SWDnovel Chapter 101 More Money Required
Chapter 101 More Money Required
"Oh, really? Congratulations!" Lu Ran heard Liu Siqi's words and remembered what Shen Yuege had told him on the phone.
"Is 'The Voice of China' the new show on Hunan TV?" Lu Ran asked knowingly.
"Yes." Liu Siqi nodded, leaning against the mixing console, her long hair falling over her shoulders. "The production team of this show is quite professional, and the judging panel is strong. The production team contacted me a few days ago, and I think it's a good opportunity."
After saying that, she added, "I heard that the contestants invited to this show are all very senior singers. I never thought I would be invited."
"You're a superstar now, what else could you not have thought of? It's a bit like Versailles," Lu Ran replied.
Although Lu Ran didn't know about the show before, nor did he know the specific lineup of contestants and guests, based on his understanding, Liu Siqi was now considered a superstar, so it shouldn't be unbelievable that she was invited.
"You don't understand. This show is different from previous music variety shows," Liu Siqi patiently explained. "Most of the contestants this time are established singers."
"The only two people with relatively shallow information are Shen Yuege and me."
"We two probably only qualified to be invited because of the success of our last album."
"Then you'll be awesome!" Lu Ran chuckled. "Good luck to you two!"
Liu Siqi looked at Lu Ran suspiciously: "Wait...why is it just the two of us? You know Shen Yuege too?"
"Um...idol...yes, an idol." Lu Ran could only come up with this reason when Liu Siqi suddenly asked him this question.
Fortunately, Shen Yuege is now a well-known and high-quality idol, so Liu Siqi did not suspect anything else and just looked down at herself.
I don't think I'm that much worse than Shen Yuege, except maybe a little less famous, a little less curvy, a little less leggy, and a little less face.
That's it.
"By the way, what's the format of your show?" Lu Ran thought that since he was going to write songs for both of them at the same time, he should ask first.
Although he has the entire Chinese music library in his mind, coupled with his top-notch production skills, there is absolutely no problem with his output. However, if he could know the specific requirements in advance, he would be even more at ease.
Lu Ran still remembered Shen Yuege asking him to write a new song and be her guest singer, so it seemed the competition format wouldn't be too simple.
"The specific competition rules haven't been released yet, but it's basically an elimination system," Liu Siqi replied. "It seems that each episode will eliminate the lowest-ranked contestant, and then add a new challenger for the next episode."
"And each episode has a different theme. You can sing your own songs, cover other singers' songs, or sing original songs. Original songs will get you a lot of extra points."
Lu Ran nodded, indicating that he understood.
The competition format is quite brutal, with an elimination system for the bottom teams.
As a seasoned veteran of the past, I absolutely loathe this competition format.
This is also why I was curled up in my previous life.
"So, if needed, can I ask you to sing with me in advance?" Liu Siqi asked with a smile, but her eyes were full of anticipation.
In the past few days, Liu Siqi has not contacted Lu Ran, but for some reason, Lu Ran's image keeps appearing in her mind.
But Liu Siqi always felt that Lu Ran sometimes seemed to be avoiding her.
So as soon as she said those words, Liu Siqi became a little nervous, afraid that Lu Ran would reject her.
"Sure." He readily agreed, his tone as relaxed as if he were agreeing to have dinner together tomorrow. "What style do you want? Let me know in advance, I can't write anything too outrageous."
Liu Siqi's eyes lit up, clearly not expecting Lu Ran to agree so readily: "You're willing to write it?"
"Why wouldn't you want to?" Lu Ran raised an eyebrow. "The diva asked me to sing a song; there seems to be no reason to refuse!"
"but..."
"But what?" Liu Siqi's heart tightened.
"You need to pay more!"
Lu Ran looked like a money-grubber, "I need to raise your price, otherwise I won't have money to get married."
Liu Siqi was amused by Lu Ran's greedy attitude: "Don't worry, I'll definitely pay the highest market price. I won't treat you unfairly."
"That's good." Lu Ran nodded in satisfaction, then suddenly remembered something and added, "By the way, since we're going to write them, I'll write two songs for you each time to keep on hand. The recording cycle for the show is long, and what if you need to change the songs at the last minute? You can choose which ones to use then."
Hearing Lu Ran's words, Liu Siqi was both surprised and speechless.
Two songs at once? And you're even picking and choosing which ones to use?
Do you think songs are as common as cabbages?
Is it usually this fast?
She thought of the producers in the industry who toil for months to produce a good song, and then looked at Lu Ran, who had a calm expression on his face, and suddenly felt that this world was a bit magical.
"Lu Ran," she couldn't help but ask, "do you have a music library in your head? The kind you can pull out anytime you want!"
Lu Ran chuckled and pointed to his head: "Well, Doraemon lives here."
What is Doraemon?
...
Just as the two were about to continue talking, Xu Manxue, who was already in the recording studio, made a gesture towards them through the glass.
Lu Ran's joking expression faded, and he pressed the call button: "Manxue, are you ready? Let's start the second take. Remember what I said earlier, make the breath a little deeper in the chorus, but don't force it; what we need is a lingering, powerful feeling."
The prelude to the music began again.
This time, Xu Manxue's performance showed improvement over her previous one.
Her warm voice perfectly conveyed the healing feeling in "Another Me in the World".
Liu Siqi listened quietly, her eyes gradually revealing appreciation.
Liu Siqi had to admit that if Xu Manxue's voice hadn't been affected, her skills would definitely be no less than her own.
"She sang really well." After the song ended, Liu Siqi said sincerely, "Although her voice isn't top-notch, her emotions were so full. The song was also a good choice; it suited her perfectly."
Lu Ran nodded and pressed the save button: "Let's do one more test, then we'll hear which version is the best."
The third recording went much more smoothly.
Xu Manxue was completely in the zone, and even added some impromptu changes to the details, making the whole song sound more lively.
After recording, the three gathered in front of the mixing console and compared the three versions repeatedly.
"The first version was the most sincere in its emotion, but the breath control was a bit unstable in some parts," Liu Siqi said, pointing to the waveform. "The second version was the most technically mature, but it lacked the rawness of the first version. I think the third version is the best overall, as it has both emotion and skill."
Lu Ran stroked his chin, his gaze sweeping back and forth between the three audio tracks: "I agree. The impromptu vocal transition in the chorus of the third version was just right, adding a touch of surprise to the whole song."
He turned to look at Xu Manxue: "What do you think?"
Xu Manxue nervously clutched the hem of her clothes: "I...I also think the third version is better. It felt especially smooth when I sang it, as if the song just flowed out on its own without me having to think about it."
"That's it." Lu Ran made the decision. "The singer's own feeling is very important. Many times, the most natural state is the best state."
He skillfully made final adjustments to the third version of the audio track, including noise reduction, equalization, and reverb.
The series of operations were performed smoothly and efficiently.
Liu Siqi, watching from the side, suddenly asked in a low voice, "Lu Ran, where did you learn all these skills? Arranging, mixing, songwriting, scriptwriting, directing. How can one person be good at so many things? Did you start learning them from the womb?"
Lu Ran continued working with his hands, only casually replying, "It's an extraordinary talent, there's nothing I can do about it."
...