America's Top Player

Chapter 162 Return to the Streets of the 90s
The next day, with the release of the second week's box office results for "Straight Outta Compton", it surpassed "Super 3900" with a weekend box office of 8 million US dollars to achieve consecutive championships.

Meanwhile, news that Davis was shot outside a Harlem nightclub dominated entertainment headlines across the country.

On the way to the hospital, Li Ang was concentrating on interacting with fans on social media, while reports about the shooting came from the radio one after another.

"According to the latest news from our reporter, Davis, the young black actor who played the third male lead in the hit movie 'Straight Outta Compton', was shot near a nightclub in Harlem."

"The gunman fired two shots before being repelled by his companions, one of which hit Davis in the lower body."

"The actor is currently receiving treatment in the hospital. Police are investigating and are refusing to release further information."

The internet community is abuzz with speculation about the cause of this incident.

Leon earned the title of Harlem's White Godfather for Straight Outta Compton, and one of his actors was shot in Harlem.

Combining these things makes it hard not to suspect that this was a case of targeted retaliation.

"It's not a bad thing~" Li Ang raised the corner of his mouth.

"I don't quite understand what you mean. It's obvious that someone is targeting you." Jorge, who was driving, asked in confusion.

Li Ang kept smiling and did not respond.

Judging from the current situation, Davis's shot was completely worth it.

Many viewers who have no interest in this movie will buy tickets and enter the cinema out of curiosity.

The box office revenue generated by the popularity may even help "Straight Outta Compton" achieve a three-peat in the summer box office.

Davis just lost an egg, but Leon earned tens of millions of dollars in real income.

At this time, P. Diddy suddenly updated his tweet with a laughing and crying emoji.

A picture is worth a thousand words, and it clearly acknowledges this matter.

In one of the most-liked replies in the comment section, a young black rapper admitted that he had planned the shooting.

The plot is so familiar, it's exactly the same as what happened when Didi was shot.

"Is this damn Nige interested in military strategy?" Li Ang laughed out loud in anger.

A tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye.

The same plot of charging for idols cannot be repeated a second time.

This is all Didi's mastermind.

It’s not hard to imagine how wildly Diddy is laughing now. He’ll need three more bottles of baby oil for the party that night.

In the hospital bed, Davis has woken up from the effects of anesthesia.

But his eyes had lost their former luster, and his dull gaze was fixed on the ceiling.

Li Ang sat down next to the bed, "You'll be fine, man."

Davis couldn't hold back after seeing this scene. He lost control of his emotions and yelled on the bed, "Bro, do you know what I've lost?! Fuck, I'm not a complete man anymore!"

"No girl will ever fall in love with me again! I'm going to scalp those guys like an Indian!"

Any man would lose control of his emotions if faced with such a tragic experience.

Li Ang could only keep comforting her: "It doesn't matter if one is missing."

"WTF, what are you talking about Bro?" Davis' eyes widened, and he suspected for a moment that he had misheard.

"I mean, losing one doesn't affect your masculinity," Leon said. "The mustache painter only had one, but that didn't stop him from almost conquering the world."

Hearing this, Davis, who had only an elementary school education, calmed down a little.

"Bro, we must take revenge! Not by dissing them!" Davis roared, "We must destroy them completely!"

"Don't worry, you'll see the results soon."

Even to maintain his street reputation, Leon had to fight back against Didi's escalating provocations.

At the moment, it seems that I don’t even need to do this myself.

Robinson, far away on the West Coast, has sent a dozen gunmen to New York.

He said he hated Davis, but he was also a film investor and the other party was the star of "Straight Outta Compton".

Every street thug in Compton knew Davis was a Saint.

The more important reason lies in my cousin.

The moment my cousin learned about this, she felt like the sky had gone dark.

From then on, Davis really only had a flexible tongue left.

Robinson's message to Leon was succinct: "Give me the list of those bastards, and my people will find them."

Just one day later, Robinson made good on his promise.

The underground rapper who claimed to have shot Davis was beaten to a pulp in his rented apartment.

He was shot more than ten times.

Underground rappers were eventually sent underground by thugs from Compton.

"Well done." In the office, Li Ang drank coffee leisurely.

Before they could feel proud for a few minutes, news came from Miami that Evil Angel's flagship store had been robbed by a group of people.

"Who would go to a lingerie store and buy something for free?" Li Ang immediately realized that something was wrong, and after a deeper understanding, he became even more convinced of this.

The gang of robbers set fire to all the goods in the store.

If the fire department had not responded in time, this flagship store would no longer exist.

The fighting in the streets is spreading rapidly.

Someone shot into the windows of the Lion's Den radio station in the Bronx.

People were also seen lurking around Bad Boy Radio in Brownsville and Lion's Den Media headquarters in Brooklyn.

Diddy's revenge this time is no longer a small fight, the conflict has escalated to the peak of 90s gangsta rap.

"This Nico has gone completely crazy." Leon complained while instructing Jorge and others to strengthen security measures.

"It's no surprise that I've gone crazy after being entangled with a guy like you." Phil joked, "This series of events sends a signal that you've lost JAY-Z's protection. Maybe your fate will be the same as Tupac's."

Using traffic to hype will inevitably result in being bitten back by the traffic.

Li Ang had thought about this result the day he decided to create a street persona, but he didn't expect it to come so soon.

Phil continued, "There's still room for reconciliation between you and Diddy. It's the 21st century now, and he'd be taking a huge risk if he eliminated you."

"Reconciliation?!" Jorge snorted coldly and suddenly interrupted, "Give me a number, and I'll make that bastard disappear from this world forever. I mean, not even a trace will be left."

Coming from Jorge's mouth, these words are quite credible.

Mexican gangs have unique wisdom in dealing with corpses and generally do not leave any clues.

After the "chef's" treatment, "one person goes in and a pot of soup comes out."

This statement immediately aroused Phil's strong dissatisfaction: "Do you know what you are talking about? Diddy is worth at least $5 million. If he could be solved by spending money, someone would have done it in the 90s!"

This was a rare time when Li Ang felt that Lao Deng's IQ was online.

Street tactics may work against penniless black people, but using them on Diddy is extremely stupid.

A billionaire in the entertainment industry, after more than 20 years of business, has built a huge network of relationships through decadent parties.

Not only has it enveloped half of the entertainment industry, it has also involved many politicians, brokers, and well-known investors.
Seeing the two arguing, Li Ang felt even more annoyed and said in a deep voice, "Both of you shut up. The situation hasn't reached that point yet."

He still has a trump card in his hand to deal with Didi, and now is not the time to reveal it.

Reciprocal countermeasures remain the optimal solution.

It's obvious that the Miami incident is closely related to the Caribbean gang behind Pip Paul.

Leon decided to let Aisha contact the local Mexican gang to catch this group of people.

After arranging these matters, the group left Apocalypse Music. Leon had an important appointment tonight: dinner with Rob Stringer, chairman of Columbia Records.

The meeting, largely facilitated by Beyoncé, took place at a high-end Italian restaurant in Lower Manhattan.

Pushing open the heavy wooden door, Leon and Phil walked into the restaurant.

A melodious Italian jazz sounded, and besides the band, the only people in the bar were Beyoncé and a well-dressed man.

Apparently, the place is fully booked.

"Leon~" Beyoncé showed her usual enthusiasm as soon as they met.

The car lights pressed against Leon's chest and hugged each other.

Stringer narrowed his eyes as he watched the scene, and realizing that something had gone too far, the two men quickly separated.

"This is Mr. Stringer." Beyoncé took Li Ang and introduced him, "This is the street coconut crisps you always talk about, Li Ang."

Stringer straightened his collar and extended his right hand.

Although the wrinkles on his face betrayed his age, he looked very energetic.

"nice to meet you."

"Me too, Mr. Stringer."

"God, I even dream about your name," Stringer said. "My wife even got mad at me and asked me who Leon was."

Everyone was amused by Stringer's humor, and there was no tension at all during their first meeting.

The two sides skipped the small talk and after the first clink of glasses, Stringer went straight to the point and brought up the matter of recruiting Leon.

"Frankly speaking, the entire group is very interested in the copyright of your work, and we will not hide this fact."

"Thank you for your candor."

"If I offer you a satisfactory number, would you consider selling the copyrights?" Stringer asked with a smile.

"That depends on the number."

"Your appetite is as big as the rumors say." Stringer lit his cigar, knowing that the topic should be dropped.

"Straight Outta Compton" is a hit in theaters right now, so the other party doesn't have to worry about money at all, and he fully understands this.

"Mr. Stringer promised to give you the best promotional resources, and Columbia Records will be your best platform!" Beyoncé took a sip of red wine.

Under the table, she was swaying on her high heels with her toes.

There was some physical contact with Leon from time to time.

She had already begun to imagine that if the two of them could sign with the same company, they would be able to do whatever they wanted in every corner of the company, including the recording studio, photo studio, and office.

Stringer is an outstanding talent. After being appointed chairman of Columbia Records in 2006, he signed a number of superstars.

Not only Adele and Beyoncé, but also the most difficult music legend Bob Dylan.

His style is to be extremely lax in managing singers.

In the subsequent negotiations, Li Ang put forward his various demands, including whether the "master tape repurchase priority right" really exists.

All of this was confirmed by Stringer.

He sniffed the red wine in his glass, narrowed his eyes, and asked, "The conditions you've proposed remind me of Michael Jackson. The conditions he proposed when he signed the contract were even more demanding than yours."

Sony and Michael Jackson made each other successful.

Without MJ, Sony Records would not have developed so rapidly.

If MJ had lost Sony, it would have been impossible for him to accumulate assets exceeding $10 billion solely through his singing career.

This was due to MJ's advanced copyright awareness and Sony's tolerant policy at the time.

It is rumored that the Jackson family is also involved in the acquisition of EMI's copyright library.

The investment ratio is 10%, reaching US$ billion.

To this day, MJ's descendants are still enjoying the benefits of copyright revenue, earning more than $300 million per week.

Stringer changed the subject and said, "It's just that I'm not sure if you can have the same ability as Michael. I'm not doubting your ability, I'm asking if your inspiration will ever run out."

Li Ang immediately understood the other party's implicit meaning.

I started beating myself up before I even officially signed the contract.

He immediately expressed confidence that he could release an album within a year after signing the contract.

After receiving such an answer, Stringer no longer had any doubts. "As long as you are willing, Columbia will always open its doors to you. The conditions are the same as we discussed before."

Just as everyone was about to raise their glasses to celebrate, he suddenly lowered his voice and said, "But I hope you can solve those troubles you have as soon as possible."

The heated atmosphere immediately died down, and everyone knew what trouble Stringer was talking about.

The series of street clashes triggered by Li Ang are escalating.

I just paid the signing fee the day before, and the person was gone the next day.

Stringer would definitely try his best to avoid such a thing from happening and speak the truth upfront.

"Didi has gone completely crazy!" Beyoncé cursed angrily.

It wasn't just Diddy who went crazy. JAY-Z was also once depressed by the rumors flying around.

According to gossip media reports, his green hat is almost three stories high.

What he couldn't imagine was that his wife was actually helping other companies to steal his girlfriend.
This series of events was foreshadowed from the moment he signed Rihanna to Roc Kingdom and the two of them openly engaged in an extramarital affair.

"Give me some time, and I'll cure Didi's mental illness," Li Ang said. "It won't take long."

Looking at the other party's confident look, Stringer was completely relieved.

Before leaving, Li Ang rejected Beyoncé's invitation to spend the night with her.

Even though his black stockings had been rubbed and frayed under the table, he still resisted the temptation.

There were too many people secretly watching him at the moment.

On the way back, a drunk Phil sighed, "Life is such a fucking circle. It feels like I'm back to square one."

His career culminated in Epic Records, the parent company of which is Sony Music.

The Beatles' old song "Yesterday" was playing on the radio, which was appropriate for the occasion.

Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away
Yesterday, all the troubles seemed far away

Now it looks as though they're here to stay
But now I am worried

Oh, I believe in yesterday
I would rather believe yesterday

Suddenly, I'm not half the man I used to be
In an instant, I became no longer the same person I used to be.

There's a shadow hanging over me.
Her presence is always lingering

Oh, yesterday came suddenly
Oh, the past comes back to mind
Just as Phil was immersed in sadness, he suddenly noticed a plump figure in front of him.

The millstone-like taillights are so dazzling under the super short shorts that people can't open their eyes.

Seeing this image appear on the street at midnight, there is no doubt that this girl is a businesswoman.

"Stop! Drop me off right here!" Phil urged Jorge, who was driving, anxiously.

He hummed a little tune to build up his energy, opened the car door, and before leaving, he didn't forget to say anything more, "You promised Stringer that you could solve Didi's problem quickly. How exactly do you plan to solve it?"

"I have a trump card, a trump card that Didi can't bear~" Li Ang spread his hands, and the car started and disappeared quickly.

Only Phil and the millstone were left, disheveled in the wind.

He remembered that he had said the same thing to the other party, and he won the bet that time.

(End of this chapter)