The recording site of "Masked Singer".
Su Yu arrived at the lounge through a special passage.
The recording was about to begin, and he also needed to prepare. One good thing about this stage was that there were no makeup artists or stylists. Once the mask was on, even his own mother wouldn't recognize him.
According to the program team's notification, this episode would include an interview segment. The next episode would place all singers in the same lounge, and an exchange between singers would be added to increase the program's appeal.
"Teacher Tingyu, I'm going to submit the materials," A Ru said and then left.
A moment later, the host Lin Han arrived at Su Yu's lounge with the camera crew.
"Teacher Dark Night Rabbit, are you ready? The interview is starting," Lin Han's voice carried a hint of flattery. After all, Dark Night Rabbit was the singer chosen by Tingyu, so he had to show some respect.
"Mhm," Su Yu nodded.
Once the cameras were ready, Lin Han, holding a thick script, began the interview.
"We all know there's a lot of public opinion online about you right now, the biggest controversy being your breath control. What would you like to say to your fans or netizens about this?" Lin Han asked cautiously. The questions prepared by the program team were quite sharp, and he was afraid of asking too directly. He added, "If you're unwilling to answer, you can just say a few generic words."
Since the program was pre-recorded, such situations often occurred, and his subsequent words would be edited out by the post-production team.
"Regarding breath control, there's not much to say. My breath control is indeed not top-notch," Su Yu said after thinking for a moment.
During the last interview, his brief replies of "a little" and "I know a bit" had already made Mo Yan suspect his identity. This time, he refined his words and used a different way of expressing himself.
Whether breath control was top-notch or not depended on who you compared it to.
"Actually, it's not a big deal. After all, Teacher Dark Night Rabbit's vocal range is already very wide, and the emotional delivery in your songs is also superb," Lin Han consoled him.
"Thank you," Su Yu nodded in reply.
Then.
Lin Han asked a few more official questions.
Su Yu answered them all briefly.
It was clear that this interview was aimed at the online discussion about his breath control.
"So, for the last question, does Teacher Dark Night Rabbit have the confidence to continue his reign as the King of Songs?"
This question was naturally used for program effect.
Regardless of whether Dark Night Rabbit could retain his title, his answer would be highly impactful for the show, which was also the reason the program team added pre-competition interviews.
"I'll do my best," Su Yu replied.
Did they think it was that easy to extract information?
"Thank you for the interview, Teacher Dark Night Rabbit. Please prepare well for the upcoming competition," Lin Han said with a smile.
Then, he left the lounge with the camera crew.
...
Recording site.
The audience had taken their seats.
Lights and cameras were all ready.
"Welcome to 'Masked Singer,' exclusively sponsored by Xiang Guo Wu Yu. I am your host, Lin Han..."
The familiar advertising slogan sounded, and Lin Han walked onto the stage with a smile.
After so many episodes, his position in the hosting industry was solidified. He was undoubtedly the most popular host.
Following his opening remarks.
The audience erupted in applause.
"I heard there's a powerful challenger joining this episode."
"I heard that too. It must be a top King of Songs!"
"Could it be singers from the four major entertainment companies?"
"Guangnian Entertainment has been swamped with trouble recently due to 'Wen Jian Xun Xian,' so it's unlikely to be them. That leaves Dingsheng Entertainment."
"That 'eternal runner-up' Dingsheng Entertainment?"
"Actually, Dingsheng's strength is still considerable. Especially during the previous era of viral hits, if it weren't for Tingyu, they might have dominated the song charts of the entire viral era."
"Haha, with Tingyu around, they will forever be the eternal runner-up!"
"If it really is a King of Songs from Dingsheng, it might be difficult for Dark Night Rabbit to retain his title."
"Isn't it being rumored online that Dark Night Rabbit is undeserving of his title? If he loses the King of Songs this episode, his hard-earned reputation might be ruined."
"I have a premonition that this episode will be incredibly exciting!"
The drawing of lots had begun.
The first group featured Black Warrior versus Zhan Ma.
Black Warrior had consistently sung Vietnamese songs, and his stage style was excellent, with many people supporting him.
And this challenger singer named Zhan Ma wore a very imposing horse head mask, giving him a fierce appearance.
"Next, please welcome Black Warrior to the stage!"
As before.
When Black Warrior took the stage, he interacted extensively with the audience.
Instantly igniting the atmosphere of the entire venue.
He sang a lyrical Vietnamese song this time, which was also very challenging.
"I'll sing two Vietnamese songs next episode too," Su Yu suddenly felt that singing such Vietnamese songs was a good choice.
Just like Zhang Wei's previous song "Fu Kuang," it was very suitable for stage performance.
However, he didn't plan to sing songs that had already been released, as it wasn't cost-effective.
Currently, his custom-made new songs had a fixed price of five million, and he earned far more than that by releasing a song.
This was the most profitable approach.
As for the accuracy of his Vietnamese pronunciation, Su Yu wasn't worried.
He knew Vietnamese, and his pronunciation was quite standard, but to achieve perfection, he would need a system customization.
[Ding, it is recommended that the host customize the All-Language Mastery Skill Package, which includes all languages and standard pronunciation.]
"Does that include all foreign languages?"
[Of course.]
"How much is it?"
This skill package was quite good, including all languages and standard pronunciation.
With this, his travel plans abroad with his wife would allow for barrier-free communication with locals.
[The pronunciation skill package can be customized for only 180 million.]
Su Yu was taken aback upon hearing the price.
He was about to say it was a bit expensive, but then he thought about all the languages and the perfect pronunciation. It was equivalent to having a month's salary to customize it.
He gritted his teeth and nodded, "Alright, customize it!"
This skill was very practical for traveling abroad.
Even if he didn't travel abroad, it would be very helpful for his singing of songs in other languages domestically.
Especially Vietnamese, with so many classic songs, Su Yu wasn't going to miss out on them.
...
Black Warrior had finished his performance.
Next was the performance of the challenger singer, Zhan Ma.
Upon taking the stage, he wasted no time, and the prelude immediately began.
At this moment.
Mo Yan raised an eyebrow and then looked at Han Qi beside him.
"This song is quite challenging, isn't it?" he murmured.
"Daring to sing this song, this Zhan Ma's strength cannot be underestimated," Liu Huan also looked at Han Qi.
"Haha, daring to sing my song, I'll have to give a good critique later," Han Qi was instantly amused.
That's right, this Zhan Ma was singing "Bai Yun," one of Judge Han Qi's representative works.
The biggest characteristic of this song was the mastery of breath control.
And Zhan Ma choosing this song as his first performance, its deeper meaning had already been guessed by everyone.
The newcomer was not to be trifled with.
This person seemed to be targeting Dark Night Rabbit?
...