Chapter 469: Chapter 469: 447: Variety Show Black Hole_1

February 2nd.

Music Center.

Underground parking lot.

Covered in Prince of Lanling’s costume and mask, Lin Yuan was firmly concealed. The Lil Goodoong sitting in the driver’s seat said, “I won’t accompany you throughout the whole program, Mr. Lin, to prevent anyone from guessing your identity because of me. After you go in, the program team will assign you a temporary agent who will be with you throughout the rehearsals and recordings, until you officially reveal your face and leave…”

Lin Yuan nodded.

The Masked Singer had arrived!

The recording would take place today. The entire perimeter of the Music Center and its underground parking lot were sealed off. No one could enter without an invitation from the program team. They had done an excellent job at keeping the identities of the singers secret.

Bidding Lil Goodoong farewell.

Lin headed toward the elevator, where a beautiful girl was waiting. Upon seeing Lin Yuan’s appearance, her eyes lit up. She took the initiative to say, “Excuse me, are you Teacher Prince of Lanling?”

“Yes.”

Lin Yuan replied.

His voice was specially processed by a machine. When he entered the parking lot, the program staff equipped Lin Yuan with a voice modulator. With this device, his real voice was completely unrecognizable. However, even without disguise, it wouldn’t matter, because most people haven’t heard Lin Yuan’s voice, and he is known for being tight-lipped. Even coaxing him to speak is a challenge.

“Hello.”

The girl introduced herself: “I’m your agent, Tongtong. Welcome to ‘The Masked Singer’. I will be your personal assistant for this episode. Now, I will take you to the rehearsal area prepared by the program for all the teachers.”

“Thank you.”

Lin Yuan replied politely.

Tongtong reminded him, “The rehearsal time is rather tight, as we will start the official recording tonight. Also, when we come out of the elevator, the official recording will begin. Some interesting footage will be edited from this recording for the broadcast.”

Lin Yuan nodded.

Rehearsal was indeed important. It was now one o’clock in the afternoon, and the official competition began at six o’clock in the evening. As per the usual, the production team allocated a few hours of rehearsal time for the singers to go through the recording process, test the choreography, lighting, and sound effects. Most importantly, they had to sync with the band. As for the song Lin Yuan was going to sing, it had been sent over a few days ago. All the arrangements followed his specifications. The program team wouldn’t change anything. However, if the band had any good suggestions, Lin Yuan would consider adopting them.

Just play the accompaniment?

A top-tier music program is not a cheap karaoke room. It does not rely on live accompaniment, as performances with only accompaniment are too low-level for high-end variety shows. It would be awkward for the singer, even more so than having a puppy play a mythical creature in a period drama.

It would plummet their status.

To achieve the most breathtaking on-stage music performance, the program providing top-tier band support is vital. The sound of live percussion instruments is incredibly engaging. Such performances can sway the audience’s emotions and better demonstrate the layers of a song. In a sense, live music and drama are similar—it may seem like only the actors are performing with all their hearts, but in reality, it’s a culmination of countless behind-the-scenes collaboration. For example, the publicly released audio equipment of this show is unimaginably expensive. ‘The Masked Singer’ aims to present the best singing performance that current technology can offer!

As for the recording…

Although he has camera anxiety, now that his face is completely covered, how these cameras film him wouldn’t greatly affect Lin Yuan’s state of mind. Just let it be.

With a ding.

The elevator opened.

Several cameras were already aimed at him. At the same time, two crew members in suits came forward to help Lin Yuan. Since Lin Yuan was wearing a face-obscuring mask and was wrapped up tight in clothing, he had difficulty walking. Lin Yuan didn’t resist their help.

“Are you tired?”

“It’s okay.”

“Your outfit is pretty. You must be a handsome guy. Especially the mask; did you have someone custom make it for you? A lot of singers customize their own clothes and masks.”

“Yes.”

Tongtong tried to steer the conversation, only to be met with despair as no matter how she tried, Prince of Lanling always kept his responses short.

…

No filming was allowed during the rehearsal process. Everything went even smoother than Lin Yuan had imagined, as all the band members were highly skilled. However, after the rehearsal ended, the music director couldn’t resist having a chat with Lin Yuan: “Is this song composed by you, Teacher Prince of Lanling?”

The music director’s name is Hu Yapeng.

Hu Yapeng is no ordinary man. He is a top music producer in Blue Star, with master-level skills in piano, as well as proficiency in keyboards, guitars, and other musical instruments. His arrangement techniques are widely recognized in the industry as insane. Many of the singing kings and queens invite him to be their music director during concerts, so it’s fitting that ‘The Masked Singer’ invited him.

“Yes.”

Before officially revealing his identity, Lin Yuan must do everything he can to boost the reputation of his Prince of Lanling persona. Therefore, other than the band, all the names in the composition section of his songs had been replaced with “Prince of Lanling”. This included lyrics, composition, arrangement, and final performance. This was also a means of voting for himself within the rules of the program.

“Amazing.”

Pang Ban praised, “Although we don’t know who is behind the mask, it’s commendable that you can compose music and voice it as well. There are too few singer-songwriters like you.”

Singer-songwriter!

This was the character Lin Yuan crafted for Prince of Lanling. Even though most singers and songwriters at Blue Star each had their own speciality, there were some multi-talented artists who could both sing and compose. In the realm of fantasy novels, such talent would equate to a “magician-warrior” of sorts.

Indeed, they were rare.

But not nonexistent.

Lin Yuan nodded in agreement.

Tongtong took Lin Yuan back to the dressing room, then pointed to the television mounted on the wall. “Prince of Lanling, we can follow the ongoing performances through this television…”

There was a knock at the door.

Tongtong answered it.

It turned out the production team was here for the singers to draw lots. The order of performance tonight was to be decided by this draw. Tongtong became nervous, “Prince of Lanling, should I draw the lot or would you like to do it yourself?”

“You.”

Lin Yuan said.

Tongtong nodded, took a deep breath, and drew the lot for Lin Yuan. Upon revealing the lot, she beamed with joy, “Prince of Lanling, is there a particular order you hope to perform in?”

“Doesn’t matter.”

Lin Yuan didn’t see any difference.

He would not feel nervous about performing first. The numbers of people did not bother him, it was the camera capturing his every move. With a mask on, however, even that uneasiness was almost entirely gone. So, he was fine with any order.

“Third!”

Tongtong unveiled the result.

Seeing Lin Yuan had no reaction, she tried her best to liven up the atmosphere, “In half an hour, the first singer will be up. What position do you expect for yourself today, Prince of Lanling…”

“Advance.”

Lin Yuan did not want to be eliminated.

Tongtong was instantly deflated. This task was way too difficult. No matter who Prince of Lanling spoke to, he was always extremely concise. Even when he was communicating with the music director, he remained the same.

Elsewhere.

The filming group was also at a loss. While the other singers just kept talking, it was as if they couldn’t get a word out of Prince of Lanling. It was like he was a conversational black hole, with no entertainment value whatsoever.

Meanwhile backstage.

The assistant director was sighing in disappointment at how the filming was going with Prince of Lanling. “Why does it feel like Prince of Lanling is a hole of entertainment gravitas? Even though we’re a music show and it’s ultimately about how they sing, it’s not good that we can’t capture any interesting footage of Prince of Lanling…”

The assistant director was quite interested in Prince of Lanling.

Because Tongtong was a relative of Director Tong Shuwen and had been assigned to work with Prince of Lanling, he concluded that Prince of Lanling must be someone of importance. However, after paying close attention, the assistant director found that Prince of Lanling barely talked at all, always responding with:

“Hmm, okay…”

If he could respond with one word, Prince of Lanling wouldn’t say an extra one. Despite his aloofness, his lack of humor was negatively affecting the program’s appeal. This concerned the assistant director as even music shows required a sense of fun.

Prince of Lanling?

Observing the entire scene through the camera, Director Tong Shuwen cracked a smile. The assistant director was just too naive. The so-called “black hole of entertainment” if pushed to its extreme, could also create a powerful effect on the show.

Suddenly.

A noise came from his earphones, instantly turning Tong Shuwen’s face serious. “The audience is in place, all departments get ready. There is half an hour to countdown for the recording of the performances. I need the first singer to be ready in 20 minutes. Host, test your mic again…”

“Lighting crew ready.”

“Camera crew ready.”

“Sound crew ready.”

Reports from all departments kept coming in. The host’s voice also came over, “Sound check is fine, Director, it’s better to assign two more people to pull the curtain. It’s too big…”

“Send someone from logistics.”

As the director gave orders, he anxiously watched the time. When the clock struck six, he took a deep breath: “Start the countdown now. Five, four, three, two, one!”

The countdown ended!

The Masked Singer started!

——————

Ps: Many entertainment novels bypass rehearsals and just start singing with accompaniment, some even manage with just a guitar. As Polluted White, I feel the need to mention that even though it may seem mundane, the show should have some degree of authenticity. I’ll continue writing.