hollywood billionaire

Chapter 323 The main battlefield of the world war

A few seconds later, Han Yi's phone vibrated three times in succession.

[what happen? Want to help you out? ]

This is a WeChat message from Xiaoru. It is obvious that she took the look Han Yi cast just now as a distress signal.

Maybe the conversation was not going well and I wanted her to come over and cooperate.

She is usually Xu Yiru, but when in social situations, she will automatically become Mrs. Han. She has adapted to this mode.

[Work-related? ]

There was only one word that Yuzhen sent. Being concise and concise is the foundation of her character, and it is also a habit she has developed since she became an artist manager.

If every email was a lengthy one, complete with subject, predicate and object, she would probably spend twice as much time in the office.

After discovering that Han Yi was looking at her, Yuzhen thought of work almost out of habit, because this kind of scene had been repeated many times. When Han Yi talked about a specific artist, he sent a signal to Yuzhen with his eyes, and she came over to take over the topic and provide more detailed information.

For example, Xiao Ru has been reciting "work wife" resentfully, and this is the specific form of expression.

[Are they talking bad about me? ]

Among the three, only Barbara Pavin's guess via WhatsApp was correct. After all, sitting next to Han Yi is Karlie Kloss, Barbara's familiar friend. What was the latter's idea of ​​bringing her boyfriend here, and what method would she use to get closer to Han Yi? Clearly.

[It's okay, don't worry, I'm just looking at you. ]

[It has nothing to do with work...just seeing what you are doing. ]

[Not a bad word. ]

Han Yi moved quickly, switching back and forth between the two apps, replying three messages at the speed of light, and receiving three completely different replies in an instant.

[Okay, you are busy now, go home and watch slowly, be good. ] Ever since the layer of window paper was pierced, Xiaoru became more and more sticky in front of Han Yi, and the sweetness often caused his blood sugar to rise.

[Okay, I’m trying to see if I can collaborate with Miley. ] Zhao Youzhen responded sternly, but the light pear dimples flying up to his cheeks couldn't deceive anyone.

[No matter what Carly tells you, don’t believe it! I never said it or did it! ] Barbara's words seemed quite urgent.

[Really, you didn’t keep praising me while we were eating with them? ]

Looking up, Han Yi couldn't help but laugh out loud when he saw Barbara holding the phone and freezing in place, her lips pursed slightly as she didn't know how to reply, looking ashamed and embarrassed.

I thought it was nothing at first, but now it seems that I should try to avoid them getting together in the future.

After just one glance, I had to explain my life three times...

It’s so troublesome, but why is it so cool?

"Sorry, I replied to an important email." Han Yi rubbed his brow, coughed twice, put down the phone, and smiled to signal Carly to continue.

"Yeah, um..."

Carly supported the sofa with both hands and turned to glance at Barbara, but was glared back by the Hungarian girl's fierce gaze.

Turning her gaze back to Han Yi, Karlie Klaus narrowed her eyes slightly, her expression somewhat complicated and obscure.

This Chinese billionaire is indeed not a simple man. He has two girlfriends and even flirts with Barbara.

"I still trust Barbara's vision very much. People she recognizes must be valuable."

"The valuable thing about you, Yi." Joshua Kushner continued, "is that... you are creating an ecological closed loop that truly wants to challenge the existing structure of the music industry."

"What does the current situation look like in your eyes?" Han Yi asked him.

"In today's music industry, on the streaming side, there are only two truly promising platforms, Spotify and Apple Music. The former has completed 14 rounds of financing and is preparing for pre-IPO. The latter is a branch of Apple. As long as If iPhones can still be sold, there will be no shortage of money. On the performance side, it is difficult for Live Nation and AEG Live to further increase their penetration in Western markets. Each emerging market has its own rules and regulations. It is difficult to break in. There is room for imagination. It’s also limited, after all, few investors like this traditional industry where you can only make money by doing something.”

Joshua Kushner talked eloquently, and it was obvious that he had done a lot of homework before meeting Han Yi.

"As for the most important content aspect, since the disintegration of EMI, the internal competition among the three major music groups has become more and more stable. From record production to copyright distribution, a small group of people are cutting the cake and eating the cake. Although the capital that has entered the game early has I wouldn’t mind it, but it’s still boring.”

"Feeling boring?" Han Yi became interested in Joshua's choice of words, "Why?"

"It's like a war... If two countries just confront each other on the front line and there is no large-scale conflict, the demand for weapons will not rise, and arms dealers will not make more money." Joshua The analogy is strange but insightful, "Only when both sides fight, until the city is burned down, until all the wealth is wiped out, and until both sides are injured, will additional orders for ammunition be purchased, and more funds will be invested in the research and development of new equipment... …After the war was won, there was an urgent need for reconstruction.”

"So what you value...is my potential ability to start a world war within the music industry?"

"The description of provoking a world war is a bit negative... It should be said that it is your potential ability to promote secondary distribution in the industry."

"Secondary distribution."

Han Yi rubbed his chin, repeated the term, and looked at Joshua Kushner with interest.

The more he comes into contact with these top people who grew up in the United States, the more Han Yi can feel the continuity of history - times are developing, society is progressing, and wealth is increasing, but the capital giants in charge of this country never seem to They haven't changed their methods of acquiring wealth.

Enter a certain area in a big way, support a challenger who has the ability to start a war, mess up the situation, and then fish in troubled waters to make a fortune. Bet on multiple sides and make sure you make money without losing money.

Whether it's politics, war, or finance, in the final analysis, this is the way American capital plays.

Conflict and rebalancing.

Han Yi's plan when the company was founded was to enter the core circle as low-key and invisibly as possible without offending Universal, Sony and Warner, and then take advantage of the trend of mainstreaming niche music to gradually increase the presence of Han Music. In terms of market share in the mainstream market, it has become the fourth largest music group without anyone noticing.

However, now it seems that although this road is peaceful and beautiful, it does not look like the version that will happen in reality.

Once Han Music shows the momentum to stand out from the crowd of independent music companies and challenge the existing structure, even if the executives of the three major music groups do not want to start a war, the representatives of the capital management companies sitting on the board of directors will sound the alarm. horn.

As Joshua Kushner said, without conflict, there is no destruction. Without destruction, there can be no reconstruction.

Whether Han Music succeeds in taking over or the three major music groups extinguish the flames of resistance, the music investment market, copyright investment market, and even the higher-dimensional entertainment investment market, which is currently a stagnant water with no excitement and growth points, will become active again. stand up.

If a small player like Joshua Kushner, with an asset management of about one billion, has this idea, what will the capital tycoons who are truly capable of providing ammunition for this world war in the music industry think about it?

Pershing Capital, Blackstone, Vanguard, Fidelity Investments...these Wall Street giants with combined assets of trillions of dollars are all heavyweight players who have made long bets and hold key shares in Universal, Sony and Warner.

Han Yi originally thought that because they owned enough shares and had too many interests to take into account in this chess game, these capital management groups would be cautious about conflicts and would act as reins to rein in the wild horses, so that the three major music groups would not As for launching an all-out war on yourself.

However, if Joshua Kushner's statement is true...then those who want to see war the most are those with the most interests involved.

Like ordinary wars, commercial wars require fundraising. Enterprises use performance and market confidence as the pillars, and use shares and interest rates as bargaining chips to exchange for silver bullets to hit the enemy in the primary or secondary market.

The more silver bullets are thrown, the stronger the control of these music groups will be by the capital giants who provide the silver bullets.

It seems that when I make strategic plans in the future, I still cannot be blindly confident just because I have professional knowledge reserves. Only by breaking away from the limitations of a single industry, standing at a higher dimension, and observing from a global perspective can we see the situation more clearly.

"I see what you mean, Josh."

After silently adding another admonition to himself in his heart, Han Yi licked his lips and spoke.

"But even if I have the ability to start a war, it is not a wise choice to stand on the same front with me... You should know that the other three options have a much greater chance of winning." "Maybe that's the case, Yi .Perhaps...what you are about to face is indeed a difficult battle to attack from the foot of the mountain to the top."

Having said this, Joshua Kushner deliberately paused for a moment, then emphasized his tone and spoke word by word.

"But it's not my war."

Joshua's words have two meanings.

In the first level, he was not qualified to participate in the war at all. At $13 billion, Xing Capital is too small compared to other players at the poker table. If the new Han Music does not accept him, it is even less likely that the three major music groups will open seats for him.

Secondly, the investment industry that Joshua Kushner mainly focuses on is not the music and entertainment sectors, and his expertise lies elsewhere. If they want to cooperate, the two can completely focus on other fields and find new ways.

As for which meaning Han Yi can see or adopt, it depends on his own attitude and positioning towards Joshua.

"You're right, Josh. People need to know how to choose their battles and fight for what matters to them."

Han Yi's answer made Joshua Kushner's expression become more relaxed.

As he expected, Han Yi chose the second meaning as the answer to this "reading comprehension".

"So...what are your battles?"

“There are many battles that I am engaged in.” Joshua scratched the bridge of his nose with his fingertips, “but I want to tell you first, which battles I am not involved in at all.”

"Okay." Han Yi smiled at him and nodded.

"Among the battles I did not participate in, the most important one will be decided next month."

No need to say it clearly, everyone knows what it means.

The 2016 U.S. presidential election will open on November 11.

"Very good." Han Yi tilted his head and smiled wider, "I don't want this to be your battle either."

"Really?" Joshua looked at Carly and then at Han Yi, "I thought... your expectations were exactly the opposite."

"I know that battle is not your passion, nor is it your position." Han Yi shrugged, "Besides, I don't want my partners who fight side by side with me in the mall to go as far as Capitol Hill and the White House. Too close... You know, I don't want to be evidence in the hearings that foreign capital manipulated the U.S. election."

Han Yi was right, he really didn't want to get too close to any politician. The relationship between politics and business can never be a simple subordinate or employment relationship. No matter which party is stronger, the other party will always have the back-up to counter it. The deeper the contact, the more leverage is left in the opponent's hands.

Han Yi does not want to sit behind the scenes and manipulate puppets to become the leader. This is not his pursuit in life, nor is it a goal he can achieve in the future political environment of the United States. All he wants is to use this unique gift in the world and enjoy the feeling of realizing all his dreams and blueprints one by one.

Therefore, on the DC side, Han Yi only wanted to maintain the most basic exchange of interests with the flower-footed spiders who helped him weave a protective web, and try his best to avoid being involved in their fights.

Of course, then again, politicians on Capitol Hill don't actually want to appear in the public eye with him, otherwise Darrell Issa wouldn't insist on receiving him in a private office instead of a high-end restaurant in San Diego.

One thing needs to be clarified. As a member of parliament or an elected political official, there is no problem in accepting political donations from Han Yi like Tencent’s $630 million in lobbying funds. It is a legal and compliant matter. Just pay attention to maintaining the superficial procedural legitimacy. But if he gets too close to Han Yi privately, in the tense atmosphere of the 115th U.S. Congress, it will simply be a fatal trump card for his political opponents.

Therefore, an investment partner like Joshua Kushner best meets Han Yi’s needs.

On the one hand, the Kushner family, which is not actually a top real estate family in Manhattan, will enter the core power circle of Washington, DC with the victory of the in-laws after November 11. His brother Jared Kushner will be appointed as a senior adviser to the president. In March 8, he will also lead the newly created White House Office of American Innovation, responsible for the U.S. government’s support for the information technology industry and internal government information technology projects. tendering work.

At this moment, Jared remains one of the shareholders of Thrive Capital. Although he will liquidate all his shares in the company after assuming a government position, everyone knows that his share is only held by Joshua on behalf of him.

Jared, who holds a lot of power, will undoubtedly do his best to help companies that Xingsheng Capital values ​​​​for his own benefit.

Joshua Kushner, on the other hand, has maintained a distance, at least on the surface, from his family and the White House. Jared and his wife are almost inseparable from the Republican presidential candidate. Wherever there is an orange peel, you can see Jared Kushner. But Joshua Kushner has never appeared in any campaign.

Some people say that Joshua’s “break” with his family was due to the existence of Karlie Kloss. In the eyes of the Kushner family members, Karlie Kloss is not a Jew. She always wears sexy lingerie and poses in front of the camera. Her political philosophy is also very different from that of most people in the family, whether before or after winning the election. , have repeatedly opposed the Trump-Kushners. Not only did he publicly support the Democratic presidential candidates in 2016 and 2020, he also fiercely criticized the behavior of his prospective in-laws after the attack on Capitol Hill.

This series of conflicts, ranging from religion to ideas, has caused the Kushner family to hate Carrie almost as much as the British royal family hates Meghan. Karlie Kloss and Joshua Kushner held two weddings, but the entire Kushner family never attended one, which is telling.

In addition, Joshua Kushner himself is also a staunch supporter of the Democratic Party and has participated in gun control demonstrations. Although he is not as obvious as Carly on social media, he has not posted a single photo over the years. No group photos have been taken with Donald, and he firmly opposes the media linking him to his brother's political operations.

The momentum is like fire and water, which is the unanimous evaluation of Joshua Kushner and his family relationship by Refinery29, the Los Angeles Times and Bloomberg Business Week.

However, in Han Yi's view, the real situation may not be as bad as the media described. It is true that the Kushner family does not like Karlie Kloss. After all, Jared once personally called Karlie Shiksa, a derogatory term for a non-Jewish woman. Other family members are not much better. When it comes to Karlie Kloss, they always refer to her as "that underwear model." But the line drawn between Joshua and his family is more like a deliberate decision.

Two sons, one engaged in politics and the other in business, one supports the Republican Party and the other supports the Democratic Party. This kind of hedging bet is not uncommon in history. They seem to be distinct, but in reality they are disconnected.

What Han Yi needs is this kind of disconnected connection that others can't see or touch.

Partnering with Joshua Kushner can ensure that when he enters some sensitive areas, he will not make a big fuss about his identity, and it can also allow him to add another layer of protection mechanism to himself-with David- Wall Street bosses represented by Rubinstein sorted out national political and business relations for Han Yi, and introduced key politicians in Washington to cooperate with him to promote the progress of various projects. The congressman represented by Reuben Keahun helped his business with local escorts, whether in Las Vegas, Los Angeles or New York, to ensure that he would not be haunted by imps.

And Joshua Kushner can prevent the trade war from being used as a target in the next four years.

The most important thing is that, regardless of his family background, Joshua himself is actually a very capable capital manager. If we follow the trend of the previous life, we will raise US$2018 billion in 10, US$2021 billion in 20, and another US$2022 billion in 30, allowing Xingsheng Capital to directly join the ranks of tens of billions of capital groups.

Bob Iger, CEO of Disney Group, the world's largest entertainment company, Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, an Indian giant, Xavier Neal, founder of French telecom giant Iriad, Wall Street Henry Kravis, the co-chairman of the US$36 billion asset management giant KKR, joined hands to drive the corporate valuation of Xingsheng Capital. Joshua Kushner himself was worth US$37 billion at the age of . , surpassing everyone in the Trump-Kushner family.

In other words, Han Yi doesn’t even need to make decisions himself. He only needs to entrust cash to Joshua Kushner and he can make a lot of money. You know, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, the parent company of ChatGPT, worked with Joshua Kushner at Y Combinator and have been close friends for many years. OpenAI’s multiple rounds of financing were all led by Xingsheng Capital.

This alone is worth Han Yi's heavy bet on Joshua.

He can bring the gold mine that is out of reach right in front of him.

"I am only interested in innovative industries and great inventions that can bring a better future to mankind."

Thinking of this, the direction of Han Yi's next sentence became extremely obvious.

"So, I want to know, Josh, of all the battles you participated in, was there any one on the battlefield that I am interested in?"

"Of course, Yi."

Joshua nodded heavily and confidently.

"In fact, the investment areas that I value most are all industries related to innovation."

"My main battlefield is in Silicon Valley."

(End of this chapter)