Respawn Entertainment: Days of Glory

Chapter 931 The Musical Instrument Dealers' Competitive Spirit

After saying this, Bian Lang gave the center position to Guo Sichu.

After giving Bian Lang a sweet smile, Guo Sichu picked up the microphone but called out to the others: "Sorry, Bian Lang might have gotten a little excited and called the wrong person. The next song isn't about me; let's welcome guitarist Mr. Dili..."

It must be said that Guo Sichu's ability to become a queen of pop is due to her top-notch talent, personality, and interpersonal skills. This patch is so well done that it's like a breath of fresh air.

"With such a capable wife, Bian Lang will have someone to share the blame for any trouble he gets into!" Chen Shuting made no attempt to hide her joy, speaking directly to Evelyn in English.

Evelyn nodded in agreement: "Guo is definitely the kind of singer with the potential to become a world superstar. The key is that she has such an amazing boyfriend like Wave. If she wants to make it big, she's much luckier than these female singers from Europe and America..."

Chen Shuting understood the hidden meaning in those words, so she was naturally happy for Guo Sichu. As a woman herself, this principled agent never supported actresses engaging in any power-for-sex transactions, regardless of their motives.

Guo Sichu was born at a good time, and she debuted with a strong and protective manager like Liang Kuan, so she had a very good foundation. For female singers in recent years, reaching that level is not so straightforward.

While the two were chatting, the staff had already moved Dili's six-string flat Hawaiian electric guitar, along with its stand, to the center of the stage. Dili, who is usually a tough guy and doesn't talk much, was unusually embarrassed when he heard Guo Sichu's words.

He grabbed a microphone and replied, "You're too kind, Empress Chu. Since we're on the topic, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Bian Lang! My boss, my good buddy, without you, I, Dili, might be stuck with my stocks right now, and I wouldn't even have the heart to play the piano anymore, let alone have achieved what I have today. Reporters from Music Magazine, I know you're here! Please remember, if you rank me, be sure to include Bian Lang's name!"

Dili's words came from the bottom of his heart, but they embarrassed the reporters in the audience who had come to watch the performance in their private capacity. As ordinary people, all they could do, as long as they kept their jobs, was help Dili and Rolling Stone argue their case with the editor-in-chief.

But in the end, nothing came of it. Dili was nowhere to be found on the latest issue of Music magazine's list of the 100 best guitarists, or even on the shortlist. They even planned to dedicate a slightly longer article to summarizing the Rolling Stones' European trip.

However, as rock music fans, they came here in a private capacity. They originally just wanted to see what other amazing work the Rolling Stones would come up with, but instead, they were brought up in such a blatant way.

Although none of them had "music magazine" written on their faces, they felt that even the casual glances from those around them were expressions of disdain and contempt.

Two of them came with colleagues, and one of them couldn't hold back any longer. He jokingly said to his colleague, "Actually, let alone 'strengthening,' just based on those two versions of 'Wish You Were Here,' Wave is qualified to be among the top 100 guitarists..."

Before his colleagues could even answer, a guy next to him chimed in, "I don't think it'll work. Wave shouldn't be on that guitarist list. He needs to focus his energy on songwriting. As for Tilman and Strauss, their technical skills are definitely there, but they have too few tracks uploaded, which is unfair to the other guitarists!"

Both reporters were stunned when they heard this. If they hadn't seen the man clearly, they would have thought that their boss had also sneaked out to watch the Rolling Stones live.

"Brother, what you said makes a lot of sense. The other guitarists have been famous for a long time and have released a lot of songs online. The Rolling Stones have a lot of songs too, but they're all recent live performances, not online versions..."

But who would have thought that this guy would give them such a surprising twist: "So, if I were the editor-in-chief of Music, I would give Rolling Stones a half-magazine-length interview, just to do justice to Rolling Stones' European tour! Especially today's show!"

Although this statement completely contradicts the two men's work stance, even as a rock music enthusiast, one should definitely support this guy's point of view: "Indeed, the Rolling Stones deserve a feature interview from Music! But I think these magazine publishers are all heartless; there must be some powerful entity behind them that doesn't want the Rolling Stones to do well!"

This reporter didn't accidentally tell the truth; he did it on purpose!

Sure enough, after hearing this, the guy immediately started mocking: "Really? Then this magazine might not have any reason to exist."

Neither of the reporters expected this guy to be so brave! If this happened in Russia, it wouldn't be so surprising. Just as the two were wondering what was going on, the guy added, "I mean, this magazine has no reason to exist here anymore!"

"Correct!"

"I guess so!"

The two of them couldn't help but speak their minds, but if that were really the case, they probably wouldn't be far from losing their jobs.

Of course, it wasn't just these ordinary people who were concerned about this. Adams also commented after hearing this: "I heard that Music doesn't plan to give Rolling Stone any big exposure before the Grammys. Is there a solution to this problem?"

Holly of Amir spoke up directly: "Is this really that important to Rolling Stone? I think it's better if they don't go. If they actually win back Grammy, then even if they make up for it, it will be a huge joke!"

Anyway, Holly felt that Rolling Stone would stick to any news as long as it was exposed! If Music really wanted to find an excuse to drag this out, then they would have another opportunity to generate publicity.

They are quite interested in mocking professional media outlets that are not in the same field, and they even support Bianlang and Rolling Stone! After all, in the previous incident of supporting Bianlang, Amir was one of the biggest beneficiaries.

Especially in the domestic market, some stores have seen their stock completely emptied by groups of music fans. For a niche menswear brand like Amir, this is practically a zero-sum game.

But this virtually zero probability became a reality simply because their official statement, "Don't worry, leave it to me!" So now Holly is practically already figuring out how to sabotage Music Magazine.

As for the other CEO of Ovation, he was watching his own double-headed guitar being shown in close-up on the screen. He was pleased to hear this and then said directly to Adams, "If that's the case, then our cooperation with music will officially end starting next year!"

Adams thought this was indeed a good idea: "Lonelli, how many years have you been working with Ovation and music?"

"I don't remember the exact timeframe, but it's definitely been 10 years. If they're really that short-sighted, I'd be willing to support Rolling Stone and Wave, and wouldn't it be better to give the music advertising revenue to Rolling Stone instead?"

"Look, Rolling Stone has already showcased two of our guitars tonight. I have a feeling that starting tomorrow, the Ovation six-string guitar that Bian Lang uses will definitely sell out!" Lonelli's idea immediately opened up Adams's mind. However, if Ovation is the only advertiser, this matter will definitely not be settled. At least it will be something that requires the cooperation of several top sponsors.

"Lonelli, thank you for reminding me. I think maybe we in DGM should put some pressure on them too."

To be honest, DGM isn't their advertiser; in fact, music companies are asking DGM's artists to appear in magazines just to increase their exposure...

If DGM were to sever its partnership with Music, it would be a lose-lose situation in the long run. However, as a short-term threat, it could be quite effective.

Forget about waiting for the Rolling Stones to win a Grammy or an Oscar for Best Original Song; the fact that they don't report on the highlights of this European tour is enough to annoy many rock fans.

While a single band from the Rolling Stones might not significantly impact their sales, it's absolutely unavoidable that it indirectly leads to a decline in their reputation.

Of course, music's firm stance is based on their own judgment and ulterior motives, and it's not simply because of CAA's money and threats.

Otherwise, for a band like the Rolling Stones, whose tours are more explosive and impressive than ever, the music industry would have already arranged a full range of interviews and cover stories for other European bands. How could there be no news at all?

They judged that after the Rolling Stones concert, the artist would return to the United States and then go to North America, which would no longer be their magazine's main sales region. Even if a huge commotion occurred, European music fans would not blame their magazine.

Another point is that, after all, the Rolling Stones are a Chinese band, and after this tour, they judged that they would not be doing anything big in Europe for at least a year.

Since there won't be any major moves, then there's no value in it. If the Rolling Stones do win a Grammy, then it won't be too late to mend relations then.

This time, they can of course use the reason given by that music fan to explain why Dili and Strauss didn't make the list. As for not giving them an interview, they can just find a junior reporter to take the blame!
But what would they think if they knew that Bian Lang's plan for the following year was to stay in Europe to create?

Upon hearing Adams's words, Holly and Lonelli both looked at one of the masterminds behind DGM with somewhat incredulous expressions.

"Adams, while I agree with your idea, this might affect your other artists. Have you considered this issue?" Holly reminded him earnestly and sincerely.

"You don't need to worry about that. If even Rolling Stone doesn't recognize this magazine, then its so-called authority isn't worth our DGM artists' support."

Even if Adams hadn't brought up this point, the artists under DGM would have made their own choices.

If they had to choose between appearing on music platforms and cultivating a good relationship with Bian Lang, I believe no one would choose the latter. After all, music platforms have alternatives, but Bian Lang's works are truly hard to find!

As the three were talking, Fender's European president, Churchill, who had been away for a while, came over: "Lonelli, Ovation, your two violins were truly outstanding tonight! Can you tell me how you did it?"

This is a question that even Lonelli himself wanted to know, let alone Fender's people, since Bian Lang and Di Li's visit came almost without any warning.

So he spoke frankly, just like in Versailles: "Churchis, I'd also like to know the answer to this question! But it's probably just because Fender doesn't have these two models."

The second half of those words left Churchill speechless, since their biggest advantage was making electric guitars, something they really couldn't compare to Ovation in.

Moreover, he couldn't possibly lie and say that "Wish You Were Here" would sound better if it were played on their electric guitars!
However, his awkward silence was immediately broken by someone else: "Lonelli, Fender doesn't have acoustic guitars or ukuleles, but we at Gibson do! That popular song by Wave in China uses my Firebird series, and you can see it playing on stage right now!" The person who came was none other than Gibson's European president, Mobeck!
This pot-bellied middle-aged white man has no idea what it means to be low-key; he immediately starts attacking his competitors!
But Lonelli is no pushover either. Although Ovation is not as big or famous as Big G in any aspect, Big G has never officially collaborated with any Rolling Stone musician, which is a big problem.

“Mobeck, you’re right, but do you think it’s appropriate for you to refuse to give even a Rolling Stones musician an endorsement deal?”

These words completely shut Mobeck up. He looked at his two competitors, one of whom had somehow managed to sign Bian Lang as the spokesperson for acoustic guitars.

Fender went even further, collaborating with Gibson to create a custom guitar, which was quite embarrassing for the president of Gibson! To use a local Yunnan dialect expression, this is like "running into an acquaintance while bragging!"

After saying this, Lonelli didn't stop there. Instead, he pressed his advantage, saying, "We were just talking about terminating our contract with Music. Do you two have the guts to do that?"

When he said this, Lonelli not only addressed Mobeck, but also dragged Churchill into it, which was quite clever!

Because of this contract termination, Fender and Gibson couldn't possibly make a decision at this time and under these circumstances. Their brand influence and market size are far beyond what a niche manufacturer like Ovation can match.

Ovation might not care about the exposure on music platforms, but these two companies can't. Even if it doesn't have much practical use, it's still a reflection of brand value.

Just like Coca-Cola and Pepsi, the reason why they are not advertised on some platforms is not because of sales or effectiveness, but simply because of the brand positioning of big brands.

Since you can have Coca-Cola, then my Pepsi must be just as good as yours!

Just as the two were thinking about how to respond, MARTIN's president, Novell, appeared: "Let's join forces! While supporting Rolling Stone, we can also have a good talk with them about future advertising fees!"

(End of this chapter)