A big golden cage hung high up in the air above the stage. Iris sat in a broken pose inside, humming a mournful melody. She closed her eyes while her face showed an expression of desolation. She appeared fragile in a white feather dress. The hearts of the people watching all skipped a beat seeing her ethereal beauty.
Not only the Black Stars but everyone else in the audience cheered loudly when she finally appeared. However, they controlled their noise volume when the dark melody and foreboding marching beat intensified like the climax of a battlefield.
Then everything went quiet.
A lone violin played a familiar melody, greatly exciting the audience as they recognized it. Iris finally opened her eyes. She looked directly at the camera and began to sing.
"Caged and chained in a tiny world
Wondering what it's like outside
A little bird imprisoned by love
Dying little by little inside"
It was the song "Rebirth" which launched her to the top of the music charts after her first comeback.
"I want to be free
Free as a bird
But where are my wings
I cannot fly"
The musical arrangement was a little different than the original this time. It sounded more dramatic and dynamic.
Iris continued to sing while her broken pose gradually became strong. She stood, as the door of the golden cage swung open. She stepped on the edge of the cage's opening, teetering dangerously.
"At last, I'm free
Will I ever fly?"
Jin Liwei almost stood up from his seat to run and catch her before noticing the wires behind her. He heard a snicker beside him. Jin Chonglin was laughing at his reaction. After glaring at his younger brother, Jin Liwei decided to ignore him for the rest of the performance.
Iris' fall stopped in mid-air. She floated and swept her arms wide to the side as if spreading her wings. It was only at that time that the people realized how long and wide the trail of her feather dress was. She looked like a bird flying in the sky.
"From the ashes, I rise like a phoenix
A little bird no more
I spread my wings, so big and wide
Now I am free
Now I can fly"
The hooded choir removed their capes in a perfect synchronized movement. All of them wore beautiful white, green and blue feathery costumes. They started singing along with Iris, as if she was their phoenix queen and they were her bird subjects.
Iris' voice became more powerful, not the least bit drowned by her impressive choir singers. She began flying all around the arena above the audience, delighting and exciting everyone. She was really like a phoenix. A beautifully pure phoenix queen.
When the music reached crescendo, she demonstrated her vocal prowess, reaching such high and powerful notes that the people began to think she wasn't human anymore.
"So this is freedom
I am free
Oh yes, I am free~"
The lights throughout the arena suddenly dimmed. They flashed between the colours yellow, orange and crimson. Crackling sound effects made it look like the entire arena, especially the stage, was caught in a raging fire.
Iris disappeared again within the darkness but not for long. About half a minute later, she reappeared at the centre of the stage. This time, her long white feather dress was nowhere in sight. It was replaced by a blazing red dress instead. Although the red dress had similar feathery details like the white one, it was not as delicate and looked more edgy.
The pure white phoenix had transformed into a fire phoenix!
Then she walked slowly from the centre of the stage to the front. Her hips swayed side to side in an alluring manner with every step. Her footsteps were enhanced by sound effects, making them echo throughout the entire arena.
It was as if she was walking towards her lover. And indeed, she was. Her eyes were looking directly at Jin Liwei who was sitting directly in front of the stage. Their eyes locked at each other. Despite this, nobody noticed that she was looking at a single person. They thought that her passionate gaze was part of her performance.
When she reached the front of the stage, she raised the mic to her mouth and spoke to the audience.
"Ladies and gentlemen, joining me for this next song is the man who took a chance on me, believed in me, and helped me rise from the ashes. Please welcome the multi-award-winning music producer, Mr. JJ!!!"
The smaller stage located among the audience lit up. Everyone gasped. JJ sat in front of the piano and began to play a familiar yet somehow different melody.
Most of the younger audience members and home viewers were surprised that JJ was actually performing on stage with Iris. They never watched him perform before. However, the older people had nostalgic expressions on their faces as they watched him perform again after so many years.
Their generation remembered that JJ began his career as a performing artist. His music was brilliant but his singing voice wasn't very great. It didn't help that he had a bad temper and clashed with others a lot. Unable to make a breakthrough in his stagnant career, he gave up being a performer and became a music producer instead.
Within a couple of years, he began collecting hit songs after hit songs under his belt and launched some of the most popular stars in the country. As they say, the rest was history.
Back to the performance.
The perfectly lined up choir began humming to match JJ's piano melody. Special effects continued to make it appear as if Iris was burning in a sea of fire.
Then she began to sing a mashup of her two songs "Phantom of Your Love" and "Black Star". The music was dramatic and spectacular, harrowing yet lifting at the same time.
The musical arrangement was superb, combining the best elements of Iris' vocal prowess, JJ's rough yet dynamic style of playing the piano, the grandeur of a full symphony orchestra, and of course the hair-raising sound of the singing choir.
When the melody reached crescendo and Iris reached the highest notes of the song, golden fireworks exploded on the stage. Then the fire effects seamlessly transformed into a dazzling rain shower in the background. The yellow, orange and red colours turned into a shining and purifying white light.
Iris reached behind her back and pulled. Her red phoenix dress came off. She was left wearing a simple yet elegant white tube dress. This quick change occurred in the blink of an eye at the same time the performance ended with a magnificent flourish.