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Banding together to impress
2020-08-19 
Forty contestants, all men aged around 20, of the fourth season of reality show The Coming One gather at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, for the show-they play, perform, live and study together, as well as form their own groups and share music. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Guitar riffs, the rumble of drums. The sound of the beat reverberates throughout the colorful fourth season of The Coming One, a reality show by Tencent Video, which premiered on July 11.

Previous seasons of the hit show have focused on individual performances to uncover the next big star, but this time around the show looks at what it takes to form a band. Forty young Chinese musicians, all men aged around 20, from instrumentalists to singers and rappers, take part in the show.

Titled The Coming One: Superband, the show gathers the participants together with the theme of "campus"-they live, study and share music together at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province.

Through numerous rounds of competition, they form bands, write songs and perform together and march, or not, to final glory. A new band, consisting of five members, will be formed by the show.

"We spent over six months preparing for the fourth season of The Coming One, especially researching the history of famous bands and learning about the success stories," says Zhang Pei, director of the reality show.

"I've learned that many great bands in the world started off as schoolmates when they were teenagers. They played music for fun that gradually grew into careers-some even became legends. Therefore, we decided to map out the scenario in which the contestants compete."

Forty contestants, all men aged around 20, of the fourth season of reality show The Coming One gather at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, for the show-they play, perform, live and study together, as well as form their own groups and share music. [Photo provided to China Daily]

By watching audition videos from tens of thousands of candidates, the team of the program selected a field of 40 young contestants.

"The most important thing is their passion for music. Then we look for the talent and the unique quality that make them shine onstage," Zhang says.

"The final five people will form a band, but for all of the contestants, it's just the beginning. They will start by playing within the campus of the show and then move on to larger stages, such as live music venues and outdoor music festivals," adds the director.

Since its first season premiered in summer 2017, The Coming One has been devoted into putting young Chinese musicians in the spotlight and propelling them to stardom. So far, it has aired three seasons featuring male competitors, and one all-female season.

Singer-songwriter Mao Buyi, 26, rose to fame after being crowned champion in the first season. Armed with his poetic lyrics and melancholy melodies, he released his debut album, Perfect Day, a year later and has garnered over 17 million followers on micro-blogging platform Sina Weibo.

"We've been trying to showcase the originality and creativity of young Chinese musicians. For the audience, it's about following the growth of young singer-songwriters and witnessing their evolution," says Zhang.

She points out that the fourth season offers more challenging scenarios. It is not merely a single performer that is highlighted, but a platform for a group of musicians to take to the stage as a band each time.

"The different personalities of all of the musicians on the show will be revealed and their musical talent will be displayed," Zhang says.

"One big reward is that these young people will not only learn to better convey themselves, but also realize the need to appreciate and embrace their band members' talents. When they play as a band, they have to cooperate and work as one entity."

Forty contestants, all men aged around 20, of the fourth season of reality show The Coming One gather at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, for the show-they play, perform, live and study together, as well as form their own groups and share music. [Photo provided to China Daily]

In the first episode of the new season, each contestant performed for the six celebrity coaches, who then delivered a rating. The contestants can choose their bandmates, but those chosen have the right to say no.

The six celebrity coaches are pianist Lang Lang, cellist Ouyang Nana, singer-songwriters Pu Shu and G.E.M. Tang Tsz-kei, lead vocalist and songwriter Liang Long of Chinese rock band Second Hand Rose, and Zhou Zhennan from the boy band, R1SE.

Pu says on the show: "I want to communicate with young people and to learn what they are thinking about. I am impressed by the young contestants, who are very real and enthusiastic.

"They are young and keen on making music without any boundaries."

The 46-year-old singer-songwriter has shied away from the limelight since releasing his last album, Orion, in 2017.

Forty contestants, all men aged around 20, of the fourth season of reality show The Coming One gather at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, for the show-they play, perform, live and study together, as well as form their own groups and share music. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Stars are born

Since the premiere of the new season, the program has stirred lots of discussion online and become one of the most popular reality shows of the summer.

Many of the contestants, since the show began airing, have achieved early recognition and racked up many followers on social media. One of the contestants is Yang Runze, who celebrated his 20th birthday last month. Yang says his wish is to tour and perform together with his bandmates one day.

"I joined the program, hoping to find like-minded friends and to play music together," says Yang, who was born and grew up in Shenzhen, Guangdong province.

"So far, I have had lots of fun, and it's rewarding for me to gain stage experience through the show."

Yang, now a vocal music major at Beijing Contemporary Music Academy, learned to play piano and classical guitar during his high school years.

Yang especially loved the atmosphere of the program, in which he doesn't need to have "perfect skills". "I really enjoy jamming with others, and the chemistry with my fellow band members is important to me," he says.

Forty contestants, all men aged around 20, of the fourth season of reality show The Coming One gather at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, for the show-they play, perform, live and study together, as well as form their own groups and share music. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Other young contestants, such as drummer Hu Yutong, suona player Yan Yongqiang and guitarist Liu Yang, also have gained a fan base as the reality show continues to broadcast weekly.

Their performances have drawn the attention of viewers, some of whom were impressed when Yan adapted Norwegian DJ Alan Walker's hit, The Spectre, with his suona, a Chinese traditional wind instrument with a double-reed mouthpiece.

A viewer commented on Yan's Sina Weibo account: "I was not very into the piercing sound of the suona, but Yan Yongqiang's performance changed my impression of the musical instrument. It turns out that it's so interesting!"

Besides the suona, more traditional Chinese musical instruments have been played on the reality show and have become a highlight.

Halamj, 21, from Bayannuur city, North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, wowed the audiences with his traditional Mongolian ethnic musical instrument, morin khuur (horse-headed fiddle), and his singing techniques of khoomei, a traditional throat-singing technique of the Mongolian ethnic group.

"I'm exploring the possibility of mixing traditional and pop music styles. I hope people will enjoy the more versatile expression of morin khuur," writes Halamj on his Sina Weibo account.

Studying khoomei at Minzu University of China, Halamj has teamed up on show with Samhar, a member of the Kazak ethnic group, from Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

Forty contestants, all men aged around 20, of the fourth season of reality show The Coming Onegather at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, for the show-they play, perform, live and study together, as well as form their own groups and share music. [Photo provided to China Daily]
Forty contestants, all men aged around 20, of the fourth season of reality show The Coming One gather at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, for the show-they play, perform, live and study together, as well as form their own groups and share music. [Photo provided to China Daily]
Forty contestants, all men aged around 20, of the fourth season of reality show The Coming One gather at the same place in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, for the show-they play, perform, live and study together, as well as form their own groups and share music. [Photo provided to China Daily]
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