Totsuka Miyu couldn't help but interject with praise, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
Because Kenji, at this moment, had precisely found the camera lens, as if engaging in a heart-to-heart dialogue with every viewer in front of the screen.
Seeing this, Nakagawa Ryota gently signaled Totsuka Miyu to be quiet with a shushing gesture.
Only then did Totsuka Miyu realize, quickly covering her mouth, though her eyes were still full of awe.
Meanwhile, Kenji continued to sing passionately, as if the entire world consisted only of him and his melodious voice.
"をくれませんか? / Won't you say something to me?!"
The moment this phrase drifted out, the atmosphere in the venue was completely ignited.
The audience could no longer contain their excitement; their previously seated or leaning postures instantly vanished, and they all stood up in unison, their gazes fixed on Kenji on the stage, as if drawn by an invisible force.
The Director sat in the monitoring room, his eyes glued to the scene and the screens, completely immersed in the poignant, lingering emotion of the song, reluctant even to blink.
Yoshino Gou and the others were completely stunned. They exchanged glances, their eyes filled with disbelief.
Because the live performance in front of them was truly too infectious, drawing people in involuntarily. More importantly, the singing required absolutely no auto-tuning, it was authentic and deeply moving.
At this moment, the auto-tune technician wore a brilliant and proud smile. He knew clearly that this singing ability was incredibly captivating; every note struck the heart.
The key was that this was a genuine display of skill; it was already perfect without any need for auto-tuning or correction.
Kenji's low yet powerful voice brought the song to its peak, every note seeming to carry the warmth of emotion, striking directly at the heart.
When the song ended, the live audience instantly erupted; applause and cheers surged forward like a tide.
"Oh my god, it was so good, truly so good! This is simply a feast for the ears!" one audience member exclaimed, jumping up excitedly.
"I've got goosebumps! This singing is so infectious!" the person next to him echoed, their eyes sparkling with excitement.
"It doesn't need any auto-tuning at all! The original sound is this perfect, that's incredible!" someone couldn't help but exclaim.
"I want to hear it again! I could listen to this voice a hundred times and never get tired of it!" Cheers filled the venue, a stark contrast to the previously dull atmosphere.
The band members, staff, and even the mentors all snapped out of their previous immersion, their gazes unanimously directed at Kenji.
Nakagawa Ryota was so excited that he stood up immediately, clapping vigorously and shouting loudly, "Amazing! Absolutely amazing!"
Totsuka Miyu also let out an excited cry, as if releasing all the fervor in her heart: "I knew it! The production team prepared a huge surprise for us. This contestant is stunning!"
"Tell us your dream!"
Sakanaka Taisei started speaking with a smile while applauding, trying to lead the discussion toward a deeper exchange.
"Dream? To become the Godfather of the entertainment industry!"
The moment Kenji said this, everyone present changed their expressions; even Nakagawa Ryota showed surprise.
"Oh, no, I misspoke!"
Kenji seemed to realize his slip of the tongue and quickly spoke up.
Everyone relaxed slightly, but the next moment, Kenji suddenly changed the subject: "It's not a dream, it's a goal!"
This made the four mentors look at each other, momentarily unsure how to respond. This goal was far too grand; how were they supposed to handle it?
"Holy crap, he really dares to say that!"
Yoshino Gou exclaimed in astonishment nearby, his eyes full of incredulity.
"Hahaha, it seems our contestant is very confident in himself!"
The Host quickly interjected, trying to ease the slightly awkward atmosphere, "Next up is the segment where the four mentors fight over the contestant! Everyone, be sure to seize the opportunity!"
"He's definitely choosing me!"
Nakagawa Ryota disregarded the opinions of others and eagerly left his chair, walking toward Kenji, as if afraid of missing out on this rare talent.
"You're too hasty! You should wait for him to make a choice!"
Sakanaka Taisei suddenly spoke up, trying to get Nakagawa Ryota to calm down.
"My apologies, I got too excited!"
Nakagawa Ryota said with a laugh and returned to his seat, but his eyes were still full of anticipation.
"Would you consider joining my group?"
Totsuka Miyu suddenly spoke, her eyes flashing with desire.
"But aren't your spots full?"
Nakagawa Ryota reminded her from the side, trying to stop Totsuka Miyu's "poaching" attempt.
"But he is truly outstanding, he deserves an exception!"
Totsuka Miyu insisted, clearly unwilling to give up this opportunity easily.
"Choose me! I also gave you a 'full light'!"
Funagami Hiroto also spoke up, trying to attract Kenji's attention.
"No way, his vocal condition is perfectly suited for my group. We will definitely create unique sparks!"
Sakanaka Taisei also spoke up, refusing to show weakness.
Everyone looked cheerful, but the Host could already sense the rising tension and quickly tried to mediate: "Mentors, why don't you first..."
"Shut up!"
Totsuka Miyu directly snapped at him, clearly no longer concerned about her public image.
Such an outstanding person, whether it's his singing skill or his creative ability, especially the creative ability, they must secure him!
With this kind of ability, if she manages to establish a good relationship and he writes a few love songs like this for her, wouldn't her career immediately soar?
Nakagawa Ryota slammed the table, immediately becoming displeased. Just moments ago, she had said she would hand the person over to him, and now she was reneging and fighting fiercely to poach him?
He abruptly stood up, looking intensely at Kenji, his tone carrying urgency and sincerity: "Kenji, come to my side. I won't be your mentor; we'll be friends and create music together! I promise to give you the freest creative space, and together we will produce works that will shake the Japanese music scene!"
Hearing Nakagawa Ryota's resounding words, the audience and the Director were stunned, whispering amongst themselves.
This was the current King of the Japanese Music Scene, yet he valued a rookie so highly!
But Nakagawa Ryota knew clearly that Kenji's abilities were far from ordinary.
After all, the others were just putting on a show, selecting people merely to fill spots, but he was genuinely serious about making good music. How could he not be tempted upon meeting a musical prodigy like Kenji?
At this moment, the other contestants backstage were truly bitter, truly jealous.
They looked at each other, muttering inwardly, "Was that song really that amazing?"
Yoshino Gou backstage was even more unconvinced. Frowning, he followed his Private Assistant to find the post-production technician.
"Is that Kenji really that good?"
Yoshino Gou looked at the post-production technician, his tone slightly challenging.
Seeing Yoshino Gou's defiant attitude, the post-production technician felt helpless. He sighed and said, "I'll play your live performance once. Listen to it yourself."
Yoshino Gou listened with a frown. The song's completeness was indeed high, but there were mistakes in a few transitions, and a few notes were definitely cracked.
His heart tightened, but he forced himself to remain calm and said, "Aren't these supposed to be fixed in post-production? It shouldn't affect anything, right?"
"Then listen to Kenji's."
The post-production technician said this and played Kenji's recent performance.
The entire song, from beginning to end, had no flaws, no issues anywhere, it was like a perfect piece of art.
"Has this been auto-tuned?"
Yoshino Gou frowned, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart.
"It hasn't been auto-tuned, and there's no need to!"
The post-production technician stated, his eyes filled with admiration for Kenji, "His singing ability and creative talent are both top-tier."
The difference was immediately obvious!
Yoshino Gou felt a pang of disappointment, but he still argued defiantly, "But my song was good too, right?"
"Once the show airs, you'll know by the audience reaction."
The post-production technician said faintly, his tone carrying a hint of certainty.
"I'm definitely not convinced!"
Yoshino Gou huffed and left, secretly swearing to himself: When the show airs, the production team will find out whose song is more popular and more well-received.
Then, you'll all regret it!
Not only was Yoshino Gou unconvinced, but Miyamoto Taira was also unconvinced!
He clenched his fists, watching the mentors fight over the contestant, murmuring inwardly, "He must be connected, someone who was shoved in here. When the show airs, they'll regret it!"
As soon as the recording ended, while others dragged their tired bodies off to rest, the Director had no intention of stopping.
Ignoring the fatigue of the day, he immediately called the editing team overnight, demanding they edit the recorded footage as quickly as possible.
Furthermore, the Director specifically assigned personnel to meticulously process the exciting footage of the mentors arguing and fighting over the contestant on stage, striving to make the visuals more impactful and topical.
After processing the visuals, the Director immediately had someone publish these carefully edited clips online.
That day, the heat surrounding this incident quickly flared up like ignited gunpowder.
A post suddenly appeared online: "The mentors of UTAGE actually started arguing on set over a rising music star, causing the recording to be temporarily halted!"
This post spread rapidly across the internet as if it had grown wings, sparking heated discussions among netizens.
After all, UTAGE was already quite famous and had accumulated a large viewer base.
The clever gimmick created by the production team this time acted like a massive magnet, successfully drawing the attention of countless people.
Everyone was curious: what kind of contestant could make four mentors openly clash and refuse to yield on the recording set?
Meanwhile, in stark contrast to the bustling online scene, Kenji had leisurely returned home.
He knew clearly that the goal of attracting traffic for Tohei co. ltd. had been perfectly achieved.
As for becoming a celebrity or anything similar, Kenji hadn't even considered it.
Be a celebrity himself?
Wouldn't that be like the boss having to work as an employee?
That certainly wasn't Kenji's style!
His original plan was to proceed step by step, slowly accumulating popularity and steadily boosting the visibility of Tohei co. ltd..
He definitely wouldn't be the one personally stepping up to be a celebrity later on; after all, he had so many outstanding female partners for that.
It was just that Tohei co. ltd. wasn't very famous yet, and Natsuka and the others hadn't fully matured, so he could only step forward himself first, using his own abilities to build up some popularity.
The company's publicity department would also systematically carry out promotional and traffic-attracting work according to plan.
Since the goal had been achieved, Kenji naturally didn't bother staying any longer.
As soon as he pushed open the door, a warm atmosphere greeted him.
Natsuka, Natsue, and Hisato Azuma rushed over with excited "whooshes," like three cheerful little birds, their eyes filled with unconcealed delight.
The other girls also stood nearby, smiles playing on their lips, all casting their gazes toward Kenji.
Kenji looked at the lively scene, feeling a bit curious. He asked with a smile, "What's going on? Why is everyone smiling so happily? Did something good happen?"
Natsuka, like a mischievous little sprite, immediately clung to him, wrapping her arms around Kenji's arm, and said coquettishly with tender affection, "We have a very surprising gift for you, dear~"
"A gift? A surprise?"
Kenji raised an eyebrow slightly, wondering inwardly: with his current financial resources, couldn't he buy whatever he wanted? What could possibly count as a surprise?
Kenji was originally still confused, but when Natsuka, Natsue, and Hisato Azuma produced a pink and white plastic stick as if by magic, Kenji's eyes instantly widened, and he blurted out in astonishment: "This is... a pregnancy test stick!?"
"Yes, dear, look here~"
...
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