China Entertainment 1997.

Chapter 17 Record company, reach a cooperation (two-in-one)

After celebrating the return of Xiangjiang, Cao Xuan plunged into the rush to find a record company for cooperation.

In 1997, digital music had not yet emerged, and records were slowly transitioning from tapes to discs.

The Chinese music scene is basically dominated by several major record companies such as Polygram, Warner, Bertelsmann, EMI, Sony, and Rolling Stone.

Most of these large record companies are headquartered in Taiwan and Hong Kong, and the company's signed singers are mainly Hong Kong and Taiwan singers.

However, with the rise of the mainland music scene in the past two years, they also took aim at the mainland music market, and began to enter the mainland one after another, signing contracts with many well-known mainland singers to seize territory.

For example, Liu Huan, who is familiar with Cao Xuan, is currently in active contact with Sony, and PolyGram and Warner have also cast olive branches to him.

Other well-known singers in mainland China have basically been dug into the corner, and many people are quite moved.

After all, the channel resources of large record companies are very rich, and even mainland singers can reach the center of today's entertainment circle - Hong Kong and Taiwan, and even expand to the entire East Asia.

The queen Wang Fei, who was excavated by PolyGram, is the best example.

For a time, many record companies in the mainland were in a state of turmoil.

In 97, there were not a lot of local record companies in the Mainland. There were about 60 scattered record companies, mainly located in Beijing, Modu, Guangzhou and other big cities, especially Beijing and Guangzhou.

Aside from some leather bag companies and unfavorable studios, there are about 35 to 40 companies that can officially operate and release albums.

Among them, there are 14 in Beijing.

The most popular record company is [Zhengda International]. They launched Sun Yue who sang "Peace to You" two years ago, and this year signed a contract with Man Wenjun, who was a mess in Qingge Competition.

Last year, "Wheatfield Music", which was led by "Dwarf and Tight", was also very popular. Pu Shu and Ye Bei, which were launched, are currently relatively eye-catching new stars in the music world.

In addition to Chia Tai and Maitian, there are several record companies that are not weak. Basically, there are several first- and second-tier singers in their ranks, which are considered large and medium-sized record companies.

And below these record companies, there are small record companies.

Most of the small record companies do not have the strength of independent package singers, and at most sign a few newcomers to scratch the lottery.

Their main business is more of working with independent singers to produce songs, publicize sales, copyright management, etc.

Cao Xuan is mainly looking for this kind of small record company.

Of course, he also went to those large and medium-sized record companies. The result was not surprising. The other party either refused or wanted to sign a management contract with Cao Xuan, and the terms were very harsh.

In the era when the Internet has not yet emerged, if a singer wants to become popular, it usually relies on several publicity channels such as radio, television and media magazines.

And most of these channel resources are monopolized by those large and medium-sized record companies.

The record company holds the lifeblood in its hands, and naturally occupies a dominant position in the relationship with the singer.

Famous singers are fine, but unfamous and rookie singers, because they have to rely entirely on the resources of the record company, have no right to speak at all, and can only be at the mercy of the record company.

Take the contracts Cao Xuan got from those large and medium record companies as an example, which is almost the same as a sales contract.

No contract period is less than 5 years, and more than 10 years are everywhere. For albums, commercial performances and other types of income, singers can only get 5~10%, and very few are 10~20%. %
There are even record companies that do not directly give singers any share, but only pay wages.

The basic salary is 500 per month, including room and board, and there are no other additional clauses, such as salary increase year by year, bonus performance, making a good contract to replace the performance and so on.

In other words, in case a singer becomes popular, as long as the record company does not give a raise, he will still get 500 per month if he is popular.

Thanks to the times, the times have changed, otherwise all the street lights would have to be hung up...

.........

Cao Xuan would never sign this kind of extortion contract.

So he had only one way left, to work with a small record company and release a single by himself.

After several days of unannounced visits, as well as information from many sources, Cao Xuan finally identified a suitable record company - [Blue Qi Records].

This record company is small in scale, but it was established very early. It was established in the early 90s, before the popularity of pop music in the mainland.

At first, there were two bosses, and the company name [Blue Qi Records] was made up of one word from each of the two bosses' names.

However, later, because Lan Qi has been tepid, even at a loss, one of the founders withdrew, leaving only the current boss Han Qi to support independently.

Cao Xuan has inquired about this Han Qi's situation, but there is not much information. He only heard that he is a child of the big courtyard and worked in the Beijing city government.

Later, under the inspiration of Master Cui, Han Qi became obsessed with rock and roll, resigned to start a business in the sea, and started [Blue Qi Records] together with another founder.

Lan Qi's comprehensive strength is not very good, and even among the small record companies, he can only rank in the middle and lower.

The company has been established for several years, and the number of albums released and sold will break through six figures. It has not closed down yet, and it is all supported by the boss Han Qi.

However, Lan Qi is not without expertise, otherwise Cao Xuan would not have cooperated with this company.

Lan Qi's advantage is that they are very close to several radio stations in the capital.

It is said that it is Han Qi's line. The specific situation is not clear, but Han Qi has operated many songs and landed on the channels and programs of Beijing Radio Station and Central Radio Station.

Even the radio stations in Hebei Province and Jin City seem to have traces of Han Qi's operation.

So that Lanqi's main revenue now comes from contracting other record companies' radio promotion business.

What Cao Xuan was looking for was Lan Qi's radio resources.

It is true that TV has been promoted to the first mainstream media, but it does not mean that radio has withdrawn from the stage of history.

In rural areas, towns, and even small third- and fourth-tier cities, radio is still the entertainment center for many families, and many radio hosts are not less famous than some celebrities.

Of course, Cao Xuan wanted to be on TV, but TV resources were too intense, and many big names had to line up to grab it, so he could only settle for the next best thing and switch to radio.

.........

The company of [Blue Qi Records] is not very big, there are only a few offices, and there are less than 10 employees in the company including the boss Han Qi.

It is said to be a record company, but it is not as large as the high-end recording studio that Cao Xuan stayed in.

Cao Xuan was very puzzled before. Lan Qiming was sitting on the convenience of the radio station, so he didn't dare to say that he would become a big company in the industry.

However, when he saw Han Qi himself, he understood.

""1 Reasons", a love song."

Holding the samples and materials handed by Cao Xuan, Han Qi simply flipped through it, and his round face immediately showed disgust, and went straight to the point.

"You can find another home. We Lan Qi only handle rock and roll, and we won't carry out other song types for the time being."

Cao Xuan was a little confused by Han Qi's words.

He had heard that Han Qi was a die-hard rock fan before, but he didn't expect to reach this point.

No wonder Lan Qi was in a downturn, it was surprising that this business was done well.

Right now, the rock circle is in a period of decline after the peak. Because of the bad habits of some singers and various other bad things, rock and roll is not liked by the official, and it is almost into the cold palace.

In addition to those bands that have become famous, the remaining rock singers have a hard time getting ahead, either transitioning or struggling to make ends meet.

In such a big environment, well-known bands release albums, and they don't like Lan Qi, a small company. Ordinary rock singers like it, but they are all petty, and Lan Qi can't make any money.

Coupled with the tight wind in the past two years, even if Han Qi leaves the relationship, it may not be possible for rock songs to be promoted on the radio, and most of the company's biggest reliance has been abolished.

Cao Xuan was a little dumbfounded, not knowing whether to admire Han Qi's persistence or speechless Han Qi's head iron.

When he realized that he couldn't reach a cooperation with Lan Qi, Cao Xuan didn't talk too much. Han Qi had been rock-and-roll for a few years, and he didn't think he could convince the other party with just a few words.

Anyway, he still has an alternative company, the big deal is to switch to another company.

However, just as Cao Xuan walked out of Han Qi's office, he was stopped by a fashionable young woman in a skirt.

"Comrade, this is you?"

"Hello, I'm Jiang Yue, the deputy general manager of [Blue Qi Records]."

The young woman first introduced herself, and then asked enthusiastically: "I asked the front desk just now that you came to our company to cooperate, what is your business?"

The attitude of the other party is warm and friendly, and Cao Xuan is not good at treating him coldly. In addition, he saw Jiang Yue's words and deeds, and he vaguely had a guess, and told the truth.

"That's right, I have a single here, and I want to find your company to release it together, but you, Mr. Han, said that the song doesn't meet the conditions, so it's probably a waste of time."

"That damn fat man!"

After listening to Cao Xuan's words, Jiang Yue's face changed, and she forced Cao Xuan to wait for a while, and then rushed to Han Qi's office viciously.

Maybe it was because he was in a hurry to get in, the office door was not closed tightly, Cao Xuan swept his ears a few times, all of them were Vice President Jiang's Hedong roar.

"The surname is Han, the old lady is blind to you. How did you promise me, and now you are playing tricks behind my back."

"Feelings? Feelings can be eaten as a meal, and the company can't open the pot. What are you pretending to be aloof."

"What's wrong with the single? No matter how small a mosquito is, it's still meat. It's better than sitting idle in the office every day and wasting my mother's electricity bill."

"I'll tell you Han Qi, if you don't want to do it, go home and take care of the children for me. My mother will be the general manager. Anyway, half of this company uses the money from my dowry."

"Woohoo, my good university teacher is not proper. Following you to break the company to start a business, you still come from sex all day. Several men in our sisters are the most unprofitable. Can't even lift their heads."

"..."

About ten minutes later, Jiang Yue came out of the office and greeted Cao Xuan calmly.

"Mr. Cao, right, we can talk about cooperation."

Cao Xuan gave Jiang Yue a high thumbs up, his face full of admiration: "Sister, cow!"

"Smiled."

Vice President Jiang smiled modestly and took Cao Xuan into the office.

As soon as he entered the door, Cao Xuan saw Han Qi sitting on the sofa next to him with his head down, with a few suspicious red marks on his face.

Jiang Yue ignored him and sat directly on the boss chair on the desk, apparently taking over the negotiating power. Cao Xuan took out the samples and documents and handed them to Jiang Yue.

Different from Han Qi's perfunctory disgust, Jiang Yue looked at the information very seriously, and then listened to the demo on the VCD in the office before raising his head and asking.

"I have a general understanding. Mr. Cao already has a finished single, and he wants our company to be responsible for disc production, publicity and sales, and then the two sides will share the profits."

"Yes."

Jiang Yue put the documents together, and the enthusiasm just now turned into shrewdness and strength.

"According to the cost accounting in the data, our company will take the majority, how can Mr. Cao guarantee that this single will make money."

"Your company's investment accounts for the bulk of the investment, and the subsequent profits are naturally dominated by you. I also wrote on the information that it is divided into three or seven, me three, and your company seven.

As for guaranteeing to make money, I believe that President Jiang also understands the truth that everything has risks. The only thing I can guarantee is that I have confidence in my songs. "

Cao Xuan's reaction to Jiang Yue had long been expected.

There are roughly three modes of cooperation between independent singers and record companies.

The first is outsourcing. Independent singers pay record companies to release and sell them. Whether they make or lose money is borne by independent singers. What record companies earn is contracted to announce and release albums.

Of course, if the album makes money, the record company will also have a certain amount of commission.

The second is that the record company takes a fancy to the album of an independent singer, spends money to win it, and then announces it for sale, and the record company bears the profit or loss.

This model is similar to that of many big record companies, except that there is no brokerage contract for the singer, and it can only earn money for album sales and copyright, and at the same time, it has to pay the singer a sum of money to buy songs.

The third is for independent singers of record companies to join forces to share profits and losses, and the share ratio is divided according to the capital investment of both parties.

Cao Xuan just wanted to start a third mode of cooperation with Lan Qi, but Jiang Yue was a little hesitant.

In fact, according to her intentions and Lan Qi's current situation, the first type is the safest to take money to do things, and the second and third types have the possibility of losing money.

But then again, while you may lose, you may also earn.

If he sticks to the first mode, Lan Qi will never develop it in his life.

Overall, the third model is a little less risky than the second, and it costs less to produce a single than to run an album.

Jiang Yue thought she could give it a try, but she couldn't make up her mind. She turned to look at Han Qi, who had always been a transparent person.

"Old Han, what do you think of this song?"

Thinking that Han Qi might do something wrong, he chased after and reminded: "Seek truth from facts, don't play tricks."

Han Qibai glanced at her, listened to the demo twice, and then commented: "The style of the song is clear and the lyrics are a bit pretentious, but it is straightforward enough to be catchy enough, not a good work, but it is commercial enough, and it is a song suitable for the public. A standard sad song for taste."

Cao Xuan looked at Han Qi in surprise, this business is not doing very well, and he also has a preference for music appreciation, but his professional vision is not good, no wonder he dares to go to sea to open a record company.

Jiang Yue was overjoyed.

Don't look at Jiang Yue's roar of Hedong lions to Han Qi just now, training like a grandson, but it is about music appreciation, but she trusts Han Qi's eyesight very much.

At the same time, Jiang Yue also understands Han Qi's singing standards better than anyone else.

In addition to his beloved rock, Han Qi treats songs of other themes with a very critical eye, even if it is some well-recognized classic songs, he is often not stingy.

"1 Reasons" was not specifically approved by him, and even affirmed, which is really rare in Han Qi's song critic career.

Jiang Yue politely asked Cao Xuan to wait a moment, then dragged Han Qi outside the office and asked.

"Give me the truth, how can this deal be done?"

Han Qi wiped his face, looked at Jiang Yue's eager eyes, nodded with difficulty, and said honestly.

"From the perspective of popular business, I even think this song is not weaker than "Too Soft Heart", but it depends on the fortune, but even if it is not popular, it should not be a problem.

It's crazy, where did such a geek pop up, and why haven't I heard of it before. "

Han Qi muttered to himself, while Jiang Yue next to him almost went crazy.

Comparable to "The Heart Is Too Soft"! ?

That song made tens of millions of profits for the record company behind it.

"1 Reasons" doesn't need much, it can make Lan Qi a tenth of "The Heart Is Too Soft", and she will make Cao Xuan the God of Wealth.

Jiang Yue said nothing, turned around and entered the office to discuss the specific terms of cooperation with Cao Xuan.

The first is the sales of singles, which is not controversial, and directly follows the general rules of the industry.

The real crux of the negotiation between the two parties is that Lan Qi wants the copyright of "1 Reasons", which Cao Xuan cannot tolerate.

He couldn't get the bulk of the sales of the single, so he was all pointing to the copyright and commercial performance. If he gave it up, Cao Xuan would be playing a fart.

But Jiang Yue is bound to win, ordinary songs are fine, "1 Reasons" is expected to be a hit, if she doesn't intervene, she will regret her death later.

The two sides quarreled and eventually each took a step back.

Cao Xuan agreed to let Lan Qi manage the copyright of "1 Reasons" and enjoy 30% of the copyright dividend for 5 years.

At the same time, Lanqi must also guarantee that it will use all its resources to promote "1 Reasons", Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and various central radio stations to ensure a certain share of publicity.

The two sides found a law firm, drew up the contract, Cao Xuan signed it, and then shook hands with Han Qi and Jiang Yue respectively.

"Pleasant to work with."

"Happy cooperation!"

　Thank you Zao Fat 2000 reward, Mingzun e1500 reward, chasing the wind in the wind 900 reward, good good Ro's 500 reward, Optimus Prime down is Buzhou Mountain 108 reward, Lion Big Fish 100 reward

　　
　
(End of this chapter)