America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM...

Chapter 237, Section 236: The Scum's End

"Hill, what are you doing! Didn't you say Janet Jackson wouldn't talk nonsense?"

"She really did promise me that, damn it! She's playing us! Blacklist her! Blacklist her! Janet Jackson will never be able to get on a Grammy again in her lifetime."

Inside the stadium, the heads of the two television stations and Jia Renzha were discussing how to resolve the matter while achieving their own goals.

Hill Kaufman and Charles Ricklans, as key executives of their respective television stations, were well aware that this was an attempt to target Janet Jackson.

His boss has reached an agreement with the Conservative Party to use the Super Bowl, which is of great national interest, to create a major event in order to push for legislation amendments and redefine industry standards.

Before they could even finalize their plans, they received a report that Janet Jackson was being interviewed and saying things they didn't want to hear. The three of them had no choice but to rush over and stop her.

As for why Janet Jackson was chosen? Because her various labels are really perfect for taking the blame.

First of all, Janet herself is one of the queens of pop, with a significant influence worldwide, especially in the United States. She is an absolute A-list female celebrity, bringing her own audience and attention.

Secondly, she is Mike's younger sister. Just last year, Mike had a major falling out with Sony, which led to a global boycott of Sony for a period of time.

This caused Sony Group's stock price to plummet by nearly $80 billion, and in the end, they had to compromise and let Michael leave as a free agent. It has only now barely recovered.

During this period, a series of eye-catching incidents, including sexual assault, suicide, court trials, and perjury, were exposed, keeping the story extremely popular.

Even though Mike's case has now been clarified, there are still some people who stubbornly oppose it. Attacking his sister would both cater to their needs and be very popular with capital like Sony.

In addition, compared to the waning influence of veteran singers such as Madonna, Celine Dion, and Mariah Carey, Janet's momentum has remained relatively strong since the turn of the millennium.

In other words, she took someone else's place, and under her influence, it became very difficult for some newcomers with similar images and styles to stand out.

If this happened in the Chinese music scene, it wouldn't have much of an impact, since older artists would still dominate more than a decade later.

Even if newcomers are promoted, not many people will buy into it because their professional skills are really too poor.

Only a handful of people, such as G.E.M., have truly emerged, while Xue Zhiqian, Li Ronghao, and others belong to the middle generation.

Pop music is the absolute mainstream, while genres such as rock, heavy metal, jazz, R&B, and folk music have never been able to gain widespread popularity. Their limited audience has further diminished listeners' appreciation abilities.

The music scene is not only declining, but also dominated by pop songs. Apart from pop songs, it is difficult for other styles of songs to stand out.

This is similar to the way TV dramas and movies are made. No matter what genre it is, it can be turned into a melodramatic romance.

Bad audiences breed bad movies, bad listeners breed bad songs; it's a consistent pattern.

But this phenomenon is very bad when it occurs in the Western music scene.

Because the music industry here is relatively mature, the professional level of newcomers is also relatively high.

For major companies, promoting new talent earns more money than promoting experienced talent, as the market for experienced talent affects profits. Continuous iteration is the way to make money.

Therefore, there is a tradition in Europe and America of a major overhaul every ten years.

In short, for various reasons, they all wanted to bring down Janet Jackson.

As for Jia, that scumbag, of course he didn't know so much inside information. He was just a henchman who obeyed orders and was being used as a tool.

If you succeed in getting things done, your master will reward you with a few dates.

But if something unexpected happens like today, then it's hard to say.

"Hill, Charles, what should we do? The situation is very bad for us!"

As Jia Renzha walked, he asked questions, taking the lead as the executor.

But faced with his concern, the two remained silent, hurriedly went to the exit, and then heard the last part.

Upon seeing the three appear, dozens of people surrounded them in an instant, and the security personnel had to exert all their strength to barely hold them back.

Problems came out like cannonballs.

"Justin, look here, Justin, aren't you going to say something?"

"Justin, Jenny accuses you of making indecent advances towards her. Was this part of the performance? Can you explain?"

"Justin Timberlake, are you trying to create a media frenzy? Are you trying to overshadow Britney Spears and Madonna's kiss?"

"Justin, what were you thinking? What made you tear your clothes? What did it feel like to get slapped?"

"Hill, as the producer of this show, is MTV aware of the reasons? Is Janet right? Did Justin act on his own initiative?"

"Charles, what does CBS, as the broadcaster, have to say about this? Was it a show or an unexpected situation?"

Faced with these pointed questions, the three of them haven't yet come up with the perfect answers.

Hill Kaufman originally intended to release the rehearsal video to prove Jenny's involvement, but the accident occurred because she changed her mind and refused to cooperate.

But all of this is based on the premise that one side has first agreed to be interviewed and expressed its views to the outside world.

The problem was that Jenny tricked him by stating her position first: "I did participate in the rehearsal, but after the rehearsal, I felt it was inappropriate, so I declined."

So it's normal that you have video recordings of me participating in the rehearsals. How would I know the effect was so bad if I didn't rehearse!

As for why there are only rehearsal videos but no videos of the refusal...

Need I say more?

The TV station must have deliberately hidden this part to try and shift the blame onto me.

Facing two influential television stations, how much say could a small singer like me have? I could only cry alone!

Moreover, releasing the video would bring about an even bigger problem.

That would be tantamount to admitting that CBS and MTV were also involved, confirming that the two television stations were leading the way in creating vulgar performances to attract attention.

Getting yourself into this mess is clearly not a wise move, so this path is a dead end.

If the video is not released, it is unrealistic to expect Jenny to take all the blame alone, given the current situation.

It will eventually devolve into a war of words, with everyone blaming each other.

It's uncertain who will benefit, but the unluckiest one will definitely be Justin Black, since he made the move in front of everyone.

Noticing that the three were being blamed, Jenny pretended to be kind and said, "Hill, Charles, we are all victims in this. We have all been used."

"I hope you can tell the truth, and I hope you can handle this matter impartially."

"This is not a complicated dispute. Tens of millions of people saw it clearly, and everyone understands what happened."

"Please don't let an innocent woman be hurt, please don't let someone who wants to bring joy to the audience suffer. I beg you!"

profound.

This tearful plea immediately garnered sympathy from all the female reporters present, many of whom had experienced some degree of unfair treatment in the workplace.

Serious cases involve sexual harassment by superiors, while milder cases involve issues related to salary, working hours, and workload.

While expressing sympathy, he also pressed the three grown men with even sharper questions.

"FUCK! That vile woman's disgusting expression is like a she-wolf!"

Hillkoffman cursed inwardly, about to retort, when Charles Ricklands nudged him in the midfield.

After glancing at the other person, Hillkaufman swallowed his words.

Charles Ricklands nodded slightly: "Jenny Jenny is right. We don't know why this happened either. Neither CBS nor MTV expected it at all."

"After it happened, Hill and I were very heavy-hearted."

"Knowing that Jenny was about to leave, we rushed over to apologize to her."

"Just now in the conference room, Justin Din Black admitted to us that he was wrong and that everything was done on his own."

"Justin, you should apologize to Janet and to the national audience. This kind of attention-grabbing and traffic-generating behavior is completely contrary to public order and good morals."

Suddenly betrayed by his teammate, Jia Renzha's eyes widened immediately. He wasn't really a complete idiot; if this huge scapegoat were pinned on him, he'd be in real trouble.

Enraged, Jia shoved Charles Ricklands and yelled, "What are you saying! What are you talking about?!"

"When did I ever admit to a mistake? You're framing me! We were all involved in this show; we planned it together."

"A trap! I understand now, it's all a trap! You and Janet Jackson conspired to frame me!"

"I demand to see the video; I demand the rehearsal video be released. This isn't just my fault."

"So you admit you were wrong, right, Justin?" The New York Times reporter astutely seized on the loophole in Justin's words.

"What! No, it has nothing to do with me! I'm the real victim. This was a trap from the beginning, and everyone wanted to harm me."

Jia was both angry and anxious. The plot was not going in the right direction. It shouldn't be like this. It should be the three of them framing Janet Jackson, but now it's the other way around.

Charles Ricklands said gravely, "Justin, admitting mistakes isn't that hard. You should act like a man."

"Have some courage, just like you did in the lounge, and say those words to everyone again."

Although Hillkoffman didn't quite understand, he chimed in, "That's right, Justin, you should act like a man and take responsibility for your actions!"

Speechless under the barrage of questions from the two old men, and surrounded by the accusations of reporters, Justin Black was burning with rage.

You betrayed me and now you want me to take the blame? I'm not going to masturbate anymore. Nobody wants to live.

"Justin, no."

boom!

Sneak attack!

Charles Ricklands had just opened his mouth when he felt a sharp pain in his head, and then his vision went black as he collapsed to the ground.

With one punch, he knocked down an old man in his fifties. Enraged, the scumbag Jia then set his sights on Hillkaufman beside him. "You're not getting away either, you bastard!"

Another punch landed, and Hill Kaufman was knocked to the ground. He was sixty-nine years old, older than Charles Ricklands.

OH !!!

The sudden armed conflict caused an even greater commotion. Security personnel quickly subdued Jia Renzha, while reporters frantically pressed their camera shutters.

This is huge news! It's absolutely amazing! This year's Super Bowl was so damn awesome!

Meanwhile, some people advised Jenny to leave quickly to avoid being harmed again by the crazed Justin Black.

Jenny had said everything she needed to say and was looking for an opportunity to escape. She immediately pushed through the crowd, got into her car, and drove away.

On the way to the airport, cheerful laughter filled the Lincoln sedan.

"OMG! I really didn't expect this. Justin Din Black actually dared to hit someone. He's really crazy, hahaha."

Eric watched the secretly recorded video: "Wow! Those two punches looked pretty powerful. Look closely, Hillkoffman's cheeks are all distorted."

"I reckon he'll at least get a concussion from that blow, and if it's serious, he might be bedridden for months."

"Haha, let me replay this. I want to watch it a few more times. I didn't want to drag CBS and MTV into this, but it seems they've learned their lesson."

Michael shook his head slightly: "Justin Black's career is completely over, but those two punches were good, confirming his mistakes."

"It seems he was really angry. He probably thinks you set him up and that he was played for a fool. He was like a clown the whole time, and in the end, he broke down."

"That's for sure, I would think the same way if I were in that situation." Eric agreed with this view.

"What surprised me was that Hillkoffman and Charles Ricklands were so decisive in sacrificing the pawn to save the king."

Jenny: "But this is the best solution in the current situation. They can't sacrifice me, but sacrificing Justin Black would be just as good."

"Eric, didn't you say someone was planning something big? Now the impact of this matter has probably exceeded many people's expectations."

"Even if the process is different from what you expect, the result is not entirely unacceptable."

Eric took a deep breath: "Yes, I think that's why they suddenly turned their guns on me."

"It's okay, as long as it doesn't have a negative impact on you. I'm sure a lot of media outlets want to interview you lately, so do your best."

"Hmm, by the way, Eric, does this mean we've already won?"

"Victory? You mean 'The Voice'?"

"What else could it be? Justin, that scumbag, was a newly hired judge on this year's 'American Idol.' Now that he's in trouble, and there's less than a month left before the show airs, there's no time for re-recording."

"How will viewers react when this scumbag appears on television?"

"Forget about waiting for the show to air; Fox will probably receive a massive number of complaints in the next few days. Doesn't that mean we've won?"

Michael nodded: "It seems this war is over ahead of schedule. American Idol will definitely sue Justin Black."

"There are also endorsement partners, GG sponsors, and his record label JIVE Records. After he went solo from Super Boy, JIVE spent a lot of money to promote him."

"This happened before he even made the money back, and Justin Black could face hundreds of millions of dollars in damages."

"Serves you right! You scum!" Eric and Jenny spat in unison.

(End of this chapter)