Huayu 02: The Days of Extreme Pulling and Rolling with the Fairy

After leaving Yu Dong's office, he went to the school, and within an hour, he rushed to the recording studio.

I've been recording for seventeen hours straight, only managing to sleep for two hours in between.

It was night again when I came out of the recording studio, but the work was still not finished.

Before it was time to rest, Ning Hao was already waiting for him when he took the samples back to school. He had compiled all the footage that he felt had a strong sense of atmosphere.

Old Ning is no longer surprised by any song Xie Jin can produce; to some extent, he's become numb to it.

The two went through the footage, and the two editing stations started working simultaneously, one for rough cuts and the other for fine cuts. Xie Jin couldn't stay awake for a while and fell asleep on the editing station.

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I was lucky to get two more hours of sleep in the editing room, otherwise I would have died suddenly.

Holding what he had in his hand, he now felt confident.

With this thing, I'll be in an unassailable position in the upcoming negotiations.

Xie Jin took a shower, tidied herself up, took out her makeup bag, and carefully covered her dark circles.

At that moment, he knew how pathetic he looked, but he didn't want anyone to see it.

...........

...........

When I got to the Warner Wheatfield building, I looked in the mirror. Although I felt a little unsteady on my feet, I looked pretty good.

"Professor Xie, Mr. Song is waiting for you upstairs."

When Xie Jin went in, Song Ke was drinking Kung Fu tea.

The two sat facing each other. Upon seeing Xie Jin, Old Song smiled and said, "Teacher Xie is younger than I imagined. You must be two years younger than your family in Hong Kong."

Xie Jin smiled reservedly, and after a moment's thought, she realized that he must be referring to Xie TF, who was born in 80 and was indeed two years older than her.

After experiencing some turmoil last year, Xie TF went quiet for a while. This year, his new album "Reborn" marks a fresh start, with both songs "Walking and Loving" and "Second Life" becoming quite popular.

She also appeared in "Jade Goddess of Mercy" and many action scenes in Hong Kong films, which greatly changed her image and brought her back to the top tier of celebrities.

"She is a little younger than Nicholas Tse."

Yu Dong had already given the order, so Song Ke knew why Xie Jin was there.

"Teacher Xie, Lao Yu told me why you came. I am actually willing to help you, but we at Wheatfield never do third-party distribution contracts."

Generally speaking, music production companies sign three types of contracts with artists.

The first type is the full contract, which combines the artist's management contract, record production and distribution contract, and copyright management contract into one. This type of full contract is the most common, and newcomers usually have this type.

There are also those who only sign agency contracts, where the company is only responsible for arranging business activities and not for creative production.

  

These kinds of jobs are arranged by the company, requiring artists to travel frequently, and the artists themselves are responsible for their own work.

The third option is to only sign a record deal and not get involved in commercial matters, but this often comes with copyright disputes.

As for distribution contracts, it's essentially the singer paying out of their own pocket while the distribution company handles the distribution for them. For Warner Music, this means they don't make much money and also bear the risks.

"Let's listen to the song first; there's also a music video in here that you can check out."

Song Ke raised an eyebrow. Such a confident young man. He took the demo and went into the recording studio, putting on his headphones.

Song Ke originally thought it would be the same as praying to Buddha, a corny love song paired with a corny music video.

Unexpectedly, the screen lit up.

On the screen, the first rays of sunlight break through the clouds, and the streets in the early morning still have a touch of frost. The color tone is slightly bluish, creating a wonderful atmosphere.

The beautiful shots carry a touch of warmth.

In the movie, the male and female protagonists walk silently down the street.

The moment the headphones were electrified, he realized how terribly wrong he had been.

.........

.........

Song Ke muttered to himself in the recording studio, "What the hell is going on? The style has completely changed, and it's not even tacky anymore."

If every song in this list could be a contender for a Golden Melody Award, that would be utter nonsense.

But Song Ke can confidently say that every single one of them is a masterpiece.

"Love Transfer" and "Unfortunately There Are No Ifs" are definitely worthy of being nominated for the Golden Melody Award!

In Song Ke's opinion, putting these pieces together was a waste of resources, or rather, it felt like eating lobster and still feeling full.

That can't be! Am I getting old?

Twenty-one years old? Her main professions are still acting and directing.

Is there really such a genius in this industry?

Where did this young man come from, with no company and no background?

Song Ke's professional knowledge told him that this album would definitely be a hit. This kid's looks are no less than Nicholas Tse's, and if he follows Nicholas Tse's path, he might even become more popular than Nicholas Tse.

.........

Half an hour later, he had calmed down and when he went back into the office and saw Xie Jin, he was much more enthusiastic.

The attitude towards Xie Jin was no longer that of a senior looking at a junior, but rather one of equality.

As expected, results speak for themselves.

"Xie Jin, I know the quality of these five songs; each one is a rare gem. Your music video is really good; for someone in filmmaking, this is a piece of cake."

"But third-party distribution is definitely not an option. It's not that I'm unwilling, but I can't explain it to them."

"If you give an inch, I can find a solution for you."

Xie Jin pondered for a moment. Since Song Ke had said this after reading the work, it seemed there was truly no other way: "I can give you the copyright custody and agency agreement."

Song Ke paused for a second, then realized that this was acceptable.

A copyright escrow agency agreement means that the copyright still belongs to the creator, but during the contract period, the company will help with monetization, operation, and rights protection. The company will usually take a 15%-20% cut.

It only applies to music that has already been validated by the market.

It saves singers effort and companies worry.

"If that's how you're going to talk, then Warner Music might consider taking on the release of your new album."

Xie Jin waved his hand: "Brother Song, you might not have heard me clearly. I meant I can give you the copyright custody agency agreement."

Song Ke was stunned for a second. This kid has such a keen sense of smell?

Squinting at Xie Jin, he tentatively asked, "You know I'm leaving Warner?"

"I'm not sure, but judging from your statements and those of Warner executives in the newspapers, our strategies are already starting to diverge. A clash of ideologies means a split is inevitable."

Hsieh Chin continued, "Warner Music is too rigid now. Ringtones and the internet have arrived, but they're still stubbornly clinging to records."

Those who are unwilling to embrace the new era will be buried along with the past.

Song Ke slammed her hand on the table in anger. "Even you in your early twenties can see this! These old office workers are brain-dead! Nobody uses CDs anymore, how are records going to sell?"

"How much longer do you plan to stay?"

Song Ke lit a cigarette: "Next year, I'll leave when the management contracts of the artists I brought in expire, so we can part ways amicably."

Xie Jin thought for a moment and realized that Song Ke's Wheatfield only had a management contract. After the establishment of Taihe Wheatfield, the artists' records were still released by Warner, but the commercial activities all went to Taihe Wheatfield.

It seems quite a few people went to Taihe, including Bu Shu, Lao Lang, Ye Bei, Dada, E Band, and Fire Gorilla Radio.

Xie Jin nodded: "Then I'll sign a one-year copyright trusteeship agreement with Warner."

After signing the contract, Xie Jin was kept chatting with Lao Song for a long time. Lao Song became more and more excited and insisted on arranging some drinks that evening. But the more Xie Jin listened, the lighter her feet felt, as if her soul was about to leave her body.

Stepping out of the building with the contract in her hand, Xie Jin finally felt at ease.

The counterattack is finally about to begin.