Yi Xing took a deep breath, pushing all the chaotic thoughts in his mind to the back. His slightly trembling hands revealed his inner turmoil. After all, it was his first time on such a large stage, and he had to perform in front of so many people.
The last time he stood in front of many people to showcase himself was during his student days, at a Monday morning assembly, where he spoke as a student representative. But that time, the speech was prepared in advance; he just had to read it, so there wouldn't be any unexpected incidents.
This time was completely different; there were too many unknown factors. He tried hard to calm himself down, clenching and then unclenching his fists several times, finally managing to stop the trembling.
Finally, the music on the stage faded, and the members of SNH48 gradually walked off. The director in charge of program scheduling said to the Hua Shao Group: "Get ready, your performance is next. Pay attention to Teacher He's transitional remarks."
As He Jiong's familiar and infectious voice resonated on the stage, and after his transitional remarks concluded, Zhang Han stood at the front of the group, and Yi Xing at the very back, as they walked onto the stage.
Ju Jingyi, walking off from the other side of the stage exit, saw his departing back and felt as if she had seen that figure somewhere before. Then she matched it with Yi Xing's back.
She secretly wondered in her heart: Could it be that he also came? It shouldn't be very likely, right? If he was also coming to participate in the Mango New Year's Eve Concert, why didn't he tell her that day? She must have seen wrong.
"Xiao Ju, let's go, what are you thinking about?" Lin Shiyi saw her spacing out, walked over, and pulled her arm, asking.
"I seemed to see an acquaintance just now, but I must have been mistaken. Let's go back to the hotel." Ju Jingyi shook her head and followed the main group with the people next to her. Their rehearsal for today was over, and they could go back to the hotel to rest.
Before she got on the bus arranged by the production team, she looked back at the stage. She held a glimmer of anticipation in her heart, thinking, what if it really was him? Seeing that familiar face, she chuckled and got on the bus.
(Don't ask why it's a bus; if you ask, it's because too many people came, making it convenient for unified arrangements.)
The current situation wasn't suitable for confronting him; she would wait until he also returned to the hotel.
The Hua Shao Group, having stepped onto the stage, fully immersed themselves in the performance. According to the production team's concept, the seven members would slowly appear in an open-top bus, as if they had just returned from a trip abroad.
Currently, it was just a rehearsal, so there was no need for such elaborate preparations. By tomorrow morning, it would have to be used practically to ensure no mistakes occurred.
Yi Xing's singing voice was completely different from his usual speaking voice. A rich sense of youthfulness emanated from him, with a clear and penetrating timbre. In the chorus, his vocal color was immediately recognizable and perfectly matched the song title.
After all, the performers on stage were all actors, not professional singers. Their professionalism was a bit lacking; some rushed the beat, some cracked their voices, and some forgot their lyrics. Basically, every possible mistake was made at least once.
However, it was understandable. After all, it was everyone's first time collaborating on stage, so a few blunders were quite normal.
Only Yi Xing's performance was slightly more stable. He at least played the violin, so he had his own method for grasping musical rhythm. At most, his high note would cut out halfway through.
The directors watching from below couldn't help but frown. This was quite different from the effect they had envisioned. They exchanged glances and nodded, realizing they needed to make these people practice more.
If it remained like this, they would only be able to pre-record the song and play the recording during the actual performance, having the Hua Shao Group lip-sync to avoid further embarrassment.
It was because the station had high expectations for this variety show, just like "Accelerated." It was a unique existence, with no similar variety shows on the market. They were the first to divide the cake, so how could they not receive special attention?
Finally, the song ended. Yi Xing and the group looked down at the floor, wanting to find a hole to hide in. Their performance was truly too poor; they felt too embarrassed to stand there.
"This should be your first stage collaboration, right?" the director sitting on the far left asked.
"Yes, we just got here and went straight on stage; we haven't had a chance to practice together," Zheng Peipei stepped forward and replied. As the eldest sister of the group, she felt it was her place to accept criticism.
"Then it's not surprising. There's a dedicated practice room backstage. You all go down and practice more later. We'll be here tonight to see how it goes again."
"Okay."
The Hua Shao Group returned backstage with heavy hearts. Led by a staff member, they arrived at the practice room, unable to recapture the feeling they had when recording the theme song.
Without someone to guide them, simply practicing on their own wouldn't lead to any progress. Singing is different from dancing; it's not something that can be mastered just by practicing a lot.
Once the vocal placement or pitch isn't right, practicing is futile; it only leads them further down the wrong path. The production team had clearly considered this point, and after a short while, someone pushed open the door and walked in. She was there to teach singing.
"Hello everyone, my surname is Lin. You can call me Xiao Lin or Teacher Lin. First, each of you sing your part, and I'll listen for any issues." Teacher Lin immediately got to work because not only the Hua Shao Group needed teaching, but others did too.
The first part was Yi Xing's. He put his hand in front of his mouth as if it were a microphone and sang: "Our backpacks are filled with sunshine, let's go to the mountaintop to bask in the moonlight."
"Good, your voice is very pleasant, no major problems. Alright, next."
"Thank you, Teacher Lin."
It really took a professional. Everyone understood how to perform their respective parts. Then came the chorus, which was the most prone to errors and could easily turn into a chaotic mess.
The most time was spent on this, practicing over and over again. As the repetitions increased, the coordination between everyone's voices improved significantly, finally starting to sound decent.
"Remember this feeling, everyone. I still have to go teach others, so I'm leaving now." Teacher Lin said and then left, not even giving them a chance to say thank you.
"I'm hungry, how about we go eat first, and then come back to practice after dinner?" Li Feier said, rubbing her stomach. It was already past one in the afternoon, almost past lunchtime.
This suggestion immediately received everyone's approval. They found a nearby restaurant, quickly filled their stomachs, and returned to the practice room, resting in chairs for a while. After a little more practice, they returned to the hotel.
Today's practice duration was sufficient; practicing any longer would harm their voices. They needed to rest it to prepare for the evening. Stopping at the right point was enough, so as not to affect tomorrow's official performance.