Chapter 93 - Almost Within Reach

Bright Summit Entertainment Company.

Iris and Dom quietly entered the building and headed to Tang Yiyi’s office. They encountered familiar celebrities along the way, but nobody recognized Iris because she wore a mask and big sunglasses.

She didn’t want to deal with the fuss of being recognized, especially since she was currently one of the hottest topics during the weekend after her hit performances on "MusicFest Tonight" and on DJ Song’s radio show.

Not to mention her previous infamy before the accident two years ago and her supposed scandal with Jin Chonglin and Fan Luo, plus the heavy promotion of both Bright Summit and JJ’s record label for her upcoming album, many people were interested in Iris Long at the moment.

Inside Tang Yiyi’s office.

The office was not very large, but there was enough room for a work desk, file cabinets and drawers, a couple of chairs, a couch and a low table. It looked like the typical, boring office. A small pot of Pachira aquatica (a type of money tree) was the only attempt to liven up the room.

"Sit down," Tang Yiyi instructed the two.

When the three were seated, they began discussing Iris’ work schedule for the week. She would be extremely busy.

The release date of her album "Rebirth" was on Friday. They planned on holding a launch party where she would perform some of the songs from the album live. Her album in several formats and even merchandise would also be available for sale right there at the party. There would be a signing event afterwards.

"We already booked a venue for the launch party," Tang Yiyi said. "However, now it seems that the venue’s size won’t be enough anymore."

Iris tilted her head to the side.

"I have good news. This morning, I received a call from a representative of a group called ’The Black Stars’. They were just established over the weekend but they’re already quite organized. They want to be recognized as your official fan club."

Dom gasped in delight. "What? Really? That’s so awesome! And they even called themselves ’The Black Stars’ after boss’ song!"

Iris remained quiet, waiting for Tang Yiyi to say more.

"To be honest, I’m already impressed by them. It’s only been, what, a couple days since they got together? But they already have officers running the fan club. They even have their own funding and a working website. They look very professional. The report they provided me shows that there are currently about 50,000 members signed up. And the numbers are increasing by the day."

"I see. So you mean that you invited them to my launch party this Friday?"

"Exactly. Just from the Black Stars fan club alone, they already confirmed over a thousand people who are sure to attend your launch party. And the number is still increasing at the moment. If the number exceeds 2,000 by tomorrow, we’ll have to book a bigger place, perhaps even a concert hall or a stadium."

Dom: "Oh my God! Boss! This is amazing!"

Iris: "Hmm... I would like the launch party to be casual. I prefer for the audience to be seated around tables rather than the normal concert seating arrangement. I want them to enjoy some food and drinks and be able to chat with each other."

Tang Yiyi nodded. "Alright. So no concert hall. I’ll go look for a big hall then. Maybe even a convention centre. I hope that there are still some places that are available this Friday."

Iris: "I’ll leave it to you, Elder Sister Yiyi."

Dom: "Sis Yiyi! So this fan club is now boss’ official fan club?"

Iris looked at Tang Yiyi, also curious.

Tang Yiyi tapped her fingers on her desk. "Not yet. Although they’ve impressed me, we’ll still have to personally see how they operate before we make any final decision. I also need to contact some of the higher-ups here at Bright Summit to hear what they think about this matter. I’ll have to observe how these Black Stars members are like when we meet them at the launch party."

Both Dom and Iris nodded.

Tang Yiyi looked at Iris and changed the subject. "I didn’t book any guesting for you this week, so you can focus on rehearsing the live performances for when you promote your album. However, starting from Saturday, you’ll be extremely busy every day to promote your album. You’ll barely have any day off for an entire month. Prepare yourself."

Iris: "I understand, Elder Sister Yiyi."

Tang Yiyi: "How’s the progress of the album’s piano transcription?"

Iris: "I’m actually already finished, but I still need to do a lot of tweaking and polishing before I’m satisfied."

Tang Yiyi: "Good, good. It would be great if you finish it within a month, so JJ’s record label can get everything ready and release the piano version of ’Rebirth’ three to six months after the release date of the original album. Maybe even earlier. This way, the interest in your album ’Rebirth’ will be prolonged. It also looks like JJ wants to widely release the piano version internationally."

Iris: "Yes, Mr. JJ mentioned it to me before. I also want to publish the sheet music of each of the songs and compile them into a piano book. So if people are interested, they can buy the piano book with the album. Or they can buy them separately. I need to ask Mr. JJ what he thinks."

Tang Yiyi: "That’s a great idea. Wait, are you preparing the sheet music yourself?"

Iris: "Of course."

Tang Yiyi: "Are you sure you can do it by yourself? Just tell me if you need any help and I’ll give you some people."

Iris: "Thanks, Elder Sister Yiyi. But I’m fine. It’s not a problem for me at all. It’s not like I’m doing the transcribing by hand, drawing the notes one by one. I have a software which automatically transcribes whatever I play on the piano. Very easy and fast."

Tang Yiyi sighed in relief and nodded.

They talked a bit more before Tang Yiyi dismissed Iris and Dom.

The two left Bright Summit and headed to a music rehearsal studio. Iris needed to rehearse for her performance at her upcoming launch party this Friday and also for her other future live performances.

She had her own band and a full symphony orchestra (the very same one who performed with her at "MusicFest Tonight") to accompany her throughout this album’s live performances.

Iris’ blood pumped with excitement. Finally, her dream of sharing her music with the masses was almost within reach.