Chapter 1310: Record Awards? Isn't that already in the bag?!

In the Red Fish Courtyard at dusk, Suzumi and little Shota from the Nakai family had already left, leaving only a few members of the Nagayama family behind.

At this moment, Naoki Nagayama was holding little Xia Hua, looking at a brightly colored picture book... To be precise, the little one was looking at the book and sharing it with her old father from time to time...

"Flower~~" "Mm, that's a flower!" "Fish~~" "Yes, yes, a fish... here's a carp... swimming in the water..." "..."

Beside them, Akina, while knitting a garment that looked like an apron, watched the heartwarming scene of father and daughter, occasionally chiming in.

"Suzumi-san and Shota have gone to Lake Toya to soak in the hot springs and relax... I expect they'll head straight back to Tokyo afterward."

Akina said,

"Naoki-san, how is the matter of joining the United Nations going?"

"It's already being arranged~"

Naoki Nagayama, who was busy filming a movie, naturally couldn't handle such matters personally; he had already asked Yin Tangxiu, who had extensive connections in international organizations, to help coordinate.

"Even if it involves a donation, there are procedures and channels required... but there shouldn't be much resistance."

It was just getting one person into an organization, not trying to seize power or conduct surveillance, and it would bring along a large amount of resources and the connections of the Tree Friend Tokyo Film Association—who wouldn't be willing to accept that?!

One must know that some companies have more connections, yet they become more and more prosperous precisely because they can bring in resources and contacts!

"But if we want to send them to New York, we'll have to wait until at least the end of the year."

"As long as they can go, that's fine..."

Akina nodded with relief; she had talked a lot with Nakai Suzumi over the past two days. Suzumi was very helpless about having to be separated from Nakai Genta and was also very worried about Nakai Genta's current situation.

If it were Naoki-san trapped in a foreign land, Akina was certain she wouldn't be able to resist flying to his side immediately.

"Naoki-san... we've been staying at the Red Fish Courtyard for over a week now..."

Akina changed the subject,

"When are we going back to the Mountain Cherry Courtyard?"

"Oh?" Naoki Nagayama was a bit surprised. "Are you already bored with the Red Fish Courtyard?"

"It's not that I'm bored." Akina shook her head. "But my Record Awards are entering the preliminary selection, so I still need to go and rehearse."

"Ah... I forgot all about that!"

It was already the last month of the year, and the atmosphere of the approaching New Year was beginning to thicken.

Aside from the year-end sales promotions on the streets, the year-end special programs of major television stations were also beginning to appear on screens one by one, and the topics people discussed had shifted to where they would spend the New Year and where they would go to play.

As the most famous year-end activities in the entertainment industry, the Japan Record Awards and the Red and White Song Assembly were in the midst of intensive preparations.

Akina had declined the invitation to the Red and White Song Assembly this time, but the Record Awards were an important event!

"Akina's 'Shipwreck' this time will definitely win the Grand Prize!"

Naoki Nagayama said to his wife with a smile.

In this lifetime, he wouldn't withdraw from the competition himself and let some clueless guy snatch away the opportunity to set a record in music history!

"About that... Huajian-san says the chances are still very high~"

"Hahaha, if even Huajian-san says so, then there's definitely no problem!"

Naoki Nagayama put down little Xia Hua and pulled Akina into his arms.

"From now on, you'll be the Triple Crown winner, Lady Akina!"

"How could you say that~" Hearing such an embarrassing title, Akina blushed slightly. "It's just a record."

Beside them, little Xia Hua looked at her parents with a confused expression. Although she didn't understand what they were saying, they clearly looked very happy right now... so she also grinned and laughed~

"Haha, look, Hua-chan is happy too!"

After playing around for a while, Akina said:

"Then let's go back to Tokyo in two days..."

"Mm, then let's go back." Naoki Nagayama nodded. "Anyway, I'll still come back every day..."

It was just a matter of turning the private jet around!

Inside the Fuji Television building.

Sugiura Taiyu, who hadn't appeared for a long time, was communicating with the production bureau about year-end program planning. The regular large-scale evening galas were all arranged, and they wanted something fresh.

"Year-end review programs are already standard."

Sugiura Taiyu drew key points on a small blackboard.

"But it's still very difficult to come up with something new... and this year, we can't review current politics..."

If they were to review major current political events, they wouldn't be able to avoid the Recruit bribery case, the stock market crash, and the Prime Minister's resignation—all negative news that would put immense pressure on the television station!

"How about we review the most popular songs?"

Kawamura Zuoyue suggested.

"That should be the easiest to handle!"

"That's already being reviewed by the 'Night Hit' program team!" Sugiura Taiyu shook his head. "'Night Hit' is the important program in the music field..."

"Or..." Xi Lumei offered a suggestion, "we review the hottest TV dramas?"

Movies weren't necessary; authoritative magazines like 'Kinema Junpo' would certainly do that. But for a television station, TV dramas were still feasible!

"There's very little material for TV dramas..."

There were at most four or five TV dramas a year; how could that support the length of a program!

"How about..." Xi Lumei continued to suggest, "we review the new generation of artists in the entertainment industry!!!"

"Singers, actors, idols..."

"Invite the artists who have exploded in popularity this year and make a program!"

"No matter what the program format is, it will definitely be very attractive!"

After Xi Lumei finished speaking, Sugiura Taiyu and the others began to ponder, suddenly feeling that this was a good idea.

New generation artists certainly wouldn't be too hard to invite, and it was exactly the time when they needed exposure... The television station also wanted a fresh kind of program...

So everyone began to discuss it one after another~

"Then what kind of program should we make?"

"A reality show, reality shows are definitely the hottest..."

"For newcomers, maybe we need more intense conflict..."

"How about a group competition type?"

"Game competition?"

Amidst the back-and-forth, the prototype of a variety show gradually emerged, even moving beyond a year-end project and showing a trend toward developing into a flagship variety show for the new year.

"So, good ideas are bumped out!"

Sugiura Taiyu showed a satisfied expression on his face; this variety show had innovation and humor, and it had very good prospects.

It was just that there were still some shortcomings in the specific format...

"Minna-san, let's stop here for today. Everyone think more about it after you go back, and if you have good ideas, you can bring them up."

"Hai~" XN

The people in the conference room slowly dispersed. When only the more familiar old employees were left, Xi Lumei brought it up:

"Taiyu-san, regarding this reality show format, Akimoto-san is the most familiar, right? Can we invite him to be the director?"

"Mm..." Sugiura Taiyu nodded. "But he's already very tired producing the 'Fighting' program alone... he probably doesn't have the schedule anymore~"

As one of the hottest offline competitive reality shows at the moment, it had attracted countless attention...

"Then should we look for someone else?"

"It doesn't necessarily have to be someone else. If the program format is right, our station's producers will be fine too..."

Sugiura Taiyu looked at the prototype plan in his hand.

"It's just that we need to find someone with a sharp eye to look at the format..."

"Akimoto-san?"

"No... we need someone who understands reality shows better!" Sugiura Taiyu looked at Xi Lumei. "I heard that Akimoto Yasushi's variety show got its inspiration from Naoki-san?!"

"Naoki-san?!" Xi Lumei said in surprise. "But Naoki-san is busy filming a movie right now, isn't he? And he hasn't paid attention to variety shows for a long time!"

"Who says? The second season of 'Voice of Neon' that Tree Friend is producing—wasn't that proposed by Naoki-san~"

Sugiura Taiyu's eyes darted toward Xi Lumei.

"As for whether Naoki-san is busy or not, that depends on you, Xi Lumei!"

"..."

Xi Lumei immediately felt someone's ill intentions.

"I knew you had ill intentions, Taiyu-san... but there really is nothing between me and Naoki-san!"

"Everyone at Fuji TV knows that you, Xi Lumei, can invite Naoki-san!"

"That's only because I happened to be the one receiving him the first time Naoki-san came to Fuji!"

Xi Lumei shook her head repeatedly.

"The subsequent times were all official business regarding Tree Friend, and you have his phone number too, Taiyu-san!"

"We really don't have any private contact!"

Sugiura Taiyu's tone was firm:

"Xi Lumei... I know you are a good girl!"

"You won't seduce Naoki-san... and given your level of beauty, you couldn't seduce Naoki-san anyway!"

"..."

Xi Lumei's expression changed instantly; keep the last sentence, thanks!

"But!"

Sugiura Taiyu's expression changed.

"But as the person who communicates directly with Naoki-san, you have never made a mistake... you have completed the task very well!"

"So don't let this core competitiveness of yours fail!"

"..."

An angry cross appeared on Xi Lumei's forehead. Is my core competitiveness just being able to contact Naoki-san?!

"Alright... I know Naoki-san is very busy."

Sugiura Taiyu felt that if he provoked her any further, the woman in front of him might explode, so he hurriedly said,

"But the opening ceremony for the second season of 'Voice of Neon' definitely won't be missing him. When the time comes, just ask him to take a moment to look at the project proposal; there definitely won't be a problem~"

"After all, Naoki-san is a shareholder of Fuji TV!"

"..."

Xi Lumei took a few deep breaths, adjusted her emotions, and put on a business smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"Okay, I will contact Naoki-san... (As for whether he comes or not, that's not for me to consider!)"

"Mm-mm, I'm counting on you~"

At the headquarters of the Japan Composers Association in Minato, members of the Japan Record Awards Formulation Committee were discussing the final destination of the Grand Prize...

"Looking at sales and popularity, Nakamori Akina had 'Blond' in the first half of the year and 'Shipwreck' in the second half... both have great advantages!"

Jury member Kono Yusei smoked a cigarette, his brows slightly furrowed.

"But if we award this Record Award to her again, it will be a triple crown!"

"This has never happened in the history of the Record Awards..."

"The calls for her triple crown are very high!"

Other jury members nodded one after another; this kind of thing was like it being basically impossible to get a perfect score on a college entrance exam essay—it was considered an unwritten rule.

"But... other people's songs and popularity don't exceed hers!"

There was no help for it; Nakamori Akina's own popularity was too high, and on top of that, she performed on the same stage as Michael Jackson in the second half of the year.

"Really... even after getting married, it hasn't affected her?"

The older Fujimoto Yuzo was clearly a male chauvinist.

"After a woman gets married, she should be helping her husband and raising children; why is she still out there showing her face..."

Other jury members were noncommittal; they all had self-awareness and couldn't possibly point fingers at Nakamori Akina's life.

However, regarding the matter of actually awarding her the Grand Prize, the jury was still somewhat cautious... After discussing back and forth, one jury member finally raised an objection:

"'Shipwreck' has indeed received high support, and the vocal performance is also very good; the Gold Prize is a certainty..."

"But there are flaws in originality... this song has already been released!"

"I think, perhaps we can use this point to block her from the Record Awards!"

"Mm..." "This..." "It's against the rules~" "Should we consider it again?" "..."

Different voices instantly rang out in the conference room. These people hadn't spoken up when complaining about the triple crown just now, but they had all been lobbied by Burning Productions and were still supportive of Nakamori Akina...

In the end, it was the jury chairman, Composers Association president Ishikawa Koji, who spoke righteously:

"The authority of the Record Awards cannot be lost because of unwritten rules like the triple crown... What we need to look at is the quality of the song itself..."

"Even if we don't choose Nakamori Akina's 'Shipwreck', there must be an unquestionable reason!"

"One must know, once authority is lost, then no one will value the Record Awards!"

After Ishikawa Koji's words, the jury members began to discuss again... but this time, the focus shifted to the song album itself.

"Matsuda Seiko's 'Strawberry Time' sales are also very good..." "But it's still a sweet song, with no particularity..."

"What about Hikaru Genji's 'STARLIGHT'? Sales are also very good..."

"But there are too many male idol groups from Johnny's... and the styles are very similar..."

"What about Yoshi Ikuzo's 'Snow Country'? Sales are very strong!"

"Enka... no new ideas!"

"Teresa Teng's 'Premonition of Parting' has great influence~"

"After all, she's not Neon..."

Everyone proposed songs one by one, and they were rejected one by one... This year's Record Awards seemed to have shortcomings if awarded to anyone other than Nakamori Akina.

After arguing for an entire afternoon without a result, they finally decided to wait until the preliminary selection to see the live performance before making a judgment.

"Isn't Nakamori Akina pregnant? The performance definitely won't be perfect..."

And after the meeting ended, jury chairman Ishikawa Koji was invited to a club in Roppongi.

"Chairman Ishikawa, long time no see..."

In the compartment were Mary Kitagawa and another person who surprised Ishikawa Koji somewhat:

"Mary-san... and... is this Kondo?"

"Long time no greeting..."

The gaunt and pale Masahiko Kondo greeted him obediently... This male idol hadn't appeared in public for a long time.

If it weren't for the remaining fans and his status as a Johnny's senior, plus some pity from Mary, he might have long since faded into obscurity... This former top idol was now on the verge of retirement...

"Mary-san, this is?"

Ishikawa Koji looked at the person truly in charge, Mary Kitagawa, with some surprise.

"Ah... nothing, Kondo is just a cover; can't let people see that it's me looking for you..."

Mary Kitagawa signaled not to worry about this guy and exchanged pleasantries with Ishikawa Koji... and then they began to drink...

Masahiko Kondo could only serve on the side like a servant, pouring wine from time to time.

After the wine had flowed, Mary Kitagawa stated her true purpose:

"Inviting you here this time is actually for Hikaru Genji... Their debut song 'STARLIGHT', what do you think of it?"

"Uh..." Ishikawa Koji took a sip of water to calm his nerves. "This song is very popular, and sales are very good..."

"Ishikawa-san..."

Mary Kitagawa didn't hide it too much either.

"Johnny's intention is that we want this song to receive some recognition within the industry..."

"Ah, is that so..."

Lobbying, Ishikawa Koji had experienced this countless times; you should have said so earlier!

"'STARLIGHT' for the Newcomer Award is definitely no problem!"

"What if we want to go a step further?"

Mary Kitagawa continued.

"Ishikawa-san, if you can help in this regard, Johnny's will be very grateful!"

"This..."

Is the Newcomer Award not enough? Ishikawa Koji clicked his tongue; does a newcomer's first song actually want the Gold Prize?!

"Ishikawa-san... please be sure to help..."

At Mary Kitagawa's signal, Kondo took out a gift box from the side... After Ishikawa Koji took it, his heart skipped a beat; according to this weight, there was at least ten million inside!

One must know that as the president of the Composers Association, he actually only earned about ten million a year at most.

"This... how can this be..."

Ishikawa Koji opened a crack and then said hesitantly,

"A newcomer winning the Gold Prize right after debut will cause controversy!"

"Actually..." Mary Kitagawa lowered her voice, "what we hope for is the Grand Prize!"

"??!!!"

This sentence shocked even the experienced Ishikawa Koji!

"What? A newcomer? You want them to win the Record Awards directly?!"

"Yes! Winning the Newcomer Award is expected; there won't be any explosive point..."

Mary Kitagawa's expression was somewhat twisted.

"If they can win the Record Awards right after debut, then Hikaru Genji will definitely explode in public opinion and become the King of Idols!"

"The Gold Prize is a common kind of excess that will cause controversy, but when it reaches the level of the Record Awards, others can only look up!"

Actually, Johnny's had thrown money around countless times; Masahiko Kondo's first album had sales of a million, even more impressive than Yamaguchi Momoe at her peak—who didn't know the tricks behind that?!

This time, it was just another process of throwing money to buy a name!

"Aren't you afraid that Hikaru Genji will fall into a public opinion storm?! They will be scolded to death!"

"Hehe, we know from Tree Friend's previous operations... it doesn't matter if they are scolded at all!"

Mary Kitagawa was very serious.

"Popularity, topics, exposure—that is the life of an artist..."

"Whether it's black or red, I just want exposure!!!"

"..."

Ishikawa Koji was shocked by this crazy thinking... he could only stammer,

"Bu... but, even if I agree, other jury members will object!"

"Daijobu..." Mary Kitagawa was very confident. "I will give them a reason they cannot refuse!"

Isn't it just spending money!!

Johnny's has money!

Masahiko Kondo, who was bowing his head and not speaking on the side, was full of jealousy at this moment...

If it weren't for Naoki Nagayama forbidding him from participating in 'Music Station', one of the three major music programs, and forbidding Tree Friend artists from sharing the stage with him, then the idol Johnny's was pushing should have been him!!

The winner of the Record Awards should also have been him!

Having lost so much exposure from the start, how could he compete with others... He wasn't an artist with superb ability anyway!

Damn it, damn Naoki Nagayama, why can't he just let me go... ===== CHAPTER 1311 =====