Chapter 367 Successive Victories
When Zhou Yan arrived at the studio, it was already nine forty.
He originally made an appointment with Akina Nakamori to meet at the recording studio at 9:30, so he was late, but the first responsibility for his lateness was Kudo Shizuka.
Seeing Zhou Yan, Akina Nakamori greeted with a smile, "Good morning, Mr. Zhou Yan."
She seemed to be in good condition and did not seem to be affected by last night.
In fact, she was a little confused when it first happened. After all, she had never encountered such a scene before, and Zhou Yan's performance was very different from what she imagined.
But after returning to the hotel, recalling Zhou Yan's performance, she felt very safe.
For a moment, she even felt that Zhou Yan was omnipotent, as if Zhou Yan could handle everything, music, literature, filmmaking, all walks of life had amazing performances, even dealing with those gangsters It can also be done with ease.
In the situation last night, the only person she could count on was Zhou Yan.
Zhou Yan originally thought that if Akina Nakamori was affected by what happened last night, today's recording might not go smoothly. Now that he saw Akina Nakamori smiling, he felt relieved.
Everything else is easy to talk about, as long as it doesn't delay today's recording.
"Good morning, Miss Nakamori, let's start recording. Let's follow the same rhythm as yesterday."
After more than an hour of adjustments yesterday, the performance of the Chinese version has improved a lot. This morning Take some time to adjust it and you should be fine.
In fact, the recording progress was smoother than Zhou Yan imagined.
The first recording session in the morning surprised Zhou Yan.
Nakamori Akina's performance today was much better than her performance before the end of yesterday. It was obvious that she had digested the things she adjusted yesterday after returning.
This is probably the talent of an excellent singer. Akina Nakamori was born to do this. She can understand many things at once without having to worry too much.
Even some things that Zhou Yan has not mentioned yet, Nakamori Akina has corrected. She should have understood what Zhou Yan wants, so when Zhou Yan raises one question, she will answer three questions.
It is quite worry-free for Zhou Yan to collaborate with a singer like Akina Nakamori.
……
At 3:30 in the afternoon, the recording of the Chinese version of "Snow Flower" finally ended.
Nakamori Akina was also relieved. She had been thinking about Shizuka Kudo's concert just now, and was afraid that the recording would be too late and delay her rehearsal.
Now that the recording is over, I can just catch up with the rehearsals for the concert.
"Mr. Zhou Yan, do you want to come with me?" Akina Nakamori asked.
Zhou Yan shook his head, "Go on your own. There is still a lot of work to be done after the recording. I will watch from here. I will have someone send it to you, so you can rest assured and rehearse."
"Will you go to the concert tomorrow night?" Akina Nakamori asked again.
“Go.”
He doesn’t have much time to return to Yanjing this time. He will leave the day after tomorrow, but luckily he can watch the first show.
Kudo Shizuka was quite complaining about this. Zhou Yan had previously said that he would take her for a walk in Chang'an, but now there was nothing he could do.
“Well, okay.”
After Akina Nakamori left, Zhou Yan stayed to watch the post-production of the song.
But he just kept an eye on it, and the work was still being done by his colleagues in the studio.
After dinner early at 5:30, Zhou Yan went back to the office to work on the script of "Time Traveler".
......
At around eight o'clock, Zhou Yan had just refilled a cup of hot water when the phone on the table rang.
The call was from Xu Xiangjie. As soon as Zhou Yan answered the call, he heard Xu Xiangjie say happily, "Teacher Zhou, soband has been finalized. They just signed the contract and left."
Zhou Yan smiled. He nodded and joked, "Congratulations, Mr. Xu, the team has grown a lot."
"Hey, thank you."
Xu Xiangjie is a native of Bei City. Now his speaking style is becoming more and more like that of Yanjing people, and I don’t know who infected him.
“Now that they are signed, let’s train them well. They are all young and anything is possible.”
"Well, that's natural. Now I'm going to give them a performance as a group to give them a head start."
"That's a good thing. Will it still be called a soband after we form a group?"
"I was about to tell you about this matter. We also discussed this matter when they were here just now. When it came to the name of the band, several of them had different opinions. Some insisted on using soband. After all, they had to bear this The name has been active for a long time. Although they have not gained much fame, many bars know them. Some people hope to change their name. They think the new name has a new atmosphere. "
Zhou Yan said with a smile. , "I agree with the latter. The fame accumulated in the bar is of no use. The key is that the name soband has no characteristics and is not easy for people to remember. It is better to change to a new name."
"Yes, And soband sounds very similar to sobad, and those who don’t know it think it’s some kind of bad boy band, which has a different positioning than them.”
"Are there any alternative names?" Zhou Yan asked.
“We discussed it with a few people. One was a boy from the Normal School, because several of their members were graduates of the High School Affiliated to the Normal University. The reason why they formed a band was because they were all in the school’s guitar club.”< br>
Nowadays, many groups in Europe and the United States like to call so-and-so boys, and this trend has also spread to Taiwan. There are also many groups in Taiwan now called so-and-so boys or so-and-so boys.
"This won't work." Zhou Yan directly rejected the name.
"I don't think so either." Xu Xiangjie said with a smile, "When I said this name, others thought it was a student organization. Wen Shangyi suggested that it be called the Xin Band, after the lead singer Chen Xinhong."< br>
When he heard the words "Xin Band", Zhou Yan couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. Good guy, if this is the name for them, what will Su Jianxin be called later?
Zhou Yan didn’t say what the name was like, and just asked, “Are there any other names?”
“There is also Mayday, which is Cai Shengyan’s name on the online forum. This account It can almost be said to be the public account of their group. They use this to participate in all activities on the Internet."
Zhou Yan raised his eyebrows. Is this how Mayday's name came from?
He also thought that Mayday’s group name had some special meaning, and it might have something to do with their members. After all, there were only five members in Mayday.
I didn’t expect that it was just Cai Shengyan’s online name, which is really careless to say.
“Mayday, Mayday, this is pretty good.”
Hearing what Zhou Yan said, Xu Xiangjie immediately understood.
"I also think this name is quite good. They also said that they will add another guitarist. In this way, the band will have exactly five people, which can also correspond to Mayday. In that case, I will talk to them tomorrow Just say it and officially debut under the name Mayday."
Zhou Yan nodded, acquiescing to Xu Xiangjie's approach.
"Where will the group perform?" Zhou Yan asked.
"Teacher Zhou, where do you think it is better to put it?"
"The No. 7 Bandstand in Daan Forest Park is good."
"I think so too."
In fact, Xu Xiangjie’s original plan was to hold their group performance in Ximending, but since Zhou Yan belonged to Bandstand No. 7 in Da’an Forest Park, Italy, he went along with it.
Park No. 7 is indeed good. Although the crowds are not as popular as Ximending, it is more suitable for small concerts.
"Is there anything else?" Zhou Yan asked.
"Well, there is also the matter of Wang Lihong."
"Is there any progress on Wang Lihong's side?"
"A little bit, but not very smooth. Wang Lihong Hong's new album is being promoted and will be officially released soon. Fumao Records doesn't want to let it go easily. They have sown the seeds and applied fertilizer, and the harvest is about to come."
Zhou Yan didn't care much about the attitude of Foremost Records, "What does Wang Lihong say himself, is he willing to come?" "He is too young and can't make up his mind. He probably feels embarrassed, after all, Foremost Records will give him the album soon. It was sent. I also talked to him, and I can see that he wants to come over. After all, we can offer better conditions and we have your relationship.”
"I just met him, is this relationship useful?"
"It is useful, very useful. Wang Lihong respects you very much. When we chat, he always mentions you."
Xu Xiangjie is not flattering him this time. Now Zhou Yan has a very high status in the hearts of these young musicians.
Although Zhou Yan was six years older than Wang Lihong in terms of talent, Wang Lihong regarded Zhou Yan as his senior and even targeted Zhou Yan.
"Since he has the idea to come, then try his best to fight for it."
"Not only does he want to come, but Li Shouguan also hopes that he can come to Huanyin."
"Li Shouguan?" Zhou Yan was quite surprised, "Didn't you say before that he has a good relationship with Fumao Records?"
"There are many record companies that have good relations with him, and he is not the boss. This matter Among them, he is mainly considering Wang Lihong’s interests, and he is very optimistic about Huanyin.”
"If that's the case, then the matter will be easy to handle. Let's go directly to talk to Foremost. If we can't reach an agreement, we will follow the termination process. In the contract signed by Wang Lihong and Foremost Records, the liquidated damages will not be sky-high, right?"
"That's not the case, it's just within the ordinary range. We can definitely afford the money, but the main thing is whether Wang Lihong is worth the money we pay, and whether it's worth the rift between us and Fu Mao."
Zhou Yan didn't hesitate at all, "Go and have a good talk with Fu Mao. It's best if we can reach an agreement. If we can't reach an agreement, we'll just follow the breach of contract."
Xu Xiangjie smiled and said, "As you say , I know what to do.”
It’s not that Xu Xiangjie doesn’t want to take responsibility, it’s just that Wang Lihong was asked by Zhou Yan, so Zhou Yan has to ask for it, and he doesn’t know Wang Lihong. Where does Zhou Yan stand in his heart?
"After the matter is done, tell me."
"Well, I will definitely report to you."
......
Here Xu Xiangjie hangs out with Zhou Yan On the phone, he couldn't help but muttered, "Oh, Teacher Zhou shouldn't be in such a hurry to give the song to Wang Lihong to sing."
He believes that the reason why Fumao Records is unwilling to let go is because of the This matter is also relevant.
Fumao Records is not a fool. Of course it knows that Wang Lihong's fame will definitely rise after he sings Zhou Yan's movie episode.
Originally Xu Xiangjie wanted to cover up the matter, but on the day the matter was settled, Wang Lihong revealed the matter to Li Shoquan and Fu Mao Records. It was too late for him to cover it up again.
However, Xu Xiangjie has also thought about it. If Fumao Records really fails to make money, he will threaten them at worst, saying that if Wang Lihong cannot be signed by Phantom Music, then Wang Lihong will not be sung in the interlude of Zhou Yan's new movie. .
After pondering for a moment, he directly called the person in charge of Foremost Records.
"Mr. Zhang, I am Xu Xiangjie."
Zhang Gengyu received a call from Xu Xiangjie and knew what he was going to say. He had a tough attitude, "Mr. Xu, I have also told you about Wang Lihong. There is no way to talk about it. Our company has invested a lot of effort in Wang Lihong. What if this happens? If Wang Lihong is handed over to you now, our company will suffer a huge loss.”
“Mr. Zhang, we know how much effort you have invested in Wang Lihong. We all know very well. The promotion of the album "If You Hear My Song" is very average. Either you didn't spend much money at all, or you spent money but didn't spend it well enough to promote it for so long. Zhou Yan mentioned it casually. "
Hearing what Xu Xiangjie said, Zhang Gengyu stopped being hypocritical, "If you say that, I agree. But it was precisely because of Zhou Yan's words that Wang Lihong made this point. The popularity of the new album has also increased. Coupled with the fact that he will sing new songs later, the future development will not be bad. Yes, this is all thanks to Zhou Yan, and I am very grateful. , When Zhou Yan comes to Taiwan again, I will treat him to a meal to express my gratitude."
Xu Xiangjie squinted his eyes, "Mr. Zhang, do you think this wave of enthusiasm will be enough. How high will the sales of the album be? I have listened to many of the songs in the album. To be honest, it is difficult to sell it. As for the movie insert, we can regret it at any time. Although we signed the contract, you should also read the contract. When the time comes, even if we regret it, we won’t have to pay anything. This episode doesn’t involve Wang Lihong.”
These words made Zhang Gengyu on the other end of the phone silent, because what Xu Xiangjie said did make sense.
Without the episode of Zhou Yan's new movie, Zhang Gengyu would not dare to bet on Wang Lihong's future.
It doesn’t matter if they have potential. Nowadays, there are so many young people with potential, and a lot of them show up every year, but most of them are lost in the crowd and can’t get up at all.
Seeing that Zhang Gengyu remained silent, Xu Xiangjie continued, "The contract you signed with Wang Lihong was only for two years, which will be at the beginning of the next year, and the liquidated damages are not particularly high. We want Wang Lihong, and we can even If I take the person away without notifying you, I will pay you liquidated damages later."
"But you still called me."
"Of course we still want to pay less. Money, but also want to maintain our friendship with each other.”
"You want to give less money, then why should we take less money?"
Xu Xiangjie smiled, "It doesn't matter if you don't want to take less money, then you can sue after we sign Wang Lihong over Let's go with Wang Lihong. When the time comes, our two families will fight a lawsuit for a while, and if it drags on for a few years, I believe you will definitely win the lawsuit. We will definitely pay the money by then, and we can still get money for Wang Lihong through the lawsuit. As for the topic, Mr. Zhang, we don’t want to look too ugly. You can come up with a price that we can accept. We’ll pay the price and you’ll hand it over. It’s only been half a year since you signed Wang Lihong. In such a short time, you got a deal. I should be satisfied with the hefty capitation fee."
Zhang Gengyu was silent for a while, and finally sighed, "If Mr. Xu has time tomorrow, come and sit in my office."
"It's an honor." Xu Xiangjie said with a smile, "I'll see you tomorrow."
After hanging up the phone from Xu Xiangjie, Zhang Gengyu leaned on his chair and let out a long sigh. I really didn’t expect that Huanyin Company was so determined to win Wang Lihong.
When Xu Xiangjie was at EMI, Zhang Gengyu had dealt with him and knew him somewhat.
If Huanyin was not determined to win Wang Lihong, Xu Xiangjie could not have this attitude.
In fact, their company has signed many new artists this year, but Wang Lihong is not the one the company is most optimistic about, because Wang Lihong's style has no characteristics and he is too imitating Zhang Xueyou.
If it weren’t for Li Shoequan, they wouldn’t have released an album for Wang Lihong so quickly.
Among this group of newcomers, the company’s favorite is actually another girl named Zhou Hui. She is about the same age as Wang Lihong, but Zhou Hui’s voice is very special, it can be said to be crystal clear, and the Mandarin Department Director Li Yaming is also very optimistic.
After sitting on the chair for a while, Zhang Gengyu got up and walked to Li Yaming's office.
Although it was getting late, Li Yaming was still working in the office. As soon as Zhang Gengyu entered, he said, "Yaming, I think we should give Zhou Hui a longer contract."
Li Yaming raised his head in confusion, "Why?"
Students like Wang Lihong and Zhou Hui who have not yet graduated are given short-term contracts by the company. After they graduate, they will discuss whether You need to sign a long-term contract.
According to Zhou Hui's situation, the company should not sign a long-term contract with her until 1999.
"Wang Lihong was poached by Huanyin."
Li Yaming's eyes widened, he had no idea about this.
Logically speaking, Li Yaming is the director of the Mandarin Department, and all singers signed by the company are under his control, and Wang Lihong is no exception. Now that Wang Lihong has been poached, he has no idea about it. Naturally, he is very surprised. .
“Xu Xiangjie of Phantom Music came to me directly, and I have already agreed.”
“Why did you agree? Isn’t Wang Lihong’s development pretty good now?”
"They are determined to win. If we don't agree, we will directly pay liquidated damages."
"Then let them pay liquidated damages."
What Li Yaming said was naturally angry. , of course he also knew that if he could not reach this step, he would not reach this step. After all, Wang Lihong is just a newcomer. There is no need to cause disputes because of him. As long as the conditions are similar, it doesn't matter if he is poached.
But Huanyin is a new company, and they poached their Fu Mao people when they came up, which made Li Yaming a little angry. The Rolling Stones just wanted to steal people from them, but now another phantom voice came.
"Yaming, if you think Wang Lihong has great potential, then we will keep him."
"No matter how you stay, they will have to pay liquidated damages."
"Wang Lihong is a young man after all. Talk to him, understand him emotionally and act rationally, and it is not a good idea to sign a new contract. Impossible."
Li Yaming pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Forget it, let's let him go if the conditions are almost right. Wang Lihong has some potential, but we can't give him too many resources, so we have to stay. It’s not necessary.”
Zhang Gengyu nodded. He knew that Li Yaming was still not very optimistic about Wang Lihong, otherwise he would not have said that he had no resources to allocate to Wang Lihong.
What Li Yaming is most optimistic about right now is Zhou Hui. As soon as Zhou Hui graduates, her album will be released.
"Then Zhou Hui's contract."
"I'll talk to her later."
(End of this chapter)