Bab 204: ### Chapter 202: Nightclub Party
Returning to Santa Monica, it was already evening. The setting sun bathed the beach in golden light, casting a beautiful glow on the distant pier and the giant Ferris wheel in the park.
Perhaps due to the hot weather, thousands of locals and tourists still lingered on the beach as darkness approached, strolling, walking their dogs, playing volleyball, strumming guitars, drinking, and enjoying the free seaside view.
On the east side of Santa Monica Beach, there was a bar street with more than a dozen bars, dance halls, restaurants, and amusement parks.
By evening, with the sun still up, the neon lights on the street lit up first, creating a dazzling scene of lights and colors, and the crowd was denser than during the day.
Link parked in front of a dance hall called Venice Coast.
Entering the bar and taking the elevator down to the underground dance floor, the huge sound waves and chaotic scene hit him like a heavy punch, leaving him slightly dazed.
He saw hundreds or even thousands of people packed into the lively dance floor, dancing and screaming to the rhythm of the music.
The dazzling lights made his eyes uncomfortable.
Link took out his phone and made a call, but it didn't go through. He looked around the seating area and heard someone shout, "Link, over here!"
Looking towards the corner, he saw country music singer Carrie Underwood, whom he had met last time in Nashville, waving at him.
Next to her were Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Kesha, and two men in their thirties.
Having just left the boxing gym, he saw Taylor's message on his phone asking him to come to the bar for a celebration. He hurried over.
Among them, he was more familiar with Carrie Underwood, having interacted with her on Twitter.
Miley Cyrus he had greeted backstage at the Grammy Awards; she and Selena Gomez were friends.
Kesha, whose stage name is Kesha, is a newcomer this year. Her stage name includes a dollar sign, earning her the nickname "Money Granny" from fans.
Kesha debuted in March, releasing the single "Right Round," which topped the charts for six consecutive weeks.
Last week, she released her second single, "TiK ToK," which sold 610,000 copies in its first week, debuting at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, with a strong potential to surpass "See You Again."
Fortunately, "See You Again" maintained its position with over 2 million downloads on various platforms in its third week, keeping the top spot secure for now.
The two men included the handsome John Mayer, who debuted in 1999, released four albums, with the second and fourth reaching number one in first-week sales and the third album as runner-up.
At the Grammy Awards in March, he won Best Male Pop Vocal Performance and Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance for his songs "Say" and "Gravity."
John Mayer had three notable ex-girlfriends: Jennifer Aniston from "Friends," who started dating him last year and broke up earlier this year, leaving him single; Taylor Swift, with whom he collaborated on the love song "Half of My Heart"; and Katy Perry, with whom rumors suggested Taylor and Katy fell out due to Mayer's involvement.
With Link around, such matters were unlikely to resurface.
"Hey! Carrie, Miley, Kesha!"
Link walked over, hugged Carrie Underwood, and greeted Miley Cyrus and Kesha.
Before her transformation, Miley was a very cute girl, always smiling brightly, which made people think of the saying, "Girls who smile a lot won't have bad luck."
After her transformation, she embraced a more rebellious image with drug use, provocative dancing, and revealing photos, but she still did well in her music career, winning several Grammy Awards.
Kesha's stage name is simply Kesha, and no formal titles are necessary. Musicians in their circle don't care about such formalities.
"Link, why did you come so late?"
Taylor wobbled as she stood up and linked her arm with his.
"How much have you been drinking?"
Link noticed her flushed cheeks and slight smell of alcohol.
"Two mojitos!"
Taylor grinned, waving her fingers.
Mojitos are cocktails made with rum, cane sugar, lime juice, soda water, and mint, with a refreshing, slightly sweet taste, and are one of Taylor's favorite cocktails.
"With such a strong smell of alcohol, I thought you had drunk a bottle of vodka."
Link smiled, putting his arm around her waist.
At Taylor's introduction, he shook hands with John Mayer and his friend Richard Sin, then sat down on the empty sofa in the middle with Taylor.
"You haven't told us how you arrived. I sent the message almost an hour ago."
"I just finished training at the gym. Emma was there, and she wanted to practice boxing with me."
Link explained to Taylor to avoid having paparazzi expose him, which would make things harder to explain.
"Why is she practicing boxing? She's so small; I could take her down with one hand."
Taylor waved her fist.
Link shook his head, taking her fist back and said to Carrie and the others, "Continue your conversation. Don't let me interrupt."
"Link, we were talking about you."
Carrie Underwood laughed, "You're amazing. In your debut year, you released two albums, each selling over 5 million copies worldwide. You could be considered the greatest in the history of global pop music."
"Yes, Link, and that song 'See You Again' is fantastic. If I could write a song like that in my lifetime, I'd be content."
Miley Cyrus showed her cute teeth and smiled.
"Miley, you're only 17; you have decades to write hundreds of songs. Saying such things is too early."
Link chuckled.
"Not too early. I know that no matter how old I get, I won't be able to write such a song."
Miley shook her head, her hair flying.
Link smiled lightly and said to Carrie, "Good music isn't about sales but about quality. My album had a lot of promotion. Without it, the sales wouldn't be so high, so don't worship me too much."
"You're too modest. As if anyone releases an album without promotion."
Carrie Underwood laughed heartily.
Link noticed that country music artists were different from pop rock musicians. They had a cleaner appearance, a more artistic temperament, and were easier to get along with. The country music scene often produced "artistic goddesses" like Dolly Parton, Shania Twain, and Faith Hill. Taylor was also considered a part of that.
Pop rock female singers generally followed Madonna's example, first appearing pure and then sexy, focusing on visual appeal.
"Carrie, stop flattering him. The newspapers are already full of praise for him; I don't even want to read them anymore."
Taylor leaned on Link's shoulder, waving her hand.
"You two are impressive as well. Your album will definitely set new records this year."
"Carrie, let's not talk about that yet!"
Taylor interrupted Carrie Underwood, looking at Link with a slightly smug expression, "Link, do you think selling 2 million copies of your album in the U.S. is a lot? Do you know how many copies my 'Fearless' sold?"
Link smiled slightly, guessing the answer but pretending not to know.
"How many?"
"Let me tell you, 3 million! It's the first album in the U.S. this year to break 3 million copies."
Taylor's lips curled in pride.
"Wow, that's amazing, dear. You're a hundred times better than me."
"Of course!"
Taylor covered her mouth and laughed.
"Hey, is it really okay for you two to be praising each other here?"
Carrie Underwood teased.
"Sorry!"
Link picked up a can of light beer and said, "Everyone! How about a toast to Taylor's album sales surpassing 3 million copies?"
"Cheers!"
Miley raised her cocktail glass and shouted.
Kesha, John Mayer, and Charlie Sheen also raised their glasses.
While chatting with Carrie and Miley, Link noticed Kesha staring at him intently, as if studying him.
John Mayer was also observing, sometimes looking at Taylor, with a faint smile. He wore watches on both wrists, often taking one off and fiddling with it, as if playing with beads.
"Kesha! When Link wasn't here, you were the loudest. Now that he's here, you haven't said a word," Miley asked, tugging at Kesha.
Kesha glanced at Link, shrugged, "I'm a fan of Link. I'm nervous seeing my idol in person."
"Really? Your music style is different from Link's. How could you like his songs? I don't like his music," Taylor said, laughing.
Kesha shook her head, "I like Link's songs, but I'm a fan of his boxing. I think he's really powerful, and I want to be like him."
"Link, I'm also a fan of your boxing. I didn't use to watch boxing matches, but since I learned you were a boxer, I started watching boxing shows," Carrie Underwood said.
"Me too!"
Miley nodded repeatedly.
Link smiled, "Thank you all for your support. Next time, I'll invite you to a boxing match. Kesha, I heard you wrote both the lyrics and music for 'TiK ToK.' That's impressive. How about we collaborate sometime?"
"Sure!"
Kesha nodded, holding her drink.
Link remembered that Kesha had an unhappy experience with her current record company. Her debut single "Right Round" topped the U.S. charts for six weeks, but her name wasn't credited on the record, and she didn't receive a cent. The news reported that she couldn't even afford a potato in a supermarket while her
song played.
Due to this, she changed the "S" in her name to "$."
Link considered the possibility of recruiting her, but she was currently in an upward phase of her career, making it difficult to recruit her.
"Link, do you like watches?"
John Mayer put down his drink and asked, playing with his watch.
"Yes, I have two."
He owned two luxury watches, one a Patek Philippe given by Taylor for Valentine's Day and the other a Vacheron Constantin given by Ivanka for New Year's, both priced above $500,000.
However, due to his habit of exercising, he usually wore sports watches. The luxury watches were kept in their boxes and only worn at public events as accessories.
"Link, which brand do you prefer?"
John Mayer leaned forward, putting on a serious demeanor to discuss watches. From his Rolex gold watch, he seemed to be a fan of Rolex.
"Stop!"
Miley interjected, "Don't you think talking about watches here is boring?"
"Yes, let the guys chat. Let's go dance."
Taylor wobbled up, pulling Kesha to dance.
"Let's go! Time to dance!"
Miley and Kesha followed suit.
Link noticed the dance floor was overcrowded, like a tank full of fish, a mix of different people.
Worried about Taylor being taken advantage of, he said goodbye to John Mayer and followed them to the dance floor.
Having had a few drinks, Taylor was very excited, dancing to the DJ's rhythm, shaking her head, wiggling her tall and sexy body, her pert bottom occasionally pressing against him and teasing him with kisses.
Link just moved gracefully to the music, his expression unchanged, like Vincent Vega from "Pulp Fiction."
After dancing, the girls laughed at him, saying he was too reserved and was performing a solo act in a crowd.
Link didn't deny this; he wasn't much of a nightclub person and didn't like to mix with crowds.
Being able to move with the music on the dance floor was already a significant improvement for him.
Returning to the seating area, John Mayer and his friend were no longer there; it was unclear if they were dancing or had left early.
Link and Taylor chatted with the others about entertainment gossip for a while before leaving the bar around eight o'clock.
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(End of Chapter)
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