To maintain his dignity as an East Coast big shot, Diddy tried hard to squeeze a smile onto his stiff face.
His expression looked as ugly as if he had eaten a fly.
"What else can I say Bro?" He turned to look at his good brother JAY-Z, his intention obvious—how long this kid can act tough depends on your attitude.
"I also want to thank the media friends present." Leon put his hand on his eyebrows to look into the distance, pointing with his other hand, "You, you, you, and you..."
"New York Sun, Celebrity Secrets, XXL..."
"Look at all this Fake News here, I have to thank you properly."
If Leon's face was thick enough to stop bullets, then these media people simply had no shame at all.
Having shame means you can't work in the media industry.
Mocked like this, their expressions didn't change a bit.
They just grabbed their cameras and took pictures frantically.
Leon's subsequent speech was much more normal.
He thanked everyone from the company to friends, incidentally including Beyoncé and Taylor.
JAY-Z's face also became increasingly ugly.
In his memory, this kid had never thanked him, his big brother, on the podium.
Nor in private.
Instead, his wife was getting along famously with the other party, with gossip flying everywhere.
He couldn't help but glance sideways, finding Beyoncé's reaction even more excited than if she had won the award herself.
The strange look was quickly noticed by Beyoncé, who immediately retorted: "Don't look at me with such strange eyes, aren't you happy for Leon's achievement?"
After Leon walked off the podium, the discussion still lingered.
It didn't gradually subside until five minutes later.
"Bro, you really did it!" Mars praised endlessly, "Look at Diddy's expression, like he was cuckolded in public!"
"Cuckolded? Are you serious?" Leon rolled his eyes at him.
Everyone knew Diddy's current preferences were very abnormal.
Around the millennium, he could still balance his interests.
To refute media rumors, he openly discussed details of his time in bed with Jennifer Lopez in interviews many times.
Now, Diddy was completely immersed in "brotherly love."
Young fresh meat like Bieber was his favorite.
Taylor, Cardi, Robbie, Kendrick...
A group of Leon's acquaintances and friends gathered around to congratulate him.
"Congratulations Bro~!" Kendrick squeezed Mars aside.
Tonight he got nothing in terms of awards, not even a nomination.
Instead, his nemesis Drake touched multiple nominations.
Leeching off Leon's camera time was his best way to gain traffic tonight.
Next, the host began to announce a series of awards related to country music.
Country music awards had almost no suspense; this was Taylor's territory.
The Grammys tend to be academic, sometimes whimsically giving trophies to unpopular singers.
But Billboard wouldn't.
Taylor's traffic and data were leagues ahead of other country singers.
"Looks like you'll be busy running up and down later." Leon quipped: "Why don't they just give you all the trophies at once?"
"To be honest, I'm tired of repeating those nutritious-less acceptance speeches over and over again." Taylor had a proud expression.
She didn't get many nominations at this year's Billboard Awards.
Compared to Lady Gaga and Rihanna, the gap was huge.
Before the shortlist was announced in April, even relevant betting agencies didn't expect this.
"For your next album, we can try to collaborate on more works. Next year's award ceremony we will sweep everything." Leon induced.
He was obviously addicted to leeching off Taylor's heat.
Bang Bang being able to top the Billboard charts, the quality of the work wasn't the main reason.
In the eyes of many professional music critics, Adele's work quality was higher.
Achieving such an achievement was mainly due to sufficient gimmicks.
Especially Taylor's super strong fan base.
"Next album? I don't have a single bit of inspiration yet." Taylor shook her head.
No one would expect this girl to have a time when her inspiration dried up.
Scumbags were the source of her inspiration, and now was her emotional window period.
Scumbags gone, inspiration naturally gone too.
Leon wanted to say something more, but the host had already read the winner list.
Except for Best Country Song being upset by Lady Antebellum.
Best Country Artist and Best Country Album were swept by Taylor, and no one felt a trace of novelty.
In the second half of the award ceremony, everyone was chatting high. Except for perfunctory applause when reading awards, they were all chatting with their acquaintances and old friends.
Leon noticed from a distance that JAY-Z was chatting with Leonard from Warner Music, arms around each other's shoulders.
It made him quite curious that these two could chat together.
"Leon, I want to introduce a friend to you." The always introverted and low-key David Fincher leaned over.
He pointed to the tall, thin white man with a somewhat bookish air beside him, "This is Mr. Scott Stuber, an executive at Netflix Film."
Hearing the big name of Netflix, Leon quickly got up, "Honored to meet you, Mr. Stuber."
Netflix is an internet company established in 1997, once just an online DVD and Blu-ray rental provider.
After going public in 2002, it has been the leader in the streaming video sector.
In March of this year, the company high-profilely announced the output of a series of original film and television content.
This move caused an earthquake in the entire film and television industry, making traditional giants like Sony and Warner tremble.
Its wealthy appearance was no less than Disney Pictures.
"I mentioned to you before that I am preparing a TV series." David said.
"I remember very clearly, that show is called House of Cards, right?" Leon recalled the other party indeed mentioned a TV series during idle chat.
That was a political thriller.
"This project has officially started, and Stuber has given me unlimited help." David looked at Stuber, gratitude overflowing in his words.
Leon was curious before, a high-cost TV series, and a serious drama with a political theme...
Only a fool would be willing to invest.
The combination of politics + thriller concepts was really too abstract.
But if Netflix made a move, it wouldn't be strange for this show to be successfully established.
Such internet enterprises entering the film and television industry were simply a dimensionality reduction attack on those traditional giants.
Just the financial strength was completely not on the same level.
"I heard Mr. Leon is very interested in the film industry? You collaborated with Lionsgate on a movie about hip-hop music?" Stuber asked.
"That's right, this movie will hit theaters next month." Mentioning the word "collaboration," Leon felt a burst of discomfort.
Stingy Lionsgate didn't invest a bit of resources in Straight Outta Compton.
Shooting and promotion all relied on Leon's side doing it themselves.
"That's great, can I have the honor to attend the premiere of this movie?"
"Of course, it's my honor." Leon was full of question marks.
Why was an executive of a streaming giant so attentive to him?
After a few greetings, the other party quickly gave the answer.
Stuber sipped champagne elegantly, "I heard this movie encountered financial difficulties when it was established?"
"That's right, but these small problems have long been solved." Leon answered while cursing in his heart; such things should be rarely known.
"What a pity... a script created by a musical genius like you should be very interesting." Stuber shook his head.
"Thanks for your praise." Leon was confused, only able to respond.
"What I want to say is, a budget of more than 10 million is too little..." Stuber looked regretful, "This amount of money is barely enough to achieve promotional effects."
A Versailles-style speech left Leon dumbfounded.
This posture of treating money like dirt had exceeded his imagination.
Stuber continued: "If you have plans to shoot movies, you can contact me anytime."
Saying that, Stuber took out a business card, "Unlimited budget, until the effect satisfies you."
Leon solemnly took the business card.
He had dealt with many so-called traditional giants, but only Netflix nakedly showed him the demeanor a sugar daddy should have.
Since Netflix announced its entry into original film and television content, spending money seemed to become a hard indicator.
Whether the project could make money was put aside first, money must be spent.
Soon, Stuber turned and left, walking towards the direction of action superstar Vin Diesel.
"Is everything this guy said true?" Leon whispered to David.
"Of course." David nodded, "When I proposed a budget of 40 million dollars, Netflix executives agreed almost without consideration, and promised to add budget anytime..."
Hearing this, Leon fell completely silent.
According to David wanting to shoot a 13-episode TV series, the production cost per episode exceeded 3.5 million dollars.
The key point was that this was a political-themed TV series, without magnificent big scenes and expensive digital special effects.
"These internet bastards are fxxking rich..." Leon muttered in his heart.
The award ceremony continued. Subsequently, Leon won the Best Rock Album again with Demons.
He had already said what he wanted to say when he first went on stage, and the desired effect had also been achieved.
After going on the podium for the second time, he just said "Thank you, I deserve it."
Then he turned and left gracefully, leaving the award presenter messy in the wind for a while.
In the end, Justin Bieber became the biggest winner of the award ceremony night with 7 awards, followed closely by Eminem with 6 awards.
And Rihanna, who was nominated for 18 awards, finally only took away three trophies.
Guests at the venue left one after another.
Under Mars's continuous seduction, Leon was in a dilemma about tonight's destination.
Whether to go back to the hotel with Ariana for cloud and rain, or go to the card table to squeeze Mars's value hard...
Then dive headfirst into the world-famous luxury nightclub here, lost in Las Vegas.
After careful consideration, adhering to the principle of "since I'm here," Leon decided to go to the gambling hall next door with Mars.
Just ready to leave, Roc Nation Vice President Lenny walked towards him.
Saying with a solemn face: "Leon, the boss wants to talk to you."
"Another day, I have something else." Leon refused without thinking.
He had been intentionally playing Tai Chi with JAY-Z, and it was even more impossible to agree in Las Vegas.
In the Nevada desert, dozens of unidentified skeletons can be found every year.
"No, JAY-Z wants to see you now." Lenny said in a deep voice.
"Are you threatening me?" Leon squinted at the other party.
Jorge and his group of heavily armed gunmen were guarding the entrance of the venue, which was enough to guarantee his safety.
"No no." Lenny waved his hands repeatedly, "He just wants to say a few brief words to you, not as complicated as you think..."
"Many things always have to have a result... moreover Miss Beyoncé is also present, you can rest assured."
Leon thought for a full minute and reluctantly agreed.
Two months later, the contract between the two parties was about to expire; this matter could not be dodged by avoidance.
He sent a message letting Jorge and his group enter the venue.
Then followed Lenny into the private conference room of the MGM Grand.
In the private room, JAY-Z crossed his legs.
Left arm around Beyoncé, right hand holding a cigar.
This made Leon breathe a sigh of relief; at least there wasn't a large group of black-clothed bodyguards in the room as imagined.
The only surprise was that Leonard from Warner Music also appeared here for some reason.
"Congratulations on winning two awards today." JAY-Z said while asking Lenny to pass a cigar to Leon.
"I seem to have forgotten to thank you on stage." Leon quipped.
"It's nothing, some words between Bros are better kept in the heart." JAY-Z stared, saying in a deep voice: "Even if you say nothing, I can feel your loyalty and respect for me."
Leon spread his hands, lighting the cigar and not responding.
"Let's get straight to the point. You have been hesitant about renewing the contract. I can actually understand this point. A ambitious guy like you doesn't want to be under others." JAY-Z said, "Kanye was like this before too. I cultivated him single-handedly, but he chose to stay at Def Jam."
"I don't quite understand what you mean." Leon thought three sentences ahead for every sentence he said, trying not to express opinions before the other party revealed their cards.
"You really are an ambitious bastard, with an astonishing appetite." JAY-Z spread his hands, "I mean, if you think the Roc Nation platform is not big enough, then Leonard is also here today... you are not strangers."
Leon became more confused the more he listened.
The current situation looked like JAY-Z was going to sell him to Warner.
This was completely different from the other party's previous attitude.
Leonard stood up, pacing in the room while explaining: "Tonight Mr. JAY-Z and I talked a lot, we thought of a win-win cooperation method..."
"Let's hear it, how to win-win?"
"Everyone knows you like money."
"No one doesn't like money, don't you like it?"
Leonard, who was choked back, shook his head, "30 million dollars signing bonus. As long as you agree, this money will hit your account tomorrow."
"This money is jointly funded by Warner and Roc. In the future, you will become a co-managed artist of both companies, enjoying the resources of both companies simultaneously."
Leon couldn't handle the move for a moment. He had imagined many complicated situations, but never expected the other party to throw such a sugar-coated shell.
30 million dollars signing bonus, and production and promotion resources from two top record companies...
This is something any singer would find hard to refuse.
After a long silence, Leon took a deep puff of the cigar and asked: "So... what is the price?"
Leonard had a gloomy smile on his face, avoiding answering Leon's question.
"In addition, we hope Apocalypse Music can be merged into the Warner and ROC system together. We can only take management fees... of course, you are still the principal of this label."
Leon's face was uncertain.
Words sounded nice, but signing the contract would be another matter.
Based on the nature of Leonard and JAY-Z, it's not hard to guess this is just a long-term strategy for them to encroach on Apocalypse Music.
Leonard continued: "To get all this, you only need to take out the copyright of the works to be jointly held by Warner and ROC. We own the world's third-largest music copyright library... you know... and you can still get the copyright income you deserve, this can be written into the contract."
As soon as the words fell, Leon understood everything.
Going around in such a big circle, the pit dug was here.
The three music giants each own huge music copyright libraries, which is the cornerstone of their standing as giants.
Huge copyright libraries can ensure they maintain their status in the market iteration, even strong streaming platforms must bow to them.
And among these three giants, Warner is the most greedy for copyright.
Its Atlantic Records mandatory requires signed singers to hand over part of their work copyright.
This is also the fundamental reason for the extremely low job-hopping rate of singers under Atlantic Records.
Handing over copyright and still getting money sounds like no loss.
But thinking carefully, the trick is big.
First of all, such things are untenable at the legal level. Even if written into the contract, going to court is inevitable.
The terrifying part is, if one day Leon disappears from this world, the only two owners of these work copyrights are Warner and ROC.
Even if he wrote a will, it would be useless.
Thinking of this, a chill rose in Leon's heart.
Dirty means in this circle emerge one after another. The number of superstars who suddenly "died suddenly" or encountered unexpected accidents in history is uncountable.
For him, money can be less, but transferring copyright is impossible.
Only a fool would hand over his fishing tools for a few fish.
After a long silence, he decided to adopt a roundabout tactic, "Your proposal is very tempting."
Leonard looked back at JAY-Z, both grinning foolishly at the same time.
Proud expressions as if they had already succeeded.
"Since you are satisfied, when do we settle the written contract?" JAY-Z went straight to the theme.
"This takes some time." Leon said, "I have to praise you two for coming up with such a wonderful idea, you are simply geniuses!"
JAY-Z originally wanted to continue pressuring, but hearing Leon say this, his hanging heart also relaxed.
He signaled Lenny to get a bottle of expensive red wine from the hotel, then said: "Stay here, you are still that young king."
"Money, fame, women... you can continue to enjoy all this."
"Leaving here, you should be able to imagine how dangerous it will be, there are hungry beasts everywhere outside..."
Another iconic street PUA rhetoric.
Those fledgling rappers would easily be bluffed by these words, but Leon was disgusted to the extreme.
From the beginning, JAY-Z always hanging personal threats on his lips was the fuse for his decision to leave this company.
"Damn... my flight is going to be delayed." JAY-Z glanced at his watch, then got up, "I wait for you to give me a wonderful answer, that day shouldn't be too long."
The moment he walked out of the private room, he didn't forget to look back and pose again, "Remember, we are family."
"Damn it!"
As soon as JAY-Z left, Leon also followed. In the corridor, he was cursing constantly.
"Leon~" Behind him, Beyoncé rushed out of the private room to catch up.
"Please let me be alone for a while..." Leon rubbed his head.
"Is it not good to stay in Roc Nation?" Beyoncé asked, "I mean, aren't we getting along very happily?"
"Here is good, but I have the right to decide where I go." Leon said in a deep voice: "This is my freedom!"
Beyoncé froze in place, not knowing what to say.
She had also advised JAY-Z, why not just treat him like Kanye back then, no need to seek renewal with such a tough stance.
But these two things cannot be compared together at all.
Even if Kanye left for Def Jam, JAY-Z could still eat part of the bonus.
Because he held shares in Def Jam.
But if Leon changed his allegiance, he wouldn't get a single benefit.
This is intolerable for the shrewd JAY-Z.
"Sorry..." Beyoncé muttered softly.
Seeing the other party still having a cold expression, she looked around to see no one.
Pressed her lips firmly against his.
This action completely ignited Leon's anger.
"Give it to me, okay..." Beyoncé's eyes were about to drip water.
"No problem." Leon let out a strange laugh, "I can't wait..."
That night, two mysterious guests wrapped tightly checked into the MGM Grand Hotel.
The front desk staff didn't ask too much about this; there were quite a few stars rolling in the sheets after the award ceremony ended.
"Fxxk!"
"Who is better, me or JAY-Z?"
Beyoncé was already dripping with sweat, but still chose to avoid answering.
The intensity suddenly escalated.
Strange sounds lingered in the corridor.
"Is this question hard to answer?"
The temperature in the room rose with the evaporation of sweat.
Finally, Beyoncé was defeated in this "Battle of Verdun."
She put away her usual mellow voice, pinched her voice and hummed softly, "Of course it's you..."
"You are the best!"