Chapter 439 I Am the First, Second and Third in the World

The Beatles, the world's number one band recognized in Europe and America, even if this scope is expanded to the world music scene, the number of supporters is definitely greater than the number of opponents.

In terms of the influence on the history of the music scene and future generations, even Michael Jackson, who is known as the king of world pop, cannot say that he can surpass them.

Therefore, as the former editor-in-chief of Rolling Stone, Raul Jackson's words in his column immediately detonated the entire European and American music scene once they were published-

Countless insults and criticisms came one after another.

Some radicals even wished that this old man, who is already 73 years old and has a history of heart disease, would die immediately.

As an insurmountable monument in the history of the world music scene, the birth and dissipation of the Beatles are full of stories-the cultural craze set off by the Beatles almost bound the name of this band to the music history of Britain and the United States.

For today's believers, the Beatles are untouchable gods;

And for the mainstream media in the British and American cultural circles, the Beatles are the kings that outsiders cannot touch.

Michael Jackson could be crowned the King of Pop and challenge the Beatles because his skin color and nationality made him a relative. Now Zhou Yi, a Chinese, wants to rely on the Beatles to raise his profile?

Who are you?

"Fuck! Raul Jackson is so old and confused! How can Spike be comparable to the Beatles?!"

"I admit that Spike's album is really good, but it's a pipe dream to want to compete with the Beatles!"

"Warner bought it, it's definitely Warner's PR, no doubt!"

"Jackson, be careful, you'll make money but not live to spend it!"

"..."

I don't know if it's sincere or abusive remarks from the anti-Spy army are endless on the Internet. Fortunately, the old man's main battlefield is in offline media channels, and these voices can't affect him. The lag in the dissemination of news through traditional media channels is clearly reflected at this moment.

Obviously, there are already a lot of netizens on the Internet arguing about the old man's heavyweight column, but magazines and newspapers such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, The Village Voice, Vibe, Blender, and Entertainment Weekly have no way to comment on it in the first place -

Not to mention the rush to finish the manuscript, they can't even print and typeset in time!

This wave of traffic has benefited American and British online music and entertainment magazines and websites, led by websites such as AllMusic, Metacritic, New Musical Express, Slant Magazine, and Stylus. The traffic has increased by leaps and bounds compared to before!

Especially the Stylus website.

For a new website and new brand that was established only last year, Zhou Yi's traffic is simply a windfall for them!

The music review and rating website Metacritic was even more direct and obvious in its attempt to gain traffic. It broke the rules established by the founder when the website was created in 1999. On the second day after Zhou Yi's album was released, it directly opened the rating mechanism on its own website.

The rating was a perfect score of 100. It started at 11 a.m. on March 2, but it ended up being a weirdo in less than three hours.

It was either 91 or 100, and the most extreme one was 50 or 60. The few middle-of-the-roaders who scored 50 or 60 seemed somewhat out of place.

"This rating has become the letter C. Sooner or later, this broken website will be finished!"

Caribbean region, Barbados, St. Michael's District.

Robbienne Rihanna Fenty, who just celebrated her 15th birthday last month, was somewhat indignant about the hacking of her idol Mariah Carey's "rumored boyfriend" new album.

Although she also knew the status and influence of the Beatles, she did not think that the Beatles were really so invincible and untouchable.

At least she thinks Spike's creative talent is definitely not inferior to anyone else - he has been responsible for all the album programs since his debut, which is something that even the resurrection of the Beatles cannot do.

But unfortunately, she can't do anything about it and can only complain.

Without money to buy the album, she can only go online and give it a 100 points to help balance the website rating of Spike's new album, that's all.

Since her mother divorced her alcoholic father who only knew how to take drugs last year, her life in school has completely become an object of ridicule and bullying every day - for this reason, Rihanna, who no longer wants to live a life of bullying and discrimination, chose to drop out of school after forming a girl band with two friends and winning the campus singing competition.

She told her mother that she wanted to go out to pursue her musical dream with two good friends.

Rihanna thought that she would be appreciated by her hometown record company with her title of campus champion, but the result is that she can only hang out in various nightclubs in her hometown until today, and she can't even get a stable resident singing opportunity...

The regular life in the past was also messed up by herself.

In order to make a living and to support herself, Rihanna had to work hard with her two good friends, but as time went by, she no longer knew what she was doing.

She felt lost in the endless cycle of going to work and going home - looking for work - going to work and going home - looking for work.

The contempt and ridicule of her former classmates, the mess in her life;

The secret disappointment of her mother, the vague idea of ​​leaving the team revealed by her companions, all stimulated Rihanna's self-esteem.

Her life, her life, seemed to be a foreseeable failure.

And she messed it up herself.

If she hadn't dropped out of school, if she hadn't pursued her dream so blindly...

"Am I out of luck, Am I waiting to break (Is it fate, is it inevitable)

"When I keep saying that I'm looking for a way to escape (When I keep saying that I'm looking for a way to escape)

"Oh, I'm wishing I had, what I've taken for granted (I hope to have it, what I want is granted)

"I can't help you when I'm only gonna do you wrong (When everything goes wrong again and again, I don't deserve it)..."

When she passed by a video store on the way home, the new song that was playing in the store, which she had never heard before, immediately attracted her ears-

The rhythmic drum beats seemed to hit her heart, and Spike's slightly familiar voice came from the speakers. On the small TV outside the window, Spike, dressed in black, seemed to be trapped in the quagmire of life and couldn't extricate himself. The lyrics were like a sharp sword, piercing the young Rihanna. Chest.

I destroyed everything I had in the past. Perhaps it was destined that I would repeat the same mistakes again and again...

But can she be blamed for this?

Since she was born, fate has not given her too many choices.

Her alcoholic and drug-addicted father directly destroyed the entire family. It was the cruel reality that forced her to pick up the gun in her hand and leave her comfort zone to try to open up a new future.

The burden of life almost suffocated her. She didn't even have time to reconcile with the awkward self in her heart.

"In the meantime we let it go (It's time to let go)"

"At the road sign we used to know (Return to the familiar intersection)

"We can let this drift away, Oh, we let this drift away (Let right and wrong go with the wind, let it go with the wind)..."

Spike in the small TV in the window is getting older, and he sings the core idea of ​​the whole song "Shots" with an extremely open-minded image - reconciliation with oneself.

The youthful recklessness of "Enemy", the unwavering determination of "Natural", and the self-reconciliation of "Shots".

Who hasn't done a few stupid things when they were young?

Who hasn't been stupid when they were young?

Who hasn't stubbornly walked down a path when they were young?

Whether it's success or failure, it's all part of your life experience. There's no need to resist. Just as "Natural" sings, raise your head and you can still move forward--

As long as you can reconcile with your stubborn self.

As "Shots" sings: Dear, people always have to learn to change.

Rihanna, who felt like crying for some reason, pursed her lips, subconsciously walked closer to the window, looked up through the glass and watched the DVD images played by the store to attract customers, her eyes full of desire.

If possible, she also wanted to reconcile with herself.

If possible, she also wants to reconcile with her family of origin, her father, and those classmates who laugh at and bully her.

But she is just an ordinary person.

She is just an ordinary person who is confused and powerless.

What she wants is simple, but so difficult.

As the song "Shots" ended, Rihanna, who stood in front of the window in silence for a long time, clenched her right hand and wanted to go in to buy an album several times, but in the end she touched her pocket and weighed the proportion of life, and finally chose to give up helplessly-

Just as she was about to leave, another extremely catchy prelude stopped her from leaving.

"I've been reading books of old (I've read all the ancient books)"

"The legends and the myths (those myths and legends)

"Achilles and his gold, Hercules and his gifts

"Spiderman's control, And Batman with his fists

"And clearly I don't see myself upon that list..."

With a bit of British slow rock mixed with electronic dance music, Zhou Yi's voice is no longer as screaming as in the previous song. He is unusually gentle in the song "Something just like this"-

Greek mythology, Spiderman, Batman.

These are all familiar figures and deeds in the Western world, but now they have become the vivid geniuses in Zhou Yi's MV, and Zhou Yi, at this moment, is just an ordinary person who can be seen everywhere in life.

Ordinary studies, ordinary family, ordinary growth.

It was so ordinary, but Rihanna in front of the window couldn't hold back her emotions after hearing it.

In the past, she had also imagined whether she could become a superpower and use her superpowers to improve her life.

She thought about being a good neighbor Spider-Man, thinking about Batman's money power, and even thought about flying around like Supergirl, punching scum like her father when she saw him.

But all this was just fantasy in the end.

Back to reality, she was just a child who could do nothing.

"When we were young, we fantasized about becoming superheroes in comics and TV. When we grew up, we found that as long as we could change things around us to the best of our ability, kiss the people we loved, and take care of our families, we would be great superheroes.

"No matter what happens, remember to look forward. As long as you don't die, you will always be young.

"I admire Spike's vision and intention. This is an album that reflects his outlook on life and the world."

Founded in the 1950s, Johnny Davis, editor of the British website New Musical Express, which actively transformed into an online music and film discussion website after the advent of the Internet era, gave it a high score of 9.1 on the website after listening to the entire album - the website's full score system is 10 points.

"The most important thing is that Spike is not satisfied with expressing his own views. He has made further innovations in his album. The use of electronic music in the song "Something just like this" is a step further than "DJ" in the previous album. It can be said that he has single-handedly opened up a new form of electronic music songs -

"He incorporated unique rock elements and mixed the pattern of electronic dance music that people tend to get bored after listening to it dozens of times.

"In this era when most popular electronic music has disappeared, or is still stuck in the old disco era of the last century and the new century dance floor songs full of nightclub style, the changes brought to the music scene by Spike's "Something just like this" are undoubtedly revolutionary.

"The simplest comparison is that the use of electronic music elements in Spike's previous album's "Yeah" and "DJ" is like the product of two eras after the old is introduced.

"This is a terrible fact.

"A Chinese, a Chinese musician who has never received orthodox Western music education, has actually achieved the advancement and renewal of the genres and factions of the world music scene.

"I heard that Spike has also created a new Chinese style in his hometown and gradually led a trend. Perhaps this unprecedented use of electronic music is the basis for Spike to become a legend in the Western world.

"Raul is right. Spike may really have the potential to be comparable to legends. "

Johnny Davis's heartfelt sigh was welcomed by hundreds of people in less than half an hour after it was posted.

As a senior editor of NME, Johnny Davis has extremely senior qualifications in the industry. Even the queen Madonna will refer to this editor's evaluation of herself after releasing an album. At the same time, he is also another industry authority who publicly praised Zhou Yi after former Rolling Stone editor Raul Jackson-

"Johnny did it too!"

Zhou Yi fans who are in urgent need of allies are not only buying albums, but also jumping up and down to help their idol Zhou Yi win this "adverse situation".

And with Johnny, another authority in the music critic industry, leaving the stage, more and more passers-by and listeners began to be curious-

The Lion King, who won the Grammy and last year's global sales champion, comes from China.

Why is Spike's album this year so controversial?

It stands to reason that after winning the Grammy, shouldn't the album's reputation and sales be all the way up like Norah Jones, relying on the award effect?

And it is precisely under this controversy that Zhou Yi's new album "Forever Young" has been rapidly soaring with a popularity that no one expected-

March 4, 2003, the second day of the second month of the lunar calendar, the dragon raised its head.

Only three days after the album was released, the new round of the US Billboard chart was officially updated-

On the Hot 100 Singles Chart, Zhou Yi's entire album was selected in an eye-catching manner, directly creating the fastest record of all album songs entering the US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart!

FUCK!

This result undoubtedly made the noisy network explode in an instant!

No, how can all the songs enter the top 100 singles of the B chart after such a quarrel?

And in the Top 200 Albums Chart announced by the Singles Chart, "Forever Young" silenced all the haters with a score of 927,000 CDs in three days, and topped the weekly championship throne of the Top 200 Albums!

Three days! 927,000!

"Unbelievable! Unbelievable!!!"

"He sold more in three days than others in a week?!"

"They're fighting online, but never lose offline!"

"Is this the power of the Grammys?"

"..."

And in Zhou Yi's "Forever Young" album, the three songs currently ranked highest are "Viva La Vida", "Counting Stars" and "We Are Young", which are ranked 45th, 51st and 67th respectively.

Airborne entry into the list!

In comparison, 50 Cent, the hottest hip-hop singer from January to now, sold 870,000 copies of his first studio album "Get Rich or Die Tryin" in the first week. The lead single "In da Club" has climbed to the runner-up position after six weeks of climbing.

If nothing unexpected happens, this song will top the B-list next week or the week after, making 50 Cent the man who has a champion single in his debut album.

As we all know, 50 Cent is a newcomer discovered by Eminem.

Spike, on the other hand, can be said to have directly overtaken Eminem at the Grammy Awards.

On a music program on HBO, a TV station owned by Time Warner, Zhou Yi, as a guest, appeared in his seat to be interviewed with a calm attitude, and smiled and said that he didn't care about these things at all-

"He won't be my opponent, I can be sure, I have never taken him seriously."

"Then what do you think of someone putting you together with the Beatles, Elvis, and Michael Jackson? Who do you think is the world's number one?"

"Me."

"......? Sorry, I didn't hear clearly, what did you say just now?" The host was a little confused and hurriedly asked, hoping that he would make up for it.

Zhou Yi straightened his collar and shrugged: "No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 in the world, I think I am."

"..."