[Lu Chen Makes a Bold Declaration: 'Full House' Ratings to Break 4%!]
["Flat Three, Peak Four", What Gives Lu Chen Such Confidence? Let's Wait and See!]
[Summer TV Dramas Heat Up Before Airing: 'Vast Seas of Love' VS 'Full House', Who Will Have the Last Laugh?]
[4%! Lu Chen's New Drama Aims for a New Record!]
That very evening, media outlets large and small rushed to publish Lu Chen's remarks from the press conference on their websites, whipping things up into a blazing frenzy.
By comparison, the news of Lu Chen and Chen Fei'er being named "Jeju Island Tourism Ambassadors" was pushed into a corner, receiving far less attention than the phrase "flat three, peak four."
And "flat three, peak four", a fresh term coined by Lu Chen himself, quickly shot up the blog platform's trending list.
Naturally, Lu Chen's fans were inspired by his bold words and rallied to support him enthusiastically. Many industry insiders, however, held the opposite view, believing that Lu Chen was overly confident and bound to suffer for it sooner or later.
The domestic TV drama and variety show market had long since turned into a blood-red ocean. The level of competition was something outsiders simply couldn't imagine, especially during the summer slot, which was precisely when every major satellite station unleashed its full firepower.
During the summer season, newly produced dramas tended to air in clusters. Without a powerful star lineup or intensive promotional campaigns, breaking out of this bottomless red sea was unquestionably extremely difficult.
Even though Lu Chen had the backing of industry giants like Capital City TV and Zhedong Satellite TV, as well as the phenomenal success of 'Autumn in My Heart' as his foundation, aiming for an average rating above 3% was still seen as far too arrogant.
After all, his opponent was Xiangnan Satellite TV, the self-proclaimed king of the summer slot.
Xiangnan Satellite TV had always been the dominant force among domestic provincial stations. Its self-produced dramas and variety shows towered over the rest, and when it came to the summer season, the number of strong cards it could play was anything but small.
It was obvious that Xiangnan Satellite TV intended to use the all-star, big-budget 'Vast Seas of Love' to confront 'Full House' head-on. If Lu Chen's drama could merely hold an average rating of 2%, that would already count as a victory. "Flat three, peak four" sounded wildly exaggerated.
On Langchao Blog, some people openly mocked Lu Chen for getting carried away, asserting that he would inevitably be slapped in the face by reality.
Others even tagged Hu Yang, asking for his opinion.
Hu Yang immediately responded on his blog, telling everyone to wait and see, he had absolute confidence in 'Vast Seas of Love'.
His post instantly received massive numbers of shares, likes, and comments. The official account of 'Vast Seas of Love' and its main cast members all came forward to offer encouragement and support.
A huge wave of momentum was quickly manufactured, creating the impression that Lu Chen was arrogantly boasting beyond his means, and that this ratings battle, which hadn't even begun yet, was already a sure win for 'Vast Seas of Love'.
Although Lu Chen's fans celebrated the honor he and Chen Fei'er had received, they also fought back tirelessly against the belittling of Lu Chen. As a result, that night's Langchao Blog once again turned into a battlefield of heated debate.
However, compared to the piles of paid commenters and online promoters, their voices were clearly not loud enough and remained firmly suppressed.
"Xiangnan Satellite TV…"
Lu Chen sat in front of his computer, browsing the smoke-filled Langchao Blog, and couldn't help but shake his head.
No matter how Hu Yang jumped around, Lu Chen didn't take him seriously. The real trouble was Xiangnan Satellite TV.
There was no denying that Xiangnan Satellite TV possessed tremendous power in publicity, especially in shaping online opinion. Their all-out promotion of 'Vast Seas of Love' this time had undoubtedly created a very strong impact.
By comparison, whether it was Zhedong Satellite TV or Capital City TV, both were far weaker than Xiangnan Satellite TV on the battlefield of online promotion. Even combined, the follower counts of their official blog accounts amounted to only about one-tenth of Xiangnan Satellite TV's.
Although blog follower numbers were easy to fake, the gap between the two sides was still obvious.
And such a promotional offensive was bound to affect the ratings of both TV dramas; its impact could not be underestimated.
"Now you see how formidable they are, right?" Chen Fei'er hugged Lu Chen from behind and said with a smile. "A senior once told me: you shouldn't be friends with Xiangnan Satellite TV, but you also shouldn't make them your enemy."
Lu Chen stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Sounds pretty intimidating. After this summer, I hope it'll change to, don't be friends with Lu Chen either, and don't become his enemy!"
"Hehe~"
Chen Fei'er was so amused by Lu Chen's domineering declaration that she burst into laughter. She leaned in and kissed his cheek, saying, "I just love how confident you are!"
The first time she'd developed feelings for Lu Chen was during Singing China. Back then, Lu Chen had still been an unknown newcomer, yet standing on stage he possessed a maturity and confidence completely different from others.
It was a kind of maturity and confidence Chen Fei'er hadn't even seen in many veteran singers who had debuted years earlier.
His talent came second.
Lu Chen said, "We also need to put more effort into promotion. We can't let them keep the upper hand."
Chen Fei'er sat on his lap and asked curiously, "What do you plan to do?"
In fact, whether it was Capital City TV, Zhedong Satellite TV, or their own studio, promotional work for 'Full House' had already begun, only, the intensity was far weaker than their opponent's.
Lu Chen chuckled and said, "Let's throw out a flashbang first."
At 11:15 p.m. that night, Chen Fei'er's blog suddenly published a new post.
In the post, titled "Only For You", she wrote:
In the quiet of the late night, here's a new song for everyone, someone's self-accompanied, self-sung original. It's an insert song from 'Full House'. If you like it, give it a thumbs-up! (^__^)
Attached was a video recorded on a phone.
In the video, Lu Chen, wearing a T-shirt and shorts, sat in front of a small bar counter, a guitar held in his arms.
When the camera turned and settled on him, Lu Chen smiled and said, "This song is called 'Only For You.'"
"Oh! Only for you,
I'd turn into a shadow, following you step by step.
Oh! Only for you,
My heart becomes a castle,
Belonging only to you for all my life.
Oh! Only for you,
You say I'm too childish,
That I don't know how to care for a delicate heart.
But I've always been sincere,
I just never said it out loud.
The blueprint of our future is already in my heart,
…"**
Lu Chen had written one theme song and two insert songs for 'Full House' in total. Only For You was one of those insert tracks, and originally, it hadn't been planned for release during the early promotional phase.
But faced with the opponent's aggressive offensive, not showing some real substance was simply out of the question.
What was Lu Chen's greatest strength?
His musical talent.
One outstanding, even classic, original song after another was the true foundation of his foothold in the entertainment industry, something completely different from people like Hu Yang.
His fanbase as a singer was also far larger than his drama-viewing audience.
Many people didn't particularly like the TV dramas Lu Chen acted in, but they never missed any of his new songs. And a widely loved hit song could have a powerful positive effect on a TV drama or a movie.
Only For You was a very straightforward love song. Its melody was bright and catchy, lacking the sorrowful, gloomy tone common in many love songs, giving listeners a refreshing and uplifting feeling.
"…
You often say I'm too practical,
That I don't know how to express the romance in my heart.
But I've always been careful,
Preparing everything for loving you,
Until everything is ready right before my eyes.
Oh! Only for you,
…"
Lu Chen's performance of this song was both passionate and heartfelt. As he played and sang, his gaze never left the camera, never left Chen Fei'er holding the phone.
The sunny smile on his face, the tenderness shining from his dark eyes, instantly moved everyone watching the video, especially the emotionally sensitive female fans!
So even though it was already close to midnight, Chen Fei'er's post still garnered tens of thousands of shares. The number of likes surged steadily, and countless fans flooded the comment section with messages.
A gentle flashbang had been launched just like that, no paid commenters, no behind-the-scenes promoters, and virtually no cost at all, yet the effect achieved was something that even hundreds of thousands, or even millions, in marketing expenses might not have been able to match.
(End of Chapter)
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