Chapter 488 Breakthrough
Zheng Chenggong smiled faintly and said, "Of course we have to sing the songs we composed, but has Eun-ji forgotten what uncle said?"
“…”
Jung Eun-ji stared at Uncle Chenggong blankly, her mind full of question marks, and she had no idea what the uncle was talking about.
"Didn't I tell you that we should make Eun-ji a little star in Busan... Eun-ji, you should be the little star, not me or Xiao Xiao who should steal the spotlight!"
"Uncle, what does this mean? I don't understand!" Zheng Endi was completely confused and felt that her brain was not enough.
Zheng Chenggong put away his smile and said sincerely, "First of all, no matter what your reason is for going to Seoul, no matter what your dream is, for you, singing and music are always your favorites, right?"
Zheng En nodded her head.
"So what do you think is the biggest reason why singers are so popular?"
Jung Eun-ji was startled, then thought for a moment and replied cautiously, "Good singing!"
"That's right, it's just that they sing well. Although there are many idols in the entertainment industry now, it's hard to classify them as real singers. But they are just like you. Most of them are still very young, and no one knows what the future will hold. There may be many factors that make a star, but for a good singer, the only determining factor is her singing ability!"
"So, if Eunji wants to become a Busan star, she must fully demonstrate her singing abilities. This doesn't conflict with your dream. On the contrary, more stage experience will make you a better vocal teacher. And what we're going to talk about now is what you must remember and break through!"
The uncle's unexpectedly serious expression made Jung Eun-ji sit up straight and look at her like a good baby.
"Using this song on this stage doesn't mean you'll become a Busan star. On the contrary, if it's just this song, I think more people will remember 'Busan Jung Jae-jun' and Xiao Xiao. Maybe a lot of people will remember me too, and of course Eun-ji and Cho-rong too, but I definitely won't be the one who gets the most likes!"
"So, we're going to use this first stage to attract more audiences to stay, and then create an encore stage. That's when it's your turn. Even if there's no encore stage, I'll still create one for you. So don't worry about it!"
"Now let's talk about the song you're going to sing, Eun-ji, and the problem you have!"
"First of all, if we use elementary school, middle school, high school, and college to compare a singer's ability, you're probably at the sixth grade level right now!"
Jung Eun-ji opened her mouth slightly, completely shocked at the moment. At the same time, she felt a little dissatisfied when she heard that she was only at the sixth grade level.
But Zheng Chenggong continued seriously, "Actually, I told you a long time ago that you have great talent. Really great talent. Whether it's your voice or your breath, you don't need a lot of training like ordinary people to build up an iron lung and control your breath. That's talent. On top of that, you've also learned singing skills very well. If anything, you're on par with a university graduate from a practical music department. At your age, that's something to be proud of!"
"But you have to understand that singers of this level can only be backup singers at best, or perform in bars or on the streets. Perhaps you haven't noticed, but most backup singers beside or behind the stage are actually only five meters away from the actual stage. But this five-meter distance is a gap that many people will never be able to cross in their lifetime!"
Jung Eun-ji's expression gradually changed from surprise to sincere listening, and at this moment she seemed to agree with the uncle's words.
"You need to break through now. You're stuck in sixth grade, and you still have plenty of time to find the answer, but right now you need to strive more strongly and quickly to reach middle school. Or even go straight to third grade, because that will bring you closer to your goal. By my standards, most of the solo singers you see in the music industry right now are only at the middle school level."
Jung Eun-ji finally couldn't help but ask, "Uncle, what should I do?"
Zheng Chenggong smiled slightly and continued to explain: "Let me make it short. You should know that most singers have their own favorite and best song types, right?"
"Um!"
"Actually, that's the secret to that five-meter distance. You have to find your own unique qualities. To put it simply, a top senior student sings whatever they want. If they sing something sad, they make you sad; if they sing something sweet, they make you sweet; their showy vocals make you scream with excitement; their high notes can make you drop to your knees and exclaim 'God!' But that's just top senior students. To become a singer, or a good singer by my standards, the first thing you have to find is... emotional investment!"
"I won't ask you to sing anything like it, because that's impossible. I don't even require you to master any particular quality, but you have to break the cage in front of you!"
"You know, you did learn the basics very well, but at the same time, this has become an obstacle for you."
Jung Eun-ji listened carefully and thought it made sense, so she asked anxiously, "Why?"
Zheng Chenggong laughed and said, "Because the people who teach you are those who have graduated from practical music. They are stuck at the threshold of sixth grade, but their skills have reached the level of junior high school or even high school. This should be considered a kind of physical and mental separation!"
"Then, what should I do?" Jung Eun-ji was suddenly full of enthusiasm at this moment. Compared to the concept of working hard to become a singer, Jung Eun-ji prefers to simply learn everything about music and singing.
Zheng Chenggong paused for a moment, then said, "First, you just need to solve one problem, which is the problem of your singing being too steady!"
"ah?"
"To put it simply, it's about fixing your robotic singing style. You sound like you're singing with perfect diction, perfect delivery, and perfect breath, and you can manipulate your singing technique at will. But according to my statistics, many times when you need to sing the high notes with your real voice or a more intense style, as long as you can't grasp the part , you will choose to lower the key, falsetto, or modify some notes to cover it up. Why not try to sing in a way that seems beyond your control?"
"At least in my eyes, you should be even more powerful now!"
"First of all, you have to learn and be able to do it, which is to sing like a human being, not a singing machine!"
Jung Eun-ji stared at the uncle blankly. This time she felt really overturned. Although the uncle had pointed out some of her shortcomings before, he would more often jokingly ask her how she practiced. Her skills were really good, but today he completely pointed out her shortcomings.
In Jung Eun-ji's opinion, when singing, especially when performing, one must sing songs that one can master. If one likes a song but finds it a bit difficult to sing, the best way is to re-arrange the song and sing it, because that is what the teacher taught her.
Seeing Zheng Endi's somewhat confused look, Zheng Chenggong smiled and said, "How old are you?"
"I-I'm sixteen!"
"Yeah, aren't you only sixteen? If you avoid something you like before even trying it, it's like a wall. It's really hard to break through. You can also choose other paths to bypass it, but doing so is equivalent to deviating from the most direct route. As far as singing is concerned, more people get lost in the surrounding forest. So, you should learn to sing hard. This is what you have to do on stage today. Push yourself. If you succeed, you can really become a little star in Busan. If you don't do well...it's actually a success too. It's enough to become a trainee, but..."
"This is like uncle breaking his promise and not letting Eun-ji become a little star!"
"Uncle, no..."
"alright!"
Zheng Chenggong interrupted Zheng Eun-ji, took out an MP3 player and put it in her hand. He then stood up, looked at her and said, "Your training ends here today. The songs in the MP3 player are what you will sing tonight. From now on, until we leave, it's your free time. You can also choose to go home and rest. Anyway, I don't have any advice for you, because in my opinion, Eun-ji already has a sufficient foundation and the ability to do so. Okay, let's go eat together!"
"Uncle, this, this, this..."
"Stop it, let's go!"
Zheng Chenggong dragged the extremely panicked Zheng Endi out. Zheng Endi was about to cry. Although she had listened to the uncle's words, wasn't today a very important moment? Why did it suddenly become like this?
Moreover, Zheng Endi really didn't know how to go from elementary school to junior high school. Endi, who was being pulled by Zheng Chenggong, was at a loss at the moment and really couldn't find any way to break through.
But no matter how Zheng Endi called him uncle, Zheng Chenggong really didn't say a word. As long as it was related to "breakthrough", he really didn't say a word.
However, during lunch, not only was there an additional person, Ha Ji-won, but Jung Eun-ji also kept asking questions about Jung Chenggong, and with the addition of Xiao Xiao who came to join in the fun, the atmosphere was quite lively.
However, what Zheng Endi never expected was that after lunch, Zheng Chenggong actually forcibly did not allow her to enter the guild hall, and asked her to find a solution herself or go home to rest. And the look on his face was definitely not a joke, which made Zheng Endi suddenly become an idler after lunch.
"Hey, why are you back?"
Eun-ji's mother, who was hanging clothes outside the house, was surprised and confused when she saw her daughter come back.
Jung Eun-ji, who was still wearing a suit at the moment, felt a little embarrassed when she saw her mother, because she had already told her mother about going to Seoul, but her mother did not respond, neither saying yes nor no, so Jung Eun-ji was very nervous.
