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Text/Time Jun- Shuangmu
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When it comes to celebrities, people will always think that men should be handsome and handsome, and women should be like flowers.
This was especially true in the 1980s and 1990s, when popular music in Hong Kong and Taiwan became popular.
Zhang Guorong and Tan Yonglin in Hong Kong, Qi Qin and Xiao Hu in Taiwan...
It's all big guys.
And in this big group of handsome guys, there is a very special kind of alternative.
This person is not only not handsome, but even ugly.
Speaking of names, there may be many young people who have to think about it.
But when it comes to his songs, I dare to pack tickets, you have listened to them!
"I am a little bird", "I am ugly but I am gentle", "I finally lost you", "How to say love"... He left too many classics.
"Then who is this man?"
"Does this still need to be said? Zhao Chuan! ”
With a high-pitched voice, a rousing melody and full of emotions, this 60-year-old man has not stopped his footsteps until now.
In April this year, he released a new album called "Old And Never Ending", which contains 11 songs.
It's really, not old.
In 1987, Zhao Chuan took his "Red Cross Choir" band and held a concert.
Zhao Chuan, who was restless on the stage, should not have noticed a figure under the stage.
That figure was Landy, the manager of Rolling Stone Records at the time.
Zhao Chuan sang on stage for three hours, and Landy listened to it for three hours intoxicatedly.
Landy admired Zhao Chuan too much, his voice was high-pitched, hoarse, and recognizable.
Landy thought to herself, she must sign him.
At that time, Zhao Chuan was still a migrant worker.
During the day, he works as a salesman in a trading company, and every day he rides a small motorcycle to run business under the hot sun.
No way, Zhao Chuan came from an ordinary peasant family, and after graduation, he had to run for his own livelihood.
Only after work at 6 o'clock did he dare to sneak a bag with his performance clothes and sing with the band members.
Even, when it comes to playing music, I don't dare to let my boss know.
The music is completely self-taught, and the guitar is made by itself.
I like to sing and like music since I was a child.
After being signed as a singer by the Rolling Stones, a new problem came.
Zhao Chuan is too ugly.
The height can be said to be short, only 1 meter 67.
The facial features are also uncoordinated, the nose is largely collapsed, and the eyes are small.
Some people even said that he was like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and such a look really embarrassed the company.
But maybe that's what it was meant to be.
At that time, there was a song in the company's song library called "I'm Ugly But I'm Gentle."
All the singers jumped over when they saw the song title "I'm Ugly", and no one wanted to sing it.
Therefore, Huang Yunling, the producer of Zhao Chuan, said:
"Don't sing it, it's just the one I want him to sing the most."
Zhao Chuan was also unhappy at first, but Huang Yunling explained to him,
This "ugly" does not refer to appearance, but to the ordinary side that everyone has.
Li Zongsheng also advised him that singing this song was right and would definitely be on fire.
At first, Zhao Chuan sang this song according to the producer's ideas, singing a relaxed, witty, and ridiculous feeling.
But the more he sang, the more Zhao Chuan was moved by this song.
"In the jungle of reinforced concrete, in the calling career, calculating the gap between dreams and reality..."
Isn't this a true portrayal of yourself?
The struggle and heartache of the little people in the lyrics resonated with Zhao Chuan.
Coupled with his vicissitudes and melancholy voice, the style of this song has changed at once.
The song was recorded, and everyone was satisfied.
But new questions have come.
Or the problem of appearance, Zhao Chuan's face can be placed on the album cover.
Everyone has thought of a lot of methods, some say put a back shadow, some say to match a partner...
In the end, it was the big brother Li Zongsheng who thought of a way to pat the side of his face, and then use the angle, posture, and flour to "hide" Zhao Chuan's face.
In short, I just couldn't see what Zhao Chuan really looked like.
So, the cover that was shot that year went like this:
Before the release of the album, except for Li Zongsheng, there were not many people who were optimistic.
Even Zhao Chuan, pessimistically believes that if he can sell 10,000 copies, he will be able to stand up to the sky.
As a result, the album exploded, selling 300,000 copies.
Perhaps, it is because Zhao Chuan sang the basic state of mind of "ordinary people".
Appearance is a divine gift, and we are born predestined.
But no one is willing to be mediocre, willing to be dusty.
Everyone wants to accept the challenge and bravely cross the rushing river of life.
Everyone has imperfections, but even so, we still face life seriously in imperfections.
Zhao Chuan's second album is also responsible for Li Zongsheng.
At that time, Li Zongsheng made albums for Zhou Huajian and Chen Shuhua, and who was popular.
But in the song "I Finally Lost You", the two had a big disagreement on the first sentence.
It's the phrase, "When all the people leave me."
Zhao Chuan wanted to sing "Dang, All People" like this; while Li Zongsheng wanted to sing "Be All People" in a row.
Just for this one detail, the two were deadlocked.
Suddenly, the eldest brother Li Zongsheng stood up from his chair and rushed to the singing room.
Everyone present was worried and ready to persuade the two to pull apart.
But Li Zongsheng fell to his knees with a thud and said to Zhao Legend:
"Old Zhao, I beg you."
Seeing that the eldest brother was kneeling, Zhao Chuan also directly fell to the ground.
In this way, the tense atmosphere was suddenly solved.
Because of my love of music, I am willing to put down my posture and be willing to do whatever it takes.
Of course, this song was finally recorded in the way of the big brother, and we are listening to it now, and it feels more in line with the drum beats and rhythm of the entire arrangement.
The song has another past story.
At that time, it was the eldest brother Li Zongsheng who first perceived Zhao Chuan's very unprecedented state and thought of hitting iron while it was hot and making another golden song.
So, the eldest brother made up a story:
"A boy in the pursuit of his dreams, constantly frustrated, a woman does not abandon him, give him warmth and encouragement. In the end, when the boy became famous, the woman had already left him. ”
The story, the song "I Finally Lost You."
However, no one could have imagined that this would be a slur.
In 1992, Zhao Chuan met a Beijing girl.
Soon, the two fell in love, she admired his talent, and he indulged in her tenderness.
However, distance may be the best way to beat love.
Separated by a sea, it is not convenient to come and go, and such feelings can be maintained by calling every day?
In the end, the two broke up peacefully.
Zhao Chuan's heart was also chaotic, and he didn't come out for a long time.
In fact, there is a follow-up.
In 1995, Zhao Chuan released the song "My Heart Is In Turmoil".
The MV of the song invited Qiu Shuzhen.
I don't know whether it was deliberately arranged by the record company or a coincidence, Qiu Shuzhen's personality, constellation, blood type, and appearance are very similar to the girl before.
When the official shooting, Zhao Chuan always felt in his heart that the girl was standing in front of him alive, and his heart was confused.
After the end, the scandal between Zhao Chuan and Qiu Shuzhen also spread.
But in fact, the two did not communicate too much.
Zhao Chuan's heart at that time belonged to the girl who was still in love.
"I'm ugly, but I'm gentle."
"Try to live on your own, try to find yourself, stop flinching for love."
Everyone has experienced the heartbeat and confusion of youth, but perhaps, only Zhao Chuan can sing life and love unforgettable and thrilling.
Cowardice, inferiority, fear, remorse, regret, and pain are all sung in the song.
In the 1990s, Zhao Chuan had a long downturn.
After the release of "I Am a Little Bird", Zhao Chuan was actually particularly popular, and the song spread throughout the north and south of the river.
How hot is it? Two examples can be illustrated.
In the first case, Zhao Chuan was the first Taiwanese singer invited by the mainland to come to the concert.
In 1991, Zhao Chuan held his first mainland concert at the Beijing Capital Gymnasium.
The stadium, which can accommodate nearly 20,000 people, is fully packed.
In the second case, at that time, Beijing Music Station had a great radio program called "Campus Folk Songs".
Every June, the program has to do a nostalgic program of "Graduation Commemorative Book", and Zhao Chuan's song will sound on time.
In the dormitories and bathhouses of college campuses, there will always be people who shout "I am ugly, but I am gentle" and "I am a little bird, I want to fly but I can't fly high."
In just a few years, Zhao Chuan transformed from an ordinary person into a household name superstar.
However, in addition to reaping glory, it brings ethereality, emptiness, and crisis.
As the lyrics say:
"Maybe one day I perched on a branch, but I became a target for hunters."
Several major events occurred in connection, and it became a pain that Zhao Chuan could not resist.
The first thing, Zhao Chuan's studio was burned.
Zhao Chuangang set up his own studio, did not think, before it opened for a few days, the studio was patronized by thieves.
The hateful thief not only stole the cash and equipment from the studio, but also set a fire and burned it before leaving.
The second thing, the company has been using his looks as a gimmick, and all the variety shows and interviews outside must talk about this.
The stars with large nerves may slowly adapt.
But Zhao Chuan couldn't stand this kind of atmosphere and culture.
In the most excessive one, one of the hosts joked:
"In the process of your parents conceiving you, is there any problem that you will look like this?"
Zhao Chuan was sad:
"It doesn't matter if you are insulted, what is the matter with my parents, why do you talk about my mother like this?"
The third thing is from the family.
Zhao Chuan's sister's business failed, and in order to repay the debt, the whole family sold a house under Zhao Chuan's name without a sound.
In the understanding of his family, Zhao Chuan is very good at making money, and the money comes with one mouth.
But Zhao Chuan was very sad, "How come my dearest family understands me like this?"
Perhaps, these things are not a big deal, but for Zhao Chuan, who is already introverted, he can't stand things for a long time.
He rethinked the question, "What exactly does success bring?" ”
Before, everyone didn't know him, and he felt very comfortable wherever he went.
But now he has a lot of things he can't do, a lot of things he can't say.
In fact, his world has become smaller.
Perhaps, this is the price of success.
At that time, whenever he sang a little bird, he would want to lose his voice and cry.
Even he always felt that he was just a small bird, never flying high and far.
For three years, Zhao Chuan did not sing.
Even, in those days, there was news that he was going to commit suicide.
I think everyone has had this experience.
Who hasn't been defeated by the harsh reality, who hasn't thought about giving up for an unbearable gap, who hasn't wanted to find an excuse to hide?
The life of an adult is a disaster.
Only by surviving this suffering can we realize the truth of life and usher in the day of nirvana.
As Lu Yao said, "Human life force is strong in the torment of pain." ”
This is the real life.
It was not until 1998, when Zhao Chuan married a Shanghai girl and started a family, that he slowly came out of the haze.
Before Zhao Chuan, he liked to sing everywhere, especially enjoying the feeling of enthusiasm and enthusiasm of fans.
But after the last song was sung, when I returned to the hotel, I was left alone.
After having a family, this sense of loss decreased a lot, and Zhao Chuan began to feel warm happiness.
After marriage, the two had two daughters and a son.
The warmth of the family has finally erased the heavy mud accumulated in Zhao Chuan's heart.
Zhou Guoping once said:
Everything in the world is extraordinary, and in the end it must return to the ordinary, and its value must be measured by ordinary life. Great, wonderful, successful is nothing, only to live an ordinary life truly well, life is complete.
This statement is really the truth.
The happiness of life is not obtained in applause, vanity and desire, but in the end, it is necessary to find the inner home in simplicity, tranquility and contentment.
Whether it is a superstar or a hero, they must eventually return to the ordinary.
Accepting the ordinary is the answer to life.
In life, Zhao Chuan became a gentle man with a calm heart.
On the stage, Zhao Chuan is still so hot-blooded, how to move and how to come.
At the current concert, fans will prepare glow sticks, which is actually related to Zhao Chuan.
When Zhao came to Beijing to open the first concert, several songs were sung, and the fans under the stage were particularly excited, and it was not too addictive to sing along.
At that time, disposable lighters had just become popular, and as a result, many people took out lighters from their pockets, "clicked" and lit them, holding them in their hands and shaking with the rhythm of the music.
With so many lighters, the security guards of the stadium were frightened and would only turn on the lights of the stadium.
Since then, there has been a rule that "lighters cannot be carried at large concerts".
What if you don't want to bring a lighter and want to express your excitement?
So someone invented glow sticks.
There is also a provision for the concert, which is also related to Zhao Chuan.
It was 1993, Zhao Chuan, who was giving a concert at the Beijing Workers' Gymnasium, when he sang excitedly, felt thirsty and shouted at the stage:
"Is there any water, take it and drink it?"
In an instant, the audience boiled, screamed incessantly, and smashed the mineral water bottle in their hands into the stage like crazy.
Suddenly, more than 200 mineral water bottles lay on the stage, and the organizers of the spectacular scene were frightened.
Since then, concerts have had a new rule - it is forbidden to bring bottled drinks.
To this day, the rock and roll event of that year may be difficult to reproduce, and those rock and roll cannons have gradually faded.
His contemporaries Luo Dayou, Li Zongsheng and others have few new works.
The newcomers who followed were even fewer.
Only Zhao Chuan, still sticking to the front line, has a steady stream of new works.
In 2016, he was still participating in "I Am a Singer" and also appeared on the variety show "Every Day Upward".
When it comes to soaring high notes with Huang Qishan and Hu Yanbin, it is even more rock-solid, and the other two powerful singers can only dwarf each other.
In 2017, he also started touring Malaysia.
In 2018, he was also able to win the Best Min Song of the Year at the Chinese Golden Melody Awards for his song "Thank You".
In 2021, he released a new album.
Today, he is 60 years old and confesses that he divorced ten years ago.
Everything slowly calmed down.
But the old is only the age, not old is the rolling blood in the bones, is the tireless and continuous pursuit, is the heart of a small person to continue to struggle.
Why do we like to listen to Zhao Chuan's songs, just because of the quality of the song and hardcore singing?
No, but also because of the values conveyed in the song:
Most of us are born ordinary;
We are often faced with the morning of the subway, the noon of ordering takeaway, and the night of staying up late and working overtime;
Monthly car loans of several thousand years, high tuition fees for children, and rising prices.
We may be nothing more than a tiny speck of dust in the long river of history;
We may not be able to escape the pressure of life and the injustice of fate;
We don't even know where tomorrow will be, what to expect in the future;
But in a limited life, everyone is trying to live their own wonderful.
As he sang in "To Everyone Who Knows My Name":
"Please dance your hands for me again, and I'll know you're in that corner."
He gave this song to all the little people who had struggled at the bottom like him, and hoped that all those who were struggling would one day be able to shine a dazzling light.
Click "watching", may everyone who is seriously alive deserve to share the glory of the world;
May our dreams never fail.
*Reference: Jiangxi Satellite TV "Classic Legend: Zhao Chuan"
Tao Wei Music "The Moment Li Zongsheng Kneels for Him, We Find an Exit for Music"
China Economic Network "Zhao Chuan Discloses Personal Feelings, Emotional Sustenance Is More Important Than Anything"
* Author: Time Jun - Shuangmu, post-90s, slow time columnist, think seriously with reason, and live quietly with attitude. Half in the shade and half in the sun.