Flying over the bubble era

Chapter 1551. Opportunity Comes
After October, everything became chaotic.

Winter, Christmas, and New Year seasons may seem close, but in reality, they are different. How to arrange the schedule, how to plan the publicity during this period, how to deal with the special program planning of the TV station, whether to apply for various awards or not, and the various personal relationships surrounding these matters are enough to fill every page of the practitioners' schedule.

This year, NHK negotiated with GENZO, hoping to facilitate Tetsuya Komuro to appear in this year's Red and White Song Festival. Television stations that rely on audience fees value topicality and influence the most, so they will naturally not let go of this hot producer.

It was not difficult to make this happen. Since Tomomi Kahara debuted, Tetsuya Komuro has been on stage with her in almost every important performance. When Tomomi Kahara appears in the Kohaku Festival, Tetsuya Komuro will definitely follow her.

In addition to booking Tetsuya Komuro to appear in the Red and White Performances, NHK also made another request, hoping to send two more groups of Komuro-style singers to perform.

In this way, singers from the Komuro family will take up three of GENZO's performance spots at the Red and White Songs Contest.

The manager in charge of negotiations conveyed NHK's wishes. After listening to it, Shinichi Iwahashi did not express his opinion, but asked the manager to put the matter on hold for the time being.

The manager, who did not get the confirmation, silently withdrew. Shinichi Iwahashi thought for a moment and picked up the receiver.

Half an hour later, Shinichi Iwahashi appeared in Mayumi Watanabe's president's office.

"Being close always has its advantages," he said jokingly in his opening remarks.

Mayumi Watanabe watched his performance quietly, and then she broke it down smoothly: "When you want to avoid it, it's not a good thing."

"Why, you want to avoid me?"

Mayumi Watanabe was too lazy to respond. Shinichi Iwahashi was not amused, but he did not care, and took the initiative to say: "NHK came to negotiate, hoping that three groups of Komuro singers will perform this year."

When he mentioned Tetsuya Komuro, Mayumi Watanabe's eyebrows moved slightly and she looked at Shinichi Iwahashi's face. In her current situation, Mayumi Watanabe was usually modest and gentle, and it was rare to see her with such a serious expression.

Shinichi Iwahashi complained: "Mayumi-san's expression is as if she is facing a great enemy."

"Isn't it?" Mayumi Watanabe asked back, "Do you think Komuro-san is a friend or an enemy now?"

Such heart-piercing words can only be said when two people are present. The problem was brought up by NHK, but Shinichi Iwahashi's attitude clearly shows that he is concerned about Tetsuya Komuro.

However, he remained calm: "I only have one enemy."

Mayumi Watanabe didn't care about his answer and asked, "How many appearances does GENZO have this year?"

"Five."

"Five?" Mayumi Watanabe immediately understood what he was here for.

Shinichi Iwahashi said seriously: "GENZO is not a company that relies on Tetsuya Komuro."

This is not an exaggeration. After October, the total sales for this year will be gradually revealed. Although Komuro pop is sweeping the industry, the record market is large enough to accommodate a variety of pop music, so there is no real monopoly.

Judging from the total sales, GENZO-related bands and singers have continued to perform stably this year.

However, compared with individual singers, these singers produced by Tetsuya Komuro are uniformly labeled as "Komuro-style". When tied together, they have a kind of powerful influence that makes other forces in the industry unable to raise their heads.

"If the Komuro family wants to present three groups," said Shinichi Iwahashi, "then I will negotiate with NHK for six places."

The Red and White Songs Contest has always been a place where record companies and agencies compete with each other. Whether a singer can perform and how many groups a company can send out depends not only on the singer's own performance, but also on the strength of the forces behind him.

No matter how NHK manipulates things, this program is the most watched music program of the year and can even determine a singer's future. Given the limited broadcast time, if one company wants one more spot, another company will suffer.

NHK has given five places, which shows the influence of GENZO. If they want to fight for the sixth place, they will definitely have to argue and even fail to achieve their goal. But if NHK's proposal is followed and the singers of the Komuro family are given three of the five places, Shinichi Iwahashi will be in a passive position. The Komuro family can dominate the industry, but they cannot suppress the singers of the GENZO headquarters.

Mayumi Watanabe stood by the window, looking down at the street, as if waiting for something. She asked, "Shinichi-kun, what is the reason why you are not giving in on this matter?"

"Don't you think this is a difficult problem, Mayumi-san?"

Shinichi Iwahashi suddenly laughed, "NHK is the best at fanning the flames."

However, this is another manifestation of the crisis that is happening. NHK may not have really sensed this, but its usual style of riding on the popularity but not daring to face the storm has accidentally reminded Shinichi Iwahashi.

"When monopolizing the trend, of course you have to bear pressure from all sides." Mayumi Watanabe seemed to be commenting on other people's affairs.

Shinichi Iwahashi asked back, "Who do you think has the monopoly on popularity?"

Is it GENZO that is monopolizing fashion, or is it Tetsuya Komuro that is monopolizing fashion? The answer to this question will determine the future direction.

"That's what's interesting," said Mayumi Watanabe. "In Komuro-san's opinion, he is the one who has the monopoly on popularity."

But in reality, the one who formed the monopoly was Shinichi Iwahashi, who worked closely with Tetsuya Komuro.

A promotional truck passed by the street below, with B'z as the main character.

"Nagato-san's trump card."

"what?"

Shinichi Iwahashi took a step closer to her and saw the shadows of two imposing men on the promotional board. This band was extremely popular, with several singles and albums selling over a million copies in a row, making it the mainstay of VERMILLION Records.

Compared with the booming development of B'z, several bands under Daiyuki Nagato, which once relied on Tetsuro Oda, are now losing momentum.

"Nagato-san's ability to secure his position as the president of VERMILLION depends on this band," said Mayumi Watanabe. "If Baba-san wants to challenge Nagato-san's position, he must have a magic weapon to win."

She changed the subject: "Shinichi-kun, Komuro-san has been in and out of VERMILLION's recording studio many times recently."

There are no secrets in the entertainment industry, especially for big names.

"Komuro-san himself never thought of covering it up."

Mayumi Watanabe smiled slightly and turned to look at him: "Is this the result you want?"

Iwahashi Shinichi shook his head. He whispered, "Komuro-san made a mistake. He is not the one who monopolized the trend." And once he made the wrong decision, there would be only one outcome.

"Once he set his sights on markets outside his home country, it no longer mattered what I thought."

Mayumi Watanabe raised her eyebrows: "But how you do it will be crucial. ... Shinichi-kun, your chance has come again."

Her last words were meaningful.

When Shinichi Iwahashi gave her a puzzled look, Mayumi Watanabe turned her head away and stopped talking.

(End of this chapter)