Why bother writing songs? Fast forward to the "Don't Laugh Challenge"

Chapter 54 The Going Global Plan: Stepping onto the International Stage!
After clicking on "Wealth from All Directions" and "Cause and Effect," he selected the third song.

That is, "Great Ambitions".

With the previous two songs as a foundation, Xiao Zhongge was ready, knowing that Xia Shen's album was a Memphis rap album.

So when the sound of an old, war-damaged record started playing, he wasn't surprised.

However, what surprised him was that the melody that played this time was different.

If the first two songs were at least modern music—one a mix of western folk and indie folk—the other was electronic music, specifically a blend of Chinese and electronic music.

But that's still electronic music, and electronic music is modern music.

But when the third song started playing, it carried a historical flavor. It wasn't old-fashioned, but rather a flavor that was even earlier than old-fashioned. It featured a traditional Chinese opera aria and the rhythms of traditional Chinese musical instruments such as the erhu, gaohu, yangqin, yehu, houguan, and dongxiao.

Combined with the lyrics.

"A veil of smoke obscures the heavens beyond this world."

"A fairy mountain has been transformed into a moon-viewing palace."

"The Flower-Scattering Maiden leads the immortals~"

"The golden boy attends the emperor before the flowers."

Xiao Zhongge: "?"

While it's true that Memphis rap samples are mostly from old records, this is way too old!
However, to be honest, this piece of opera is really quite charming. Although as a northerner, he couldn't understand what it meant, he had to admit that its quality was undeniable.

Music is universal; whether a song is good or bad can actually be discerned with just one listen.

I have to say, Xia Shen really has some ideas; he actually used this kind of sampling technique.

As for the fact that he hadn't heard of this opera, that's perfectly normal; there are still few people who understand this kind of thing in this day and age.

Until the very moment the drum enters the chamber.

"A veil of smoke obscures the heavens beyond this world."

Producer's watermark: "yeah~ SKYINDEEP!"

thump—

"Oh ho ho!" This made Xiao Zhongge shout out in pleasure again.

The heavy, powerful bass drum, combined with the hi-hat sound of a gas stove that won't light, was followed closely by Xia Shen's voice.

"Singing karaoke in the villa!"

"There are silver arowanas in the pond!"

"I gave my uncle a tea set, and he ground the ink, picked up the brush, and gave me four words: 'Great ambitions await!'"

"The master himself wrote the words."

"Say, 'Great ambitions await!' and move it to the office!"

"A grand plan is about to unfold; even Guan Yu would nod in approval. Truly impressive!"

"Good fortune can't always be on your side, because Xia Shen said if you're going to play, you have to play big."

"Damn!" Xiao Zhongge nodded and shook his head violently: "M3!"

After listening to the whole song, I was actually rocking along; it was really moving.

But Xiao Zhongge also frowned.

Because this song, well, it's different from "Wealth from All Directions" and "Cause and Effect," he couldn't understand the lyrics.

At least for him, a native of Beijing, he couldn't understand what it meant. It just didn't feel right. He felt the lyrics were disjointed and a bit forced.

What does it mean to sing karaoke in a villa? Or to have silver arowana in a pond?

A villa is a villa, right? Aren't these things for rich people? They're usually synonymous with luxury.

Singing karaoke, doesn't that mean going to a karaoke bar?

And what's with the silver arowana in this pool? Why is the range so wide?
There was also calligraphy, and even Guan Yu nodded in approval and came.

Guan Yu, of course, knew that as one of the most authoritative generals in ancient China, this fierce man held great weight in the hearts of the Chinese people.

Why would a historical figure, someone who has been buried in the dust of time, still nod to you?
Why are you nodding? Why are you nodding?

He couldn't understand.

He seemed completely lost and couldn't understand the lyrics of this song.

but!

Even so, it still couldn't stop him from really enjoying the song.

Because, as I said before, the beat Xia Shen put together this time was absolutely amazing, it was simply divine.

Although in his personal opinion, the lyrics are slightly flawed, perhaps illogical, and seem to have forced rhymes and random rhymes.

However, it must be said that although the lyrics are somewhat disjointed, they are combined with Xia Shen's lazy and half-dead singing style, giving the feeling of telling a story in a slow and unhurried manner.

That's really damn brainwashing!

In particular, doesn't it create a vivid image?

Although the overall visual flow gave him the feeling that it was an AI video, with everything being crammed in.

This is my third impression after listening to "Great Ambitions".

He then continued listening to the songs one by one.

As for the following songs, they were basically all Memphis rap, so they didn't leave him feeling confused.

Some of the lyrics even have a somewhat sharp edge, such as "The Godfather, the Leader," and the didactic tone of "Celestial Grain," which is accompanied by a nursery rhyme melody. This is further exemplified by "Six Lines," which analyzes certain issues from the perspective of I Ching metaphysics.

I must say, that's a very clever idea.

only

That is, just when he thought the whole album would be Memphis rap, he continued listening to the last four songs.

It gave him a jolt.

He heard something completely different.

The three Chinese-style rap songs exude a unique,江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry) vibe, with "Compendium of Materia Medica" also incorporating electronic music elements.

These songs are different from the gangster vibe of American songs; instead, they exude a sense of grandeur and lack the childishness of petty squabbles.

Most importantly, the last song is a gothic rap that is extremely rare worldwide!

"A swarm of bloodthirsty ants, drawn by carrion, I stand expressionless, gazing at the solitary landscape."

It tastes completely different again.

It has a completely new feel, blending classical music with modern rap music and incorporating gothic elements.

He was shocked by what he heard.

And it has a high proportion of melody.

This song will be his favorite track on the entire album!
"Awesome!" Xiao Zhongge immediately commented.

He bets this album will shake up the rap scene!
In fact, this is indeed the case.

For a period of time afterward, the name most frequently mentioned in the Chinese rap scene was not Wolf Naxi, but Xia Shen.

This name, which suddenly appeared out of nowhere in the rap scene, quickly dominated the top of various charts with just one album. On the rap category charts, a quick glance reveals that Xia Shen's name is almost always next to the top.

As for Wolf Naxi? He's already been pushed to the very bottom.

Not only did his fans incur public wrath and be attacked by the masses, but he himself was also ridiculed by the crowd because his arrogant words before the release did not match his current achievements, and because of a song title and a sentence.

Some people have even said they're going to take real action and pursue legal action against Wolf Naxi for inciting and supporting online violence by his fans, which has negatively impacted them.

This incident has caused quite a stir.

The backlash was about to hit them.

Then he appeared and started to express his opinions.

"Given the inappropriate behavior and remarks made by fans during this period."

However, to the disappointment of his fans, he did not come out to defend them, but rather to distance himself from them.

This was unacceptable to some of Wolf Naxi's fans, and because of his 'double standards,' he once again became the target of criticism from the entire rap community.

At the height of his popularity, when he needed fans and was afraid of losing them, his fans were cyberbullying others, and he didn't speak out.

Now that the fans have caused trouble and are getting themselves into trouble, they've chosen to distance themselves from the fans in order to protect themselves.

This caused Wolf Nash's reputation to plummet.

However, there is one consolation.
Inside the Wolf Naxi Studio, Wolf Naxi himself was looking at the online public opinion with a gloomy expression.

But after thinking about it, his expression softened a bit.

Fortunately, it's not a big problem. Losing a lot of followers and some reputation in the domestic market is actually not a big deal.

He just needs to distance himself from his fans, implying that those previous actions were the fans' personal behavior and had nothing to do with him.

At least for now, although his new album isn't doing very well in China, he's actually targeting the overseas market, and his work is generating some buzz abroad.

Then the Golden Melody Awards will still be his; he can't escape them.

As for the online controversy, we can ignore it. Netizens have good memories, and time will heal all wounds. Once he wins the award, everything will be fine, and he will be able to make a comeback quickly.

But that Xia Shen.
He gritted his teeth whenever that name was mentioned.

All sorts of fake products are trying to get involved in the rap scene, causing him so much trouble.

Unfortunately, there's really nothing he can do right now.

Just as he was thinking of dissing Xia Shen, he searched online and found that, damn it, he searched the entire internet but couldn't find a single piece of dirt on her!
Damn! Cannot be selected!

Let's lie low for now.

Meanwhile, at the Visual Effects Culture Center, a meeting is currently being held to discuss Xia Shen.

Xia Shen himself was also present at the meeting.

"So, if everyone has no objections to the decision to go to sea, then is that settled?"

"I agree!"

"agree!"

"OK!"

The unanimous agreement.

Finally, everyone looked at Xia Shen.

Xia Shen was silent for a moment, then nodded: "I agree too."

Seeing this, the boss nodded in satisfaction and personally approved the proposal: "Then this meeting concludes that the matter of Xia Shen's album going overseas has been successfully approved unanimously!"

The topic of discussion right now is taking Xia Shen's new album to the next level, not just targeting the domestic market, but also launching it on overseas platforms, namely Spotify, the world's number one music platform, also known as Sound Breaker, to open up the international market!
(End of this chapter)