hollywood billionaire

Chapter 80 Tissue Contract
"Wow, Lori Ann, this..."

Swallowing the beef and potato mash cake in his mouth, Han Yi pointed at the plate in front of him with a silver fork, looked at Lori Ann-Aaron, and said.

"really tasty!"

"Look, I told you... Grandma's recipe, you can't go wrong." Lorien raised her eyebrows and smiled as she should, with a pun.

"Our people have been running around the world for 2000 years, without any delicious food, they have already collapsed."

How to answer this?
Han Yi, whose ancestors were more upbeat, nodded and concentrated on dealing with mashed potato cakes, not daring to answer.

"Thank you for your hospitality." Zhao Youzhen answered, so that the dining table would not fall into a silent atmosphere.

"Yes, thank you." Xu Yiru clasped his hands together, put them on his lips, and bowed slightly in greeting.Her behavior is not a stereotype of Asians, but purely a habit developed in Nantou for a long time.

"It should be, I also have to thank you for taking care of McGrady...whether it's in New York or Los Angeles."

Tracy reached out and stroked her daughter's shoulder, speaking softly.

"Thank you for inviting her to the UTA party. Tracy told me she met a lot of friends in the industry there."

Tracey Bill's thanks are undoubtedly sincere.She might have a place in the interior design industry in the greater New York metropolitan area, as well as contacts in consumer products and even e-commerce.But when the topic extended to Hollywood on the west coast, Tracy found that the business knowledge and business logic she had accumulated on the east coast deviated from the reality in the entertainment industry.

In the last life, after being terminated by Scooter Braun, Madison Beal was ups and downs in the industry. As an independent artist, it was difficult for her to get high-quality singles, and she definitely did not have an operation comparable to the three majors. resource.It wasn't until the second half of 2019 that she signed with Sony's Epic Records with her amazing social media popularity, ending the embarrassing situation of going it alone.

The three years of wasted delay seriously delayed Madison Beal's music career.Before Han Yi's rebirth, Madison Bill's Instagram followers alone had approached the 4000 million mark, but the tour of the new album could only be held in indoor theaters with less than 3000 people.

This has an inseparable relationship with Tracy Bill's serious dereliction of duty as a manager.

But as an outsider, she has tried her best.

When everyone abandoned Madison Beal and wanted her to be a loser who was worse than One Hit Wonder and died before her debut album was released, Tracy stood up bravely and put down her East Coast love. Everything, even the company's management, is put on the back burner, and she concentrates on her daughter's acting career.

Who can blame her even if she is lacking in experience, ability, connections and resources?
She is just a mother who wants to lift Madison out of the quagmire and keep a glimmer of life and hope for her daughter.

How to describe Tracy's mood when she heard that Han Yi intends to sign with Madison Bill?
Joy and worry coexist, imagination and sigh intertwined.

Although she hadn't experienced it yet, Tracy thought that this kind of emotion should not be much different from when she saw Madison wearing a white gauze and saying yes in church.

The birds returning home will travel far again, but this time the wild geese flying south will lead the way.

Naturally, there will be more positive emotions.

Search for Han Capitals on Google, there are 3.89 million results in total, and most of the homepages are related to "the capital of the Han Dynasty".The real effective information is only the reports of Variety, Billboard, Deadline and other media on the acquisition of UTA by Han Capital and Parkway Capital.

Open Facebook to search for HAN YI, he is the only one who studied at the University of Southern California, except for the avatar that can prove that it is Han Yi himself, Tracy can’t see any more news, after all, he is not a person who likes to use social media to update his status at any time people.

But this is enough.

The acquisition of US$1.9 million and Han Yi's performance at the press conference are enough to demonstrate his strength and vision.

And how much does Madison Beal need to finish her debut album?

Even by Justin Bieber standards, it was only $100 million.

On the other hand, UTA's status as the largest institutional shareholder can also allow Tracy's imagination to extend infinitely.

Among other things, if Madison Beal can get on Demi Lovato's and Nick Jonas' upcoming joint tour through United Artists, and join them across the The journey of four countries and 47 cities... This one alone is enough to keep Madison busy from the middle of the year to the end of the year, gaining unimaginable attention and exposure.

Demi Lovato signed to UTA and Nick Jonas to WME, but the Jonas Brothers' band remains at UTA.This joint tour was originally a project promoted by the cooperation of the two performing arts agencies, and UTA is more dominant. After all, at this moment, Demi's reputation and appeal are stronger.

In other words, for Han Yi, making Madison Bill a guest of honor is just a matter of one sentence.

"easy……"

Thinking of this, Tracy couldn't hold back her emotions anymore.Enough of the pleasantries, it's time to introduce the big talk about Madison's future.

"I heard from McGrady that you...and Youzhen have told her that you are interested in signing a management contract with her, right?"

"Not a management contract, ma'am."

Getting to the point, Han Yi cheered himself up. He swallowed a sip of ice water to refresh himself, so as not to slow down his thinking in this lazy and comfortable afternoon.

"It's the whole contract. Management, records, performances and copyright distribution, and all other things related to performing arts." Han Yi's index finger drew a small circle in the air, "360 degrees."

"We'd be very interested in hearing your thoughts."

Tracy folded her hands on the table, quietly observing the negotiating opponent, and also paying attention to the "allies" on the table from the corner of her eye.

Of course, Madison Bill sat up straight and listened intently to the conversation between the two, after all, it has a direct and vital connection with her music career.Even Lori Ann Aaron, who looked absent-minded and fiddled with her mobile phone, quietly took off her sunglasses.

"Is there any paper, Tracy?" Han Yi took out the signature pen he carried with him from the inner pocket of his jacket, looked at Tracy Bill, and asked with a smile, "I think it would be clearer to write it down."

"Ah, paper... It seems at home..." Tracy stood up, "It doesn't seem to be on the first floor, I'll go to the study to check."

"It's okay, please sit down, we use tissues in the same way." Han Yi also stood up, and pressed down with his right hand, signaling Tracy to sit down.At the same time, he took a paper towel from the center of the table with his left hand and spread it gently in front of him.

"The result of our negotiation is the first..." Han Yi glanced at Yuzhen who was sitting diagonally opposite, and slowly and silently wrote on the tissue paper the terms of the agreement that the two of them had discussed to Madison Bill.

Madison raised her chin, trying to get a better look.

Under her gaze, Han Yi wrote down an Arabic numeral 8.

Then, six 0's are added at the end.

"Total prepayment, $800 million. 7 albums, no renewal option... from the beginning, all of them."

Apart from Han Yi's calm narration, no other voices could be heard at the dinner table, but Madison Bill felt that a volcano was erupting not far from the window, which was deafening and earth-shattering.

Such a simple sentence contained too much complicated information that made her dizzy.

Ordinary newcomers can get an advance payment of US$10 for at most one album.Even for a small celebrity like Madison who hasn't released an album, but has one or two singles and has millions of social media fans, it's only a capped offer of $20.Only superstar-level musicians would dare to ask for a seven-figure advance payment.

What Han Yi offered Madison was an advance payment of 7 million US dollars for 800 albums, with an average of 114.29 million US dollars per album.

More importantly, what Han Yi offered was not a 1+6 contract, but a direct activation of all seven album options in one go.

As mentioned before, the general label is to sign an album + renewal options for several albums with musicians.Make an album first, and the record company will look at sales and other commercial performance to judge whether to activate the renewal right for the next album.

If the standards are not met, the musician may be given up directly...or, like Madison, the first album has not yet been produced, and they are directly kicked out through the Pay or Play clause.

In other words, even if the record company promises an artist an advance payment of US$10 for the first album and US$5000 million for the next album, as long as the effect of the first album does not meet expectations, the record company can terminate the contract with the artist at any time .And the so-called $5000 million dream has become a castle in the air.

Therefore, when Han Yi mentioned directly guaranteeing seven albums, Madison Bill inevitably fell into a shocking mood.

Guaranteed seven albums, that is to say, the $800 million, will definitely fall into Madison Beal's pocket, it's only a matter of time.

Except for the long-established superstars, she had never heard of anyone getting such terms.

"What... is the condition?" Madison asked in a slightly softer voice.

She has no confidence.

"The first two albums will give you 15% share, the middle three albums will start at 17%, and the last two albums will be 20%." Han Yi wrote the three numbers on the tissue paper, and drew an arrow after the percentage sign, explaining in detail , "For each album, the total revenue is equivalent to less than 25 album sales, and the share remains unchanged. From 25 to 50 copies, it will increase by 1%. Going forward, it will increase by 20% for every 1 copies... There is no cap. You can see it, right?"

Han Yi turned the tissue around and showed it to Tracy and Madison.

"Okay." Tracy nodded, "Please continue."

"70% of the performance share belongs to you, and 50% of the music copyright share...and 50% of the peripheral share." Han Yi continued to write on the tissue, "Other performing arts affairs, the share is 70%."

"In these terms, is it gross income or net income?"

Tracy gnawed her nails unconsciously, her brain racing.

"One part is gross income, and the other part is net income." Han Yi raised his eyes and looked at the other party, "Youzhen will be the manager, and her commission will be reflected in our income. We hope that Madison can cooperate with UTA Sign a contract, so that it will be more convenient to operate in the future. As for lawyers and business managers, you can use the professional consultants provided by human management in the early stage. Lou Taylor and Jordan Bromley, do you know each other?"

"If it's convenient, please give me a brief introduction." Tracy Bill's lack of contacts in the industry can be seen from this.

"Lou Taylor was the business manager for Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Stephen Taylor, Gwen Stefani, Kim Kardashian, Kylie Jenner. And Jordan Bro Muli is in charge of Time Magazine, Lionsgate Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Warner Music Group, as well as CAA, WME-IMG, and our UTA's legal affairs. Therefore, we can settle the net income in terms of performances. For other sectors, if Using our service, the calculation of gross income is more reasonable, of course, if later..."

"Is there a problem, Matty?"

Han Yi stopped introducing and asked Madison with concern.

When he mentioned this series of names just now, Madison Bill's mood was obviously depressed.She put her hands between her legs, lowered her head, and remained silent, not knowing what she was thinking about.

Han Yi was keenly aware of this, but he didn't know which person's name had such a strong negative effect.

"Oh, it's okay." Madison shook his head, trying to pull out a smile, "I just remembered something else...it has nothing to do with this. It's...very good, Yi, the two managers are very good."

"McGrady is a bit disturbed, she..."

"Mom!" Madison opened his eyes wide, raised his voice suddenly, and stopped him dissatisfiedly.

Han Yi had never seen her so excited.

"Okay okay...I won't say it, take it easy, Tracy."

Tracy Bill, on the other hand, did not show any extreme emotions. Instead, she lowered her voice and spoke softly.Lori Ann Aaron, who was silent on the side, also put her hand on Madison's shoulder and rubbed it gently.After two or three minutes, the girl finally suppressed the tears in the corners of her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I'm very sorry." Madison, who had returned to normal, looked at Han Yi guiltily, "I remembered some unpleasant things, but they're all over."

"It doesn't matter, the news you will hear next should make you happy." Han Yi pushed the tissue and pen obliquely forward, and moved them to Zhao Youzhen, "Youzhen, tell me about the first time we treated her. Planning for an album, okay?"

It's not his job to appease Madison, and even if it is, it won't be until after signing.

The most urgent task now is to get the girl to fully accept his plan.

"it is good."

Zhao Youzhen picked up the pen, held the tissue with three fingers, and stared up at Madison Bill.

"McGrady, for the first album, we'll give you a $50 upfront cross-guarantee."

"Understood." Madison, who had already signed a contract, naturally knew what cross guarantee meant. The Cross-collateralization clause means that if the singer fails to pay off the advance payment for this album, the remaining payment will be postponed to the next album to continue to pay.

For example, if an artist gets a 20% share and gets an advance payment of $20, then the album must generate at least $100 million in revenue for the company.In this way, his share is just enough to repay the advance payment.

If the album only made $80, the artist would theoretically only get $16.At this time, the artist's theoretical income is 4 US dollars less than the advance payment, and the 4 US dollars will be used as the artist's debt to the company and enter the calculation cycle of the next album.

If the record company chooses to terminate the contract with the artist at this time... Sorry, $4, please find other ways to repay it.

Prepayment sounds beautiful, but most artists ignore the meaning of the word "prepayment".They didn't wake up from a dream until they were in debt.

On the one hand, every artist wants to get the highest possible advance.On the other hand, they are also worried about what to do if they need to pay the money themselves if the sales are not as expected, once the contract is terminated.

Of course, in the agreement framework proposed by Han Yi, Madison doesn't have to worry about this for at least the first few albums.Because the seven albums are all activated options that are guaranteed to be produced, even if this album is lost, it can be deducted from the advance payment to be paid for the next album.

"In addition, for each album, we need to demand you with commercially satisfactory standards." Zhao Youzhen continued to narrate calmly.When an artist delivers an album to a record label, the record label typically has three different metrics.The first is called commercially satisfactory, that is, to meet the requirements commercially.This measurement standard is the most vague, because only when the record company feels that the album delivered by the artist meets the commercial needs and can be promoted in the market can the artist's album cycle be considered complete.Otherwise, the artist needs to make revisions according to the record company's requirements over and over again until they are approved, or they are ruthlessly abandoned by the record company.

When working with Kojima Records, Madison Beal fell on this level.

The other two are conditions that can only be obtained by artists with slightly bigger names and successful experience. Technically satisfying, technically meets the requirements, which means that the record company will list some parameters and style requirements, such as the 10 songs that must be submitted, how many of them are popular, how many are R&B, and the duration must be within how many minutes.As long as you meet these rigid requirements, you can pass the examination.

After all, everyone understands that the review with fixed standards is much easier than those without fixed conditions.

There is another kind, called self-satisfactory, which is a term that no one can negotiate except superstars.As the name suggests, self-satisfaction, as long as these superstars feel that the album is complete, they can deliver it directly and complete the tasks of this cycle without obtaining the consent of the record company.

The current Madison obviously can only follow the rules of Han Music.

"No problem, but I hope... I can have some say in this regard."

Madison Beal hesitated to find the right words.

"Like the style of the music, and the choice of the producer... that sort of thing."

“Of course, the way we work is, we give you an advance payment and you put together the production team for the album. Although our A&R team will work with you, in general, the decision-making power is shared by both of us. enjoyed."

"You can tell her the list of producers we recommend." Han Yi reminded aloud.

"Like Yi said, for your first album, we have some candidates for you to choose from."

Zhao Youzhen quickly wrote three names on the paper towel where there was not much space left, and handed it to Madison Bill.

Tricky Stewart, Timbaland, Max Martin.

"The first one has already joined Han Music. As an in-house producer, his fee will be cheaper. You should know him. Bruno Mars and Justin Bieber have asked him to make singles."

"I've seen him." Madison nodded like a pecking rice, "Great producer."

"The other two don't need to be introduced, right?" Han Yi took the conversation and said with a smile, "Timbaland is a client of UTA, so it's very easy for him to be in charge of the entire production supervision. For Max Martin, We have already asked, there will be an intermittent three-week schedule at the end of August, and the collection of songs should be done faster, so we should be able to catch up. And we don’t need to record a whole album at the same time, we can make one or two promotional singles first.”

"That's my idea too." Madison-Bill looked back and forth between the three names. If she didn't consider the production cost, she was sure that the three producers wanted to hire together.

After all, not everyone can fight this kind of wealth battle.

"The music copyright and master tape copyright of the songs previously recorded on Xiaodao Records belong to them. It is not convenient to continue to use... I believe that you will not be willing to use their songs."

"You know us well, and we know you well."

Speaking of this, Han Yi glanced at Zhao Youzhen, who understood his eyes almost instantly.

"Before we came to New York to meet you, we screened two great singles for you through Han Music's omnipotent A&R team. It's definitely not the cliché Pop and modern R&B that you got back then."

Zhao Youzhen unlocked the phone screen, turned on the music, clicked on the locally saved wav file, and handed it to Madison.

“A single from our Mad Decent label with Major Lazer and Benny Blanco as producers and Ed Sheeran on the vocals…Cold Water. Part of it is already done and we’re missing a female vocalist. "

Major Lazer, Benny Blanco...Ed Sheeran? !
Can this kind of all-star cast song come into my hands?
Madison pressed the play button in a daze, and the male voice that appeared after the intro was so familiar that it couldn't be more familiar.

"Everybody gets high sometimes you know,

What else can we do when we're feeling low?
So take a deep breath and let it go,

You shouldn't be drowning on your own..."

"Mr. Bieber?"

Madison Bill looked at Han Yi in disbelief.

"But, I just..."

"I know, the situation may be a bit awkward for you. You will worry about whether Scooter will allow his artist to cooperate with his...'former artist'." Han Yi drew a quotation mark in the air with the index and middle fingers of both hands , "Don't worry, we'll take care of that. Justin loves the song and he's going to convince his manager."

"Okay, um, no, I'm afraid...it will affect your cooperation."

"This is the benefit of having a team. We can deal with all the fears."

After saying this, Han Yi looked at the shocked Tracy with a smile on his face, and Lori Ann who was drinking tea calmly, before moving on to the topic just now.

"Let's listen to the second song."

"From our friends at Interscope... Zedd's new single, also looking for female vocals."

"It's called Stay."

(End of this chapter)