On September 5th, Lu Chen's first album, "My Old Classmate," was launched on WeChat Music.
This album, completed over the course of two months, is undoubtedly the centerpiece of Lu Chen Workshop's business since its inception. Its sales success will significantly impact Lu Chen's standing in the pop music scene.
No independent artist has released their first personal album so quickly after debuting.
As a rising star, Lu Chen's talent is undeniable. Several of his original songs have topped the charts, and live versions of his performances from "Singing China" have frequently appeared on WeChat Music's rankings.
Consequently, many in the entertainment industry are closely watching the online release of this album, but not everyone is optimistic about the sales of "My Old Classmate." There are plenty of voices in the blogosphere predicting poor sales.
Firstly, Lu Chen did not invest much in promoting this album. He only advertised it on his blog, and the promotional placement on WeChat Music was quite ordinary, giving the impression that he was too strapped for cash to spend on marketing.
In today's entertainment landscape, it's nearly impossible for artists to achieve fame without proper packaging and promotion. If a new artist's album doesn't receive significant promotional efforts, the sales are often dismal.
Relevant stakeholders, such as platforms like WeChat Music and media outlets, will intentionally or unintentionally overlook it, easily withholding free promotional resources. This is considered an unspoken rule in the industry.
For instance, many of Lu Chen's original works from "Singing China" topped the click-and-download charts on WeChat Music, but they quickly vanished from the charts after the show ended.
The reason is simple: Lu Chen didn't spend money on advertising on WeChat Music. How could such valuable promotional resources be given to him for free? Just appearing on the charts was already a significant favor.
If WeChat Music weren't a partner of Capital City TV's "Singing China," he probably wouldn't have had a chance to be on the charts at all!
This time, Lu Chen officially collaborated with WeChat Music, which took exclusive sales rights. Even a small advertising spot costs a hefty 100,000 Yuan.
Under normal circumstances, leveraging the prestige of being the champion of "Singing China," Lu Chen's album would have great potential.
However, he happened to face several strong competitors!
The first competitor is Cui Zhengzhi, the runner-up of Xiangnan TV's "Super Boy" in 2014, who is signed with Orange Field Entertainment. He is promoting his first personal album, "Re Huo," on WeChat Music starting September 1st.
This idol singer, of Chinese-Korean descent, is a key new artist backed by the industry giant Orange Field Entertainment.
His album has been in the works for nearly a year and is undoubtedly a high-quality product. The title track "Re Huo" is currently ranked first on WeChat Music's click chart, making a strong debut!
The second competitor is Zou Bei, the champion of the 2015 deep-sea TV's flagship variety show "National Idol," who is signed with Starry Media, the parent company of "StarryLive."
Zou Bei graduated from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and is a true talent. She is also releasing her first personal album, "Blossoming Flower," with promotional activities starting on September 2nd on WeChat Music.
As for the third competitor, it is undoubtedly Lu Chen's old acquaintance— Ling Xiaoxiao.
Ling Xiaoxiao performed poorly in the finals of "The Strongest Singer," finishing in fifth place.
His defeat was somewhat related to Lu Chen, as their fan clubs had clashed fiercely online, and ultimately, Lu Chen's side emerged victorious.
This time, Ling Xiaoxiao is launching his first personal album, "True Love is Invincible," on WeChat Music against Lu Chen, undoubtedly fueled by a desire for revenge.
Ling Xiaoxiao is signed with Jin Hongwei's Ju Xing Company!
His personal album has a similar production timeline to Lu Chen's, with promotional activities starting on September 3rd.
Four new artists are simultaneously launching their personal albums on WeChat Music, and the timing of their promotional activities is unprecedented in the platform's history.
Typically, unless they are bitter rivals or intentionally stirring up hype, there is an unspoken understanding among entertainment record labels and management companies to stagger the promotional periods of their artists' album launches to avoid direct competition.
The competition in the pop music scene is extremely fierce. Every year, a large number of newcomers emerge, and those qualified to release albums are all promoted by their respective companies. No one wants to clash with their rivals at critical moments. Killing a thousand enemies may result in wounding eight hundred of your own!
Orange Field Entertainment, Starry Media, and Ju Xing Company are all top-tier companies in the industry.
One can only imagine how intense the competition will be when these three parties clash.
In fact, the main advertising spots on WeChat Music have already been divided among these three companies, and their promotional efforts on blogs, forums, and other platforms are quite aggressive!
In comparison, Lu Chen seems pitifully weak!
To put it simply, after debuting and winning the championship in "Singing China," Lu Chen did not participate in any promotional events, nor did he shoot advertisements or hold fan meetings to boost his visibility. He has been so low-key that he hardly resembles an artist.
Cui Zhengzhi, Zou Bei, and Ling Xiaoxiao are all actively promoting themselves. In today's fast-paced world, celebrity idols can rise and fall quickly. Fans easily grow tired of them, and artists who do not frequently appear in entertainment news will quickly be forgotten.
Lu Chen has talent, but if he continues to avoid promotions and does not capitalize on the popularity he has built, it will soon dwindle.
This is not the 1980s or 1990s anymore when a hit song could remain popular for ten or twenty years!
"Our biggest problem is that most of the songs in the album are already available online,"
Lu Chen Workshop was gathered in Lu Xi's manager's office, which temporarily served as a small meeting room.
Apart from the receptionist, Chen Little Mei, all other members of the workshop were present, along with Li Mubai.
Lu Xi rubbed her furrowed brow and said helplessly, "So fans' desire to purchase won't be very strong."
Compared to the albums of competitors Cui Zhengzhi, Zou Bei, and Ling Xiaoxiao, Lu Chen's "My Old Classmate" has high transparency. All ten songs can be found for free online, lacking mystery and anticipation, which naturally diminishes the desire to purchase.
Especially in the face of strong competition, many pop music enthusiasts are likely to search for pirated content after Lu Chen's album is released, preferring to spend their money on the new albums of the other three.
Now, Lu Xi is increasingly stepping into the role of workshop manager and agent. She spends a lot of time each day keeping up with news and trends in the online and entertainment communities, tirelessly strategizing for Lu Chen.
She said, "I just received a call from the business manager of WeChat Music, asking if we need to delay the album's release to avoid clashing with Cui Zhengzhi."
According to the agreement reached between the workshop and WeChat Music, "My Old Classmate" was to be promoted on September 5th and officially released on September 8th.
Cui Zhengzhi's "Re Huo" is also set to be released on the same day!
This new generation idol in the entertainment industry is not an ordinary person; his father is a well-known actor in the country, and his mother is a famous Korean artist, giving him extensive connections and numerous supporters in the show business community.
The Orange Field Entertainment he signed with is a major player in the industry, boasting many star idols and a very close partnership with Xiangnan TV, practically sharing the same resources!
With connections, background, and support from a top-tier company, plus Cui Zhengzhi's handsome looks and fashionable style, he is the epitome of the trendy young Korean idol that is currently very popular among young people, with nearly ten million fans on his blog!
Regardless of how many of those are genuine fans or fake accounts, in terms of popularity, he absolutely overshadows Lu Chen!
Cui Zhengzhi's debut album is undoubtedly highly anticipated.
However, the coincidence of it clashing with Lu Chen's release is quite intriguing.
Typically, the promotional and release times on WeChat Music are not too far apart; three to four days is ideal, and five days is acceptable. Yet Cui Zhengzhi's promotion started on the 1st!
Zou Bei's album was released yesterday, and Ling Xiaoxiao's album is being released today.
Everyone in the room sensed a strong whiff of conspiracy. Li Feiyu, Chen Xin, and others couldn't help but show worried expressions and even the usually carefree Li Mubai sat up straight.
This Third Young Master Li originally came to get familiar with the scene, but Lu Chen's album launch is indeed somewhat related to him.
He is a core member of Lu Chen's fan club and an indispensable presence.
However, Li Mubai never expected that releasing an album could be so troublesome and involve so many issues.
He couldn't help but mutter, "The entertainment industry is truly chaotic."
Yes, this is also what Lu Chen had told him.
Everyone is not a fool; no one will forget the grievances between Lu Chen and Xiangnan TV. To say it's purely coincidental would be somewhat insulting to their intelligence.
Of course, a giant like Xiangnan TV might not care to settle scores with Lu Chen, but Orange Field Entertainment, as a partner, would certainly be eager to let Cui Zhengzhi step on Lu Chen to rise to fame.
On the other hand, Ling Xiaoxiao, who had a direct conflict with Lu Chen, posed less of a threat because everyone knew what he was capable of, and the quality of his album was unlikely to be high.
Lu Xi analyzed Ling Xiaoxiao's involvement, suspecting he was trying to leverage the situation for publicity.
The simultaneous debut of four new singer-songwriters on WeChat Music is undoubtedly a great promotional hotspot.
Jin Hongwei is well-known in the industry as a master of hype.
With wolves in front and tigers behind, how should Lu Chen face their challenges?
All eyes were focused on him.
Yet, Lu Chen remained unexpectedly calm, smiling as he said, "Actually, everyone is overthinking the problem."
His smile was still filled with confidence.
——
(End of this chapter)
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