With the rise of the large-scale entertainment industry, there are now many popular music festivals across the country. Among them, 72H is undoubtedly one of the most famous and also one of the longest-standing, tracing its roots back to the 1990s.
In the early 1990s, several domestic record companies along with seven renowned musicians from the show business community jointly initiated the first "Misheng Open-Air Music Festival" held in Chaoyang Park in Capital City. They invited 32 vagabond singers and 11 bands to perform, and over ten thousand spectators attended the event.
Well-known rock bands like Black Crow Band and Sky Band were part of this musical feast.
At the time, the Misheng Open-Air Music Festival caused a huge sensation in the domestic music scene and is the predecessor of today's 72H Grassland Music Festival, which later relocated and was renamed at the Wild Mountain Park in the New Era Art Park.
To date, the 72H Grassland Music Festival has been held 19 times. Although it has had several interruptions, its influence in the pop music scene remains significant, especially among true pop music enthusiasts.
The 72H festival mainly invites distinctive vagabond singers and bands. Regardless of whether the artist is a show business celebrity or just a street performer, as long as they have a unique singing style or original works, they have a chance to perform on its stage and showcase their talent to tens of thousands of fans.
Over the years, many previously unknown bands and underground musicians have found fame overnight at 72H, caught the attention of entertainment agencies, signed contracts, and stepped onto the path of stardom.
Traditionally, the 72H Grassland Music Festival starts at noon on the first Friday of March and ends at noon on the following Monday, lasting exactly 72 hours.
Performers and audiences come from all over the country. The festival organizers cover the travel, food, and accommodation expenses for the participating singers and bands but do not pay any extra fees.
The venue is a temporary open-air stage. Spectators camp around the grassy area surrounding the stage, enjoying beer and barbecue while listening to music continuously for three days and two nights.
Because of this special atmosphere, 72H has a very light commercial vibe, leaning toward pure and niche tastes. The crowd definitely won't cheer for any bubblegum pop hits; even Chen Fei'er wouldn't get much applause because she sings sweet pop songs, whereas 72H's audience prefers rock, jazz, R&B, rap, and similar genres.
The audience at 72H is notoriously picky. Earning their approval is tough; if they like you, they'll cheer wildly, but if they don't, they'll boo you off stage.
Many famous singers and bands have been embarrassed and booed off at 72H.
So whenever industry insiders receive an invitation, they seriously consider it.
Those with real talent aren't afraid and welcome the challenge, but if you're not strong enough...
Lu Xi asked, "Are you going to participate?"
After getting the invitation, she looked up 72H online and felt it wasn't quite a good fit since Lu Chen obviously wasn't the kind of vagabond singer 72H favors.
One of 72H's principles is to give opportunities to strong, underground-level vagabond singers.
Of course, bands like Wandering Band are very welcome too.
Lu Chen smiled faintly, "Why not?"
He had known about the Misheng Open-Air Music Festival since middle school and had always admired it. Now that they had actively invited him, it was a chance to fulfill a childhood dream.
As for others' concerns? Lu Chen didn't need to worry!
Lu Xi wasn't too concerned either. Since Lu Chen wanted to go, she wouldn't stop him: "Alright, I'll reply to them then."
So the plan to participate in 72H was settled.
Lu Xi handed Lu Chen a sheet of paper next. It was a thin A4 printout listing the latest viewership ratings for 'Autumn in My Heart'.
Haijin Satellite TV aired episodes 17 and 18 of this hit drama on February 5th and 6th, respectively, achieving terrifying ratings of 2.23% and 2.47%, continuing the earlier miracle.
These two days were right before Chinese New Year's Eve, a time when TV ratings usually drop.
'Autumn in My Heart' not only resisted the usual holiday decline but actually rose against the trend, truly incredible. As for WeChat videos, 'Autumn in My Heart' had already surpassed 2 billion total views, crushing all competitors!
The final two episodes, the grand finale, were scheduled for broadcast on the 13th and 14th, Coincidentally, Valentine's Day!
Lu Chen wanted to laugh, "Is this really okay?"
Lu Xi, who knew how the story ended, thought seriously for a moment and then smiled, "You're going to get scolded to death!"
Lu Chen said, "Maybe, but I think a lot of people will remember this Valentine's Day."
A slight, somewhat mischievous smile appeared on his face.
"Oh, by the way--"
Lu Xi said, "Mountain Sea Publishing House, Qunwen Publishing, and Jingdi Publishing have all reached out. They want to publish the novel version of 'Autumn in My Heart', and the terms from all three are pretty good."
"Also, Color Impression Comics wants to acquire the rights to adapt 'Autumn in My Heart' into a manga."
"And-- "
With the viewership of 'Autumn in My Heart' already reaching phenomenal levels, and the fanbase steadily growing, this popular IP quickly took shape. Naturally, various organizations wanted to negotiate with Lu Chen's publishing house for extended IP rights.
Novels and comics were just part of it, but both represented significant profit.
Lu Chen thought for a moment and said, "You handle these two copyrights. Whoever offers more, go with them. For the novel, we can launch crowdfunding online with the publisher and release multiple package versions."
The serialized novel version of 'Autumn in My Heart' on his blog ended after about two-thirds of the content, leaving room for physical publication sales. Using crowdfunding would definitely boost sales.
Lu Xi had initially estimated that Autumn in My Heart could bring about 15 million yuan in profits to Lu Chen's workshop, but now it seemed she had vastly underestimated the market's enthusiasm for the IP, and with that came even greater benefits.
"Got it," Lu Xi noted. "Don't forget to prepare for the event on the 14th."
On February 14th, Valentine's Day, Lu Chen would attend the opening ceremony of Senqi's Capital City flagship store.
He had a one-year endorsement contract with this clothing brand. This important event was a must-attend, and Senqi would be launching their new couples' sportswear that day, of course, with Lu Chen as the model.
As a vagabond singer, Lu Chen would definitely perform live. Because of the special occasion, song choice was important.
Lu Chen smiled, "I won't forget."
(End of chapter)
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