American Entertainment: Starting with playing the role of Little Beaver

Chapter 101 Wealth is finally free!

Chapter 101 Wealth is finally ours!
"Katie, you said on 'The Voice' that you had already released an album before participating in the show, and it was a gospel album, but now you like rock? I also like music, so I know that the gap between gospel and rock is huge. Could you share the story behind this with us? I think it would be very interesting?"

"Hiss—that's the story of a rebellious girl. I remember saying on The Voice that my mother is a pastor, so our family rules are more church-based. I also went to a church school. And, during my childhood, my mom didn't allow me to eat Lucky Charms because she thought Lucky sounded like Lucifer when pronounced quickly. She also made us call devil eggs angel eggs because she was very strict with us. So…you know…when a person gets older, she always wants to try some new things. And then I met Alanis Morissette."

"Oh—like Isa sneaking off to audition for Harry Potter?"

"Yeah—that's the feeling! I got into the record company behind my mother's back; I dropped out of school when I was fifteen."

"Wow! That's so cool! What else can you do besides music?"

"Uh—I can rollerblade, skateboard, surf, and I've also learned to dance. I can do swing, lindy, and jitterbug."

"Katie, could you do a little bit? Please~"

"of course can!"

Katy Perry waved her hand and handed over the microphone.

She asked the musicians accompanying her to play some music, and then she began to dance to the cheerful rhythm.

The lively dance moves drew screams from the crowd in front of the stage.

After dancing for a while, the moment of pause at the end sparked a burst of cheerful applause.

At this very moment, Katy Perry is on a business trip at a McDonald's in San Francisco.

This is an essential part of talent shows.

Once a contestant gains fame, they will definitely participate in offline events when they are not recording.

This is not only because sponsors need the production team to give them something in return.

Furthermore, for a talent show to succeed, it must be able to create stars.

A star cannot simply float online; a star must create a sensation offline. If people are unwilling to experience the life of a star in their daily lives, then even if that star becomes incredibly popular online, it is utterly worthless.

So, with the airing of 'Growing Up', Katy Perry has officially stepped into the offline world. In the past two days, she has visited two schools and three McDonald's, and she also has to do a lot of interviews every day. Compared with superstars, her schedule is definitely average, but for someone who has just become popular, these arrangements are still a bit intensive and tiring.

But she didn't care.

Because the cheers of the fans make people happy.

Even though her face was tired from smiling, she was unwilling to let it go.

The screams of her fans gave her a whiff of the sweetness of success.

After spending an hour and a half at McDonald's, singing five songs, dancing a few times, and giving out autographs, Katy Perry left the scene under the escort of her staff. As she got into her car, the fans' reluctance to part with her made her overjoyed. At that moment, she even felt that even if she died right now, her life would have been worthwhile.

After the car drove for a while, as the pursuing figures disappeared and the car windows closed, the assistant provided by the production team informed Katy Perry of the upcoming schedule: "Katy, that concludes today's outing."

"But when you get back, you'll have to give interviews to two media outlets, the San Jose Mercury News and the Sacramento Bee. They are both very well-known regional newspapers in California, which will help deepen the impression that Californians have of you."

"Okay, I understand."

"Then, you have a business opportunity. Head & Shoulders, one of the sponsors of The Voice of China, has taken a liking to you and wants you to shoot an advertisement. Are you willing to take on this project? If so, we can start shooting in the next couple of days."

What are your suggestions?

"Uh... Katie... From the show's perspective, we would definitely recommend that you accept the ad, but your contract is different from others, so whether or not you accept the ad is entirely up to you. You can accept it if you want, or you can not if you don't want to."

Before the recording of the national finals of "The Voice of China", Katy Perry had already officially signed with Marmots.

Like Robbie Jr., her contract is also for six years.

Groundhog also takes a 10% commission from her business deals, film contracts, and endorsements.

But unlike Robbie, because she's a singer, her real job is releasing records.

Therefore, her record deal went to Capybara.

Kapibala is a music company owned by Isabella. It was specifically registered after Warner Music decided to relinquish some of the signing rights to contestants from The Voice, and is dedicated to collecting the record rights for signed artists.

In terms of records, if a song is written and composed independently by Katy Perry, meaning she writes, composes, arranges, and produces the song herself, then her income will be 16% of the song's selling price.

也就是6%的人声，3+3的词曲，以及2+2的编曲和制作。

If Katy Perry is unable to write a song independently and needs to hire someone to help, the contract will have clear terms regarding hiring. Capibala can cover a portion of the helper's fee, but any excess will encroach on Katy Perry's own income.

Then, the revenue sharing from radio stations, film companies, and digital profits are subject to separate agreements.

On the surface, this contract seems a bit exploitative, since future album sales are split 50/50, or at least 40/60. But to be honest, Isabella herself only signed a 5% vocal deal with Warner, and in Katy Perry's contract, the production costs of the album, including the recording studio, hiring a band, and materials used during recording, were all covered by Capiball.

Compared to true capitalists, Isabella is already quite merciful to offer a 16% dehydration price.

Furthermore, she doesn't force the artists to do work.

Yes.

It was made clear during the contract signing that Groundhog and Kapibala would not force their artists to take on commercial work.

Do celebrities want to be workaholics?
Okay, I can help you find work.

What if celebrities want to just lie low?
No problem. If there's work for you, I'll let you know. You can do it if you want, or just lie down if you don't.

Isabella did this for a simple reason: she firmly believed that ambitious people would work even without being urged, while unambitious people would find ways to shirk their responsibilities even if you whipped them.

Of course, most importantly, Isabella had the means to do so.

Firstly, she already earns a lot herself. She spends less than she earns.

Secondly, she has a cheat code. When all the people she signs are gods, even if seven out of ten die, she can still have three money-printing machines. So... why doesn't she just be the nice guy?

That's why Katy Perry was overjoyed with the emergence of a more relaxed environment.

She had been signed to a record company and had witnessed the cruelty of the entertainment industry, so she knew that what Isabella was doing was no different from doing charity.

Even if she has never signed with a record company, who in the vast North America doesn't know Kelly Clarkson?

As a contestant on "American Idol," not only did Fox take 95% of her income, but she also had to make movies. Even if she earned Fox a lot more money, Fox would still force her to stay in the industry.

That kind of exploitation made people in North America feel that she had won but also lost.

Of course, what made Katy Perry happiest after seeing the contract was that the person who believed in her was her idol.

Katy Perry, biting her lip, smiled with eyes crinkling, feeling as if she were truly alive.

Q: How much does Head & Shoulders cost?

"Half a million."

"Five million?"

"Yes, because Head & Shoulders wants you to shoot a print ad, which will then be run across North America for three months."

"Is this price reasonable? From my perspective."

"Uh... it's reasonable given your current situation, but if you can make it to the finals, the offer will at least quadruple, and it will go from print ads to endorsements."

"Okay, I understand. Then I won't answer."

Katy Perry made the decision rather casually.

She has confidence in herself.

After taking a short nap in her seat, Katy Perry returned to the rest area provided by the production team for the advancing contestants and immediately got back to work. The first person to interview her was the San Jose Mercury News.

Upon meeting her, the reporter displayed great enthusiasm, proactively shaking her hand, praising her performance, and asking for her autograph on her poster, stating that her daughter was a fan.

On the surface, Katy Perry is very humble, but inside she's overjoyed.

The world is unfair; for every happy person, there is an even happier one. While Katy Perry was being interviewed, Isabella had finished filming the second episode of "The Voice." On her way back to the hotel, she couldn't stop smiling.

If I had to describe it...

That would look like a giant flower.

"What's making you so happy?"

Catherine, walking alongside her younger sister, asked curiously.

She was also present when Isabella was recording the show, but she didn't find it particularly entertaining.

“Oh, Nathan Bailey just told me that ‘Growth’ also had more than 20 ads embedded in it, generating more than 2000 million in revenue in a single period.”

Wearing sunglasses, Isabella first looked around to make sure no one was around before she furtively shared her joy with her older sister. Her thieving words caught Catherine's eye.

"You can draw tickets here too?"

"Yeah~"

Isabella nodded vigorously, excitedly uttering a trilled syllable, "Also 10%."

That's right~
At this very moment, the little beaver has once again received a windfall buff!
There's nothing we can do; the show 'Growth' wasn't part of our initial expectations.
In the production plan for "The Voice", only the national finals will be broadcast in the United States, and there will be no spin-offs.

Therefore, after the show became a huge hit, the emergence of 'Growth' was truly delightful, and the resulting revenue was even more gratifying.

Or perhaps...surprising?
"Oh—if that's the case, then that's truly delightful—"

Catherine laughed and said, "Because we previously thought 'growing up' was just a prelude to ABC dramas."

In the television industry, "leader" is actually a way to attract viewers.

It refers to using a blockbuster project to boost the ratings of other programs.

For example, airing a TV series directly after the evening news can effectively boost the opening viewership of the series.

Then, as long as the quality of the series isn't extremely bad, the final viewership ratings won't be bad. And if the quality of the series is excellent, then a blockbuster will emerge. This is why CCTV's 7:30 pm drama slot is called prime time.

In the days before mobile internet was prevalent, every second was truly valuable.

Of course, the most explosive traffic generation comes from the Americans.

For various reasons, the viewership ratings for the 1994 Winter Olympics women's figure skating final in the United States were explosively high, with 7880 million viewers making CBS, which held the broadcasting rights, a fortune. As soon as the competition ended, CBS immediately started airing the series, which then averaged 4000 million viewers, leaving its rivals completely bewildered.

To put it bluntly, it's like making money while lying down.

Therefore, when ABC moved the airing time of "Growing Up" to 7 p.m., which is before ABC's evening dramas, Disney's intention was clear: they hoped that "Growing Up" would drive traffic to subsequent dramas.

In the future, in the internet age, everyone will have to pay to use traffic pools, because traffic is money. However, in the television industry, the right to use traffic pools is bought out in a one-time transaction.

Even though everyone knows that variety shows can drive viewership for dramas, variety show producers don't get a share of the drama's revenue.

Therefore, when 'growth' began to emerge, Isabella did not expect it to bring her a high income.

but now……

Can side stories also attract sponsors? Can they include advertisements?

hiss--

My great America truly lives up to its reputation of prioritizing profit, worshipping capital, and seeing everything in terms of money!

While the two sisters were having a good time, their mother, Vivian, who was walking beside them, also spoke up with her lips pursed.

"Isa, Keisha, I also have some good news to share. Would you like to hear it?"

"what news?"

With a sharp sound, the two sisters turned their heads at the same time.

Moreover, it seems that they wanted to make their vision clearer?
Isabella pulled her sunglasses up slightly, her gaze drifting out from above the glasses.

He directly cosplayed as Pi Shaoan from "Shaolin Popeye".

"This is also news that will make you count money until your hands cramp."

Vivian put her arm around Isabella's shoulder and kissed her on the cheek because of her little daughter's cuteness.

Then he said:
"Disney told me that many people have already contacted them to inquire about the copyright ownership of 'The Voice'."

"The calls came from all over the world, including France, Germany, Canada, Australia, Japan, and South Korea..."

"If nothing unexpected happens, starting next year, you'll be able to earn nine figures a year just from selling copyrights."

"Oh~~~~" Isabella laughed with a lilt.

Nine-figure annual income?
That's over 100 million!
Starting next year, she can earn hundreds of millions a year?
oh--

Isn't this what financial freedom is?

Five years after transmigrating, financial freedom?
This is something that makes people happy no matter how you look at it!
Just as Isabella was pursing her lips, trying hard not to let out a groundhog-like laugh, Catherine, who was equally happy, also noticed something interesting: "Mom, doesn't anyone in our country call?"

"Uh...I don't know..."

Catherine really hit a nerve with Vivian, "I haven't seriously looked into Disney's offers because we're not talking about that right now, are we? Even if we wanted to sell the rights, we'd have to wait until the first season here is finished."

Although Vivian doesn't know much about business, she's still a normal person.

Anyone with a modicum of intelligence knows that now is not the right time to sell "The Voice of China".

Because the viewership of "The Voice of China" is bound to increase no matter what.

When 30 million is not the limit for "The Voice of China," but merely its beginning, selling the copyright at this point is not about me stopping when I've made 30 million, but rather turning back home halfway through mining.

Since her mother's words made sense, Catherine didn't pursue the matter further.

But the outside world is extremely anxious.

Currently, media professionals worldwide can see the potential—or rather, the value—of "The Voice of China".

Therefore, taking it down is what everyone wants to do.

But Vivian kept her phone off and wouldn't answer anyone, which made everyone so anxious that their blood pressure soared and their hemorrhoids exploded.

Well, Vivian hasn't turned on her phone since arriving in the United States.

Because her whole family wanted some peace and quiet.

As for saying that directly cutting off contact could cause problems? What if someone has an emergency and can't reach them?
Dear~
They were also accompanied by Warner Bros. and Disney!
If something really happens outside that requires their attention, Warner Bros. and Disney will definitely tell them directly. Given the current favorable situation, Barry Mayer and Robert Iger care about their situation even more than they do themselves.

Then, what if someone wants to say that people who want to find them can't get in touch with Maye and Egger?
To put it bluntly...

If you can't even communicate with Maye and Iger, it just proves that you're not important.

Since everyone understands this reality, when media professionals who wanted to purchase the rights to "The Voice" discovered that they could not possibly contact Isabella through normal channels, they began to use all sorts of ingenious methods.

Some people want to fly to North America under the guise of conducting research, hoping to find opportunities through in-person visits;
Some people started using their connections in Hollywood, hoping that the other party could help them send a visiting card to Isabella;

Some people even went directly to Egg Girl's mother...

Okay, that person is the BBC.

The BBC hopes that Eggsy's mother can help them get in touch with Isabella because they want to do "The Voice UK".

So, did they make a quote?

Eggsy heard the news during a break in the filming of "Azkaban".

Then he immediately perked up his ears.

Although "The Voice" hasn't been broadcast in the UK yet, preventing the British public from witnessing Isabella's talent, news about it is everywhere. So, when he learned that the premiere of "The Voice" was the best opening in television history, he was genuinely surprised. He was happy for Isabella, but also felt a pang of regret because…

Catherine also turned off her phone!

This prevented him from even sending his congratulations!

This family is so willful!

“Oh—it’s been reported—” Marcia Radcliffe nodded at her son’s question.

"How much?" Egg Girl asked curiously.

“Uh—£2500 million—” Marcia hesitated for a moment, but finally offered the BBC as her offer.

When this number appeared, Egg Girl was stunned for a moment, and a few seconds later, he let out a sharp pop.

"Seize the young man???"

“Honey, you heard me right. The BBC offered £2500 million for Miss Granger’s The Voice.”

Marcia sighed and repeated her words with a smile.

Upon her confirmation, Dan Niu's mouth dropped open in shock.

That's actually why Marcia hesitated earlier.

When Isabella's intellectual property can easily sell for tens of millions...

She and the others in the crew weren't breathing the same air under the same sky.

"Mom, why do you think Isha is so amazing?"

After regaining her composure, Dan Niu immediately showed her melancholy.

Marcia shook her head, saying quite bluntly, "Don't ask me that question, because I don't know either..."

To be honest, Marcia also wanted to know how there could be such an exceptionally talented child as Isabella in the world. But unfortunately, even after racking her brains, she couldn't find a clue.

While she was still trying to figure it out, the time quietly came to September 27, 2003.

The second episode of the first season of "The Voice of China" has been released as scheduled.

Perhaps it's because the hype has officially started?

But it's also possible that all blockbuster projects see their viewership numbers climb like a mountain?

In summary, the average viewership for the second episode was higher than that for the first episode, reaching 3431 million.

This achievement has once again caused a stir among television professionals worldwide, intensifying their desire to acquire copyrights.

When the time came to October 4, 2003, the fact that the average number of viewers had climbed to 36 million after the third episode aired made the fans of "The Voice" unable to sit still and they rushed to North America.

Although everyone knows that Isabella's decision to remain silent at this moment is to sell "The Voice" at a high price, they don't care, because if they can create a project with an average of 3000 million+ per episode, they will also wait for the right price to sell.

Right now, what they care about most is preventing their competitors from getting "The Voice of China"!

If our competitors get the rights to "The Voice of China," then they won't have to wear bitter tea next year!

Because you'll get beaten to a pulp!

Human energy is limited.

When the whole world starts chasing "The Voice of China", some things will naturally be forgotten by the public.

The things here could be movies, music, or even "American Idol".

After discovering that their show's viewership had predictably plummeted.

Rupert Murdoch then summoned Gail Berman, president of Fox Broadcasting.

This person is also a veteran in the industry. He entered the entertainment industry in the 70s. At the age of 23, he created "Joseph and the Magician Colorcoat", which was a huge hit on Broadway and won seven Tony Awards. In the following years, he created "The Roar", "Blood Knot" and "Nerd", all of which won Tony Awards.

In the early 1990s, he switched careers to television, and then went on to develop shows like "Malcolm's Family" and "The Bernie McShow." His outstanding achievements made him the president of Fox Broadcasting Group and earned him Murdoch's high regard.

Even with his extensive professional experience, Gail Berman was still somewhat bewildered by his boss's summons, because he didn't understand why Murdoch had suddenly called him over.

It's not the peak season for winning prizes right now;

Fox hasn't had any big hit shows lately;

Next year's project plans were submitted well before June;

and so……

What can we talk about?
He didn't understand.

As for why he didn't think about "American Idol"?

Dear!
That's Murdoch's own daughter's project!

He's just a working-class guy!
Is he qualified to inquire about the princess's projects?

So even if "American Idol" is a flop, it has nothing to do with him!

But as Murdoch spoke, Gail Berman's pupils instantly contracted behind her glasses.

"Boss, I'm sorry, I think I was a little distracted just now. Could you repeat what you said?"

"Of course you can. I just asked you, have you spoken with Bernard Eisinger?"