mijobooks Chapter 1151: It's almost 3
Chapter 1151: It's almost 3
Chapter 1151: Turning Thirty
Seeing manager Ahn Seung-won so excited and serious, the other members were ready to hear an important news. However, after he finished speaking, some members like Chi Jingyuan were surprised, while others like Wu Sehun looked dazed.
"elder brother……"
Byun Baekhyun hesitated for a moment, secretly glanced at the expressions of the members next to him, then asked in a puzzled voice, helping the others to ask: "What is BBMA...?"
"Forehead……"
An Chengyuan was stunned for a moment, looking at these male artists with high school education and no skills in disbelief: "You idols don't even know BBMA?"
He said how come no one was excited after such big news was announced, and after all this time they didn't even understand what it was.
...But Chi Jingyuan should know that he saw sarcasm on this boy's face.
But he was too lazy to complain and just explained to the kids around him: "BBMA is the Billboard Music Awards. The full name is Billboard Music Awards. You know Billboard, right? It's that award."
"Oh my god, it's a bulletin board. Why didn't you tell me earlier? Who wouldn't know this?"
Wu Sehun and the others, who had been illiterate for a long time, finally reacted after hearing this explanation, and then acted as if they had known it for a long time to cover up their embarrassment.
But what they said makes sense. The abbreviation of BBMA may not be understood at first, but everyone has definitely heard of the name of Billboard Music Awards.
The Billboard Music Awards is a very famous music award. Since the world-renowned Billboard chart itself has a very high reputation, those who can participate are basically first-line artists who have achieved outstanding results that year.
It is indeed necessary for singers to know this, and no wonder An Chengyuan felt puzzled when he saw that they had never heard of it before.
Maybe in the eyes of some people it is not as prestigious as the Grammy Awards, but for artists in the Peninsula, they inherently respect the A-list market, and the Billboard is definitely one of the most influential and valuable awards in the global music industry. For them, it is a very distant award ceremony that can only be seen on TV.
And when the embarrassment ended and everyone began to digest An Chengyuan's words, they couldn't help but be surprised.
What did this guy just say? Did the BBMA invite them?
This is a billboard. Did they invite EXO?
"Brother, is this true? Don't tell me you've been fooled."
Chi Jingyuan spoke first, and said to An Chengyuan with some disbelief... As someone who has lived in Amei for several years, he is very clear about the importance of the Billboard Music Awards. Although it is not extremely authoritative, it is still very valuable.
At least from the perspective of people on the peninsula, it is definitely much higher than the local MMA and MAMA. Even being able to participate is a very high honor, which is better than the local awards. After all, that is to compete with those very famous singers.
But he always felt that he had some connection with EXO.
...They haven't even been to America yet.
"How is that possible? I just confirmed the news that Director Han told me over the phone several times."
An Chengyuan said hurriedly after hearing this, and took out his phone to show them a photo of the invitation letter: "Look, the invitation letter was just sent not long ago. It is clearly written that the inviter is the American TV production company Dick Clark Productions, inviting us EXO to attend this year's awards ceremony, and even the award is written..."
Chi Jingyuan followed and looked around, and found that it was actually real. While he was amazed, he also read the invitation letter carefully.
“Is it really a bulletin board?”
"You actually invited us? We didn't do much in Ami last year."
"This year? I remember it should be held soon..."
The members around were excited. Even if they didn't know much about it, they had at least heard of the name and status of this award. An Chengyuan and SM's excitement instantly spread to EXO. Everyone was very clear about the value of this invitation.
"Brother, what award were we shortlisted for? The Newcomer Award?" Jin Junmyeon asked with shining eyes.
"It can't be the grand prize, right?... Uh, they don't seem to have a grand prize, could it be the best artist?" Wu Sehun licked his face and started to YY.
When he heard their question, Chi Jingyuan pricked up his ears to listen to An Chengyuan's reply. He didn't look up because he had already read the content of the award on the invitation letter.
"What are you thinking? How could it be the best artist?" The manager looked at Wu Se-hun speechlessly, then shook his head and said in a slightly cooler tone: "It's not the new artist award, but... the best social artist award."
What is this award?
Although the others didn't say anything, everyone could see the confusion in their eyes.
An Chengyuan also noticed it, and quickly began to explain, saying that he had just looked up the information: "Unlike the Grammy Awards, which are based on judges' votes, the Billboard Awards are completely dependent on B chart data. The Best Social Artist Award is based on all the data flow of the Billboard Social 50 chart in a year to select the nominees."
"And this B list social 50 is a ranking of the most active artists on SNS at the moment. The data detection platform determines the popularity of artists by collecting data such as the number of fans and followers that the artists gain each week, the number of songs played each week, the popularity of discussions on social platforms, as well as the number of MV views and Spotify song streaming. It includes statistics on almost all imaginable social networking sites, including YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, INS, etc."
"To put it simply, this list calculates an artist's weekly activity, number of fans, and popularity trends on social networking sites in the United States, and the awards selected based on this list..." An Chengyuan organized his words, as if he wanted to briefly introduce the award they were nominated for.
“It’s just the popularity award~”
Chi Jingyuan raised his head and summed it up succinctly: "Internet Popularity Award."
"Well... you could say that."
An Chengyuan paused for a moment when he heard this summary, and nodded in agreement...but his eyes twitched slightly, because he felt that after Chi Jingyuan's summary, their award, which was originally very high-end on the billboard, suddenly became much lower-class.
Ji Jingyuan actually felt the same way. He was very excited when he heard that EXO was selected for BBMA. He thought it was because of Kpop, or that their group finally got recognition from mainstream pop music, which made him excited.
After all the trouble, all I got was a popularity award... the same as Yoona senior.
Chi Jingyuan's interest dropped instantly.
"It's not just a popularity award. Well... at least the competition is very fierce. The Social 50 list every week is full of popular singers in Europe and the United States, such as GAGA, Ariana Grande, Bieber, Harry Styles, Nicki Minaj, Queen Bee, these are the hottest singers. As a Kpop boy band, it is already a great thing for us to be able to compete with them."
An Chengyuan tried hard to introduce himself, trying to cheer up the people around him.
"The Popularity Award is pretty impressive, this is a bulletin board!"
"That's right, I found that Jingyuan seemed to look down on the popularity award."
"Is there any special reason?"
The members nearby were not affected at all, but instead kept talking more excitedly.
And Chi Jingyuan's expression became serious again. What these brothers said made sense. Regardless of whether it was the Popularity Award or not, it was indeed not easy for EXO to be selected as a boy group of niche music and compete with these popular European and American singers. It could even be said that this was the second time that Kpop was recognized by America with a major award.
The first one is PSY. With the hit song "Gangnam Style", he defeated Taylor Swift and Carly Jepsen to win the Best Streaming Song Award at the 2013 Billboard Music Awards.
This also brought PSY to the top in his native country of the peninsula. Although his subsequent songs flopped at light speed in Europe and the United States and never made any splash, the capital he had earned before was enough for him to live on for the rest of his life in his native country.
"I just checked, we are the only Korean artist nominated for the Billboard Music Awards in recent years, but..."
An Chengyuan calmed down and said helplessly, "From the 2011 Billboard Music Awards to this year, the Best Social Artist Award has been monopolized by Justin Bieber every year for six years... So even though we are selected, it may be difficult for us to win."
"..."
After hearing what the agent said, the members who had just been excited about the invitation calmed down again, and even felt a little disappointed.
This is Justin Bieber, a male artist who is extremely popular all over the world. This kind of competitor... I always feel that he is not in the same style as them.
"When will this year's Billboard be held?" asked Byun Baekhyun.
"May 5.30th." Kim Jong Dae came out with Naver in his hand.
"May 5th? We should be in the middle of new album promotions at that time, so the schedules are a bit conflicting."
Chi Jingyuan thought for a moment and said something, then looked at An Chengyuan curiously: "No stage?"
“There was no invitation to the stage, just being selected for the award.”
The agent shook his head: "The company just received the invitation, and has not yet decided whether to go."
He paused, then continued, "Because according to this year's plan, we will be active in Japan for the next two to three months, and all the schedules for the next month have even been arranged, but this award invitation... to be honest, it has disrupted the company's plans a bit."
"Some representatives believe that if we win the award, it will greatly increase XO's popularity and it will be a good opportunity to enter the Aramco market, so they may rearrange our plans for this year. If we win the award, we may shorten our trip in Neon... But the company is currently discussing it."
After hearing what the agent said, the other members also understood.
Originally, EXO's schedule for the whole year has been arranged. They will start releasing a Japanese album in May, and will be active in Japan for about three months. Then they will go to the United States to release the new album in September to test the waters. The promotion will depend on the response and results. They will then return to their home country around November at the end of the year to release their only Peninsula album this year.
The activities were very tight but well organized...but just when Neon's trip had just begun, he suddenly received an invitation from the billboard, which disrupted his planned schedule.
"No matter what, you have to go, right?"
Chi Jingyuan shrugged and found the problem: "It's such an important occasion. Even if you didn't win the award, you can't not go, right? The fans won't be happy."
"Go...I should definitely go."
An Chengyuan nodded slowly, then calmed down, waved his hand and began to explain: "As for the other things, don't worry about them for now. If there are any changes, I will inform you after the company has discussed it. For now, we should follow the original plan, finish the activities in the next few days, and release the album first."
…………
The sudden invitation from the billboard made both SM and EXO secretly excited, but the activities in Japan still had to continue.
After the fan meeting in Osaka, EXO went straight to Tokyo and Nagoya, where they held fan meetings with tens of thousands of people each, as a way to greet all Japanese fans and local artists during their arrival.
Especially the third Nagoya fan meeting, because that day was Chi Jingyuan’s birthday, not only was a special birthday celebration session held at the fan meeting, but many fans also bought various gifts for Chi Jingyuan. Several large tables were piled with gifts in the backstage corridor, and the assistants had to move the gifts several times.
Besides some dolls and clothes, most of the gifts were high-end action figures, electronic products, tablet computers, and other valuable items. Chi Jingyuan received dozens of Nintendo's latest console, the Switch, which was released at the beginning of this year...
He had no choice but to accept it. If he accepted it, some fans would be even happier than her, thinking that they were taking care of their idol. If he didn't accept it, some fans would break down and cry on the spot, thinking that their love could not be conveyed to their idol and that their sincerity and efforts had been wasted.
Chi Jingyuan looked at the piles of expensive gifts and was moved, but he could only sigh that Japanese fans were really too enthusiastic... and a little too rich.
The three fan meetings were held in full swing, and the impact was also very hot. They were directly on the hot searches in Japan and the two countries of the Peninsula. A large number of fans' live photos and videos appeared on Twitter and Instagram. Topics, fans:
"EXO's stage performance was truly stunning. The choreography and lighting were absolutely meticulously designed, and the Japanese lyrics were very heartfelt."
"Ahhh this is so cool, everyone's Japanese is so great."
"I'm sorry, I thought I would love TVXQ forever, now I'm cheating on you XO... But if it's my junior, Yunho-kun probably won't blame me."
“I wasn’t really interested in Peninsula idols at first, but after watching them, I think Kpop idol culture is really good and I’m looking forward to their future development.
"EXO is truly an idol of all time. Our country's idol culture has not improved for many years. We really should learn from it."
After the first day of the Osaka fan meeting, Japanese media Oricon News was the first to report: "EXO's Japan fan meeting was a complete success, and the members' sincerity and strength were impressive."
The Korean media Dispatch also followed up immediately, reporting on the grand occasion of the fan meeting, praising EXO's internationalization and calling it "Asia's No. 1 boy band."
……
"Come on, let's wish Jingyuan a happy 24th birthday!"
"Birthday card!"
"Birthday card!"
In a private room of a specialty Japanese restaurant in Nagoya, nine EXO members sat at two tables. They all raised their glasses, shouted a few blessings, and then clinked their glasses together. Chi Jingyuan also happily returned the greetings to everyone and drank the wine in one gulp.
The slightly spicy taste made him breathe out a breath, and under the influence of the wine and the lively atmosphere around him, he felt his body warm.
He didn’t really have any thoughts about his birthday before. After all, he celebrated it every year and it was getting older and older... But when this day really came, that innate special feeling was still different.
Before I knew it, he was already 24 years old according to the Peninsula calculation. The once sunny and youthful boy has now become more and more mature, and has even begun to move towards his thirties.
"Oh my god, the youngest member is already 24 years old without us noticing, and we are all getting older too."
"Stop talking. I'm already 27 and will be serving in the military soon."
"Oh, I'm worried every day that I'll get a letter from the Military Service Office when I wake up one day..."
The brothers nearby seemed to be touched as well. It was Ji Jingyuan's birthday, but Kim Minseok, Park Chanyeol and others couldn't help but lament the fleeting youth of their own.
But it is true. Kim Minseok, the oldest member of EXO, is already 28 years old according to the Peninsula calculation, and his military service is really not far away... and military service is the most feared and saddest hurdle for all Peninsula male artists.
No one had deliberately talked about this before, but today is Chi Jingyuan’s birthday, and they suddenly realized that this once youngest member has unknowingly grown up so mature, and the brothers who are almost thirty finally started to worry.
It’s a pity that Chi Jingyuan, who had no worries about military service, couldn’t empathize with them. He could only sigh and comfort them, and have a few drinks with them.
After three rounds of drinks, the atmosphere was high. Everyone's face was flushed under the influence of alcohol and they were very interested. Park Chanyeol was holding a wine glass and talking about his experience of hunting for beauties in Japan in a dramatic manner. Kim Jong-in and Oh Se-hun, the two supporting actors, were sitting next to him and cheering enthusiastically.
Kim Minseok might have drunk a little too much, and the emotions that had been pent up for a long time due to his age and military service burst out, and he even shed tears. Kim Junmyeon and others chatted and comforted him.
Chi Jingyuan was sitting next to him, leaning against the wall, his face slightly red and his body hot. Today's birthday also made him feel quite emotional.
Just as he was listening to the noise around him and wanted to say something, his eyes suddenly paused when he saw the shoulder bag beside him, and he thought of something.
By the way, the gift that the black girl gave to Zhou Ziyu is still in her bag. When I first got it, I was very curious about what it was and wanted to open it, but she made a fuss for a long time and I couldn’t do it. Then I was too busy in the next few days and forgot about it again.
After remembering this, Chi Jingyuan suddenly became interested. He reached out for the bag, took out the small packaged box, and opened it in his hand.
But after opening it and looking at the light-colored envelope in his hand, Chi Jingyuan was stunned.
Ok?
A letter?