America's Top Player

Chapter 92 Christmas War
At nine o'clock in the morning on Christmas Day, Li Ang arrived at the Staples Center to begin rehearsal.

Not only were there staff from ROC and Trauma Music present, but even Lakers owner Jerry Buss was there to watch.

He was quite dissatisfied with Stern's decision to invite Leon as the halftime performance guest, a name he had never even heard of.

Jerry, who is in his 70s, stubbornly believes that only veteran superstars like Madonna are worthy of such an important occasion.

If the league is reluctant to spend money, the NBA's level of attention will never catch up to the NFL.

This is not the first time that Leon and Kendrick have worked together. The two of them cooperated smoothly and the rehearsal of "Sucker for pain" was completed in one go.

"What do you think of the effect?" Leon asked Phil.

"That's great, but rehearsal is one thing, and the performance later is another." Phil patted Leon on the shoulder to encourage him, "Cheer up, this is the most important performance since your debut."

Li Ang has seen big scenes before. At the Made in America Music Festival, he sang to nearly 100,000 fans.

At Huntington Square in Detroit, he gave a performance that captivated tens of thousands of people.

The audience at that time were filled with drug dealers, sex workers, feminists, drug addicts
Although the Staples Center can only accommodate less than 20,000 people, the quality of the audience is incomparable to previous performances.

Those who can afford tickets to the Christmas game are all rich people, and Los Angeles is the heart of the entertainment industry.

Among the 20,000 spectators who will flock to the stadium, there will be many well-known media figures, investment tycoons, record company executives and film and television stars.
Thanks to Beyoncé, Li Ang was able to get this opportunity that all singers dream of.

At five o'clock in the afternoon, fans began to enter the stadium.

Players from both teams also walked out of the locker room one after another, and the scene instantly became extremely heated.

Although last year's Christmas game was also Kobe vs. James, it is obviously more popular this year.

The Lakers, who are carrying the halo of the championship, and the Heat, who have just formed the Big Three, no fan would not be crazy about such a game.

As a guest performer, Li Ang and Robbie's seats were naturally in the most conspicuous position in the first row, making it easy for them to come into contact with the players.

The Lakers, playing at home, were suppressed by the Heat in the first quarter. Finals MVP Kobe had no touch and missed shots frequently.

When the players returned to the sidelines and the coach arranged the next tactics, Li Ang patted Kobe on the shoulder from behind.

Kobe turned around and looked Leon up and down with a questioning look, but he had no impression of this person in his mind.

Li Ang said with a smile, "Looks like you're not feeling well today, buddy."

Kobe had no intention of paying any attention to the strange young man in front of him.

But after seeing his prominent front row seat and the rare Knicks championship ring on his hand, he changed his mind.

None of those who can sit in the first row are ordinary people.

He spread his hands and shook his head, "Man, what can I say?"

"Come on, guys, let's beat them in the next quarter!"

As the whistle for the second quarter sounded, Li Ang also went backstage to make final adjustments for the performance.

As the half-time whistle sounded, the staff came to the center of the field and quickly set up the performance venue.

The lights in the stadium suddenly went out.

Li Ang plugged his earphones and walked straight through the locker room corridor.

Keep your head down.

Take a deep breath and regulate your breathing rhythm.

As the charming prelude sounded, he closed his eyes and picked up the microphone, "Feel my torture~ Let my hands taste the fire!"

"Feel my torture~ I've tamed and bowed to your games!"

Applause, screams, and cheers instantly flooded the Staples Center.

Now, this is Li Ang's home court.

Robbie stood up from his seat and stared at the center of the court with shining eyes like a little fan girl.

All I could see was Li Ang.

Beyoncé, who was also sitting in the first row, couldn't help but stand up.

JAY-Z squinted his eyes and clapped in his seat. Not far away from him sat the West Coast godfather Dre and Snoop Dogg.

Several big guys who had a bad relationship in the 90s are now together to enjoy the performances of the new generation.

Li Ang held the microphone in both hands, his true and false voices interweaving perfectly, "I want you to never leave me again! I want to tie you up tightly!"

"Wuwuwu~ I'm just a devil craving pain!"

Li Ang ended the first chorus perfectly with an angry voice, and Kendrick slowly walked out of the player tunnel.

He wore sunglasses on his face, held the microphone in his left hand and beat the beat with his right hand, bent over and sang while walking to the center of the court.

"I have squad tattoos from neck to ankle. This society brings too much pressure. It's time to resist!"

"If the whole world abandons us, then we will carry the world on our shoulders!"

“Hold on.”

Kendrick paused on the last beat and made a pause gesture to the audience.

Snoop Dogg in the audience was laughing so hard that he fell backwards, and he kept patting Dre's shoulder, "This kid has got it all!"

This is his unique skill in controlling the game.

“Make some noise Los Angeles!”

The audience's emotions were completely controlled, and they made louder noises than before.

Li Ang entered the next chorus, and Kendrick sang backing vocals for him.

The cooperation between the two is simply perfect.

When the first song was over, Lakers owner Jerry Buss, who had always scoffed at hip-hop music, couldn't help but stand up and nod repeatedly.

After hugging Leon, Kendrick made a Crip gesture to the audience and left the stage.

Next is Li Ang’s solo performance time.

He stood center stage, and when the noise faded, he was completely focused.

The prelude to "Demons" sounded.

"When winter comes and hope fades, the saints we can place our hopes in are nothing but powerless statues of gold."

As soon as he opened his mouth, the whole audience burst into chorus.

Every audience in Los Angeles is familiar with this hit song, which is currently at number two on the Billboard Hot 100.

Li Ang extended the microphone to the audience and pricked up his ears to listen to their chorus.

"I want to hide the so-called truth and give you shelter!"

His eyes became more complicated, staring in Robbie's direction, "And the beast in my heart has nowhere to hide."

“Whatever we do for a living, we are all constructed of greed.”

"My kingdom of desire has been established."

He handed the microphone out again, and the whole audience went wild and chanted, "My kingdom of desire has been established!"

"I can't break free!"

"Unless I can get your guidance!"

After the performance, the applause lasted for a full minute before gradually subsiding.

"God damn it! I told you he would be a superstar!" Phil, who was sitting in the back row, couldn't help himself and punched Lenny hard.

"Yeah. Look at the audience here, they're going crazy."

When Leon returned to the audience, Robbie was already mesmerized by the "determined" look in his eyes during the performance just now.

"Honey, let's go straight back to the hotel."

She hadn't started drinking yet, but she was already drunk.

Leon smiled bitterly and pulled Robbie into his arms. Last night's battle had involved many secret Australian Aboriginal positions, and even now, Leon's thighs were still numb and sore.

In stark contrast to the halftime performance was the Lakers' subsequent play.

They continued their slump from the first half, and their star player Kobe was still not in good shape.

In the end, the Lakers suffered a crushing defeat with a score of 80-96, suffering a bitter defeat in the Christmas game for the second consecutive year.

In the interview after the game, Li Ang was completely absent-minded. The intensive performances in recent days had already made him exhausted.

The next morning he boarded a flight to New York.

In the Apocalypse Music office, Bonnie placed coffee and newspapers on Leon's desk as usual.

As expected, the results of the NBA Christmas Day games dominated the front page of the sports pages.

A considerable amount of space was also reserved for Li Ang's halftime performance, and music media people praised the performance highly.

Half an hour later, Phil came to the office.

On his feet were a pair of shiny Stephen Law Nic leather shoes.

Influenced by the popularity of Li Ang's first album, Lao Deng also made a lot of money through commissions from commercial performances.

"Look, a rising star's mind isn't full of money and alcohol, but how to make more money."

"I simply love you more and more!"

Li Ang glanced at Phil, ignoring his awkward compliment, and asked, "Why hasn't the November performance fee been paid yet?"

"My accountant is still reconciling the accounts. Not everyone is as professional as Elsa." Phil smiled obscenely.

Li Ang frowned. "Don't play tricks. You know we signed a one-year contract. If this happens a second time, I'm afraid we won't have the chance to work together again."

These words scared Phil so much that he trembled. He depended on Leon to support him for the rest of his life.

He immediately said that he would transfer the $60 in commercial performance proceeds to Li Ang's personal account that afternoon.

As "Demons" continues to be popular, Li Ang's appearance fee has skyrocketed, and his income from future commercial performances will only increase.

"Man, you'll never find such a good agent if you leave me."

"I guess it's the same with or without you."

"Do you really think so?" Phil smiled slyly and continued, "I've come with a surprise for you: a chance to endorse an international brand."

"Oh?" Li Ang took a sip of coffee and put his feet on the table. "What international brand?"

Phil stood up from the sofa, pulled a mysterious object from his pocket and slammed it on the table.

When he saw clearly what it was, Leon almost spit out the coffee in his mouth.

That is a small umbrella.

"WTF are you making fun of me?"

"No, no, no," Phil waved his hands repeatedly. "Your performance at Staples yesterday had a lot of celebrities. You know, there was a lady who really appreciated your performance. She thought you had a lot of sexual energy."

"By the way, she is the marketing director of Durex."

"I received her email last night. She sincerely invites you to become the spokesperson for Durex."

After hearing this, Li Ang finally dispelled his doubts. Durex has always been famous for its outstanding marketing strategies.

The company's current leading position in the global family planning products market is largely due to its marketing.

After thinking for a moment, Li Ang sighed and said, "Can't you find me some normal job, you bastard?"

Phil grinned, "What are you talking about? For Americans, sex is as normal as eating, isn't it?"

"I can go a day without eating, but I can't go a day without having sex with a woman!"

"This is a huge company that sells a billion little umbrellas every year!"

"You're really not interested?"

Li Ang tilted his head, "Not interested."

"Really? They're offering you $50 for a role, and all you have to do is pose for the camera."

Hearing this number, Li Ang immediately became alert, with lasers in his eyes. "Fxxk, I suddenly feel that this is a good thing, a public welfare project that reduces the efficiency of virus transmission in the United States."

"Hahaha! You guy!" Phil laughed out loud with his teeth bared.

Li Ang spread his hands with a helpless look on his face. He was really short of money recently.

If the filming of "Straight Outta Compton" starts, it will only take a few minutes for the more than 3 million US dollars in his hands to be burned through.

First, you have to obtain authorization from the NWA members, and either pay them licensing fees or share the box office revenue.

Kendrick's joining the team is not entirely out of friendship, and his agent would not agree to such a thing.

As the investor, he also needs to find a studio willing to distribute the film and pay a distribution fee ranging from 5% to 15%.
Location, props, filming team, publicity.
At present, it seems that this movie may not be completed without an investment of tens of millions.

Even though James Wan has excellent cost control capabilities, this is not a horror film that brings sensory stimulation to the audience.

What's more, there is still no conclusion to James Wan's affairs.

Last night he asked Bonnie to send the script to James Wan's email, and also expressed his willingness to cooperate through Robbie.

But there has been no response from the other party until now.

After Phil left, he glanced at his gold watch twice. At the end of December, his promotional focus was mainly in Florida.

Miami is a city filled with sunshine, beaches, Latin beauties and hormones.

It couldn't be a better arrangement for a chilly December, as Cardi B will also be in Florida on tour.

Miami is the swimsuit capital of the world. Every year, hundreds of large and small swimsuit shows are held in Miami, which is a bellwether for the entire industry.

That would be a good opportunity to expand the influence of the Evil Angel brand.

Currently, the revenue of the brand's offline stores has stabilized, and Bonnie is also working hard to expand the online market.

Li Ang's business plan is that as long as Evil Angel's monthly turnover exceeds 50 US dollars, he will spend money to hold a large-scale fashion show.

Benchmarking against Victoria's Secret next door, it transformed it from a clothing brand into a cultural symbol.

This sounds great, but given the current situation, it still seems a long way off.

Just as Li Ang was about to lie down and rest for a while, Bonnie pushed the door open and walked in.

"Le Ang! Mr. Wen replied to our email!"

"Really?! Did he express his stance?" Li Ang quickly sat up from the swivel chair.

"Maybe you should see it for yourself. I can't understand his thinking either."

As she spoke, Bonnie placed the printed email reply on the table.

James Wan neither refused nor agreed via email.

He expressed great interest in a gangster rap movie and was looking forward to working with Li Ang.

But what he was worried about was that making a movie couldn't be a spur-of-the-moment decision, as it would be bad for everyone if the box office was poor.

The box office will affect his own reputation and the thickness of Li Ang's wallet.

There is a lot of preliminary work that needs to be coordinated first.

The studio responsible for distributing the film, the licensing agreements of NWA members, etc.
If Li Ang can complete all the preliminary work, he will be very happy to accept the invitation.

Seeing this, Li Ang smiled with relief, "I think James's reply means he agrees."

With Kendrick around, it shouldn't be difficult for NWA to handle the rap OGs.

As for the production studios, when they have capital injection from investors, they generally will not refuse to take a share of the profits for free.

If the box office is a hit, I make money without doing anything. If it flop, I just get the profit.

(End of this chapter)