Chapter 367: Successive Victories

When Zhou Yan arrived at the studio, it was already 9:40.

He had originally agreed with Akina Nakamori to meet at the recording studio at 9:30, so he was late, but the first person responsible for his lateness was Shizuka Kudo.

Seeing Zhou Yan, Akina Nakamori greeted him with a smile, "Good morning, Mr. Zhou Yan."

She looked in good condition and did not seem to be affected by last night.

In fact, when the incident just happened, she was indeed a little confused. 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, she felt very safe again when she recalled Zhou Yan's performance.

For a moment, she even felt that Zhou Yan was omnipotent, as if Zhou Yan could handle everything, music, literature, filming, and all walks of life. He had amazing performances, and even dealing with those gangsters was easy.

In the situation last night, the only person she could count on was Zhou Yan.

Zhou Yan was originally thinking that if Akina Nakamori was affected by what happened last night, today's recording might not go smoothly. Now seeing Akina Nakamori smiling, he felt relieved.

Everything else is fine, as long as it does not delay today's recording.

"Good morning, Ms. Nakamori, let's start recording, or follow the rhythm of yesterday."

After more than an hour of adjustment yesterday, the performance of the Chinese version has improved a lot. If we spend some time adjusting it this morning, it should be fine.

In fact, the progress of the recording is smoother than Zhou Yan imagined.

The first recording in the morning surprised Zhou Yan.

Akina Nakamori's performance today is much better than the performance before the end of yesterday. Obviously, she has digested the things she adjusted yesterday after returning.

This is probably the talent of an excellent singer. Akina Nakamori was born to do this job. Many things are understood at once, and there is no need to worry about it.

Even some things that Zhou Yan hadn't mentioned, Nakamori Akina had already corrected them. She should have understood what Zhou Yan wanted, so when Zhou Yan mentioned one thing, she would counter three things.

Zhou Yan was relieved to work with a singer like Nakamori Akina.

…

At 3:30 in the afternoon, the Chinese version of "Snow Flower" was finally recorded.

Nakamori Akina also breathed a sigh of relief. She had been thinking about Kudo Shizuka's concert just now, and was afraid that it would be too late to record and delay the rehearsal.

Now that the recording is over, it's just in time to catch up with the rehearsal for the concert.

"Mr. Zhou Yan, do you want to go with me?" Nakamori Akina asked.

Zhou Yan shook his head, "You go by yourself. There's still a lot of work to do after the recording. I'll watch here. I'll have someone send it to you, and you can rehearse with peace of mind."

"Will you go to the concert tomorrow night?" Nakamori Akina asked again.

"Yes."

He didn't have much time to go back to Yanjing this time, and he had to leave the day after tomorrow, but fortunately he could watch the first show.

Shizuka Kudo was quite resentful about this. Zhou Yan had said before that he would take her to Chang'an for a stroll, 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 done by his colleagues in the studio.

After finishing dinner early at 5:30, Zhou Yan returned to the office to work on the script of "Time Traveler".

...

At about 8 o'clock, Zhou Yan had just refilled himself with 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 phone, he heard Xu Xiangjie happily say, "Teacher Zhou, the so band has been confirmed. They have just left after signing the contract."

Zhou Yan smiled and nodded, and joked, "Congratulations, Mr. Xu, the team has grown a lot."

"Hey, thanks to you."

Xu Xiangjie is a native of Taipei City, but now his speaking style is more and more like that of Yanjing people. I don't know who infected him.

"Since they have been signed, let's train them well. They are all young and everything is possible."

"Well, that's natural. Now I'm going to organize a performance for them as a group, which is a good start for them."

"That's good. Will they still be called so band after they are formed?"

"I was just about to tell you about this. We also discussed this matter when they were here just now. When it comes to the name of the band, they all have different opinions. Some people insist on using so band. After all, they have been active under this name for a long time. Although they haven't accumulated much fame, many bars know them. Others hope to change to a new name. They think a new name will bring new atmosphere."

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "I agree with the latter. The little fame accumulated by the bar is useless. The key is that the name so band has no characteristics and is not easy to remember. It is better to change to a new name."

"Yes, and so band sounds very similar to so bad. People who don't know may think it is a bad boy band, which is different from their positioning."

"Are there any alternative names?" Zhou Yan asked.

"We did discuss a few names. One is called Normal School Boys, because all of them graduated from the Normal University Affiliated High School. They formed a band because they were all in the school's guitar club."

Now many European and American bands like to be called "Boys", and this trend has also spread to Taiwan. There are also many bands in Taiwan named "Boys" or "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 calling it the Xin Band, after the lead singer Chen Xinhong."

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, but just asked, "Are there any other names?"

"There is also Mayday, which is Cai Shengyan's name on the online forum. This account is now almost the public account of their group. They use this to participate in any activities on the Internet."

Zhou Yan raised his eyebrows. Is this how Mayday got his name?

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 understood immediately.

"I also think this name is quite good. They also said that they need to add another guitarist, so that the band will have exactly five people, which can also correspond to Mayday. In that case, I will tell them tomorrow and use Mayday. The name is official."

Zhou Yan nodded, acquiescing to Xu Xiangjie's approach.

"Where will the group perform?" Zhou Yan asked.

"Teacher Zhou, where do you think it would be better to put it?"

“The No. 7 Bandstand in Daan Forest Park is good.”

"I think so."

In fact, Xu Xiangjie's original plan was to hold their group performance in Ximending, but since Zhou Yan was interested in Bandstand No. 7 in Da'an Forest Park, 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 it's not going very well. Wang Lihong's new album is being promoted and will be officially released soon. Fumao Records doesn't want to let people go easily. They have sown the seeds and applied fertilizer, and it's almost time to harvest. ”

Zhou Yan didn’t really care about Fumao Records’ attitude, “What does Wang Lihong say himself, is he willing to come?”

"He's too young and can't make up his mind. He probably feels embarrassed, after all, Foremost Records will release his album soon. I also chatted with him, and I can tell that he wants to come over, after all. The conditions we can offer are better, and we have your relationship.”

"I just met him, is this relationship useful?"

"Useful, very useful. Wang Lihong respects you very much. When we chat, he always mentions you."

Xu Xiangjie is not flattering 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 an idea to come, he should try his best to get 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 had a good relationship with Foremost Records?"

"There are many record companies that have good relations with him, and he is not the boss. In this matter, he is mainly considering Wang Lihong's interests, and he is very optimistic about Phantom."

"In that case, the matter will be easy to handle. Let's go directly to talk to Fumao. If we can't reach an agreement, we will follow the contract termination process. In the contract signed by Wang Lihong and Fumao Records, the liquidated damages won't be sky-high, right?"

"That's not the case, it's just within the ordinary range. We can certainly afford the money. 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 not, we'll follow the breach of contract."

Xu Xiangjie smiled and said, "With your words, 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's name. Zhou Yan has to speak up about this matter. He doesn't know where Wang Lihong is in Zhou Yan's heart.

"When the matter is done, tell me."

"Well, I will definitely report to you."

…

Xu Xiangjie hung up Zhou Yan's phone and couldn't help but mutter, "Oh, Teacher Zhou shouldn't be so eager to give the song to Wang Lihong to sing."

He believes that the reason why Foremost Records is unwilling to let go is also related to this matter.

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 it 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 had also thought about it. If Fu Mao Records really failed to make money, he would threaten them at worst, saying that if Wang Lihong could not be signed by Phantom Music, Wang Lihong would not be able to sing the interludes in Zhou Yan's new movie.

After pondering for a moment, he directly called the person in charge of Foremost Records.

"Mr. Zhang, I'm 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 put into Wang Lihong. We all know how much effort you put into Wang Lihong. The album "If You Hear My Song" is very mediocre in its promotion, or you didn't spend any money on it. How much money, or you spent money but didn’t spend it properly, it’s not as good as Zhou Yan’s casual mention.”

Hearing what Xu Xiangjie said, Zhang Gengyu stopped being hypocritical and said, "If you say so, I agree. But it is precisely because of Zhou Yan's words that Wang Lihong has become famous during this period, and the popularity of his new album has also increased. In addition, he will sing a new song in the future, and the future development will not be bad. Yes, this is all thanks to Zhou Yan. I am very grateful. When Zhou Yan comes to Taiwan again, I will treat him to it. A meal to express my gratitude.”

Xu Xiangjie narrowed his eyes, "Mr. Zhang, how much do you think this wave of popularity can increase the sales of the album? I have listened to many songs in the album. To be honest, it is difficult to sell well. As for the movie inserts We can regret things at any time. Although we signed the contract, you should have seen the contract. Even if we regret it, we don’t have to pay anything for this episode. "

These words silenced Zhang Gengyu on the other end of the phone, 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.

So what 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 cannot 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, that is, at the beginning of the next year, and the liquidated damages are not particularly high. If we want Wang Lihong, we can even transfer him directly without notifying you." If you take it away, you will be charged liquidated damages at worst."

"But you called me anyway."

"Of course we still want to give less money, and we also want to maintain our friendship with each other."

"You want to give less money, so why should we take less money?"

Xu Xiangjie smiled and said, "It doesn't matter if you don't want to get less money. Then after we sign Wang Lihong over, you can sue us and Wang Lihong. Then our two families will have a lawsuit for a while and it will drag on for a few years. I believe you We will definitely win the lawsuit, and we will definitely pay the money when the time comes. It will be a good time to use the lawsuit to stir up controversy for Wang Lihong. Mr. Zhang, we don’t want it to be too embarrassing. Please give us a price that we can all accept. You pay with one hand, and you hand with the other. It has only been half a year since you signed Wang Lihong, so you should be satisfied with receiving a large head fee in such a short period of time. "

Zhang Gengyu was silent for a long time, and finally sighed, "If you have time tomorrow, Mr. Xu, come and sit in my office."

"It's an honor." Xu Xiangjie said with a smile, "I'll see you there tomorrow."

After hanging up Xu Xiangjie's call, Zhang Gengyu leaned back on his chair and let out a long sigh. He 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 would not have had 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 Shouquan, 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. Li Yaming, the director of the Mandarin Department, 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 to sign long-term contracts.

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 at all.

It stands to reason that 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, so he is naturally very surprised.

"Xu Xiangjie of Phantom Music approached 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."

Li Yaming's words were 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.

However, Huanyin is a new company, and they poached people from Fumao right away, which made Li Yaming a little angry. Rolling Stone competed with them for people, and now Huanyin came.

"Ya Ming, if you think Wang Lihong has great potential, then we should keep him."

"How can we keep him? He will have to pay the penalty for breach of contract."

"Wang Lihong is a young man after all. It is not impossible to talk to him, persuade him with emotion and reason, and sign a new contract."

Li Yaming pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Forget it, let him go if the conditions are similar. Wang Lihong has some potential, but we can't allocate too many resources to him, and there is no need to force him to stay."

Zhang Gengyu nodded. He knew that Li Yaming was still not very optimistic about Wang Lihong, otherwise he would not say that there were no resources to allocate to Wang Lihong.

Li Yaming is most optimistic about Zhou Hui now. As long as Zhou Hui graduates, her album can be released.

"Then what about Zhou Hui's contract."

"I'll talk to her later."