boyutpedia Chapter 65 Heading to the Capital
Chapter 65 Heading to the Capital
When the plane landed in Beijing, it was already evening.
The cold air from the north made Yang Chengang, who had just come from the sweltering city of Jiangcheng, shiver.
Lin Feng hailed a taxi and told them the name of a hotel near Xueyuan Road in the HD district. There were many universities in the area, so the hotel prices were relatively reasonable and the transportation was convenient.
On the bus, Yang Chengang gazed at the dazzling street scene outside the window, appearing somewhat silent.
Lin Feng could sense the other person's tension, but he didn't offer any words of comfort. Some things had to be faced.
After settling in, Yang Chengang dialed Wang Hu's number.
"Chen Gang? You've finally arrived in the capital! Why didn't you tell me beforehand so I could have picked you up?"
"Brother Tiger, I brought a friend named Lin Feng to Beijing. He also works in the music industry. I brought him along because I'd like to discuss something with you in person," Yang Chengang said calmly.
The enthusiasm on the other end of the phone subsided slightly: "Oh, sure, you're always welcome. How about tomorrow morning, 10 a.m., come to my company. You know the address, right? Taige Impression, it's around the North Third Ring Road..."
After hanging up the phone, Yang Chengang said, "Tomorrow morning at ten o'clock, Taige Impression. Get some rest early tonight and be well-rested."
Lin Feng nodded and took a drag of his cigarette.
At 9:50 a.m. the next day, Lin Feng and Yang Chengang stood in front of a slightly old office building.
The sign for Taige Impression Culture Communication Co., Ltd. hangs outside the door of an office on the fifth floor; it's not particularly eye-catching.
Pushing open the door, the space inside was not large, with a few desks and only two young employees.
The door to a separate office further inside was open, and Wang Hu, hearing the noise, came out with a smile.
Wang Hu was about thirty-five or thirty-six years old, not very tall, slightly overweight, wearing a leather jacket, with his hair neatly combed, and habitually looking people up and down before looking at them.
He patted Yang Chengang on the shoulder forcefully: "Chengang, we've been waiting for you! This must be President Lin Feng, right? Young and promising! Please come in, please come in!"
Lin Feng smiled and shook hands, feeling that the other person's palm was thick and the grip was firm.
The office wasn't large, containing a boss's desk and a sofa and coffee table for guests. Wang Hu was busy making tea, talking incessantly:
"Chen Gang, I'm not trying to criticize you, but you should have come to the capital to develop your career a long time ago! The capital city has a much better market prospect than Jiangcheng. Look at my place, although it's not big, it has everything you need. Promotion, production, and brokerage can all be done here."
Your song "Mice Love Rice," let me tell you, has huge potential! I've always wanted to give it a try...
As he spoke, he took a cassette tape from the drawer and put it into the tape recorder on the table.
"I found a pretty good studio for you to record in, but your place hasn't been finalized yet. So I recorded a version myself using your key, and you can listen to it and see how it sounds."
After a simple electronic keyboard intro, a male voice rang out, singing the same melody. His voice was decent, but the performance was somewhat bland, lacking the original singer's genuine, down-to-earth quality. The arrangement was also just a simple chord progression.
Yang Chengang listened, his expression somewhat complicated. This version sounded... very "cheap," not even as good as the demo he recorded himself with rudimentary equipment.
Lin Feng remained calm, but he had a clearer understanding of the situation. This level of production was probably just a cheap studio with a mediocre singer trying things out; the cost was likely very low. Wang Hu's "talent" seemed to be largely unreliable.
After the song finished playing, Wang Hu turned off the recorder, looked at Lin Feng, and asked in a somewhat probing tone:
"President Lin, you're an expert. I'm just making a demo to see how it goes. If Chen Gang came over and used the best studio to properly arrange the music, it would definitely be different! I just think this song has potential, that's why I've been keeping it in mind."
Lin Feng didn't comment on the music, but went straight to the point: "Mr. Wang, you're very kind. We came here because we think this song has potential. I work in the ringtone business, so we'd like to talk to you about buying out the ringtone rights to this song in one go."
"Ringtone?" Wang Hu leaned back and tapped his finger on the sofa armrest.
"I've heard someone in the industry mention it, it seems to have only become popular at the end of last year? Using downloaded songs as ringtones on your phone, right? This thing... is it feasible? Is Mr. Lin interested in this?"
"I've given it a small try, and I think it's a promising direction." Lin Feng said calmly, "This song has a simple and catchy melody, which I think is quite suitable. So I'd like to get the copyright for its ringback tone service from you. The price is negotiable."
"I see..." Wang Hu drawled, his smile becoming meaningful.
"Mr. Lin, you may not be aware of the situation. The copyright of this song is currently held by Taige Impression. Chen Gang signed a transfer agreement back then. This is not just a matter of ringtones; it involves a series of things such as the singer and the subsequent development of the song."
He glanced at the restless Yang Chengang, then turned to Lin Feng: "President Lin, I see you're a straightforward person. Here are two ideas, take a look and see which one suits you best."
"Firstly," he held up one finger, "if you really think highly of this song, and also of Chen Gang as a person, we can collaborate more deeply. Whether you contribute money as support or investment, we can work together to advance further cooperation."
"Cheng Gang has officially signed a management contract with Taige Impression. From now on, his career, including this song, all his performances, releases, and even the ringtones you mentioned, will be planned and managed by the company. We can share the profits proportionally. This centralized resource allocation is good for Cheng Gang's development, isn't it?"
"Secondly," he held up a second finger, his gaze fixed on Lin Feng, "if you're only particularly interested in ringback tones and don't want to get too involved, that's fine too, we can cooperate."
We'll produce the song, you'll manage the ringtone service, and we'll share the revenue. However, we'll definitely take the lion's share, since the song is ours. Furthermore, if this song is used on other channels in the future—for example, for releasing an album or commercial performances—we'll need to grant it.
After he finished speaking, he leaned forward, placed his hands on his knees, looked at Lin Feng with a smile, and patted Yang Chengang's arm: "Chengang, I'm doing this for your own good. It's too difficult for you to do it all by yourself. It's different with a company supporting you."
Yang Chengang's lips moved slightly. He glanced at Lin Feng but didn't say anything, his palms sweating a little.
Lin Feng knew exactly what was going on. Wang Hu's first plan was to seize control of both Yang Chengang and his song, using so-called "management contracts" and "overall management" to tie both of them to his ship.
The second option is to use the vague concept of "copyright" as leverage to effortlessly carve out the largest slice of the potentially huge future market for ringback tones, while also controlling all subsequent possibilities.
He's shrewd with his calculations, but his true character and capabilities are evident even from his initial appearance.