Are you trying to force me to become a star?

Chapter 5, "Anhe Bridge," is here.

The stage dimmed, and Hua Chenyu, the first contestant to appear, walked to the center of the stage with a microphone in hand. Seeing the musicians taking their places, she nodded.

The lights came on, the music started playing, and Hua Chenyu closed her eyes, feeling the rhythm, and raised the microphone. Song information appeared on the large screen behind her.

Song: Pixelated Heartbeat

Singer: Hua Chenyu

Composer: Hua Chenyu

Lyrics by: Hua Chenyu

Arrangement: Hua Chenyu

Feeling the rhythm of the guzheng, Hua Chenyu slowly sang the first line:

"A wasteland where fingertips glide across the screen"

"Like Rose"

"Blooming only to wither away"

"..."

On the judges' panel, Zhao Ming watched the content on the screen with great interest. He composed, wrote the lyrics, and even composed the music himself. He's an all-rounder. Interesting.

Sun Dakang was also looking at the young man. He had already heard the demo of the song beforehand, which was provided to him by Wang Yizhen. He thought it was pretty good. He didn't expect that he even did the arrangement himself, which was even more remarkable.

Pure singers, unless they have exceptional singing skills and an extraordinary voice, actually have a very low status in the industry. Even someone like Nanfeng, who's also on the judging panel, still has to show them respect. Of course, he wouldn't be completely unfriendly; after all, they're actors with high popularity.

As the first chorus ended, the judges silently nodded in approval. This first young man was surprisingly good at both songwriting and singing.

Looks like today's going to be interesting.

"..."

"When all agreements are assumed to be forgotten."

"I call for your return with these old letters."

Soon, the song came to an end. As Hua Chenyu sang the last note, the melody gradually faded, the song ended, and the entire audience erupted in enthusiastic applause.

The host went on stage to go through the procedures, and the five judges began to take turns giving their comments.

Li Aizhou was the first to raise the microphone: "I think this year's 'Heavenly Voices, Soulmates' competition is great! The requirement for original works has led to the emergence of promising talents!"

"Yeah, young people these days are amazing. They write their own lyrics, compose music, arrange music, and they're singers too. They're quite handsome. They're really leaving no way for the old folks to compete."

"Hahahaha," everyone was amused by Shen Nan's words.

Zhao Ming began to express his professional opinion: "I think that Hua Chenyu's music has something new, and he has a unique understanding of music."

"The story presented in the music has a disruptive and innovative feel. Notice his arrangement. On one hand, there is the warmth of the traditional instrument guzheng, and on the other hand, there is the coldness of electronic rock. There is a strong sense of confrontation between the two, which is very thoughtful."

The others nodded in agreement.

Nanfeng also raised the microphone: "Your singing skills are also very good. Your vocal range spans three octaves, and your pitch and enunciation are excellent. In particular, your pharyngeal voice is the best part. I think you can try to strengthen this aspect, and you will become a textbook example."

Hua Chenyu nodded and said, "Thank you, Teacher Nanfeng."

Then it was Sun Dakang's turn. He picked up the microphone and said with a smile, "The teachers have all been praising you, so let me talk about some issues I've noticed."

Hua Chenyu nodded seriously, indicating that she was ready.

Sun Dakang said, "Your high notes are very good, but your mid and low registers are relatively thin and lack support, that's one point; also, singing must balance technique and emotion to perfectly express the story. It's not that high notes are necessarily impressive, but how to present the core of the song is what a singer should do most. Okay, that's all."

"Thank you, Teacher Sun."

In fact, Sun Dakang had high hopes for this student, but since he already knew that Hua Chenyu had signed with their company, he couldn't praise her too much.

He, Mr. Sun, also has integrity.

The teachers chatted amongst themselves, all expressing their appreciation for Hua Chenyu. Then came the scoring. The highest and lowest scores were removed, and the average was taken. Hua Chenyu's final score was 92.5.

The score was announced, and the whole audience applauded.

Many comments also appeared on the live stream:

"It sounds so good!"

"That high note is really amazing!"

"Original competitions are definitely more exciting."

"Haha, they're leaving no way out for young people."

"Nanfeng's assessment is spot on; this singer has excellent vocal skills."

"Teacher Sun is too strict. They're already doing so well!"

"I've started following this person named Hua Chenyu; she'll definitely be a pillar of the Chinese music scene in the future."

"..."

A score of 92.5 is quite high; it would rank among the top scores in previous years.

Looking at the score, Nanfeng felt a little worried about her junior brother. Of course, she knew who had made it to the finals, so she came over after receiving the invitation to the show. She didn't tell Xu Jinyan that she was going to give him a high score or anything. Winning the championship in this kind of competition is nothing special. There are champions every year. The key is to see how things develop in the future.

She was just there to watch the fun, but she didn't expect the first one to be so amazing. If she were to be outdone, she would be too embarrassed to make fun of him.

Hua Chenyu left the stage, and Meng Wen was the second to take the stage.

Meng Wen sang a rather lyrical song, with lyrics and music written by himself and arrangement done by a mentor. However, his high notes in the previous performance had heated up the audience, which put him at a disadvantage, and his performance was not particularly perfect.

Meng Wen's final score: 88.

He was more than four points behind Hua Chenyu, which basically meant he had no chance of winning the championship.

"Oh, what a pity."

"It's a huge disadvantage to sing such sentimental songs after Hua Chenyu."

"Yes, I quite like this vibe."

"It's also possible that his excellent performance earlier put pressure on him; 92.5 points is quite rare these days."

"..."

The third to perform was Tian Xiwei, a girl who looked very sweet. She had an exceptionally good voice, as if she possessed immense power. Her high notes were perfect. If it weren't for her somewhat mediocre composition skills, she might have surpassed Hua Chenyu.

When the judges brought this up, Tian Xiwei said with slightly red eyes, "I...I might not be very good at composing."

The judges encouraged her not to limit herself and to try boldly.

Especially Nanfeng, whose compositions are also just average, perhaps because she felt more empathetic, she gave her high praise, which moved the little girl to tears.

Actually, according to the rules of previous years, she would have been very likely to win the championship given her abilities. Of course, the Chinese music scene is not lacking in champions like her.

Tian Xiwei's final score: 90.

"This girl is so sweet!"

"She's beautiful and has a lovely voice."

"Wow, that high note, I think it sounds better than Hua Chenyu's."

"Oh dear, little sister, don't cry, you've already done a great job."

"Wow, the south wind is so gentle, just like an older sister."

"Nanfeng, I love you!!!!"

"Another high-pitched singer, the contestants after her are doomed."

"Yeah, the atmosphere is heating up again. I wonder if it can hold up."

"..."

Xu Jinyan listened to the contestants singing from the backstage and felt that their singing skills were all very good. If they were displayed on the system panel, they would generally have reached the professional level. Xiao Tian could even reach the mastery level of professional. This was not very surprising, as they were already among the strongest in this year's competition.

"Next up is our fourth contestant, Xu Jinyan."

Xu Jinyan took a deep breath to calm her slightly nervous mood. It's okay if the atmosphere is too hot, I'll help you cool down.

The lights were dim as Xu Jinyan, along with his uncle and several musicians, took to the stage.

In the audience, Xu's parents watched their son on stage with a mixture of anticipation and worry. They knew that Xu Jinyan had asked his uncle for help, but they didn't know what song it was. He had performed so well so far, son, you must make the most of it.

On the judges' panel, Shen Nan glanced at Nan Feng beside him with a slight smile. Nan Feng felt his gaze and nodded with a wry smile.

She knew what Shen Nan meant; they both worked at Canglan Entertainment and had even collaborated before. They had communicated after receiving the invitation, so Shen Nan knew that one of the semi-finalists was Nanfeng's junior.

It's just a matter of whether Nanfeng's junior can withstand the pressure. The previous singers all performed very well, especially Hua Chenyu, who made Nanfeng want to sign him for the company. He's versatile, useful, and has good singing skills.

Shen Nan looked at the stage while thinking about these things. The lights were already on, and the song information was displayed on the screen:

Song: Anhe Bridge

Singer: Xu Jinyan

Composer: Xu Jinyan

Lyrics by: Xu Jinyan

Arrangement: Xu Jinyan

"Oh? Another all-inclusive case, that's interesting." Several judges also showed interested smiles.

On stage, Xu Jinyan stood in front of the microphone holding a guitar. To his left and right, slightly behind him, were Li Yan playing the drums and his uncle sitting in a chair with a morin khuur (horsehead fiddle). Everyone took their positions. Xu Jinyan nodded to Li Yan. As the first drumbeat sounded, the lights came on.

Anhe Bridge is here.