Chapter 224 - 209: Good luck to a new generation of friends_1
Publicity needs to be prepared.
Music reviews require auditing.
As noon approaches, the new song chart for May takes shape.
King Fei predictably captures the championship throne.
As if by fate, Chen Zhiyu is slotted into second place.
The third and fourth places are both occupied by top-tier singers, but there is a notable gap from them to Chen Zhiyu in second place…
King Fei is in the first tier.
Chen Zhiyu is in the second tier.
The rest are in the third tier.
In other words, if not for the sudden rise of King Fei, Chen Zhiyu could have unquestionably taken first place.
Because he indeed defeated the other two top-tier singers on the chart. However…
The reason why Chen Zhiyu took second place is not the focus of the public’s attention; only those in the industry would care about such things.
The only thing the public knows is that Chen Zhiyu came in second again! As expected.
As soon as the rankings were released, the topic “Chen Zhiyu, the Perennial Runner-up” quickly rose on the Tribe’s trending list!
Its popularity was skyrocketing!
It broke into the top ten in the blink of an eye and continued to advance towards the top three!
Even those who were originally indifferent to this joke could not help but remain speechless this time…
“Second place again?”
“I remember Chen Zhiyu lost to Zhao Ying Ge before… then he lost to Sun Yaohuo… and then he lost to Xia Fan… So he technically came in second three consecutive times!”
“In simpler terms, he lost three times to Xian Yu. Each of those songs was written by Xian Yu.”
“An old saying goes that things shouldn’t happen thrice. There is indeed no problem, things didn’t happen thrice, but Chen Zhiyu didn’t lose to Xian Yu again… this time he lost to the King of Singing, Fei Yang…”
The funniest thing is, this time, Chen Zhiyu’s song was written by Xian Yu…” “What kind of luck is this? Too mystical!”
“I burst into laughter when I heard the news!”
“The Runner-up: If only getting first place in the season was as easy as getting first place in trending.”
“Wow, is the Runner-up really the first in trending?”
“Feel sorry for Chen Zhiyu, Chen Zhiyu, keep it up, protect the world’s best Runner-up!”
“Hangin there, Runner-up!”
Perhaps because Chen Zhiyu’s perennial runner-up status has deeply resonated with people, many netizens have directly nicknamed Chen Zhiyu “Runner-up Brother”.
The “Runner-up” in Perennial Runner-up.
As for trending, Chen Zhiyu did indeed reach number one. At this time, even the trending ranking for Fei Yang’s new song only made it to thirteenth.
Not to mention the people in Qin Province.
Even netizens from Qi Province couldn’t help but laugh when they learned about Chen Zhiyu’s record.
“Perennial Runner-up?”
“Has he been cursed?”
“No wonder everyone calls him Runner-up Brother.”
In the dark, there is a will for number two!”
“The song title ‘Change Myself is so fitting for the situation!”
Just like how a celebrity from a neighboring star can never make headlines, some news is just amusing in a mysteriously funny way.
Add to this some bloggers intentionally stirring the pot for traffic, it’s natural that many people are irresistibly attracted to this Perennial Runner-up joke.
The number of followers on Chen Zhiyu’s Tribe profile is swelling at an astonishing rate.
However…
Just as everyone was enjoying the joke, eminent music critic Zhang Qi suddenly published a music review:
[Did you truly understand Chen Zhiyu’s ‘Change Myself’?]
Who is Zhang Qi?
The vice-president of the Qin Continent Music Association!
A top music connoisseur in the Qin Continent music scene!
Without boasting of his high reputation, he is at least considered a recognized industry mogul!
His article naturally drew the attention of countless people as soon as it was published.
However, everyone was puzzled.
What did the title of this article mean?
Did I not understand the song “Change Myself”?
With this curiosity in mind, many people clicked into Zhang Qi’s music review.
“The Perennial Runner-up sings about his determination to change himself in his new song, yet he has once again taken second place. Chen Zhiyu has become a joke to everyone.
I’m not here to criticize anything.
As artists, we must be mentally prepared to entertain the public.
Whether in their private lives or their work, such incidents will inevitably result in the public making jokes and teasing.
But we must not let these jokes cause us to overlook the song itself. Is “Change Myself” truly just a singer’s monologue?
Or, as I asked in my title, do you truly believe that you understood the song “Change Myself”?
I believe that the vast majority of those who blindly follow the trend and make jokes have not fully understood, otherwise, they wouldn’t laugh so naturally.
So who is this ‘myself that needs to change?
Is it Chen Zhiyu, who joined Starlight, or the Perennial Runner-up who collaborated with Xian Yu?
It is, and it isn’t!
This ‘myself is all of us!
The meaning of the song is actually hidden in every line of the lyrics!
The so-called change in the world signifies the future that we/us are facing in the grand integration of Blue Star; The so-called change in oneself hopes that everyone will adapt to this new world and take charge; The so-called change in barrier is the songwriter’s strong criticism of the cultural walls that still exist in the yet-to-be-unified continents; The so-called change in small- mindedness signifies our inherent territorial mindset…
Xian Yu is truly talented!
Chen Zhiyu is full of love!
This song uses a casual singing style to inspire our actions and attitudes in the face of progress, yet its lyrics do not have the usual preachy tone of officialdom. Change Myself” highlights our existing uncertainties, and provides a clearer direction for everyone. Those who truly can change the world are you who can continuously change yourself!”
II II
Many were stunned after reading this lengthy review!
To the vast majority, “Change Myself” was seen as a very pleasant, yet ordinary pop song.
Who would have thought that behind its seemingly simple lyrics and melody, there would encompass such profound connotations!
The netizens were dumbfounded!
Following Zhang Qi, other music critics spoke out, their critiques almost identical to Zhang Qi’s:
“We can’t just look at the surface of the lyrics of this song; the underlying implications are profound!”
“Xian Yu’s ‘Change Myself’ uses the ‘self to reflect on the changes in an era!”
“Stop calling Chen Zhiyu the perpetual runner-up; he should not be second, his singing is a declaration of love for the world!”
“Is it too shallow to judge ‘Change Myself as a pop song?”
II II
Netizens are both blind and awake.
But no matter what kind of person they are, they can use their own thinking to consider the rationality of these music evaluations.
Many people, after reading the review, immediately replayed “Change Myself”.
Perhaps it was a psychological effect.
With the lyrics of “Change Myself” reflected beside it, they suddenly discovered, after listening to the song again, that what the music critics said was right!
These lyrics may appear simple at first glance, but they are indeed alluding to something, there’s a deeper level of interpretation!
“Oh my gosh!”
“I have learned a lot.”
“This song is awesome!”
“ZhangQi’s interpretation is almost divine!”
I admit that I didn’t understand this song for the first time. Thanks to the music critics’ reminder online, I have downloaded this song. The review made me like this song…”
“Xian Yu’s talents are fully exhibited in this song!”
“In the era of Qin-Qi merger, ‘Change Myself is the most on-point song. I was shallow before.”
I never thought this way before… Now following the thinking of the music critic, my goodness, this song is simply mind-blowing!”
Wow!
The netizens in Qin and Qi provinces were totally blown away by the implied meaning of this song!
At this point, the official promotion account of Zhong Continent, with the avatar of a “Blue Star”, forwarded this mind-boggling song “Change Myself”, and attached a quote and lyrics:
We change with the times, and the times also change because of us. Friends of the new generation, let’s work hard together!”