195: He needs to adjust his image!
On the other end of the phone, Chen Fang was leisurely lying on the sofa in a 'Ge You slouch', "I'm really fine, I generally know the situation with the Spring Festival Gala. But, I'm a bit curious, what are the requirements for a solo performance? Or rather, how can I increase my own advantages to get a better spot in a chorus?"
Tang Chen paused for a moment, organizing his thoughts, "There are mainly three aspects, but having only one isn't enough; the more, the better."
"Mm, I'll make a note."
Tang Chen said:
"The first aspect is capital intervention or endorsement from industry authorities."
"The second aspect is irreplaceability, such as national-level singers, top-tier superstars. Or having a special identity, like an Olympic champion."
"The third aspect, and the most important, is to align with a positive energy theme or political correctness. First, the music must fit the theme, and second, the personal image must fit the theme."
"I don't need to tell you about the music fitting the theme, right? Something like 'cant learn' wouldn't work; it's not suitable for the New Year."
"I'll focus on the image, which is what we need to prioritize next."
Chen Fang hummed in acknowledgment, "Tang Ge, please continue."
"Personal image mainly involves three aspects: first, no negative public opinion; second, active participation in public welfare activities; and third, titles and affiliations."
"You meet the first two. Let me talk about the third point, titles and affiliations."
"These refer to officially recognized titles or identities, as well as cooperative identities with institutions within the system, or regular guest appearances on mainstream media or government projects."
"For example, being recognized as an intangible cultural heritage promotion ambassador by a provincial cultural and tourism department, or an officially certified positive energy artist of the year. A slightly lower level would be activities frequently reposted by official media. Also, participating in CCTV performances for many consecutive years, or appearing in tribute dramas."
On the other end of the phone, Chen Fang frowned, listening to Tang Chen's words, his mind rapidly analyzing.
These are not only conditions for a solo performance but also for securing better opportunities in a chorus.
Of the three points—capital, special identity, and aligning with the theme—the direction he could personally strive for the most in the short term was the third point: aligning with the theme.
As for the music fitting the theme, "serving the country with utmost loyalty" certainly fits.
However, his own image had a significant problem.
If he were to release "serving the country with utmost loyalty" now, it would definitely still be arranged as a chorus, perhaps even with more than two people, because his image in the public eye couldn't support the song.
In the public eye, he was just a talented musician; although his music quality was good, the quantity was too small, so it could only be said that his future was promising. And he also had a few labels: author, occasionally mischievous, handsome, and he once used a loyal dog persona.
Chen Fang couldn't help but rub his forehead.
This is truly dreadful.
So the urgent task was to adjust his image.
Tang Chen was right, he had no negative public opinion and was enthusiastic about public welfare; what he lacked were titles like "xx Ambassador" and official recognition.
For him, the simplest path would be martial arts, right?
Oh, right! "the adventures" isn't that about traditional cultural performances? And it requires finding professionals to learn from or collaborate with.
The Spring Festival Gala will select singers next month, so he must seize this opportunity.
Let's organize my thoughts; there are two key points now.
One is to make good use of the song "serving the country with utmost loyalty," and the other is to use the exposure opportunity from "the adventures" to label himself as a "martial arts promoter" or similar.
Chen Fang pondered for a moment, and after Tang Chen finished speaking, he asked, "Tang Ge, if I want to submit music, when is the deadline?"
"If your song is extremely, extremely amazing, so awesome it's explosive... Let me check the calendar." Tang Chen had already given up on estimating this guy's upper limit; if Chen Fang told him now that he could write a divine melody, Tang Chen wouldn't even doubt it much.
He picked up the calendar and looked at it. The New Year is in mid-February next year. "If you can come up with a song that shakes heaven and earth, then late October is still enough time."
Chen Fang's slightly indifferent voice came from the phone, "Tang Ge, did you eat mushrooms? What on earth is 'shakes heaven and earth'?"
Tang Chen sat down in his chair, "I'm giving an extreme example, but dragging it out until then would make it very difficult. September, however, is basically fine."
Tang Chen glanced at the calendar. There were only 14 days left in September, so the creative difficulty was a bit high. Never mind, Chen Fang was a freak anyway, so he'd just assume he could do it. And maybe that rascal wrote a few songs himself during the two-month summer break.
Tang Chen continued, "If you write a song, it's best to submit it this month. Write something festive, like about confessions or weddings, don't do those gloomy songs about breakups or missing exes."
"I understand. Then I'll try to get it to you before the 25th, is that enough time?"
"OK, even if it's late, we can smooth things over. After all, it's just submitting a song, not getting the show selected."
"Mm, thank you, Tang Ge. There's one more thing regarding personal image. 'the adventures' wants us to perform traditional cultural programs." Chen Fang explained the task of preparing for Saturday's performance. "I think this is a good opportunity to enhance my image, and I'll need the team's cooperation."
Tang Chen nodded, "Don't worry about the publicity. And should I help you find a martial arts master?"
"I have someone in mind. I'll try to contact him first, and if it works out, I'll let you know."
"Good." Tang Chen chatted with Chen Fang for a few more moments before hanging up the phone.
Tang Chen sat in his office, looking at the call log on his phone, and sighed with relief.
It had been a long time since he had such a serious conversation with Chen Fang.
It felt really good when the brat was serious.
It seemed he truly wanted this opportunity. Then he would also devote more energy to cooperating with and assisting him.
Tang Chen rubbed his temples.
Were there any martial arts variety shows on CCTV recently...?
On the other side.
After Chen Fang hung up the phone, he found Director Liu Yang and first inquired about the cost of inviting external help.
Director Liu Yang said while organizing materials, "You can invite people from outside; the rules don't restrict you to only finding masters from within the scenic area. Money isn't an issue either."
The budget for the second episode was quite ample, and Chen Fang had contributed greatly to the viewership data, so spending a bit of money was not a problem.
Director Liu Yang paused, looked at Chen Fang, and said with a slightly troubled tone:
"However, I can't help you find very famous celebrities to perform with you on stage. If we do that, public opinion could become an issue. Other fans would accuse us of unfairness. But you can invite friends, like Du Yunxiang. In short, the production team cannot show favoritism towards you by finding celebrities to assist you."
Chen Fang nodded, "Can I invite a martial arts master? Someone famous in the martial arts world, but generally unknown to netizens?"
"No problem. Just now, Xiaobai also came over and said he wants to invite the teacher who taught them Sichuan Opera Face Changing in the first episode. The appearance fee for such a master wouldn't be higher than our guest stars, so it's acceptable. If you can arrange it, I'll have someone go and negotiate the terms with them."
"Okay, thank you, Director Liu."