funbook-pk Chapter 58 is operational.
Chapter 58 is operational.
The Universal Music Awards, held annually in the suburbs of Paris, is both a competition and a musical extravaganza.
The competition features rock, indie, and hip-hop styles, as well as a romantic atmosphere.
The official UNESCO Music Committee is filled with prominent figures.
Every year, more than 60 countries and regions around the world participate, with each country and region sending 3-5 contestants, but only 1 person ultimately qualifies for the next round.
Furthermore, singers must perform representative original music and are prohibited from covering or adapting songs.
The judging panel includes current Grammy Chairman Oswell, European classical music hall-of-fame conductor Vance, world-class producer Ben, and legendary figures from the music scene around the world.
Each and every one of them is someone that even the so-called "former Grammy judge" Thomson cannot compare to.
This competition was broadcast live simultaneously in over 180 countries and regions worldwide, with major overseas platforms providing full coverage.
CCTV's variety channel broadcast the entire event live, just to record one of China's few experiences in participating in the competition.
Yes, even the station director didn't dare to imagine that Chen Fan would have any outstanding performance in such an international competition.
This is because Chinese singers have never reached the finals in the past 20 years, with their best result being only reaching the top 32.
Eastern singers' music only has melody, no soul; only technique, no originality.
This is almost a consensus among everyone in the Western music criticism circle.
They scrutinize us with prejudice, making the harsh conditions seem even more cruel.
Not to mention, given Chen Fan's age, even if the station director didn't say anything, he was probably thinking: "No matter how amazing or rich his talent is, can it be as rich as that of a 40 or 50-year-old artist? He's just showing his face!"
He even discussed with Professor Cheng and Professor Huang that if Chen Fan returned to China after being eliminated, they would officially announce him as a regular guest on "Master Class".
Such a show of support may have a negligible impact on public opinion, but it's better than nothing.
Old Master Cheng and Old Master Huang felt a pang of sorrow, but they were at their wits' end.
Who told them to be so incompetent...?
Time flew by, and three days before the competition, it was the day Chen Fan and his friends were preparing to depart for France.
Yun Duo, Huo Cheng, Du She, and Ji Bai also followed behind with huge dark circles under their eyes because they had to provide live accompaniment.
Lemon Live and Galaxy Media joined forces to broadcast the event, and Ge Mingyue, along with her professional live streaming team, simply chartered a plane to travel together.
While everyone was waiting at the airport for their musical instruments to be checked by security, Andy, whom they hadn't seen in a long time, rushed over.
"Hey Chen! I'm here! I finally made it!"
Andy stepped forward and gave Chen Fan a big hug, grinning from ear to ear: "Quick, quick! I have some documents in my bag, you guys need to take a look!"
It turns out that Andy, who was in the United States promoting his movie, heard that his friend was going to participate in the Universal Music Awards and began frantically collecting information.
In addition to the winners of previous years' championships, runners-up, and third-place winners and their music, the program also includes information on the changes in the judging panel each year and the preferences of each judge.
The document is extremely detailed, covering every aspect.
Holding the documents, Chen Fan was overwhelmed with emotions for the first time.
"The flight will take about ten hours, so if you have nothing to do, watch this to get a feel for these foreigners' tastes!"
It's strange that Andy, with his exotic looks, is trying to help them understand "foreigners' tastes"!
Chen Fan was speechless upon hearing this. He patted Andy's shoulder to indicate that he understood, "Don't be so nervous, they're still going to try and sabotage me! How could they eliminate me before they've ruined me?"
Upon hearing Chen Fan's words, Andy's expression indeed showed surprise: "You knew all that!"
Chen Fan hooked his arm around Andy's neck, pretending to be good buddies, and pulled him towards the window.
The rest of the group were completely absorbed in the sea of documents.
"You know all this and you still don't take it seriously!" Andy immediately became anxious as they moved away from the crowd.
Chen Fan was his first friend, the first friend who didn't fawn over him because of his father's status but genuinely valued him as a person.
Andy simply couldn't accept that such a good person had suffered such a devastating blow.
Chen Fan smiled reassuringly, "Don't panic. Uncle An and my agent, Mr. Ge, discussed this beforehand. They're planning to gang up on me, so why can't I play along?"
"Playing along?" Andy repeated in broken Chinese.
"Before they destroy me, let's give them a shock of Mandarin!" Chen Fan said firmly.
"I won't go into details with you. You can ask Uncle An when you get back."
"But thank you anyway, thank you for your hard work in collecting that information, it's very important!"
Chen Fan has a special ability: when others say the same things, they only sound like arrogant and delusional.
But hearing it from his mouth, Andy's anxious heart suddenly calmed down, and a relieved smile appeared on his face. "It's good that it worked!"
The plane took off on time, and Chen Fan and Yun Duo sat in the front row to study the preferences of each judge.
In world-class competitions, the number of judges may exceed the number of contestants.
"Brother Fan, the competition format is all set up," Huo Cheng said, opening a document. "It's divided into: preliminary rounds, semi-finals, and finals. There will be 20 judges, including 6 from major European and American record companies, 6 from international music media, and the remaining 8 are representatives from the music industry in various countries."
Chen Fan nodded.
"The judging criteria are divided into three categories: singing skills (40%), original arrangement (30%), and stage performance (30%)."
Live broadcast, no audio editing, no re-recording.
Hearing this, Yun Duo couldn't help but frown: "Live broadcast? Does that mean even the slightest mistake will be magnified infinitely?"
"Yes, so rather than saying they chose to do a live stream for 'fairness,' it's more accurate to say they did it to create buzz."
Ji Bai adjusted his glasses and continued, "Moreover, in reality, some members of the judging panel can influence the scores of other judges."
Chen Fan grasped the key point: "Is someone there?"
Ji Bai didn't name names, but simply said, "Look at this, the scoring pattern."
Huo Cheng then added, "So, Brother Fan, you'd better think carefully about how to deal with these foreigners!"
"Right, right, right!" Dushe looked up from the sea of sheet music. "Brother Fan, let me tell you! These foreigners are so cunning! All these award-winning songs are rock! They just picked songs according to their preferences!"
All eyes turned to Chen Fan. Ge Mingyue, sitting in the back, saw this and a hint of worry appeared in her eyes.
He's definitely too young and has too much temper.
"Everyone has preferences, that's not my problem. What I'm afraid of is that they have no preferences!"
Chen Fan made a pointed remark.
The group looked at each other, somewhat confused.
Chen Fan laughed and said, "Stop thinking about it. Keep organizing the documents. I'm going to make full use of these things."
"Oh, right, remember to compile a ranking of how much people like the songs."
The group continued working while groaning, but Ge Mingyue noticed something in Chen Fan's actions, and her eyes darkened.
Chen Fan played the erhu as if he were unaware.
This time, he will be playing a duet with Yun Duo on the erhu.
Because his erhu skills were activated, he mastered the piece with almost no effort, but this made things difficult for Yun Duo.
She's a complete novice. Compared to ordinary people, she's alright, but when she goes up against someone like Chen Fan, who has a natural talent for skill, it's a nightmare!
He's still practicing this nightmare now!!!
God! How can you be so unfair!