"So, are we going to discuss the contract now, or are we going to... wait?"

The rhythm of Ahmet’s conversation is always elusive. No matter what Ronan said, he can always return to his orbit without showing off his expression, and it makes others unable to detect Ahmet’s emotions and attitudes. Maintaining a gentle and gentle posture throughout the process makes it impossible to start.

But Alice only dealt with Ahmet for the second time, but she seemed to have figured out some doorways, and smiled at Ahmet, "I can feel the proactiveness of your company now, I think, This should be a good thing, so, can I expect something from the contract?"

Originally, when Ahmet uttered that sentence, Cliff could still feel the slight tension in the air, worrying that they angered Ahmet; now, after Alice’s words were spoken, the subtle atmosphere was It became light again, and the smile between the eyebrows also flowed out.

In this room, Ahmet was still smiling. There was no special mood swings and no movement, but he followed Alice’s words and continued, "The main part of the contract is two albums for three years, all We are responsible for the release, and we hope to see more works by the band."

The contract requires a long and detailed reading by a lawyer. The detailed discussion is definitely not something that the band or Alice can complete. Of course, it is not what Ahmet can do. Professional issues still need to be completed by professionals. Now they need to negotiate. The key part on paper.

For example, the terms mentioned by Ahmet are also the core of the entire contract. Two albums in three years is the literal meaning: a certain number of jobs in a certain number of years.

Yesterday, when Ahmet and Alice were on the phone, they proposed a long-term contract proposal for signing five albums, but Alice rejected such an unfair proposal that was almost a sell-off.

The reason is simple. For record companies, if the band does not succeed, then they will put the contract in a drawer to accumulate dust; but for the band, if it fails, they will be tied to Atlantic Records, unless It is to fulfill the contract to complete the five albums, otherwise it is impossible to sign with other record companies——

If another record company is willing to pay liquidated damages, that's another matter.

There is also a small branch detail involved. Why did Atlantic Records fail, and there are other record companies willing to sign newcomer bands?

In fact, Bruno Mars is the best example. Once, at Motown Records, Bruno was positioned as a producer hidden behind the scenes, and the music style did not fit, so he was buried; after coming to Atlantic Records, Bruno finally met the right producer, so he started out Got hands and feet.

The same goes for other newcomer bands.

"Two albums in three years", this is quantity, but there are also provisions on quality in the terms, and the details can be specific to genre, style, style and so on.

For example, if Atlantic Records, like Scout Braun, positioned King of the Day as an idol band, then Ronan and others would have no chance to resist. They might have to be manipulated like dolls for two albums. Only to be able to escape from hell-imagine, not two albums, but five albums.

Then changing the record company may open up another world.

Obviously, for a rookie band, long-term contracts have more disadvantages than advantages.

Record companies often hope to sign long-term contracts, tie up potential newcomers with low prices, and then continue to squeeze out their surplus value.

So why did Ahmet agree to Alice's bargain? Atlantic Records, which has the absolute upper hand, can completely ignore Alice's protest, throw out a contract, and then tell the band "I love to sign or not". The fundamental reason is that the long-term contract is not perfect.

First of all, a long contract means that the signing fee needs to be increased accordingly.

Take Mariah Carey as an example.

The queen singer signed a huge contract with Viking Records in April 2001 that shocked the world. This unguaranteed contract is worth five albums of 100 million U.S. dollars, which is equivalent to buying out Maria’s next five albums. On average, each album can bring Maria 20 million dollars in income, but if the album is not released, it means that there is no follow-up income.

As a result, only eight months later, Viking Records experienced drastic personnel changes. They also realized how unfavorable such a contract was to them. Because Maria’s first record with Viking Records encountered Waterloo, the hero broke his wrist and took the initiative. The contract was terminated and Maria was compensated for the loss of 28 million US dollars.

In the end, this contract cost Viking Records more than $50 million.

A long contract not only means that the record company's signing fee needs to be increased, even for new singers, but also means that the record company needs to advance the cost, which comes to the second point.

Secondly, the long-term contract means “in order to win long-term benefits, you have to invest a lot in the early stage and then wait until the return bonus comes ~ lightnovelpub.net~ The contract signing fee can be divided into two parts, one part is after fulfilling the contract obligations In return, for example, Maria earns 20 million U.S. dollars per album; the other part is the signing bonus, an income that is directly credited when the contract is signed. Of course, for newcomers, this income is often not high.

Regarding the "signature bonus", record companies often hope that singers can make full use of this bonus as living expenses and homework expenses during the creation period. However, the reality is more that young people buy luxury cars directly after they get a sum of money. Or the party squandered and it was swept away.

In order to ensure that the new singer can become a "money cow" and continuously create value, record companies need to pay a lot of pre-training costs, starting from living expenses, to the cost of recording studios, making albums, and then shooting music videos. , The release of albums, and the cost of selling goods on the shelves, etc., these are all expenses.

For newcomers, according to the contract, these production costs are all based on a certain proportion. The record company and the singer jointly spend. After waiting for the newcomer’s income, the record company will directly deduct the fee and then refund the bonus. Before starting to make money, the record company must continue to pay in advance.

It is precisely because of this that the record company must stipulate the time, quantity, quality and other relevant details in the contract, otherwise they will cultivate a group of eaters and lose their money.

The long-term contract for five albums is also very burdensome for Atlantic Records. Ahmet’s compromise was not entirely due to Alice’s arguments. Today, Curtis’s interview should have played an important role. So, Ahmet formally proposed the signing clause of the contract.