Chapitre 181: **Chapter 180: Chart-Topping**
After some derogatory remarks about Link appeared in the media, Link Music and Dynasty Promotions filed lawsuits against several media outlets and news websites, alleging that they spread false information and infringed upon Link's reputation. They demanded public apologies.
At the same time, the two companies arranged interviews with more than a dozen Latino and African-American figures who had interacted with Link.
These included Mario, Coach West, Morales, Coach Brooks, Manager Robinson, Tyson, Holyfield, and others. They all affirmed that Link is a very friendly person and definitely not a racist.
The *Miami Herald* also reported that Link's grandmother was an immigrant from Latin America, with darker skin, and possibly of African descent.
Link was shocked when he saw this news. He quickly asked Ivanka and Franco to stop the speculation and continue their investigation. He would rather be criticized than be portrayed as African-American.
After some time of public relations efforts, the rhetoric of calling him a 'racist' had significantly decreased on the internet and in the media.
However, some black fans continued to stir up trouble online, claiming that Link Music's announcement of delaying their new single was a cover-up for being outperformed by Jay-Z's new song.
Link did not comment on this and continued his training in the boxing ring.
"77.3 KG!"
Link looked at the number on the scale and shook his head. His weight had gone up a little again.
After the match, Selena, Katherine, and Mrs. Andrea frequently visited him, always bringing a lot of delicious food. He had a bit of a foodie tendency and couldn't resist trying a few bites when good food was around.
For an average person, at 188 cm tall and weighing 77 kg, it would be considered just right, not overly muscular. However, for a boxer, fat and excess water are burdens. They not only affect weight class but also the boxer's performance in the ring. Therefore, he needed to train every day to shed the fat and water and keep his body fat percentage below 10%.
Link had his body fat percentage checked last week. It was less than 6%, and the additional weight gained was all solid muscle.
But with two upcoming championship unification fights this year, the standard weight for a super middleweight boxer is 168 pounds, or 76.2 kg. He needed to lose a kilogram of muscle before the match, which was quite a task for someone with only 6% body fat.
Link went to the training area to continue lifting weights.
During this time, Dino came over to discuss something with him.
Mario was preparing to participate in the WBC light heavyweight internal rankings this month and officially become a professional boxer.
Dino informed him that Mario also intended to become a singer, wanting to follow in Link's footsteps with dual careers in boxing and music to gain more exposure and earn more appearance fees.
Dino asked if this plan was feasible.
Link was speechless. His rapid rise as a famous singer was due to his world champion status, Olympic background, a string of hit songs, a famous singer girlfriend, a background in music creation, and good vocal condition.
More importantly, he was handsome enough to attract many female fans.
Mario, on the other hand, had an average image, average vocal ability, and no real potential as a singer.
"Stop dreaming. You should focus on training Mario to establish himself in the boxing world. The rest is pointless."
Link wiped his sweat and said.
"Is there really no chance at all?"
Dino, Mario's manager, was hoping to earn big bucks like Franco Simon by following Link. Last time, Link earned over ten million dollars from the championship challenge, and Dynasty Promotions got over three million. The speed of making money was astounding.
"There's none. You'd be better off becoming a singer yourself."
Link sized him up, noticing his many tattoos and rock star vibe.
"Hmph!"
Mario came over from behind the weight machine, looking displeased. "I can sing and dance. The 'Despacito' video on YouTube has tens of thousands of comments praising my dancing. People are advising me to debut as a singer. This shows I have a market in the music industry."
Link smiled faintly. The 'Despacito' beach version had over 50 million views on YouTube and was ranked among the top ten music videos on the site. James, Mario, and Michael, who performed the dance, gained a lot of fame and became minor internet celebrities.
James mentioned that Baker's small shop was now the most famous diving shop in Miami Beach, with people needing to book a week in advance and many seeking autographs from him.
Local malls were also hosting events and inviting them to dance, with appearance fees over ten thousand dollars, which was more profitable than running a shop. Michael from the surfboard shop was even considering debuting as a star.
Among the video's cast, besides Link and the beautiful Ivanka, Mario was the most popular.
The guy, with his big belly and confident dancing, made many people laugh and called him a joker.
"Fine, you can give it a try. With some luck, you might become a big internet celebrity."
"Can you write a song for me?"
Mario grinned.
Link was surprised and finally understood Mario's purpose. His answer was, of course, no. Not only did Mario not know how to sing, but Link also didn't have any suitable songs for him.
After sending away the reluctant Mario, Link continued sparring with his practice partners, Tabus and Curry.
Another sparring partner, Morales, was currently in North Carolina participating in the 2009 Golden Gloves Championship.
He had successfully reached the finals and would face two old rivals, Jones and Andzej, with the championship still up in the air.
After afternoon training, Link finished his shower and checked his phone from the wardrobe. He found dozens of congratulatory messages from new and old friends, including Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Emma Roberts, Wiz Khalifa, Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill, and more.
These messages were simple congratulations, praising him for being amazing, but none explained what had happened.
Ding!
Even Taylor, who was performing in Seattle, sent a message with excitement: "Dear, you're amazing. I'm so proud of you!"
Link was puzzled.
In the past two weeks, the music industry had been chaotic. Online, many black fans were using Jay-Z's single "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)" to criticize Link's single, which led Link Music to delay the single's release as a joke.
He didn't want to deal with these matters and focused on training in the ring, rarely participating in public activities. Now he was receiving a pile of congratulations. What was the reason?
"What happened? I received many congratulatory messages, but no one told me why."
"Didn't you see the latest Billboard? Your single is number one!"
"'I'm The One' is number one?"
Link was surprised. "I'm The One" had dropped below twenty thousand copies in sales during its eighth week and fell out of the top ten rap charts. The song's sales potential was almost exhausted.
Even if the company spent millions on promotion, it would be hard to push it into the top fifty on Billboard, let alone number one.
"No, it's not 'I'm The One,' it's 'Give Me Reason.' It's number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Didn't you know? Dear, you should spend less time training in the ring and more time keeping up with industry news."
Taylor called.
"'Give Me Reason'? Number one on the single charts?"
Link suddenly remembered that *Transformers 2* had been released last Friday.
His single "Give Me Reason," recorded in the studio and released four weeks ago, hadn't attracted much attention at the time. It only made it to 92 and 96 on the Billboard charts two weeks before its release and was squeezed out of the charts the following week.
Was it boosted by the movie?
(The End of This Chapter)
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone