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Ling had no objection. Whether it was an outing or a rehearsal at the company, the most important thing was to be with friends.
The next morning, it was Miss Dazhong who originally arranged the car.
They said they would arrange a car, but in fact they just called a taxi. With her position in the company, she certainly couldn't have a private car. But the company could reimburse the expenses, after all, taxis in Tokyo are still very expensive.
What she didn't expect was that the other two main actors of the concert would also go with her. So the taxi couldn't accommodate anyone (Japanese taxis usually don't have anyone sitting in the front passenger seat).
But it doesn't matter, both the Oshima family and the Daidoji family have enough private cars for transportation. In the end, the car used was from the Chise family.
It was an extended car. Originally, Chishi's family, which consisted of only a mother and a daughter, did not need an extended car. However, after getting in the car, Ling found that most of the space in the car had been modified, and the entire back half of the car turned out to be a huge dressing room.
"Clang clang, these are the clothes I made myself. There are Reiya's size and Sakura's size. You can change into them if you like."
Reiya and Sakura were not surprised, after all, they already knew Tomoyo's style. It was Miss Ooshige who was surprised.
"This nanny car is too luxurious!"
Even the top stars in the company she had met didn't have such a car. Because the doors opened to both sides, one could get in the car by stepping on the welcome pedal without turning sideways or bending over. The unique smell of the leather seats in the car created a certain luxurious atmosphere.
"Miss Dazhong, if you're thirsty there are drinks in the fridge."
The refrigerator is in a corner of the mini bar, with a sink and induction cooker next to it. Because the car compartment and the driver's seat are closed, you need to use an intercom to communicate with the driver. After the curtains are drawn and the entire car compartment is closed, it is a completely private space.
Tomoyo only greeted Miss Oshige because there was no need for her to be polite with Sakura and Ling. Oshige was a little reserved at first, always careful not to leave a casual impression in front of the two young ladies of the Oshima and Daidoji families. But seeing the three girls eating and drinking without any scruples, she soon let go.
What? A rich girl is no different from an ordinary little girl. This realization made her feel relieved. She opened the refrigerator, hesitated for 0.5 seconds, and then chose the juice from the beer.
I still have work to do today.
But that beer looks delicious, a German brand, I've never seen it before. Ah, it's really ruined, I haven't learned anything else from following that guy Nohara for more than two years, but he taught me how to drink.
She doesn't want to go into the classroom.
The car drove forty minutes through the congested streets of Tokyo and arrived at the Sanmu Company. Miss Dazhong also tried to break free from the temptation of hops and foam.
"When you go in later, you should take the initiative to greet the seniors you see. Otherwise, it will be considered impolite and will cause trouble in the future." Daishige was telling Sakura what to pay attention to. As for how to tell who is a senior, with Sakura's qualifications, anyone she meets is a senior.
Generally, if a new artist has worked his way up to the contract, he or she doesn't need an agent to tell him or her much, as they already know the rules of the workplace. But Sakura is a child star, and she was temporarily transferred from a TV actor to a singer, so she has never been exposed to these.
However, as soon as the four of them walked to the company's gate, Dazhong was shocked by the scene in front of him.
"Ms. Oshima! Ms. Daidoji! Welcome to our Sanmu Entertainment. Oh, and Ms. Kinomoto."
The last greeting was obviously perfunctory, and Sakura didn't take it seriously.
"Ms. Oshima, I just talked to Mr. Mino of your house a while ago. If you have anything to say, just give me a call."
This guy with a flattering smile on his face, who knows how long he has been waiting outside the door to actively try to get close to him, isn't he the president of their Sanmu Group? Dazhong has worked here for three years and has only seen him a few times, including the company executives who serve as the background board behind him. Usually, they all have stern faces when they meet, but now they all smile.
Perhaps, the experience I had taught them before, that one must take the initiative to say hello to seniors, does not apply to them.
President Mimaki's main target of flattery is Reiya. The Daidoji Foundation is still managed by Tomoyo's mother Sonomi, but the real person in charge of the Oshima family is the nine-year-old girl in front of him.
Everyone said that the Oshima family was in decline, but Sanmu knew that even if the Oshima family was in decline, they could buy out their entire company with just a nod and some pocket money. The two were not on the same level. If they had not invested in the same film and television drama together, he would not even be qualified to talk to the butler of the Oshima family.
So after learning that the eldest daughter of the Oshima family was suddenly interested in guest starring in this TV series, for Sanmu, the TV series itself was no longer important. What was important was how to make the young ladies have fun.
I learned from my agent Daishige not long ago that Reiya and Tomoyo were coming. The news went all the way to the top of the company from general producer Mr. Takasu, who was in direct contact with Miss Daishige, and President Mimaki quickly gathered everyone to welcome them.
"President Sanmu, I'm sorry for not greeting you in advance. I'm just looking forward to the Christmas concert and hope to have a successful run-in soon, so I took the liberty to come and visit you without any prior arrangement."
I didn't expect Miss Oshima to be so polite. Sanmu was a little surprised, and the smile on his face became more sincere. This was indeed the first time he met Oshima Reiya in person. Before, he had contacted the housekeeper of the Oshima mansion. He thought she was a spoiled child, but he didn't expect the girl to have any arrogance of a famous family.
He is even more polite than some newly debuted artists who are ignorant of the world.
"Please rest assured that our company attaches great importance to this concert to thank the fans. Everything from the song selection to the accompaniment band is the most professional. Our company has a deep repertoire, which is the best among all entertainment companies in Tokyo. Takasu!" At the end, President Mimaki suddenly called out a name.
Mr. Takasu, whose name was called, walked over from behind the crowd. Although he was a comprehensive producer, he could only stand at the back of the table in front of a group of company executives and he almost never showed his face before.
"This Gaoxu producer is our company's ace producer. He will be in charge from now on. If you have any instructions, just tell him directly."
Mr. Takasu is about 40 years old, which is very young for a general producer. He has a beard and wears black-framed glasses, which fits people's first impression of the word "producer".
Is it okay for a producer to listen to the artist's instructions? Takasu smiled bitterly in his heart, but he didn't dare to show it. How could he dare to criticize someone who even the president didn't dare to offend?
After a few words, President Sanmu saw that Ling didn't like to be polite, so he was very tactful and didn't waste her time. Although he waited at the gate for more than half an hour, he only talked for two minutes.
"Ms. Oshima, Ms. Daidoji, and Ms. Kinomoto, please follow me. Today we need to discuss the selection of songs for the concert. There are many songs in my company's copyright library, more than 40,000 songs, and we will definitely find suitable songs." This was an arrangement that had not been made before, but since the president had spoken, Takasu could only follow his tone and continue speaking, "In addition, we have arranged a training teacher, who we selected for Ms. Kinomoto, and the training will start today."
The latter event was actually the original arrangement for today.
Sakura is a child star from film and television dramas and has no singing experience, so training is necessary.
It was also a coincidence that there was a training teacher in Sanmu Company whose voice was very similar to Xiaoying's. She was also a contracted singer in the past. She was not a first-line singer, but she had been in the industry for more than 20 years and had a lot of experience. She was occasionally responsible for training newcomers.
Takasu took a few people to the company's practice room. As Tokyo's leading entertainment company, Sanmu's practice room is a separate building with more than 40 rooms, which are well-equipped and very professional.
Takasu stopped in front of one of the training rooms and opened the door. An older female artist was waiting inside.
"Teacher Tange, I am sorry to bother you today. This is Sakura Kinomoto. What a coincidence, not only do you have similar voices, but your names are both 'Sakura'."
It is certainly impolite to use other people's names as jokes, but Takasu's identity as a producer is not out of place here.
Sakura Tange smiled and nodded. She was already in her forties and had long passed her best years as an artist. The years had left crow's feet at the corners of her eyes.
"Sakura, you don't mind if I call you by your name, do you? It's weird though, it's like you're calling me myself."
"Hello, Mr. Tange."
Sakura Tange also greeted Chiyo and Ling. As an ordinary artist, she didn't need to be as flattering as the company's top executives.
"I've watched every episode of your TV series. It's very well made."
"Thank you for the compliment." Sakura thought the other party was just being polite, but unexpectedly, the next second, Teacher Tange suddenly did something that surprised everyone.
She held her hands forward, as if holding something.
"The key that hides the power of darkness, please show me your true power. Sakura, who signed a contract with you, orders you to lift the seal!"
It was obviously not pleasing to the eye for a 40-year-old lady to perform such movements, but no one present noticed because they were already shocked by Teacher Tange's voice.
I can't say they are exactly the same, but if you're not someone close to them and listen carefully, it's hard to tell the difference.
That was clearly Sakura's voice.
Chapter 148: Fruits Candy
If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, even friends like Tomoyo and Ling who are familiar with Sakura would have immediately thought that the sound came from Sakura's mouth.
But Tange-sensei's voice was clearly different from Sakura's. No, if you listen carefully, there are similarities, but they are not that obvious.
"This is a basic skill for voice actors. In fact, it is because our voices are indeed very similar. If the difference is too big, it will be impossible to imitate." Sakura Tange explained.
Voice actors are actors who dub for animation or film and television. It is not uncommon for singers to work as voice actors part-time in the industry. But being able to imitate so closely really makes people wonder if voice actors are all monsters.
"Alright." Takasu Production clapped his hands. "For the Christmas fan meeting, the singing session is scheduled to last half an hour. Excluding the time for the intermission and the interaction between songs, we plan to prepare five songs. At the beginning, the three of you will each sing a solo, and at the end, two songs will be chorused. Is that okay?"
The three girls all shook their heads. Each of them had to sing three songs, and in between they would interact with fans, which could be considered a break. This arrangement wouldn't be very tiring. And after all, it wasn't a real concert, so being able to have half an hour was already a sign of the sincerity of Sanmu Company.
"The songs can be selected from our company's copyright library over the years, as well as new songs by recent composers. If you like any of them, you can tell me."
Such treatment is really hard to come by for first-tier singers. Dazhong, who was listening nearby, was shocked. It was the first time she heard of a company opening its copyright library and letting singers choose whatever they wanted. In the past, producers had the final say in arranging songs for singers. Not to mention newcomers, even veteran stars didn't dare to offend them. Takasu Productions once made several popular idols, such as Genki Matsushita and Rika Kobayashi, famous.
What she didn't know was that Gao Xu actually had a backup plan in mind. If the other party didn't like these songs, he could just send the company's only ace composer to write songs temporarily. As for the ace composer's appointments being full, it didn't matter at all, he could just jump the queue. I believe President Sanmu would definitely not have any objections.
"Well, can you give me some advice? Actually, I have a song that I would recommend for the chorus." Tange raised his hand and said softly, as if he was answering a question in class. Although he was already in his forties, he was so quiet and gentle that he really looked like a student.
"Ah, Mr. Tange, please go ahead." Takasu glanced at Reiya and Tomoyo out of the corner of his eye and saw that they didn't object.
"Actually, this is a song I sang with my friends when I debuted before. I think it's suitable for a new group."
Twenty years have passed in the blink of an eye. I don’t know where my former partner is now or how she is doing, Tange thought to himself.
"I'll go look in the company warehouse. There should be some remastered CDs."
"Oh, don't bother. The data in the company's music library is now backed up in the computer." Gao Xu said quickly. It was unknown how long it would take to go to the company's warehouse to find the CD. "Just tell me the name of the song."
"Oh, it's so high-tech now." Tange smiled foolishly. She was totally unfamiliar with computers and other high-tech things.
“The song is called “Fruits Candy””
"Fruits Candy, that means fruit candy, right?"
"Correct."
There was a computer in the practice room, and as Gao Xu typed in a few English words, a single popped up.
"Wow, a song from 20 years ago. It's really old." Takasu said without much expectation. After all, looking at the date of the song, all he could think of was "Uramachi Sakeba" and the like, and his mind was full of ancient shamisen.
However, after the song was played, he realized that it was obviously not the case. It was a very youthful and energetic song.
【Walk on the streets after the rain, and let your bubble gum and curiosity run wild. The blue sky reflected in the pond will surely dry your tears. 】
But what is really surprising is that -
"Sakura, you sang this, right?"
It was the exact same voice. Even Sakura herself began to doubt whether it was really her voice.
Of course, this was a song from twenty years ago, and the singer obviously couldn't have been Sakura.
"I sang this when I was young." It's not that the voice actor is so good that he can imitate other people's voices. It's that the voice of Tange Sakura when she was young is exactly the same as Sakura.
This is quite a coincidence, Ling also thought. I heard about someone who looked exactly like me two days ago, and today I heard the same voice again.
Director Asaka had said that Higashi Kotaro looked exactly like Shinoda Saburo, but Ling hadn't really felt that, because she didn't know Higashi Kotaro and didn't know if they really looked alike. But she was familiar with Sakura's voice, and hearing the same voice at this moment was even more magical.
"Fruits Candy" itself is a chorus song, the song is cheerful, not difficult, and the melody is even a bit brainwashing. I can't say it's very good, but it is indeed very suitable for livening up the atmosphere of the concert.
Among the three, Sakura has the least singing experience. The identical voice will make it easier for her to learn and is suitable for short-term rapid learning.
After that, Sakura tried to sing. Under the training of a professional teacher like Tange, it was easy to get used to it. Even Reiya and Tomoyo benefited a lot. After all, they had never received such professional training in the past. The full-time music instructor of the entertainment company was not comparable to the music teacher of the elementary school.
Although I say that my teacher is not very good, compared to Mr. Tange, Mr. Tsujitani's knowledge of music theory can only be considered amateur.
After a day of training, Lingye and Tomoyo were very satisfied and felt that they had gained a lot. Sakura also gained a lot of confidence. If she practices like this for a month, she will probably have no problem going on stage.
During the training period, Gaoxu Zuozao left early. He was a very busy man and had no time to stay here. There were people looking for him every day, and they had to line up in front of his office to get a number.
However, after learning that they had finished their training, he rushed over again.
After listening to the recording of the three girls practicing singing, he was surprised to find that they were quite good. The youngest of them, Sakura, already had some form, and Reiya and Tomoyo, their voices surprised Takasu, they were voices that could move people.
In other words, even without considering any background, just with such a voice, it is very likely to be shortlisted in the auditions occasionally organized by the company. It is completely qualified as an artist.
Just like Director Asaka was initially a little reluctant about President Daidoji letting Tomoyo and Reiya make guest appearances, but finally unexpectedly discovered that they had struck gold, Takasu also had a vague feeling like this.
A catchy song like "Fruits Candy" might not be very interesting, but for their respective singles, Takasu decided not to be perfunctory as before. Even if they didn't mention it, he planned to contact the company's ace composer.