Chapter 147: Two Best Newcomer Awards!

The next day.

The morning was dedicated to rehearsals once again.

Jiang Lun was woken up at eight o'clock and then hurriedly rushed to the Modu Stadium.

The China Music Awards ceremony was scheduled to begin at twelve-thirty in the afternoon and was expected to last for over ten hours. The purpose of coming in the morning was to rehearse the tracks they would perform when taking the stage later.

When Jiang Lun arrived at the venue, Liu Nan was already rehearsing on the makeshift stage built inside the stadium.

The interior of the stadium was vast, several times larger than the venue for yesterday's awards ceremony in Nanjing. During rehearsals, only a single sound system on the stage was left active, making it impossible to hear what was being sung unless one got close.

Approaching the front of the stage, Jiang Lun waved and greeted Liu Nan, then randomly found a seat to sit down.

As soon as he sat down, Zhang Run, who had arrived a step earlier, leaned over. "You're here."

"Brother Run!"

Jiang Lun smiled. "Do you know what awards we're getting today?"

"No idea. Do you?"

"Me neither!" Jiang Lun shook his wayward head. "Who knows if there's even a share for us!"

"There definitely is!"

Zhang Run said, "This award is definitely about dividing the cake. Every singer who has been notified gets a share."

"Is that so!"

Jiang Lun replied, "Brother Run, you're an old hand at this. For awards ceremonies big and small, I still have to rely on you to show me the ropes!"

Zhang Run smiled and casually replied, "Alright, no need to explain then. Just hop on and take a seat!"

"Haha!"

The two exchanged a smile. Zhang Run was a four-consecutive-year winner of Mainland China's Most Popular Male Singer; he knew the ins and outs of this industry better than anyone.

Of course, there was someone who knew even more than him, and that was Liu Nan, who was rehearsing on stage right now. He was the seven-consecutive-year winner of Mainland China's Best Male Singer, and on top of that, he had won Best Album twice. As for the Top Ten Annual Gold Hits, he had won so many that his hands were tired.

Whether the China Music Awards were entirely fair was hard to definitively conclude, as most awards remained quite transparent and just.

However, there were certain shortcomings; every year, specific awards kept going back and forth among the exact same few people. In particular, a certain kept-woman singer—if she won again this year, it would be her tenth consecutive victory.

"Xiao Jiang! Xiao Zhang!"

Liu Nan stepped down from the stage, walked over, patted Jiang Lun and Zhang Run on their shoulders, and sat down beside them. "You're both here. Let's go have instant-boiled mutton together at noon!"

Zhang Run laughed, "Haha, Brother Nan loves to eat no matter where he goes!"

Liu Nan said, "After the ceremony ends tonight, want to go out and hang out together?"

"Sure! Let's experience the nightlife of Modu!" Zhang Run turned back to Jiang Lun and said, "Come along!"

Jiang Lun, however, waved his hands. "I won't go. Running around everywhere these days has left me too exhausted. I still haven't caught up on my sleep from last night!"

"It won't interfere with your sleep. Do you have events tomorrow?" Liu Nan asked.

Zhang Run also chimed in, "You need to know how to balance work and rest. Our idea of entertainment is just sitting at a bar, it's not like we're asking you to play ball!"

"I'd better not!" Jiang Lun knew what their idea of "sitting at a bar" entailed. He had no such hobbies, and besides, if paparazzi happened to snap pictures of him lingering in pleasure haunts, even if he did nothing wrong, it would still cast a bad shadow on his reputation.

"Oh well, suit yourself. We'll go by ourselves then!"

Liu Nan said, but couldn't help offering a final piece of advice. "You really have no friends acting like this!"

"My schedule is genuinely packed these days!"

Jiang Lun explained once more, "Once I get through this rush, I'll treat you guys when we get back to Beijing!"

Liu Nan and Zhang Run exchanged glances and chuckled. "Alright. It's a deal then, don't you dare back out when the time comes!"

After chatting for half an hour, it was finally time for Jiang Lun's rehearsal, with Zhang Run scheduled right after him.

He went on stage, communicated with the musicians, ran through the required procedures, finalized all the tracks, and then stepped down.

At twelve-thirty in the afternoon, the China Music Awards ceremony officially commenced at the Modu Stadium.

***

Upon arriving, Jiang Lun found his seat and immediately began greeting the stars seated around him.

He started with the most senior among them, Wang Yingjie. "Hello, Teacher Wang! I am Jiang Lun!"

"Hello, hello, I know you. I've listened to all your songs, you're a fantastic young man!" Wang Yingjie smiled. "Come straight to me next time you visit Hong Kong!"

"Thank you, Teacher Wang!" Jiang Lun nodded, exchanged a couple more pleasantries, and moved on to the next person. "Hello, Brother Chen Jun, I'm Jiang Lun!"

"Haha, no need for introductions, I know who you are!"

Chen Jun was known in the entertainment industry as a crazy singer, eccentric at all times, and fond of innovation and breakthroughs in his music.

This being their very first meeting, he immediately extended an invitation to Jiang Lun. "I'm holding five concerts at the Hong Kong Coliseum next March. Come and be my guest performer! I'll notify your agency with the dates, it's settled!"

"Uh... alright!"

Jiang Lun nodded in agreement. This was too direct; he wasn't even asked for his opinion.

However, being a guest performer at Chen Jun's concert wasn't something just anyone could achieve—countless established singers were yearning for this opportunity. In truth, even if Jiang Lun didn't want to, he would have agreed on the spot.

After exchanging greetings with a few more people—including multi-time China Music Awards Best Female Singers Su Hong, Hao Rui, and Xu Huiyin—Jiang Lun went up to greet them one by one.

Everyone was very courteous to him, especially Su Hong, who expressed to his face that she was a huge fan of his and even hoped to take him on as a disciple.

To open the ceremony, a retrospective video reviewed every brilliant moment of the Chinese music scene over the past thirty years, followed by a look back at the journey of the China Music Awards through its twenty-four years.

Watching the video on the big screen, even Jiang Lun, a newcomer who had debuted less than a year ago, felt his eyes grow moist.

This was the path of Chinese pop music over the past thirty-plus years; the hardships and glories of its development filled every Chinese musician with emotion and pride.

Whether newcomer or veteran, everyone shared the exact same sentiment at this moment.

After the retrospective ended, a deep, resonant male voice echoed from the speakers: "The 24th Chinese Pop Music Charts Awards Ceremony is now officially underway. Let us welcome the hosts!"

Amidst an introductory musical fanfare, a male and a female host walked onto the stage.

Following the customary official speeches, the first performance guest was invited up.

Their rendition of "Youth March" kicked off the China Music Awards. Four youths sang and danced on stage, prompting Liu Nan beside them to sigh continuously.

"Alas, the future belongs to the young now. Kids this young are already debuting, it's time for old fogies like us to retire!"

"Brother Nan, you're not old at all. Right now is your prime time to shine!" a young male singer beside him chimed in with flattery.

Liu Nan found this very agreeable. "Haha, you sure know how to speak. After the awards are over, Brother Nan will take you out to have some fun!"

"Thank you, Brother Nan!" The male singer was clearly thrilled.

Zhang Run nudged Jiang Lun with his elbow and whispered, "Look at him, knowing how to seize an opportunity!"

Jiang Lun feigned ignorance. "What opportunity?"

"Hmph!" Zhang Run waved a hand. "Never mind!"

While they were chatting, the awards presentation began on stage.

The male host, He Jun, spoke up, "This year, our Chinese music scene has borne rich fruits with generations of new talent emerging, and idol groups have even won honor abroad. For instance, the opening performers just now have an average age of under fifteen, but the achievements they've made are plain for all to see! Next, we will present the Annual Best Newcomer Award. Let us invite our award presenter, the renowned female singer of the Chinese music scene—Teacher Deng Lihua!"

Teacher Deng Lihua, now past forty, walked up with a radiant smile.

Her full-figured physique was adorned in a dark evening gown, maintaining a sense of fashion while retaining the mature charm of a middle-aged woman.

"Hello everyone! I am Deng Lihua!"

She waved to the audience, poised, calm, and composed. "As a presenter today, I am here to unveil the Annual Best Newcomer Award for the 24th China Music Awards of 2015. This year, our Chinese music scene has produced many outstanding newcomers, and among them, there is one I admire the most!"

She paused and smiled faintly. "I won't say his name. After all, this is an awards stage, so let me sing a few lines of his song for you instead!"

"Alright!" Everyone below, whether celebrities or ordinary audience members, burst into applause and cheers.

"Ahem!"

Deng Lihua cleared her throat and sang, "I am a tiny, tiny, tiny bird, how I fly and fly, yet I can never fly high, I search and search for a warm embrace, is such a request considered too much..."

She slayed from the very first note!

As expected of a seasoned veteran, her performance was extraordinary. Deng Lihua's voice was wild, resonant, and unconstrained, soaring like an eagle breaking through the skies—how could she possibly be a tiny bird?

The moment she sang the first line, Liu Nan nudged Jiang Lun. "Haha, Lao Deng is singing your song. You really are popular among the veterans now!"

"Not at all, not at all!"

Jiang Lun responded with polite modesty, but inside he was overjoyed. This was a form of recognition!

On stage, Deng Lihua looked toward Jiang Lun's direction, nodded slightly at him, and pressed her hands down toward the crowd. "Alright, save your applause for the winner. I don't even know who won yet today!"

With that, the male host He Jun walked up from the side of the stage and handed an envelope to Deng Lihua.

Deng Lihua calmly opened the envelope, pulled out a card, took one look at it, and smiled, her eyes narrowing into crescents.

"Just as I expected!"

Unable to hide her joy, Deng Lihua announced, "Let us congratulate the singer who has won the 2015 Annual Best Newcomer Award—Jiang Lun!"

Even though he had anticipated it, hearing his name still stirred an uncontrollable wave of excitement. In fact, his mind went blank for a moment; he didn't even know how he had made it onto the stage.

When he stood before Deng Lihua, Jiang Lun snapped back to reality and stammered, "Hello, Teacher Deng!"

"Hello, young man! You're doing wonderfully, truly worthy of affirmation!"

Deng Lihua smiled, took the trophy handed over by the etiquette assistant, and passed it to Jiang Lun.

As the two exchanged words, He Jun spoke up. "Jiang Lun debuted as a newcomer this April, and subsequently achieved victory in the challenger matches of CCTV's 'Dream Starlight Show'. That very month, he released his debut all-original album 'Positive Energy', which premiered on Beijing Music Radio. On the Beijing Pop Music Charts, 'Nunchucks' remained firmly at number one for fifteen consecutive weeks, while 'Jiangnan' and 'The One' dominated the second and third positions for a full eleven weeks. Even today, these three songs remain on our Top 20 weekly charts..."

On the big screen, Jiang Lun's vote count and chart trajectory were displayed.

After claiming the Best Newcomer Award, Jiang Lun stepped down from the stage.

There was only a single Annual Best Newcomer Award, without divisions for Mainland and Hong Kong-Taiwan regions. Normally, the Most Popular Newcomer and the Best Newcomer would be split between Hong Kong-Taiwan and the Mainland to maintain a balance.

Therefore, Jiang Lun had already guessed that since he had won the Best Newcomer Award, the Most Popular award likely wouldn't go to him. Still, he felt reassured; at least he hadn't walked away empty-handed without a single trophy.

However, for the second award to be presented—the Annual Best Original Newcomer Award—Jiang Lun still had high hopes. He was, after all, a "singer-songwriter," and being a massive hit this year, he could truly claim to be unrivaled.

Sure enough, this award did indeed fall into his pocket.

The presenter on stage was the Chairman of the Chinese Musicians Association. Along with presenting the trophy, he handed Jiang Lun an invitation letter to join the association.

This invitation wasn't pre-arranged; rather, whoever won the Best Original Newcomer was awarded membership on the spot, with the chairman signing and stamping the document right there.

Jiang Lun readily signed his name. Whether he wished to join or not, in such a setting, it wouldn't do to reject the face of the association chairman. Besides, the association hadn't wronged him, and furthermore, dealing with copyright disputes in the future would still require relying on them.

Carrying his second trophy back to his seat, Liu Nan stood up and gave him a hug. "Congratulations, congratulations! You've bagged two trophies right off the bat, your future is limitless!"

"Thank you, Brother Nan. Best Male Singer will definitely be yours later!"

"Hmph! I don't even care about that anymore!"

Liu Nan waved his hand with a feigned casualness. "What Best Male Singer? How many times have I already won it!"

Zhang Run poked his head over. "Then Brother Nan... how about you and I swap this year? If you win Best Male Singer, how about letting it to me?"

"You brat, Most Popular Male Singer is definitely yours, what are you fighting for the Best title for?"

"It's just that I've never won Best! Besides, Most Popular isn't necessarily mine either. Previous years were just coincidences, but with Jiang Lun around this year, I'm... feeling uneasy!" Zhang Run offered a bitter smile.

Who wasn't feeling uneasy?

With a freakish anomaly like Jiang Lun popping up this year, not only were the singer categories fiercely contested, but even songwriting, composition, and Best Album categories were all up in the air.

As for the Top Ten Gold Hits, who wouldn't want to bag at least one?

Just look at the charts—Jiang Lun had four songs that entered the overall top ten in total votes this year, and none of his remaining tracks dropped out of the top thirty. Even the lowest-ranked among them, "My Sky," had secured the twenty-sixth position.

Of all the people sitting in the audience, which of them wasn't anxious and burning with impatience?

When the Most Popular Newcomer was subsequently announced, it indeed did not go to Jiang Lun, but rather to a female singer from the Hong Kong-Taiwan region—clearly a result of balancing the scales and dividing the cake.

Although this female singer wasn't the top choice in every aspect, among all the newcomers this year besides Jiang Lun, not a single one could match her comprehensive capabilities.

After the presentation of the three newcomer awards, several singers took turns performing on stage.

Among them, Zhao Chengbi, the grand champion of a certain talent competition that year, came on stage to perform a twenty-minute medley. The medley compiled the signature debut songs of every Best Newcomer from the past twenty-three years of the China Music Awards. Next year, such a medley would feature Jiang Lun's songs as well.

As the round of performances concluded, the female host stepped back onto the stage. "Three newcomer awards have been presented to two newcomers. May they create even more brilliance for Chinese pop music in the future! Next up to be unveiled are the Best Lyricist and Best Composer awards. Furthermore, each award is divided into two trophies—one for the Mainland and one for the Hong Kong-Taiwan region. Let us see who the winners are this year—please welcome the presenters!" (To be continued.)