeng Music. Chunriying arranged for us to be in different rooms, but I knew that Manager Sun from Jufeng, and I spotted her by chance. Then today when we were discussing the contract, Chunriying neither agreed nor refused."

Shen Xingyun said in a low voice, "Waiting for a higher price is a very normal strategy."

Liu Weiting asked, "The contracts they received were already very favorable, but I'm worried..."

Shen Xingyun pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "In this program, Chunriying is indeed too outstanding. Even if we wanted to suppress them now, the audience wouldn't agree. Since that's the case, we can make a slight concession. But don't seem too eager; just pretend you don't know about what they're talking about with Jufeng."

Liu Weiting: "Okay, Mr. Shen, I understand what to do. However, what about Ms. Shen..."

Shen Xingyun said with a wry smile, "Don't even think about having that girl act as your advocate. She can only act in idol dramas. If you ask her to act in workplace dramas or political intrigue dramas, she'll be completely clueless."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

082, practice more.

Zhou Taishan never imagined that the feedback Qi Yuan would give after all his hard work for most of the day would be...

Fourteen suggestions for revision? Are you kidding me?!

Standing before him, Qi Yuan looked helpless: "So I think it's better to tell you in person. Of course, the version you just sent me isn't unusable on stage, but..."

This is Zhou Taishan's home, just an ordinary residence in an ordinary neighborhood in the capital, barely considered mid-range.

It's hard for most people to believe that a godfather-level figure like Zhou Taishan lives in such an ordinary place. But once Qi Yuan went inside, he found that it was actually quite suitable for Zhou Taishan.

At least the messy state of the house inside had a rock and roll vibe. And the surrounding streets and alleys were full of lively atmosphere, with no shortage of small restaurants and barbecue shops, perfect for him to enjoy good food and drinks.

Zhou Taishan rubbed his forehead and said, "But it's still not quite what you expected, right? Alright, alright, let me take a closer look at how you want to change it."

Then, following these instructions, he rewrote the score while humming the melody and imagining the effect of the performance...

Finally, after all the revisions were completed, Zhou Taishan breathed a sigh of relief: "You're right, it should be revised like this. This will make it more effective, and it will actually make the performance a little easier."

Qi Yuan smiled and said, "I knew it."

Zhou Taishan: "But you guys are still pretty pressed for time. You have less than a week left. You need to practice this song until you're proficient, and you also need to teach Shen Yihan how to rap..."

Qi Yuan spread his hands: "So I don't have time to drink with you today, goodbye."

Zhou Taishan waved his hand, watching Qi Yuan leave with a helpless expression. However, after the young man disappeared from sight, the helplessness on his old face gradually turned into relief.

"Popular music is one thing, but they've even gotten into rap... No way, he has to write rock music for the semi-finals! What kind of crap are those kids making these days?"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The four girls were practicing singing in the living room, finally waiting for Qi Yuan's return.

As soon as he stepped out of the entryway and into the living room, he said, "The sheet music has already been sent to you online. You can start practicing now."

Ning Qianyu waved the drumsticks in her hand: "We all saw it, they're practicing."

Qiu Mengxue deliberately sighed: "Aren't you afraid of exhausting me? So many sound effects, all of them have to be implemented using my keyboard..."

Although she was sighing, the girl had a smile on her face.

After all, who would complain about having too much screen time?

Qi Yuan smiled and said, "It's not just the keyboard. See the soprano aria marked on the sheet music? You'll be doing that too."

At this, Qiu Mengxue's smile froze.

Jiang Yi whispered, "Is she really able to manage?"

Qi Yuan: "There's nothing we can do. Among us, she's the only one who can hit those high notes."

Qiu Mengxue said blankly, "The high notes I can sing are limited to ordinary high notes. What you labeled is... coloratura, E6? Why don't you let me sing the dolphin voice?"

For a moment, the atmosphere became somewhat awkward and silent.

Jiang Yi asked cautiously, "Is this really necessary? Can we cancel it, or lower the pitch?"

Qi Yuan suddenly smiled: "It's okay, I knew she couldn't sing."

Qiu Mengxue: "Then you..."

Qi Yuan: "I was just joking with you. Let's just sample Italian opera and put the coloratura soprano sound source on your keyboard. Then, just like the sound of bells or gunshots, you can just press a key on the keyboard."

Qiu Mengxue breathed a sigh of relief: "What kind of joke is this at a time like this? You scared me to death."

After arranging the musical instruments, Qi Yuan walked up to Shen Yihan.

Despite having seen many grand occasions, Shen Yihan still couldn't help but feel a little nervous at this moment.

Qi Yuan asked, "How's your rap practice going?"

“I’ve been practicing all day yesterday and today…” Shen Yihan hesitated for a moment, “I think I can say it fluently now.”

Qi Yuan nodded: "Okay, sing it for me."

Shen Yihan shrank her neck: "Is there no accompaniment?"

Qi Yuan snapped his fingers toward the drum set: "Give me a beat."

Ning Qianyu immediately started playing the drums.

Shen Yihan opened her mouth, but found that she couldn't get into the rhythm, so she could only say helplessly, "Let's not have the accompaniment for now, I'll try singing a cappella."

Ning Qianyu put down her drumsticks and watched the show. It was a pity she didn't have any melon seeds nearby, otherwise she would have been snacking on them.

Shen Yihan adjusted her breathing and began to recite:

"The cool morning dew dampened the black tuxedo."

"The stone path is shrouded in mist, and the father is softly murmuring—"

Suddenly, Qi Yuan's shout of "Stop!" made Shen Yihan shut up in confusion.

Then Qi Yuan stared at her and said, "This won't do. Rap ​​is different from speaking, and it's different from reciting lines on set."

Shen Yihan asked, "Why is it different?"

Qiu Mengxue interjected, "Rap, rap, in the end, it still comes down to singing."

Qi Yuan: "First of all, rap must have more definition. When we speak normally, it's generally quite smooth and continuous, even when acting. But when rapping, there must be a clear interval between each word. The interval is short, but it must be very obvious, like this..."

Then, he recited the line "The cool morning dew wets the black tuxedo" in the same way as the original song.

Shen Yihan listened thoughtfully.

Qi Yuan continued to explain: "The second point is what Meng Xue said, which is that in the final analysis, it still comes down to singing. The essence of music, if we don't consider timbre and harmony, is rhythm plus melody. Graininess is rhythm, and melody is about singing at the right pitch when you're rapping."

Shen Yihan twitched the corner of her mouth: "Won't you still sing off-key?"

"Yes, you were actually off-key just now. But the melody needed for rap is very simple. With a few more practice sessions, even you can find the right pitch. And I'll help you find the right pitch so you can remember that feeling."

When Qi Yuan said this, Qiu Mengxue and Jiang Yi were a little worried. After all, he was a big star, a top celebrity. Wouldn't it make her unhappy to be told to her face that "even you could find the tune"?

But Shen Yihan wasn't displeased. Although she frowned, she was still thinking seriously and nodded in response, "I understand, then I'll try again. If I try it wrong, just let me know. I'm sorry, I'm really bad at music, I've caused you trouble."

Qi Yuan: "It's okay, we can practice cooking more, we have time."

In the following time, Qi Yuan led Shen Yihan in practicing rap, Jiang Yi and Ning Qianyu practiced their respective instruments, and Qiu Mengxue used her phone to search for audio samples online.

Suddenly, Shen Yihan looked at Jiang Yi and Ning Qianyu, her eyes filled with some conflict.

Seeing this, Qi Yuan asked, "Is it because their practice is disturbing you?"

Shen Yihan: "Uh, yes..."

Qi Yuan: "Then let's go upstairs. The soundproofing here is pretty good; we won't be able to hear anything once we're upstairs and the door is closed."

Shen Yihan had just nodded when she saw Qi Yuan stand up and head towards the stairs. So she quickly followed.