Chapter 114: Link Music

After buying a box of fresh Swiss matsutake mushrooms and prosciutto from the Walmart supermarket next door, Link returned home and made four dishes and one soup. Just as he was about to send a message to Taylor asking her when she would be home, he heard the sound of the door unlocking.

Taylor walked in with a guitar case, her blonde hair in a ponytail, wearing a white spliced jacket, her legs lazily walking inside.

"It smells so good, what did you make?"

Taylor hung up her jacket, walked into the kitchen, and kissed him on the cheek.

"Matsutake pigeon soup, it's my first time making it. Try it later and give me some feedback."

Link opened the steamer, and a delicious aroma wafted out.

"Pigeon? Are they pigeons from Times Square?"

"Maybe they are. Do you want to eat them?"

"Of course, I want to eat them. I used to play guitar in the square, and pigeons often pooped on my guitar case. I've always wanted to try their taste," Taylor said, waving her fist.

Link smiled slightly and filled a large bowl of thick soup for her. Because the pigeon meat was too tender and stewed for a long time, the meat was almost all mushy, leaving only the delicious thick soup and a few matsutake and ham grains. The overall taste was very good.

With every sip Taylor took, she would praise Link, saying that his cooking skills were no worse than those of Michelin-starred chefs, and that if he opened a restaurant on Fifth Avenue, he would definitely earn millions a year.

Link knew his level of cooking skills, so naturally, he wouldn't be carried away by her praise, otherwise, he would really become a househusband.

"How's the second album coming along?" Link asked.

"It's scheduled to be released in the middle of next month. Today, I was at the studio shooting the album cover and promotional posters. I've been posing all day and I'm almost exhausted," Taylor趴lied on the table, one hand propping up her face, the other drinking soup, her whole body limp.

"After eating, take a bath, and I'll give you a full body massage."

"Okay!"

Hearing about the massage, Taylor immediately perked up and sped up her eating.

——

The day after Link talked to Ivanka, Ivanka called and said she was willing to cooperate with him, on the condition that she wanted to see the songs in his hands to see if they were as good as he said.

Link didn't mind. He sat in the living room, playing the guitar and singing, and recorded two short audio clips of new songs and sent them to Ivanka. In less than half an hour, Ivanka called back.

After discussion, Link invested 3 million, and Ivanka invested 2 million. They jointly acquired a small record company and renamed it Link Records to release "Despacito" and Link's future new songs.

To ensure the quality of the records, Ivanka hired a gold medal music producer and three managers from the five major record companies through a headhunting company.

The producer was Graeme Goodall, a 45-year-old Jamaican-American.

He graduated from Columbia University with a master's degree in music management. He had been a singer and a record producer for famous bands such as U2 and Bon Jovi. He had worked at Sony Records for 12 years and had rich work experience.

After joining Link Music, his basic annual salary was 500,000 US dollars, plus a 3% album producer bonus. The other three managers were paid no less than him, with an annual salary of more than 300,000 US dollars, plus a 3% company share bonus.

After meeting these people, Link felt that it was right to cooperate with Ivanka. She had been in the business world for many years and had the guidance of Old Trump. Her skills and vision far exceeded his own.

If he were to do it himself, he would definitely not be able to find such elite talents in a short time.

In addition to these four people, Link also went through the back door and invited Selena's mother, Ms. Mandy Gomez, to be his singer agent.

Mandy had also been Selena's agent for two years. Later, she and her husband Adam Gomez founded a fashion chain store. After seven or eight years, they made some money. Unfortunately, the financial crisis hit, and the fashion chain store business was also affected. From the peak of 15 stores, there were only three left this year.

Ms. Mandy was preparing to return to her old profession and continue to be an artist agent.

After Link heard about her situation, he invited her to be his agent, and Ms. Mandy readily agreed.

"Link, you asked my mother to be your agent. Do you know what this means?"

In the recording studio, Selena put her hands in her pockets and said with a smile.

"What?"

"Asking for trouble!"

Selena glanced back at her mother and Katherine, pulled Link's arm, and whispered in his ear, "Let me tell you a secret, my mother is as fierce as your mother. When I was in fourth grade, I secretly drank a small glass of cocktail once, and she scolded me for a long time after she found out, almost beating me up. You asked her to be your agent, you are asking for trouble."

"You were scolded by your mother six or seven years ago, and you still remember it?"

"Of course, I have a good memory."

Selena raised her chin and snorted proudly.

"It's not that you have a good memory, it's that you are scolded too little."

Link smiled slightly, greeted Katherine who had just arrived, and walked into the recording studio to continue recording "Despacito". The version recorded in Miami last time, because of the rush of time and the lack of professionalism of the temporary producer, had some problems in terms of soundtrack, mixing, etc.

After the establishment of the record company, Graeme Goodall led the creative team to modify and improve the mixing and gave Link a more refined version.

After listening to it, Link felt that it was closer to the original and readily accepted this version.

Go

Sí sabes que ya llevo rato mirándote

Tengo que bailar contigo hoy

In the recording studio, Link wore headphones and sang seriously into the microphone. Producer Graeme Goodall stood at the console, listening to Link's voice, and occasionally giving adjustment suggestions.

Outside the soundproof glass, Ms. Mandy looked at Link who was singing and smiled at Katherine, "It's really hard to imagine that someone like him would be a world boxing champion."

Katherine also looked at Link without blinking, "When I heard that he was participating in boxing matches and even won the Golden Gloves championship, I was more surprised than anyone. When I saw him before, he was so rebellious, reckless, and idle. I thought he was completely hopeless. But now he is better than any of his peers. Maybe boxing can really change a person."

"Should I also practice boxing?" Selena leaned her round face between the two and said.

Ms. Mandy pushed her forehead and continued, "Link is too good. My only concern is that he will go astray. In the entertainment industry, there are many people who become famous at a young age, but because of lack of self-control, they get into some bad habits, and their careers start to go downhill. I'm worried that Link will be like this too."

"Don't worry, Link doesn't smoke or drink, let alone touch drugs. He works out every day and basically has no bad habits. Moreover, he is more mature and determined than his peers. He won't go astray," Katherine said.

"Katherine, your words are a bit absolute," Selena leaned her face over and said, "Don't forget that Link is a playboy. He admitted it himself."

Katherine thought for a moment and said to Mandy, "Link is still young and playful. Usually, you should help him keep an eye on him. If you encounter women with impure motives, remember to remind him and don't let him be deceived."

Ms. Mandy nodded.

Selena raised her hand and shook it, "Why can't we let Link learn to be good and become a devoted man?"

"Link is still young. Dating a few more times can make him more mature and stable. There's no need to interfere too much," Katherine said.

"I also want to find a boyfriend, several of them!" Selena said stubbornly.

Ms. Mandy and Katherine looked at her with faint eyes. Selena stuck out her tongue in fear, "I'm just kidding. I'm not a bad guy like Link."

After two days of recording, the new version of "Despacito" was successfully completed, including both Spanish and English versions.

After two days of recording, the new version of "Despacito" was successfully completed, including both Spanish and English versions, and was re-launched on Amazon Digital Music Store and iTunes Music Store.

In just one week, the number of online downloads of the new single exceeded 200,000.

According to the sharing standard between independent musicians and platforms, the cost of each download of each song is 1.26 US dollars, and Link Music can get 65%, plus the sharing income from streaming media such as YouTube.

The first week's revenue exceeded 200,000 US dollars, and Link had to sigh that the speed of making money as a singer was indeed very fast.

(End of Chapter)