章 39: Chapter 39: Weighing Gold with a Large Scale
Since shooting the music video for Nelly, Ethan had been keeping busy. In just two short weeks, Mike had booked him for two more music video shoots. It seemed like this period was a boom time for new songs from artists. However, since these artists weren't very well-known, Ethan decided to take it easy and didn't take as much control as he had with Nelly's video.
At the same time, Lion Advertising was continuing to shoot other commercials, mostly for local food products. It seemed that after the Heinz and Domino's ads, everyone believed that Lion Advertising was more skilled at handling food-related commercials.
During this time, Ethan received his payments. For the Nelly shoot, the combined salary as both director and cameraman amounted to $20,000. The Heinz commercial paid him $15,000, and with other miscellaneous shoot and creative fees, he had a total of $70,000 in hand.
Carmela had been praying at home for quite some time, and even Louis and Regis received gifts—an electronic piano and a drum set.
The two kids formed a little band at home, making the house lively, though it sometimes drove Ethan a bit crazy.
However, he was glad to see the home full of life again, which was much better than the gloomy atmosphere when they were drowning in debt.
But this money was only a small sum, as the real big payoff was still to come...
Ethan, Raymond, Yesan, and Giorgio, the vice president of Republic Records, sat on the large sofa in his office, discussing their trip to Los Angeles.
"You know what, Ethan? The bars in LA are bigger than in New York, and the stages are even flashier! Even the girls dance hotter!" Raymond excitedly shared his experiences with Ethan.
Their crew, along with the band, had been touring in places like LA and Chicago, making good money while promoting at the same time. As Raymond put it, they couldn't stop.
"Some hip-hop kids even tried to freestyle with me on stage! Damn, good thing I practiced!" Though Raymond's songs were average, he'd grown up on the streets and knew his way around freestyling. Before releasing his album, he often engaged in rap battles.
Plus, with his large build and booming voice, he could shout loud enough to make the other side's ears ring, giving him an advantage before even starting.
So, even though some people tried to make him look bad, they never succeeded.
"Alright, Raymond, enough. Let's hear what Mr. Giorgio has to say," Budman interrupted, sensing that Raymond's storytelling was getting out of hand.
"Fine, Ethan, we'll talk more over drinks later!" Raymond bumped fists with Ethan, the gold chains around his neck clinking as they made contact.
Ethan smirked slightly. Since returning, Raymond had been decked out in gold chains and rings, looking every bit the flashy new money. Along with the designer logos on his clothes, he was a walking billboard for wealth.
If he were white, he'd have been mugged on his way home in no time.
Once the room quieted down, Giorgio smiled and said, "First, congratulations to Raymond! His new song has ranked twenty-first!"
"Whoa!" Raymond cheered, and his jewelry clattered again.
"Secondly, the album *Reinvention* has sold 500,000 copies, ranking ninth among all hip-hop albums in the U.S. this year! Raymond, you might even crack the top five by the end of the year."
This made Raymond even more excited, grinning like a 200-pound kid.
"So, now that the sales numbers are in, it's time to divide the profits. The average price of the album is $8, so the total revenue is around $4 million. Of course, with discounts needed to push sales, the average price will drop, probably to around $6."
Giorgio handed out a stack of sales figures for everyone to review. After they'd looked them over, he continued, "We'll distribute the profits according to everyone's shares. And this is just the beginning, as we haven't even factored in international sales yet. I have no doubt the song will exceed a million in sales and go platinum, so there's more to look forward to."
Ethan did some quick calculations: Yesan and Raymond would take 63%, amounting to $2.5 million. Republic Records would take 33%, leaving them with $1.32 million.
As for himself, with a 4% share, he'd receive $160,000—the most he'd made since crossing over to this world!
But Ethan wasn't satisfied, because this amount of money still didn't give him a sense of security. However, it was enough to solve one pressing problem.
That was the cost of starting his own advertising company.
He had long grown tired of working for someone else. Recently, he'd been dropping hints to Heinz, even deliberately letting Maroney see a few things to stir up suspicion in him.
Now, Maroney had become increasingly hostile toward Ethan, and not even Apollion could calm him down.
But that was exactly what Ethan wanted. So, when he arrived late to the afternoon advertising meeting for the new company, reeking of alcohol, Maroney immediately mocked him: "Ethan, what happened? Out partying with friends? That's why you're so late."
"Or were you sipping champagne again with that Heinz CEO? Apollion, we don't have that kind of luxury, do we?"
Ethan ignored Maroney's snide comments, greeting Jimmy before sitting down in his seat.
He even let out a small burp, looking slightly tipsy.
Maroney was furious. "Look at you! Do you even have any good ideas left for ads? Apollion, I think you really need to reconsider whether you want him in charge."
Apollion, sitting with his large belly, seemed a bit conflicted. "Ethan, are you sure you're up to this?"
"Of course I am. But I do have a suggestion." Ethan shrugged and said, "I think my current share isn't quite fair. Since a lot of the ad concepts come from me, I believe Maroney would be better suited to handling administrative tasks."
Maroney immediately exploded, his green outfit making him look like an angry peacock. "A lot? Ethan, stop joking! We've done nine ads, and you were only responsible for four! The rest were mine! Got it?"
"But I handled the most profitable ones, didn't I?" Ethan's retort left him speechless.
Then Maroney scoffed, "So, what do you want? Apollion's the one who promoted you, Ethan. People should be grateful!"
Ethan chuckled. "I'm very grateful to Apollion, which is why I've been making money for the company, haven't I? Look, you just got a new sports car, and Apollion recently bought a yacht. And what about Jimmy and me? We've only made $20,000. Isn't that enough gratitude?"
"So, how much do you want?" Apollion asked.
Ethan closed his eyes and thought for a moment. "I want 40%."
"You're out of your mind!" Maroney stood up in anger.
...
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