Rewind With A Superstar System

Chapter 161: Positive Effects

<🎧 Song Recommendation: I Told You Things by Gracie Abrams>

...

(Tuesday. 7th April, 2020)

Just two days had passed since the spectacle of the Global Siege Invitational Grand Finals.

The match had been a complete bloodbath. Riding the massive wave of momentum from defeating Abyss, Team Starfall had marched right into the finals and completely dismantled Team Ironclad, beating them three to nothing in a flawless sweep to win the entire tournament.

The news had instantly gone viral across the internet. Every social media platform, gaming forum, and pop culture website was flooded with only talks of Starfall’s dominance.

Most media and entertainment outlets didn’t hold back, rushing to publish articles about how a platinum-selling singer and one of the best nineteen-year-olds in music had seamlessly crossed over into the gaming world and ruthlessly crushed the biggest professional esports players on the planet.

On that exact same day, the game developers at Iron Core Interactive had finalized Von’s contract. To capitalize on the hype of the tournament, Far Away (Remix) was made available for purchase directly within the game’s client.

Knowing that the tournament champions had crafted that specific track, millions of players bought it immediately, absolutely shattering the game’s Day 1 sales records.

Then came the one million dollar prize money.

After a brief phone call with Aura, where she happily gave her full approval, Von decided to donate the entire sum to Alex’s foster care home.

He had spoken to Alex about it, and his happiness and gratitude made Von realize he had made the right choice.

A lot had gone by in just forty-eight hours. It was now Tuesday morning, and Von knew it was about to be a very thrilling day.

Von stretched his arms wide, sinking into his massive, soft mattress. He grabbed his phone from the nightstand.

’The Billboard Hot 100 drops today, Von thought to himself, a lazy smile forming on his face. ’I wonder if Emily will come to tell me.’

Deciding to remain in bed, Von got comfortable under the sheets and began scrolling through social media on his phone. He now had Twenty-one million followers on Photogram, which was a massive feat for an artist with just over twelve records out.

Von found himself reading different conspiracy theories about him. Even one that called the tournament a scam that was rigged to make Von gain clout.

The article called Von an industry plant, and also went on to accuse him of taking part in illegal and spiritual activities to rise to fame.

Stuff like that only amused Von, and the reactions went ahead to prove now gullible people could be sometimes.

click

Just ten minutes later, the door to his master bedroom was open. It was still quite early in the morning, but Von had left the light outside glowing green, signaling that it was okay to enter.

Emily walked into the room. She was still wearing her comfortable silk sleep robes, and she was carefully carrying a tray with breakfast. A plate of warm toast, scrambled eggs, and a fresh cup of coffee.

"Good morning, superstar," Emily greeted him with a bright smile and set the tray down on the small wooden stool next to his bed.

Von was surprised to see her bring him breakfast, but didn’t refute it. He smiled back, shifting over on the mattress and patting the empty space beside him to invite her to come stay with him. "Good morning to you too. I was just thinking of you."

Emily let out a soft laugh, taking a seat on the edge of the bed and pulling her knees up. "Aww, what were you thinking about?"

"I just love hearing you update me about the Billboard charts," Von said smoothly, resting his head on his hand. "It’s dropped, right?"

Emily sighed in playful disappointment and rolled her eyes. "Yes, it has. And you know you can check it pretty easily yourself on your phone, right?"

Von shifted just a little closer to her, flashing a charming smile. "I know. But I’d rather hear it from you directly. It sounds better coming from my manager."

Emily felt a sudden flutter seeing him approach too close. She cleared her throat and tried to adopt a professional demeanor.

"Alright, fine," Emily said and brought out her tablet. "So, there’s some really good news."

Von sat up properly, leaning against the headboard to listen.

"Well... first," Emily started with excitement,

"..."

"Lost & Found is officially back at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart!"

Von nodded, genuinely appreciating the news. Just the previous week, the album had climbed back into the number three spot from number five, and it was incredibly satisfying to see it reclaim the absolute top spot on the charts.

"That is incredible, Von," Emily said, tapping the screen. "Especially with how much new music is dropping right now from other major artists. It is estimated to climb down next week because of all the heavy-hitting albums that got released last Friday, but this is still a massive win. You’ve held the country’s attention for a long time. This will make it six weeks in total at Number 1."

"I’m proud of it," Von said honestly. "I’m always amazed that it didn’t lose its relevance."

"And that’s not all," Emily continued, swiping to the next tab on her tablet. "I bet you’ll be really happy to hear this one. Far Away finally debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart... at number eleven!"

Von’s eyebrows shot up in genuine surprise. "Number eleven? That fast?"

"Yup," Emily beamed. "It has everything to do with the combined metrics. The original track already has seventeen million streams across platforms, and the new remix with Patch is following right behind it with 11.9 million streams. Since the chart tracks the two versions as one single song, the numbers just stacked on top of each other."

From not even being in the top 100 last week to suddenly sitting at number eleven was a massive leap.

"That is exciting news indeed," Von laughed, running a hand through his hair. "This definitely calls for a celebration."

"It really is just the start," Emily agreed. "More and more people are discovering the song every single day because of the game, and it’s predicted to do even better in the following weeks. So we’ll just have to wait and find out how far it can really go."

Emily paused, her smile fading just a fraction. She bit her lower lip, looking at her tablet with a slightly confused expression. "But... there is also something else. Something that is sparking some weird concerns about the song."

"Concerns? What is it?"