Rebound

The first screenshot shared already dispersed the waves slightly, but the post wasn't over yet.

The remaining three images were short and straightforward but contained valuable information.

The second image displayed a screenshot from the "Hi Sh*t" forum.

Some of the more friendly users translated the text, and although all their translations differed, anyone willing to put in any effort could simply believe the more common translation.

Unlike the versions circulating within China's online community, this screenshot had no blurred-out sections or altered timestamps and was in the original language. The comment threads were neatly arranged in chronological order.

First comment: "TMY Who? How did this unknown producer clime to the top of iTunes in a day? I've never even heard of her, and I can think of thousands of other artists more deserving. This is ridiculous."

Second comment: "TMY is a motherf***ing No. 1 DJ in China! She isn't some random kid on the street; she's the next generation of electronic music, idiot."

Third comment: "TMY? Wasn't there a viral video a while back about her? This kid named Shawn made a music review on YouTube about TMY's stuff. It's perfect. Her music, not the video. Although, the video's pretty good too. They're both good. I should stop typing now."

Fourth comment: "To the person who made the first comment: Yes, there are probably more deserving artists out there. I could find you 20 artists right now who donate all their money to sick kids organizations and deserve iTunes No.1 more than anyone else. But don't you dare say TMY doesn't deserve to be there too. I bought one TMY song a day ago, and haven't put it down since. F*ck your sh***y opinion."

Fifth comment: "FAKE!!! She manipulated the rankings!"

Sixth comment: "Anyone saying the rankings are fake is asking to be doxxed..."

- - - - - - - - - -

This was the second image shared by "Rainbow Flag." It was a wildly different narrative than what Gao Tucáo and the few that joined him were pushing. It painted the TMY haters as conspiracy theorists and made TMY's fans seem like reasonable people, which was pretty close to the reality of the situation.

The third and fourth were even more straight forwards.

The third image showed the iTunes song rankings and Rainbow Flag had circled the dates in bold red. It clearly showed the three TMY songs in the top three places; meanwhile, "EDM Star," which was previously ranked third, had now fallen to fourth place.

.

..

...

...Huh?

Wasn't TMY removed from iTunes? According to the mobs of comments, TMY's songs had vanished from the rankings and iTunes altogether.

But apparently, no one bothered to check...

TMY had never been removed! On top of that, the sales of her songs seemed to be increasing faster than before!!

And finally, the fourth image came from Rlex.Future's Twitter account.

It was evident that this tweet had just been posted, and as Twitter had built-in translations, there was no need for additional translating in the comment section.

This was a clarification and statement from Rlex.Future regarding the TMY incident.

In the text, Rlex primarily addressed the accusation of manipulating the rankings. He publicly stated that TMY did not engage in ranking manipulation! There was no falsification of achievements or sales figures - all were genuine. He dismissed the claims and so-called "evidence" circulating within China as mere rumours. Furthermore, he shared that he had purchased TMY's single and had listened to it over 30 times in just one day. His tone expressed pride in his listening record, and his admiration for TMY had reached an almost fanatic level.

While this could be called mutual admiration amongst peers, from his words, this seemed more like a fan reaching out to their idol.

This twist of events was akin to a tremendous shift in the universe. Initially, TMY's fans had to endure the onslaught of public criticism. Though, with the release of this post from "Westminster Rainbow Flag," the finger was suddenly pointed at the critics and industry insiders attacking TMY.

Due to the sudden shift, many users were left bewildered, wondering what exactly had happened.

Could it be that TMY didn't manipulate the rankings after all? Did she genuinely have people buying her singles overseas? And had she really reached the top three positions?

She only started two and a half months ago, right?

Wasn't this impossible?

But without any doubt, this is what happened. The genuine Rlex.Future had spoken up, openly admitting to being a TMY fanboy. He declared that Future Bass wasn't his creation but belonged to TMY! He even purchased her single and expressed his excitement about the possibility of collaborating with her.

Now that this reversal has taken place, the option of retreat for many individuals who involved themselves had been cut off. The switch had been so swift and widespread that everyone pushing this narrative was caught off guard.

No one had expected that Rlex.Future to speak out personally, especially in support of TMY. They never imagined this incident, which had been discussed for so long and influenced by numerous public figures, would be false. In reality, such an event never occurred. TMY was doing well beyond the ocean, with no artificial assistance.

This was a massive blow to their reputations.

Even further, being involved in a conspiracy theory like this could invite further scrutiny on themselves, as they decided to bully a newcomer in the industry.

And everyone has stuff they would rather remain hidden...

Although Gao Tucáo has always claimed that he doesn't seek personal gain and only upholds so-called "justice," his reputation was already questionable prior to this incident. With this bringing him into the spotlight, who knows what the internet could find now that he has brought himself out into the open?

How many artists did Gao Tucáo take down because of ulterior motives?

Look at TMY. Since her debut, she has never actively stirred up any controversy. It's always others who have provoked incidents with her. With Gao Tucáo and his cohorts added to the list of assailants, more and more malicious rumours began cropping up about Gao Tucáo.

The nature of this situation immediately changed.

"True intentions should not be disguised. Previously, Gao Tucao even covered 'Closer' in a rendition and shamelessly set it up for paid downloads on Weibo. He gained tens of thousands of fans and increased his income through this song. Now he's turning around and attacking TMY. I initially thought he had obtained permission, so I didn't say anything. But given the current situation, I have to doubt if he had TMY's authorization. Probably not! Yet he treats his benefactor in this manner? He deleted it pretty quickly too. I can't find that post anymore. What are you afraid of?"

"Heh, spreading rumours, huh? Is this what you call daring to speak the truth and voice your opinions? I'm in America, so I only found out about this now due to the time difference. I always thought TMY was doing well overseas. When did she get forcibly removed from the charts, as you claimed?"

"Heh, the comments from you two bloggers are just like those sour lemons who can't stand others achieving excellence. You look at those who excel with envy and jealousy. Because of people like you, the entertainment industry in China has declined to this state. Until now, there haven't been any noteworthy achievements. Perhaps you are the main culprits! Your existence has made this industry dirty, hasn't it?"