The emcee once again stood on the stage, dressed in full "Rebirth" merchandise of T-shirt, sweatpants, head cap, and wristbands. His hair was still slightly damp from the quick shower he took to clean up the filth of raw eggs and urine.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the moment that we've all been waiting for is finally here! Although we've experienced such an unexpected and shocking event today, resulting on this launch party to be on the verge of getting canceled, everything worked out fine in the end. I wish for the injured people to get well soon. Ah, that was such a scary experience! I hope that everyone―"
"Shut up, emcee!"
"I've h-had enough of t-this! I have s-stage fright and I s-stutter but I think that I'll b-be a better emcee than this ch-chatterbox!"
The audience complained one after another, displeasing the representatives from JJ's record label and Bright Summit. They glared at the emcee.
The emcee cleared his throat and smiled bitterly. Seeing the audience getting rowdy once again, he was reminded of what he just went through earlier. He remembered all the raw eggs and urine he had to wash off and shuddered. Feeling traumatized, he didn't dare dilly-dally any longer.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to the stage, the one and only, our beloved boss, Miss Iris Long!!!"
Everyone stood up and gave a deafening applause to Iris who made another grand entrance.
"You're so beautiful, boss!"
"Boss is so cool!"
"Uwah! She looked at me! Boss actually looked at me!" The overexcited girl fainted but woke up a few seconds later, only to continue fangirling like nothing happened. And yes, she did faint. For real.
"Boss!"
"I love you, boss!"
"Boss!"
Iris blinked, puzzled, but continued to smile and wave at the audience. Did Dom clone himself or something? Why was everyone calling her boss? Was this a new trend that she wasn't aware of? She didn't understand.
She set aside her confusion for now. It was time to perform. She sat in front of the piano, flexing her hands. She looked at her band, the backup singers, and the symphony orchestra, and then nodded.
A now familiar mournful piano melody reverberated. All of the Black Stars fan club members stood up and cheered even louder.
Then Iris opened her mouth and harmonized her voice with the piano melody. It was such a full, emotional, and beautiful sound that many of the audience were already tearing up. The symphony orchestra also began playing. The overall harmony gave everyone goosebumps.
Iris began singing.
"I was young and fearless
Blazed through my dreams without direction
Tried to reach the sea of the brightest stars in the sky…"
The audience sang with her. They waved their hands up in the air, singing with all their heart. Their movements were so synchronized that they looked like one giant organism.
"…The meaning of life is to live our dreams
We fail, we fall
Yet still we keep on dreaming
No matter how far a black star falls
It's still a star that can glow again…"
Iris would stop singing now and then, to let the audience sing by themselves. Everyone loved it. They felt as if they were an important part of the performance.
Then Iris' fingers on the piano slowed down, her voice softening almost into a whisper. The audience also followed suit, singing as softly as they could.
"I'm a black star with no light
But so what? I'll glow again
My dream glows bright in my heart
I'm a black star that'll light up, you'll see~"
Hearing more than 5,000 voices sing together was nothing new to the representatives from JJ's record label and Bright Summit. After all, both of them had experienced working with artists more famous than Iris who could command more than tens of thousands of audience per concert. However, there was something different in the audience this time. It was as if they were possessed by a single spirit, united as one, brought together by Iris Long's music.
This performance had heart.
After the song "Black Star" ended, there was another deafening standing ovation. Their cheering and applause were tinged with pride. This time, it wasn't only directed at Iris and the musicians but also at themselves, the audience. It was like experiencing music on another level, giving them an exhilarating feeling that many of them had never experienced before.
Iris performed some of the other songs from her album, including the next popular one after "Black Star". When she sang "The Phantom of Your Love", Feng Wan burst into tears. Her three friends also had tears streaming down their faces, as they huddled and comforted their dear friend together.
"I'm dead when awake
Alive when asleep
How do I live when there is no you
Except in my dreams at night…"
Even when her intense emotions threatened to choke her, Feng Wan still sang with everyone else through the torrent of her tears. She remembered the first time she saw Iris perform this beautiful, heartbreaking song for the first time at the hotel restaurant.
Back then, Iris was wearing a flowing black dress. This time, she was in a sharp white suit. The contrast made Feng Wan feel as if Iris was an envoy of both the light and the dark.
"Oh, spend a thousand years
With the PHANTOM OF…YOUR…LOOOOOOVE~"
Everyone howled the last notes of the song. It wasn't only Feng Wan who was wailing in sorrow, affected by the dark music. People were hugging and crying on each other's shoulders, even though they were strangers before this day.
Iris decided to give everyone a break to calm their highly stimulated emotions. She played Chopin's "Raindrops" on the piano, gently easing the atmosphere into that of a relaxed one.
During this break, some staggered to the buffet tables to gulp drinks. Some shoved cookies and pastries into their mouths to comfort themselves. Some, still affected by their emotions, spilled their life stories to the people beside them, crying together like long-lost brothers and sisters. The others just closed their eyes, savouring the delicate piano melody Iris was playing, allowing the music to calm them.
When the atmosphere became relaxed, Iris' fingers suddenly became energetic, dancing swiftly on the keyboard. The music changed and a familiar piano melody reverberated.
Everyone's eyes lit up. They all stopped what they were doing and turned their heads, excitement evident on their faces.
Then the beat changed and Iris began singing. The audience once again sang with her and many started dancing.
"At first I was afraid, I was petrified~"
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