America's Top Player

Chapter 155 Selling Freedom
At eight o'clock the next morning, Beyoncé was still sleeping soundly in her room.

The Texas Cowgirls were beaten five times in last night's matchup and were completely drained of their energy.

Completely ignoring the seven or eight messages from JAY-Z on the other end of the phone.

Li Ang put on his clothes quickly, stretched, and felt refreshed from the inside out.

Having just been humiliated by JAY-Z, he immediately gained sufficient value from Beyoncé.

The only downside is that my legs feel a bit out of control when I walk.

"This is the royalty income for this quarter."

As soon as Leon returned to his office in New York, Aisha placed a one-centimeter-thick document on the table.

The densely packed numbers and complicated sub-items on it make people feel overwhelmed.

Li Ang turned directly to the end to look at the statistics.

The bulk of the revenue comes from performance royalties and synchronization royalties.

"The gap is so big!" Li Ang sighed.

The income from performance royalties made him see the light.

In this revenue structure, Robbie's "Faded" and Ariana's "Senorita" beat his own debut album "Demons".

Any performance of a work can generate revenue, which in today's digital age can be simply understood as streaming media playback.

Commercial users must pay a certain percentage of royalties to the author.

Where there are views, there is revenue.

The revenue from each play seems small enough to be negligible.

But with the internal competition in the streaming music industry, more and more streaming platforms have introduced free models.

By burning money, they intend to destroy traditional platforms such as Apple Music Store and Spotify that make profits by selling copies.

Performance royalties are administered by the PROs.

Fortunately, whether it is Robbie or Ariana's works, Li Ang is almost solely responsible for the lyrics, composition, arrangement, and mastering.

Therefore, he can enjoy this part of the copyright income exclusively.

Including the more generous synchronization royalties, the total revenue in the first quarter of 2011 was nearly $150 million.

This indirectly proves the commercial value of hit works.

This amount of money is not a huge sum for Li Ang now, but it is enough to cover the huge personnel expenses of many companies under his control.

As soon as Aisha left, Li Ang's phone kept ringing.

There are constant invitations for radio interviews and commercial performances.
After the Billboard Awards, his controversy escalated.

The mysterious lawyer Luca Vincent from the law firm that Elsa had contacted earlier has also confirmed that he will visit this afternoon.

This meeting is crucial to whether the two sides will sign a cooperation agreement.

Bored, Li Ang fiddled with the playing cards in his hand while refreshing social media.

Having a heated chat with Kardashian’s two sisters on Facebook.

"Kendall, you have a great body. If you become an actress, you might become as famous as Angelina Jolie!"

"Kelly, you are a natural singer~"

He painted all kinds of grand promises with exaggerated words, which made the two sisters dizzy.

Kendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner, one is 17 years old and the other is only 16 years old.

But it has already shown strong commercial potential.

The former is already a well-known model and frequently appears in major fashion shows.

The latter is an internet celebrity who has more than 150 million followers online simply by sharing makeup tips.

This is a very impressive size at the moment.

If Li Ang enters the film and television or self-media industry in the future, his two sisters will be good resources.

Young, beautiful, and hot.
And easy to control.

After witnessing Li Ang mocking Diddy at the Grammy Awards, his admiration for her reached its peak.

They are no less fanatical than the fanatic leaders in the fan community.

Especially the youngest sister Kylie, she is like an upgraded and more powerful version of her sister Kim Kardashian.

She has a more delicate appearance, is taller, and has a more curvy figure.

This girl has such strong capital at such a young age
The key is natural flesh without technology or silicone.

As the conversation escalated, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

"Boos, Ms. Maggie wants to see you." Bonnie reported.

"Maggie? Why does this old woman come to see me?"

Li Ang turned the pen and pondered it carefully.

As Robbie's agent, the relationship between the two has reached a freezing point.

If the other party comes to visit you at this time, it will definitely be something bad.

"Let her in"

A minute later, Maggie entered the office.

"It's been a long time since I last saw Ms. Maggie." Li Ang handed her a cigarette.

This American mature woman and career strongman is a typical heavy smoker.

"Congratulations, Leon, for winning two Billboard Awards." Maggie lit a cigarette and puffed away. "Compared to that Justin Bieber kid, you're the real star of the show."

"You're too kind, ma'am." Leon said perfunctorily.

The current situation seems a bit awkward, with both sides exchanging casual greetings.

Li Ang believed that the other party came because of Robbie.

Whether to break up or not, there must be an explanation for this matter.

But Maggie's next question was a little unexpected.

"Has Leonard from Warner Records talked to you?"

"What do you mean?" Leon said, "I'm not familiar with Mr. Leonard."

"About the merger of Apocalypse Records into Warner Records." Maggie went straight to the point.

Hearing this, Li Ang narrowed his eyes and stared at the other person.

It was obvious that Maggie and Leonard had already discussed this.

This matter has crossed the line. It is not the business of an agent to intervene in issues between two record companies.

"I'm still thinking about this matter." Li Ang said in a deep voice.

"Don't think about it." Maggie put out her cigarette and waved her hand. "Cooperation will take everyone's career to the next level. It will benefit both you and Robbie. You will earn much more than you do now."

The implication is obvious: Warner Records' promotional resources are not on the same level as Apocalypse Music.

The power of the shareholders of the Spotify platform alone can increase the exposure of the work by a huge amount.

They also control a large number of radio stations, magazines and countless online marketing accounts.

Before being sold to Time Warner Group, Warner Music's promotional capabilities in traditional media channels were much stronger than they are now.

"Ms. Maggie, I don't think this is something you should consider." Faced with the other party's chattering, Leon's patience was almost reaching its limit.

"Why?" Maggie retorted, "You should know that I treat Robbie like my own daughter. You've already hurt her emotionally once. Do you want to hurt her again in her career?"

Hearing this, Li Ang couldn't hold it anymore.

The other party is treating me like a child who has not grown up.

An old fox who has been working in Hollywood for more than 20 years, exuding a pungent smell of money.

He actually used such childish words as "hurt feelings" as a bargaining chip.

It's ridiculous just to think about it.

"Listen, ma'am, this is my company," Leon said. "As much as I hate to say it, you have to understand who paid for Robbie's success in the music industry."

"But."

"Don't say but!" Li Ang lowered his head and glanced at his watch.

Luca Vincent will be here in half an hour.

It's time to see you off.

Sometimes he felt that the agents were all disgusting. Leon began to miss Phil being by his side and used his magical signing technique to shut Maggie up.

"Let's talk about the movie. How's the filming progress of 007 Skyfall?" Li Ang asked, taking the initiative.

"Everything went very smoothly. Robbie was promoted to the leading female role and returned to the traditional Bond girl image." Maggie's voice became smaller and smaller, which was a sign of guilt.

Even this role was fought for Robbie by Leon.

"Very good, Robbie is on the right track. Her career is flourishing. What else can you be dissatisfied with?" Leon said. "Don't be too greedy. It will cloud your judgment."

Maggie seemed to have no temper when being taught a lesson by a young man in his early twenties.

I could only nod in agreement.

"By the way, please give Robbie a message for me."

"what?"

"I'm going to restart the recording of 'We don't talk anymore' and ask her to take some time to come to the company."

"No problem!" Maggie couldn't hide her excitement, and the previous haze was swept away.

A broker is actually an "economic man" and everything is about money.

"You have to persuade her. I mean, she hasn't come to the company for a long time."

"Yes! Please rest assured about this! I will let her open up!"

Li Ang's plan was that the day "We don't talk anymore" was released would be the day he officially announced his breakup.

Maggie didn't know about this, and Robbie definitely didn't know about it.

Taking advantage of the heat of the official breakup announcement, this appropriate love song is sure to achieve a sensational effect.

Let this song unleash the greatest commercial value.

Just as Maggie, the greedy vampire, was sent away, the sound of leather shoes stepping on the ground was heard outside the office.

Crisp and orderly, it was definitely not Phil.

After Bonnie's announcement, a young man in a suit and tie walked in.

Medium build, blond hair, probably around 30 years old.

Well-dressed, well-mannered, with a smile fixed on his face like a mask, he is the typical image of an elite lawyer.

"Oh~god~ I finally meet you, Mr. Li Ang. You look even more handsome in person than on TV!"

Although it was their first meeting, Luca didn't show any sign of restraint.

As soon as they shook hands, they started to flatter me: "Look at you, you are like a young lion full of vigor and vitality. No wonder young people nowadays are crazy about you~"

"Let's sit down and talk." Leon waved his hand, signaling Bonnie to bring two cups of coffee.

While waiting, Luca continued to chatter non-stop, mostly with meaningless flattery.

The more Li Ang listened, the more he felt something was wrong. Could this silver-tongued clown be a qualified lawyer?

He looked more like a seasoned Indian scammer.

Li Ang took a sip of coffee and asked directly: "Mr. Luca, you should have some understanding of my needs before coming here, right?"

A professional law firm should understand the client's background before formal cooperation negotiations. This is basic skill.

“Of course, understanding the client’s needs is a basic quality for a lawyer.” When Luca spoke, his gestures were like playing an accordion, and his voice was full of emotion.

He could expertly recount all that Leon had experienced since his debut, even the little-known details of the T-ray backstabbing and the video store shooting.

This immediately made Li Ang look at him with admiration.

"I heard you often serve Mexicans?"

"I'm not a racist person, I provide fair and perfect service to anyone who gets into trouble."

"It would be very dangerous to do this. Those Mexican drug traffickers are not easy to deal with." Li Ang did not beat around the bush. His purpose was to test whether this lawyer was, as the rumors said, dedicated to serving serious criminals.

"Drug dealer? I don't understand what you're talking about." Luca shook his head. "Before they're convicted, they can only be called good people who have temporarily lost their freedom. There's no such thing as criminals among my clients because they're rarely convicted."

"My clients are all law-abiding, five-star citizens who never forget to pay their taxes on time."

"Do you really think so?" Li Ang lit a cigarette.

"Of course, it's just a matter of supply and demand. The market needs it, and my clients provide it," Luca said. "It's the same as every industry. The adult industry sells happiness to the public, and the music industry sells emotions to the public. Where there's demand, there's a market."

Seeing that the other party was talking more and more outrageously, Li Ang quickly interrupted the topic.

Leading the question to a professional one, "Do you know anything about music copyright disputes?"

“Of course, no one knows more about music copyright than me!”

The dispute between Li Ang and ROC Kingdom mainly concerns the mastering rights.

This issue is an industry consensus and there is no dispute.

It has been an industry rule since the birth of the record industry that the master rights belong to the record companies.

This means that even if you own all the copyrights to your works, you will not be able to record your previous records after the contract is terminated.

Once the contract with ROC is terminated, Li Ang will no longer be able to receive a share of the sales of the "Demons" album.

The newly signed company is also unable to record and release this album.

This is no different from handing over the child you raised to honor others.

"This is an industry-wide problem, but it's not without a solution."

"How to deal with it?"

"Re-recording the original work into a new record, with the copyright in your hands, is the greatest weapon."

"Fxxk" Li Ang was instantly deflated.

He had some knowledge of such a solution beforehand.

But the cost of re-recording is too expensive, so the entire recording and MV have to be started over again.

Considering that the original works have passed their golden sales period, it is difficult to bring economic benefits by doing so.

“It’s a good deal in the long run,” Luca explained. “And you don’t necessarily have to start over.”

"what do you mean?"

"The original recording can be re-mastered by changing some drum beats and synthesizing the audio, which doesn't cost much."

Li Ang frowned. Could this really pass the review of the Recording Association?

Maybe there will be a double reversal, and ROC may sue it in court and accuse it of infringement.

"Listen, copyright is your most powerful weapon. You own all the copyrights to the songwriting, arrangement, and performance. You also have the best lawyers in the United States!"

"Even if it goes to court, I can easily handle it."

Master rights are the scepter of record companies and have always been a difficult and thorny issue for singers of all generations.

Although Luca's suggestion is not groundbreaking, it is the most economical means.

As long as he can fulfill his promise and resolve a series of possible infringement disputes.

After some contact, Li Ang had a full understanding of him: although this guy has a greasy accent, he is very capable.

This is a typical high-level American lawyer.

This was an important reason why Li Ang finally decided to choose him.

In the American legal system, having moral obsession and a savior complex does not make one a qualified lawyer.

An excellent lawyer is one who will not hesitate to use any inhumane means to protect the interests of his clients and himself.

From this point of view, Luca, who has a negative moral index, can definitely be regarded as a role model for the legal profession.

The two of them have similar tastes.

With a foundation of mutual trust, the subsequent cooperation negotiations will be much easier.

Apocalypse Music pays Vincent Law Firm $50 a year to deal with various legal risks it may face.

Luca Vincent will also become Leon's personal legal advisor.

Compared with the consulting commission of Sidley Austin LLP, which often starts at one million yuan per year, this money is still cost-effective.

Based on the principle that all the money was spent, Li Ang continued to talk with the other party for more than two hours.

He consulted about his knowledge gaps on reputation rights, portrait rights, etc.

When they parted ways, Leon asked curiously, "Mr. Luca, you said before that any business based on supply and demand is a positive business. So what are you selling?"

Luca was slightly startled, then he touched his tie and answered seriously:

"free."

(End of this chapter)