Chapter 35: [Bonus chapter] | Chapter 035. New Gig
Last week, X-Star got embroiled in a controversy with the leak. Although they managed to remove the article from the Gossip Tribunal website, it had already done the damage.
The PR team tried hard to control the spreading fire and outwardly ignored the commotion. But it didn't stop the fans from asking questions.
And all their questions were answered when the next episode of X-Star was revealed. It was an episode that truly surprised the viewers as it was vastly different from the previous episodes.
First of all, this episode alone became the most hated episode of all the seasons because of how it was edited. The editing team had shown Rachel and Cameron in 80 percent of the episode.
The other contestants were only given glimpses, and the show didn't even show their performance properly. Instead, most of it was just interview and practice sessions for both Cameron and Rachel.
Not only that, but even before that, all social media promos mainly were about them, and it seemed like the show was just about the two and not others.
It was done to give them more exposure and popularity as they were already in the lead, but it wasn't subtle at all, resulting in a massive backfire.
Aside from that, the fans of other contestants were very disappointed. Although not as popular as Aiden or Rachel, there were contestants like Emily, Team Symphony, Lydia, and even Jackson, who had a small but essential fanbase.
These were completely ignored, resulting in a massive backlash from their fans in the form of negative comments.
The worst thing was Aiden's elimination. Something that has already been leaked but was confirmed in today's episode. But the way the show staff handled it made everyone rage.
He was only shown during his performance, and other than a short interview in the end after he lost, there was nothing.
Even if he was getting eliminated, it should have been done better with a bit of emotional touch, but Gary had told everyone not to focus on him, thinking it would make people forget about him.
But he was severely wrong.
Many blog and article websites have written about it with Gossip Tribunal saying, [Although X-Star was going through a great season, probably their best till, they might have hit the hammer on their foot here. This episode was something that is no doubt an editor's nightmare.]
A famous article website that mostly follows celebs and reality shows, Celeb Fix, also wrote an article, trying to benefit from the hot topic, [It seems like everything was going right for them this season with great contestants and popularity never seen before. But they ruined a whole episode due to an effort to get their most popular contestants even more exposure.]
A popular website mainly dabbling in pop culture, Jojo.com, also posted an article just two hours after the episode was broadcasted [Compared to the other reality shows like Singing Icons and American Star, X-Star always seemed to be the most genuine. But the perception is undoubtedly going to change, at least a bit. The situation can get better, but there's no doubt the ratings will take a big hit.]
Along with these articles, the fans were disappointed, especially the casual viewers who won't talk about the show on social media or follow the contestants but would still watch the episode and talk about it with their friends and family.
These viewers were in the majority, and somehow, X-Star managed to disappoint them too.
This was something most reality shows wouldn't want, and Panther TV straight out gave an ultimatum to the X-Star program team and producers to sort out the mess as soon as possible.
This episode benefited Aiden the most, as many talked about his elimination. This had gravitated people toward his social media accounts, and from there, they got to know about his songs and the MeTube channel.
When someone is a hot topic, people would always search about them, and many of his fans have already started sharing his songs.
This increased the views of many of his songs.
On MeTube, [Lonely[ was already getting views at an incredible pace with it crossing 100k, and both [I can't seem to forget] and [Life is a story] crossed 70k each. So by this pace, it was easy for them to cross a million in some months, which was a big deal for a musician with no base.
Even Aiden's MeTube account was getting a lot of subs. People wanted good, original music that they could relate to, and he provided just that. As a result, even his subscribers increased to 30k overnight.
On many online forums, it was being discussed. One of these was a forum exclusive to reality shows, and it was called 'Zenya'. On it, many fans were talking about Aiden's elimination.
[Karma's a beech: Aiden is really eliminated? I can't believe it! I thought it was a joke.]
[Omar Alshaikh: Did anyone see the guy's MeTube channel? I loved his songs. It seems like the guy can become a big star. Though it would be hard to do it independently, maybe I can help him out?]
[Monke: @Omar Aslaikh What are you? A millionaire?]
[Mister Immortal: Guys, see Sparrow! X-Star is getting roasted left and right. Someone even called them hungry for ratings.]
[God is Dog: So what now? He's going to become a MeTuber. I was hoping Steven would give him a contract, and he would let out an album. It's incredibly hard to find someone like him in the age of rappers that keep popping up here and there]
[Touch my waifu, I kill: I don't mind seeing Cameron and Rachel, but X-Star overdid it just to lower Aiden's popularity, knowing he will be eliminated next. They banged their heads on an invisible wall here.]
[Smut is the way: Man! Lonely is great. His every song is just so nice to listen to.]
[Writing is hard: I wonder what he will do next? Maybe a MeTube career, but it would be incredibly slow to increase his popularity after X-Star. I hope he comes to another reality show or a record label signs him.]
[New Yorker from rebirth: I saw Aiden today outside a theatre! I couldn't meet him because I was on a bus, but he was standing outside one. I wonder what he was doing there?]
***
As all this was going on the internet, Aiden was in his room. He had just returned from the bar and was already tired. But as he was planning to sleep, Valerie knocked on his door.
"How can I help you, Ms. Hudson? Do you need something?"
He asked after opening the door. By the smile on her face, he guessed that there was not anything to worry about.
"Yes, remember I told you about the wedding? My friend saw X-Star and loved your voice. So she wants you to sing at her reception."
"Really?" Aiden was surprised as he hadn't expected that she was serious. But, of course, right now, any gig was good enough for him to earn a bit of money.
"Yeah, I will give you her contact information, and you can talk about money tomorrow. But uh, she has a request. She said it's fine if you can't do it, but she's ready to pay more if you can."
"What request?"
He raised one of his eyebrows. Then, looking a bit worried, Valerie finally opened her mouth.
"She wants you to make an original for her wedding."
"Huh?"
"She loved your original songs, and she knows it's not easy to make one, but if you can, she would be really grateful and is willing to pay you more. So, it's a good opportunity for you."
Hearing that, Aiden couldn't help but ponder about it.
'A song isn't easy to make. But extra money…'
That was not something easy for him to give at this moment. There was no saying he had passed the audition, and for now, he only has MeTube and Melody, and in that, he won't start to earn a lot so soon.
Thinking for a bit, he decided to agree on it.
"Okay, I will try my best to make a good wedding song."
Valerie smiled brightly hearing that. It looked like she didn't expect him to accept the request but was nevertheless a bit hopeful.
"Thank you, Aiden! She's been a dear friend of mine for a long time, and it's her second marriage after her husband passed away ten years ago. She would be really happy."
Aiden just nodded at that.
He had never attempted to make a wedding song, but it was not like he couldn't try. After all, he had made a few songs during X-Star, too, so he can do it again.
At least, this time, he was being paid for it.
But at this point, Aiden didn't know that this song would be a small turning point in his life.
...
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