Chapter 26 Chapter 26: Kola Platform in Focus
At the CEO’s Office, Kola Entertainment.
Kevin paced back and forth in the room, hands clutching his head as he muttered:
“Still no contact with Amaryllis? Or is she deliberately doing this to increase her value?"
The assistant, sitting in front of the computer, quietly wiped the sweat from their brow and replied:
“I don’t think so. Her account has been inactive since yesterday, showing that she hasn’t logged into the platform at all since the broadcast ended."
“She could be using an alternate account to check her own popularity," Kevin said confidently.
The assistant was at a loss for words. It was indeed possible. After all, her stream had skyrocketed into the top three of the platform’s popularity rankings after just one broadcast. If it were her, she’d probably also play hard to get.
But even if she was raising her value, she would at least show some sign so people could get in touch with her, right?
“Boss, even if you push me, there’s nothing I can do. She hasn’t verified her account yet, and she didn’t leave a phone number. Apart from messaging her through the platform’s system, we have no way to contact her."
This was part of Kola’s user recruitment feature—letting streamers have a trial broadcast before registering their personal information. Little did they expect that this would be the very thing giving them a headache now.
Kevin was on the verge of losing it. Ever since their competitor dealt Kola a serious blow, the platform had been in a downward spiral. No significant streamers had joined in ages, and investors had long since lost interest. Now, a one-night phenomenon had appeared, and he had to seize the opportunity to sign her to an exclusive contract. If the competition got to her first, his platform might have to shut down before the end of the year.
“That’s it! If she’s really offline, then she probably doesn’t know that Sarah’s fans are accusing her of pirating her song, right? We can help her resolve this issue so she’ll see that our company is strong enough to protect her."
The assistant asked skeptically:
“Boss, do you really have the ability to handle this?"
Kola was already struggling to keep itself afloat. She doubted Kevin had the financial means to take on a battle with that singer.
Kevin waved his hand dismissively:
“You just keep trying to reach Amaryllis. Leave the rest to me."
Seeing Kevin’s resolute attitude, the assistant didn’t say anything further and continued the seemingly futile search.
Meanwhile, Kevin picked up his phone and made a call. As soon as the person on the other end answered, he said:
“I know you hold the rights to that song. Since we’re old acquaintances, could you do me a favor and make a statement defending Amaryllis?"
The person on the other end replied:
“Actually, after hearing her sing, I felt like 'Send to You' was practically made for her. You don’t even need to ask; I’ll help. But could you convince her to sing my new song?"
Kevin hesitated. He hadn’t even managed to contact her yet, let alone convince her to sing his friend’s song. But for now, he made the promise to reassure the other party.
That same day, the composer of "Send to You" posted a statement clarifying that streamer Amaryllis had asked for permission before singing the song. At that moment, Sarah’s fans, who had been throwing shade, were immediately embarrassed and lashed out at the composer. However, the composer’s fans weren’t having it either, calling Sarah manipulative and unreasonable for stirring up drama despite not holding the song’s rights.
Social media was flooded with videos comparing the two singers’ voices. It was clear to anyone with ears that Amaryllis’s voice was better, and her technique was impeccable. Sarah quickly became a laughingstock online for not managing her fanbase, and her reputation took a hit.
Bang!
Sarah knocked everything off her desk in a rage, yelling:
“You need to hire more people to keep slandering that little copycat! She’s in the wrong, so why is everyone siding with her? And what’s with Mike? That song belongs to me, yet he let her sing it. Does he even care about me anymore?"
Sarah had gained fame thanks to heavy promotion from her company. While her singing technique still left much to be desired, her fanbase and reputation were formidable. Never before had she faced the kind of public ridicule and comparison she was experiencing now.
All because of that little streamer, Amaryllis.
Her manager stopped her from destroying more items and tried to calm her down:
“Stay calm. Making her disappear is no big deal. If she wants to enter the entertainment industry, she’ll have to show her face. She’s clearly hiding something. All we need to do is focus on this angle—accuse her of lip-syncing. Once she’s labeled a lip-syncer, who will watch her perform anymore?"
A wicked gleam flashed in Sarah’s eyes as she ground her teeth.
“Yes, she must be hiding her ugly face. I’ll tell my fan group leader to attack her appearance until she disappears for good."
The online battle raged on, but Selena was completely unaware. At that moment, she was on her way to the music school Ryan had recommended to register for lessons.
Her life had gone through too much already. It was time to chase her dreams.
The next day, after preparing breakfast for Balthazar and seeing him off to work, Selena logged into the Kola platform right on time to start her second livestream.
"The liar has finally shown her face, or is still hiding, probably because she’s too ugly."
"If you're lip-syncing, get out of here. Did we spend money just to see you lip-sync?"
"Quasimodo of the 4.0 era, haha."
"Fraud! Lip-syncing!"
...
As soon as Selena opened her livestream, countless people flooded in to hurl insults. She strained her eyes to read each comment, unable to understand what was happening.
"I'm sorry, but I’m not lip-syncing. I’m not showing my face due to personal reasons. I hope everyone stays calm and doesn't get upset."