raknovel Chapter 18 Future King
Chapter 18 Future King
Thanks to the involvement of superstars, "Huo Yuanjia," which already had a certain level of popularity, became an instant hit.
The number of downloads on Zhiyin has increased rapidly. People who resonate with the song love it: the gradually building intro is irresistible, the amazing opera-style vocals are breathtaking, the interlude is equally enjoyable, and there is even a forbidden duet at the end.
They showed their support with real money: Give me a boost!
This sudden publicity campaign caught the four major companies off guard. Yesterday was the final, and today Li Lianjie personally took to the stage.
They were originally planning how to sign Xu Jinyan and how to showcase their promotional resources to him to make his songs quickly become popular.
The result was quite unexpected. "Anhe Bridge" made it onto the platform's recommended list, and "Huo Yuanjia" even received a recommendation from Li Lianjie, suddenly appearing on the trending searches. This made them a little uneasy. If Xu Jinyan could rank at the top of the weekly charts solely on his own merits, what use would he have for the company?
So on Monday afternoon, the four major companies seemed to have made a pact to act at the same time.
Big companies are indeed big companies; they sent someone directly to the school to sincerely invite him for a cup of coffee.
To avoid repeating the same thing four times, he arranged to meet with several people at the same time, and then "shamelessly" stated his demands.
All four of them gaped, three of them genuinely astonished. Was this something they, at their level, could handle? The person from Canglan Entertainment, however, truly believed what the director had told him—that this was a capricious fellow.
Actually, you can tell from his choice of song for the final that he is, to put it nicely, very concerned about his own thoughts and feelings, but to put it bluntly, he is vindictive.
He doesn't want to suffer any grievances, so he'd rather earn less than have others tell him what to do.
After everyone had finished processing their thoughts, Xu Jinyan added, "We can discuss the profit sharing."
The group excused themselves, saying they needed to return and consult their superiors. A short while later, Hou Lin from Canglan Entertainment returned and sat down opposite Xu Jinyan.
He knew the answer beforehand, so he spent a while with the others in "shock" before coming back to discuss the details.
Hou Lin smiled and said, "Teacher Xu, the company held a special meeting with all departments before finally reaching an agreement on your contract."
Xu Jinyan smiled and said, "It's my honor."
Hou Lin: "You must have already learned about the revenue sharing method for a piece of music. Let me briefly explain it to you again. At Canglan Entertainment, if we sign a new artist who can handle all aspects of a piece of music themselves, that is, arrange, write lyrics, compose, and sing it all, then after the platform takes 20% of the profits, Canglan Entertainment will take 50%, and the new artist will take the remaining 50%."
Xu Jinyan nodded. He knew all of this, after all, these were the four major companies, and Canglan Entertainment was the one with the strongest music capabilities.
Hou Lin continued, "Logically speaking, you are no longer a newcomer. The success of the songs 'Anhe Bridge' and 'Huo Yuanjia' should allow you to negotiate a 60/40 revenue split with the company."
Xu Jinyan nodded. "But what?"
Hou Lin's smile widened, and he said, "No buts."
Xu Jinyan frowned and said, "No buts, what do you mean?"
"No buts, you can sign a 60/40 revenue split contract with the company. That is to say, if you handle another song after joining the company, you will receive 60% of the platform's profits after the platform takes its cut."
Xu Jinyan said, word by word, "I demand the right to freely choose whether or not to participate in any activities."
"certainly."
"I require my team to be centered on me and not to accept others' interference."
"certainly."
"I demand that the above be put into the contract."
Hou Lin laughed and said, "Of course."
Xu Jinyan scratched his head. Who was this? Was it some kind of expensive bribe? Did Old Shen or Sister Nan speak up for him? Neither of them had that kind of influence.
"Whose idea is this?"
Music Director – Chen Yunlu.
Actually, Hou Lin was quite shocked before he came. He was given all the rights, and he didn't even ask for a share of the profits. He was a newcomer who had written two songs, even if he was very successful. Was it really necessary?
……
……
"Is it really necessary?"
Chen Yunlu looked at Zhao Tong, the brokerage director, who was sitting in a chair sulking, and said with a smile.
Zhao Tong glared at him and said, "Xu Jinyan not only has to sign a contract with the music department, he also has to sign an artist contract. Of course you don't have to."
This morning, a meeting was held in the conference room of Canglan Entertainment Company, with Xu Jinyan as the main topic.
The meeting began with Shen Nan conveying Xu Jinyan's request, followed by a heated discussion.
Music director Chen Yunlu's view is to meet all his demands and not make things difficult for him in terms of profit sharing; he should receive whatever amount is due, which is an attitude of "spending a fortune to buy a horse's bones."
A&R Director Yang Zhen's view is that the company and Xu Jinyan each made concessions. The company gave him a certain degree of freedom, but he needed to complete certain performance targets. Regarding profit sharing, he shared the same attitude as Director Chen: he would receive whatever he was entitled to. It was an attitude that the company wouldn't take advantage of him, but he couldn't do whatever he wanted.
As for the agency director Zhao Tong, he directly stated that he would not sign such a person. What a joke! Does he think he's a superstar? He really dares to make such a statement.
Cooperating with events is a basic obligation for any artist, and even top stars can't avoid it.
However, Chen Yunlu valued Xu Jinyan's musical talent more and was determined to sign her. Originally, it was a decision he could make alone, but Xu Jinyan was not just a behind-the-scenes staff member; she was also a singer and needed to sign a management contract. So, he called over all the relevant people.
If it were a new singer, Yang Zhen and the director of the artist development department, who is also Wang Yizhen's superior, Li Chi, would discuss the training plan together.
However, for singers with a certain level of fame and market value, Yang Zhen and his management director Zhao Tong would discuss and conduct a quick assessment of the artist, then assign a manager to them to form an immediate fighting force.
Of the three directors present, two believed that the company should be signed, so there was no need to discuss whether or not to sign it.
The next point of discussion is how to sign the contract and to what extent freedom should be granted.
Zhao Tong was the first to speak out: "Xu Jinyan, I admit that he is very talented in music and can sing very well, but the fact that he can make such a request shows that he is an immature, unrestrained person who is unwilling to be wronged."
"Everyone has their grievances when they're working. Whether or not an event should be accepted is a professional judgment made by the agent. Do you even understand to listen to him completely?"
Yang Zhen agreed, "We can't just let him do whatever he wants." Then he suddenly laughed, "Goodness, if we let him do whatever he wanted, he would just steal an S-level project from Fengtai if he was wronged. Now everyone in the industry knows about Director Wang."
"But his professional skills are undeniable. Could we let him focus on music production?"
Chen Yunlu smiled and said, "They've made it very clear that they don't want you interfering. So, where are you going to tell them to focus their efforts?"
Yang Zhen frowned and said, "Then what do you suggest? Agree to everything?"
Zhao Tong was the first to vote: "Impossible." No one under her command was willing to serve a young master, especially one whose future was uncertain. Such a personality was most likely to lead to ruin.
Chen Yunlu said helplessly, "You guys, did you even listen to what Lao Shen said? He knew his request was difficult to fulfill, so he voluntarily gave up some profits to the company. Go out and ask around, are there any artists like that?"
Shen Nan, who was tagged, also said, "I've had more contact with him, so let me share my thoughts."
"Xu Jinyan isn't an unreasonable person. He knows how to handle things tactfully. Just look at how he handled the Wang director incident. The copyright was taken away without his knowledge, but he didn't say anything. He became famous overnight in the semi-finals, but he still didn't mention it. Until the finals, he chose 'Huo Yuanjia' as his breakthrough point. Why?"
"He knew he couldn't handle Wang Yizhen, so he sent someone who could deal with him to handle him. You also saw the judges' comments after the two competitions. He's not an arrogant person, so don't assume he's a spoiled brat. He understands social etiquette. It's just, like he said, for freedom, haha."
The group pondered for a moment, and a quiet silence fell.
Yang Zhen nodded first and said, "I understand. This is a young man who wants to sign a contract as if he were a superstar. He will do what is reasonable and necessary, but he knows that he cannot be given that kind of freedom, so he chose to give up his share of the profits to the company."
Chen Yunlu laughed and nodded: "That's right. When he really becomes a superstar, won't he still get his share of the profits?"
The two of them laughed together, then looked at Zhao Tong.
Zhao Tong actually understood, but she had worked her way up from executive agent to where she was today, and was used to thinking from the perspective of the head of an artist's team. Just hearing Shen Nan relay those few requirements made her feel disgusted. She had seen too many artists ruin themselves.
She glared at the two men and said, "Why are you looking at me? I'm waiting for the day he becomes a superstar." Then she got up and left. If she really signed the contract, she would have to find a suitable agent to serve this "future superstar."
The remaining group exchanged glances, and Chen Yunlu said, "I think sincerity begets sincerity, and a thousand pieces of gold can buy a horse's bones. If Fengtai Group fires Wang Yizhen, then they'll really have another strong competitor."
Yang Zhen pondered for a moment, then slowly nodded.