FWTS Chapter 110: The First Song
"Putting together a collection of songs?"
Hou Muyun was speechless. "So to you singer-songwriters, an album is like a bicycle, something you can just put together randomly!"
Zhang Fan laughed, "Nonsense! Isn't an album just a collection of songs? Do you think all singers are like a few of us, able to sing and write our own songs? Even for us, it's impossible to write and compose every single song on every album. Let me tell you..."
On the flight from Changsha to Hangzhou, the group chatted freely, and Hou Muyun gained a deeper understanding of songwriting and album production, hearing about some behind-the-scenes details unknown to outsiders.
In Hangzhou, Hou Muyun almost fully participated in the song selection, arranging, and rehearsals with these star mentors. After recording "War of Music" the next day, Hou Muyun followed Shi ShiwU to Shanghai.
Many well-known singers from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia, including Shi ShiwU, had shifted their focus to the mainland, with studios and staff based either in Beijing or Shanghai. Shi ShiwU had a studio in Shanghai.
That evening, Hou Muyun met Shi ShiwU's junior, Kym. She used to be in the same company as Shi ShiwU and now had her own studio. She debuted as a singer and is also an actress. The album they were preparing was her sixth, with Shi ShiwU as the producer.
The album had been in preparation for quite some time. Besides the three songs written by Shi ShiwU, the rest of the tracks were already collected. The production had taken over two months, not just due to the meticulous crafting but also because Shi ShiwU had been busy with various variety shows, and Kym's schedule was also tight, delaying the recording process significantly.
After meeting, Shi ShiwU quickly got into the groove. Shi ShiwU's talent in music was indisputable, and he was very particular about his work, but this time Kym felt like she was going crazy.
The first thing Shi ShiwU did upon getting into the groove was to take out the four songs already recorded and scrap them all!
"Brother ShiwU, what are you doing!"
Kym was surprised, and the recording studio staff were dumbfounded.
The album had already been delayed for so long, and now they were starting over!
Shi ShiwU laughed, "I managed to get a free laborer; how can I not make him work! Let's have a meeting first!"
Kym and the others were puzzled, and Hou Muyun smiled wryly but was also intrigued.
After introducing the entire album, Shi ShiwU explained each song, focusing on the arrangements.
"Monkey, this is our current arrangement. Any comments? Let's start with the second main track."
This meeting lasted over three hours. After it ended, Kym and the other musicians understood why Shi ShiwU did what he did and were thoroughly impressed by Hou Muyun, who was indeed as capable as the online rumors suggested. The arrangements were indeed his work, not something Shi ShiwU and the others claimed to elevate his status.
It was almost midnight when the meeting ended, but the group was in high spirits, ready to pull an all-nighter. Hou Muyun truly felt the dedication of these musicians behind the scenes. The rumors about staying up all night to record songs were true; it was a regular occurrence.
The all-nighter lasted until nearly ten the next morning. The group went back to rest, especially Kym, who needed to recharge for the final recording of the four songs that night.
For three consecutive days, this was the routine, making Hou Muyun feel like he was on a pirate ship!
Recording alone wasn't an issue for Hou Muyun, but he also had to keep up with his daily updates. Luckily, his novel updates had slowed to five chapters a day, and there were a few pre-drawn chapters of his manga. Otherwise, he would have missed his deadlines.
As for live streaming, he left that to his studio.
Though it was exhausting and hectic, these few days were incredibly rewarding for Hou Muyun. He fully participated in the recording process of an album, integrating the knowledge of recording production, mixing, mastering, and arrangement he had gained from the cards with practical experience. This participation also significantly helped him in songwriting and composing.
Kym's album, produced crazily by Shi Shiwuwu, and arranged by Hou Muyun, quickly entered the post-production phase. Kym was in disbelief, thinking the album would take longer, but she was very satisfied with the quality. Once the album entered post-production, Hou Muyun hurriedly left. After a visit to Huashan Hospital, he rushed to the capital. Kym originally wanted to treat Hou Muyun to a good meal and give him a red envelope in person, but didn't have the chance. She followed Shi Shiwuwu's advice and sent a reward to "Xuan Yuan Jian Zhu."
Upon arriving in the capital, Hou Muyun "threw himself" into the preparation and rehearsal for the Second Zhang Duo's concert. The differences between a concert and an album recording were vast, beyond just the distinction between the recording studio and live performance. Hou Muyun, with his increased understanding, absorbed everything like a sponge, gaining a lot of experience and knowledge.
A few days later, Hou Muyun and the Second Zhang Duo flew away from the capital. The Second Zhang Duo went to Hangzhou to record a new episode of "Music Wars," while Hou Muyun flew to Ningbo to fulfill his promise of making dinner for a lucky fan who won a "customized" prize. That night, he took a car back to Ruicheng. Originally, he planned to learn more from Xiao Yu, but he was too exhausted and needed a break to digest everything.
During this time, his points kept increasing, and Hou Muyun occasionally drew cards. He drew 3 cooking attribute cards, 2 speech speed cards, and luckily, 2 composition, 2 lyric-writing, and 2 arrangement cards. His song creation "trio" all reached level 10! Meanwhile, rumors spread in certain circles about Hou Muyun learning music production from Shi Shiwuwu and others. Some even speculated that Hou Muyun was preparing to release a single or album, possibly with Shi Shiwuwu's involvement.
Indeed, after these experiences, Hou Muyun decided to release a song. After a good night's sleep back in Ruicheng, he wrote five chapters of his novel, completed the middle part of "Sword Master: Side Story," and spent the afternoon drawing two chapters of his manga. Finally, he could take a breath. Sitting on the balcony chair, feeling the cool breeze and watching the slowly setting sun, he felt great. He picked up the guitar gifted by Shi Shiwuwu and casually strummed the strings.
With all the recent travel and busyness, such leisure was rare. He reflected on his life over this period, from initial struggles to changes brought by the card system; from running around borrowing money due to his family's collapsed house and Hong Jiangbo’s issues, to now having millions in his bank account; from his early novels with few readers to having countless fans now.
"Life rises and falls like the tide, life changes unpredictably like the sky!" Hou Muyun sighed, looking at the sky. Suddenly, the melody he casually played made him shiver.
"It's done!" Hou Muyun jumped up, rushed to his room to record the melody, and played it again, grinning foolishly and dancing with joy. He had almost finished his first song while in Changsha, but it wasn't complete. After learning over time, he gradually formed it, but something always seemed missing. The melody just now, in that state of mind, completed it!
After writing the whole song, Hou Muyun played it multiple times. He then spent less than three minutes filling in the lyrics! For the next few hours, he kept tweaking it, and the more he worked on it, the more ideas he had.
"No, no, if I keep tweaking, it'll definitely collapse!" "Stay calm, stay calm!" Hou Muyun finally calmed himself down, but he was still eager and needed feedback from others.
He called Shi Shiwuwu.