The good news Chen Fei'er was referring to concerned the Global Chinese Music Awards, which would be held in the capital city on December 31 of that year.
Before 2016, the major annual celebrations of Chinese pop music were centered around three major music award ceremonies:
Asian Chinese Music Awards
China Original Music Chart Awards
Chinese Music Chart Awards
Of these, the first two were regarded as the most authoritative and influential.
As it happened, the Asian Chinese Music Awards and the China Original Music Chart Awards had recently undergone a merger and reorganization, a true alliance of giants.
The newly established Global Chinese Music Awards that emerged from this merger instantly became the most prestigious music award in the Chinese-language pop music world. In comparison, the Chinese Music Chart Awards, led by Xiangnan TV, were completely overshadowed.
Moreover, this year marked the inaugural edition of the Global Chinese Music Awards, giving the event even greater significance.
Most people in the entertainment industry had already learned the basic details of the highly anticipated ceremony. The Chinese Golden Melody Awards featured a total of twenty-four categories, including:
Best Male Singer
Best Female Singer
Best Album
Best Lyricist
Best Composer
Best New Artist
Best Band
Best New Group
Best Music Video
and many others.
The ceremony was scheduled to be held every year on the final day of December at the National Centre for the Performing Arts, and both its scale and prestige had reached a national level. It was destined to become influential not only throughout Asia but across the global Chinese-speaking community.
No ambitious musician would willingly miss such a grand occasion.
Of course, earning a place among the nominees was extraordinarily difficult.
According to insider information obtained by Chen Fei'er, Lu Chen had already secured nominations in multiple categories; the only thing left was the official announcement.
Under the rules of the Global Chinese Music Awards, each category could have no more than five nominees, and only a single winner would be selected.
There would be no situations involving tied winners or multiple recipients sharing the same award.
Clearly, the organizing committee had learned from the mistakes of many other award ceremonies.
In the past, both the film and music industries had often been criticized for "dividing up the pork", a Chinese expression referring to distributing awards among different parties to keep everyone happy. It was common to see two actors sharing a Best Actor award, two actresses sharing Best Actress, or even three winners standing on stage together, creating awkward situations.
This seniority-based, everyone-gets-a-share approach had long been criticized by audiences. Instead of increasing fairness, it had weakened both the prestige and credibility of many awards. In some cases, winners had even refused to accept their trophies.
At the Golden Melody Awards, however, there would be only one winner in every category.
Having spent more than a decade in the industry, Chen Fei'er's network of contacts far surpassed Lu Chen's. As a result, she had already heard quite a few insider details before Lu Chen himself received any news.
"You're definitely nominated for Best Male Singer, Best Album, Best Lyricist, and Best Composer," she said.
"As for the other categories, I'm not sure. But honestly, having those four nominations alone is already more than enough."
A nomination might sound modest, but at an event as prestigious as the Global Chinese Music Awards, it was already an extraordinary achievement.
The awards covered the entire Chinese-language music scene worldwide, including artists from Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. Competition for nominations was therefore exceptionally fierce.
Those four major nominations represented four solid pillars supporting Lu Chen's standing in the entertainment industry.
And there might even be more than four.
Lu Chen chuckled.
"They're only nominations. There's always the possibility that I won't win a single award in the end."
Chen Fei'er replied,
"Humility is a wonderful virtue, but excessive humility becomes hypocrisy. If you can't win even one award, then the Golden Melody Awards won't deserve their reputation."
She spoke with complete seriousness.
She wasn't joking.
Over the past year, Lu Chen's contributions and achievements in pop music had been obvious to everyone. Through his own efforts, he had shaken up the entire music industry and breathed new life into original Chinese music.
The members of the Golden Melody Awards committee could not possibly have failed to notice that.
Nor could they simply pretend not to see it.
Otherwise, how could the ceremony maintain any credibility?
Lu Chen laughed.
"It would be nice if you were on the judging panel. By the way, how many nominations did you get?"
Leaving everything else aside, it would have been absurd if Chen Fei'er had not received nominations for Best Female Singer and Best Album. Her album Flower Woman had sold more than five million copies.
Chen Fei'er replied,
"I'll definitely have fewer nominations than you. For Best Album, though, I think we'll be competitors."
A celebrity couple competing against each other for Best Album,
As long as the organizers understood even the basics of publicity and marketing, there was no way they would pass up such a perfect opportunity to generate buzz.
"Bring it on, then!" Lu Chen declared.
Chen Fei'er laughed.
"You think I'm afraid of you? Whoever loses has to do the dishes at home from now on!"
Lu Chen agreed without hesitation.
"You're on!"
The two burst out laughing at the same time.
Although thousands of kilometers separated them, their hearts were still filled with sweetness and warmth.
Chen Fei'er said softly,
"I miss you."
Lu Chen comforted her.
"When the New Year holiday comes, let's take some time off. I'll take you to Bali for a few days."
Chen Fei'er's spirits immediately soared.
"Then I'll be looking forward to the New Year!"
Her excitement was like that of a little girl who had just received her favorite toy, overflowing with happiness.
As they exchanged affectionate words, time quietly slipped by.
On November 12th, the fifth day after Lu Chen's return to Capital City, the organizing committee of the Global Chinese Music Awards simultaneously released both the official nominee list and the judging panel roster on its official website, formally opening the curtain on the year's biggest music event.
Chen Fei'er's information had proven completely accurate.
Lu Chen received nominations in six categories:
Best Male Singer
Best Album
Best Lyricist
Best Composer
Best Producer
Media Recommendation Award
Among them, the first four were considered major, heavyweight awards.
As for Chen Fei'er, she received nominations in:
Best Female Singer
Best Album
Best Stage Performance
Media Recommendation Award
Most notably, Lu Chen and Chen Fei'er found themselves competing directly against each other in both the Best Album and Media Recommendation Award categories.
Although such a situation was perfectly normal, many people could clearly see the organizers' intentions behind it.
Particularly on the official nomination list, the two names were placed right next to each other, making the rivalry especially eye-catching.
The Golden Melody Awards nomination list quickly spread across the internet.
The official accounts of Lu Chen Workshop, Chen Fei'er Workshop, and both artists' fan clubs reposted the announcement, immediately triggering a sensation among fans.
"Wow! My Chen and My Fei are going head-to-head!"
"Come on, everyone, who do you think will win?"
"If you ask me, the perfect outcome would be for them to share Best Album!"
"Stop dreaming. The Golden Melody Awards don't do ties."
"Flower Woman versus Ordinary Road, which album am I supposed to support?"
"I'm supporting both. I'll be happy no matter who wins!"
"Happy +1."
However, the confidence with which both fandoms treated the Best Album award as if it were already theirs did not sit well with the fans of the other nominated albums.
Before long, arguments erupted across blogs, forums, discussion boards, and WeChat groups.
For the moment, though, nobody could say who would ultimately emerge victorious.
The answer would only be revealed at the end of the following month.
(End of Chapter)
You can read ahead up to 60 chapters on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/darkshadow6395