Zhou Hexuan was writing a novel in his study when Yu Peichen suddenly knocked on the door and said: "Mr. Zhou, there is a fake foreign devil looking for you. He said he is the manager of EMI Records."
"What do EMI want to do with me?" Zhou Hexuan stood up and opened the door.
Yu Peichen said: "I asked, but he didn't explain clearly. It seemed to be related to recording records."
Zhou Hexuan ordered: "Take him to the reception room."
"Okay." Yu Peichen immediately withdrew. She had gradually adapted to the role of secretary.
After a while, Zhou Hexuan saw the fake foreign devil Yu Peichen had mentioned.
This man was very young, in his 30s, with a neat suit and a gentleman's civilized staff. He smiled and shook hands and said: "Hello, Mr. Zhou, I am Li Kaisheng, manager Hua of EM China Company, and my English name is Jerry."
"Hello." Zhou Hexuan smiled secretly in his heart.
Jerry, I still have Tom, why don't we play cat and mouse together?
Li Kaisheng put down his civilized stick gracefully and said politely: "Mr. Zhou, I admire your talent very much. I have wanted to visit you for a long time, but unfortunately I have never been able to meet him."
"Mr. Li, just tell me if you have anything to do." Zhou Hexuan didn't want to beat around the bush.
"It's like this," Li Kaisheng said with a smile, "I have a junior who is also a graduate of Jiaotong University. He heard Mr. Zhou singing a new song last night, and he wrote down a few melodies and hummed them to me.
Listen. I think this is a very beautiful song, and I would like to ask Mr. Zhou to record it. Of course, if Mr. Zhou is willing, EMI would also like to buy the copyright of the song."
It is Zhou Hexuan's "adaptation" of Hu Shi's vernacular poetry. It has been widely circulated in the past two years, but Zhou Hexuan has never sold the copyright. Strictly speaking, all records circulating outside are pirated.
As for, although it is loved by the masses, no record company dares to release it because it is a typical anti-Japanese song and is seriously prohibited.
Zhou Hexuan said amusedly: "You also buy it, but do you dare to publish it?"
"Of course I dare," Li Kaisheng straightened his back subconsciously and said proudly, "We are a British company with the support of the British Empire. Neither the Chinese nor the Japanese governments dare to do anything to me."
Li Kaisheng, a new generation of comprador, graduated from Shanghai St. John's University and went to the United States to study. He served as the Chinese manager of Tianxin, Wantai, Yitai, Kangying and other foreign companies, and co-founded many silk factories.
His family business was prosperous, and at this time he was the manager of EMI China.
Speaking of the records of the Republic of China, there are three companies that have to be mentioned, namely EMI, Victory and Greater China, known as the three giants of records in the Republic of China. Although there are a large number of other record companies, those companies are at best studios, even their own
We didn’t have any recording equipment, so we had to rent it from the Big Three when we were recording records.
The Greater China Record Company was founded the earliest, and was co-founded by Sun Yat-sen and Japanese businessmen. Now it has become a completely Chinese-owned enterprise. It calls itself the "Three People's Principles of the Record Industry", and it can be said that it is well established.
Victory Records is an American company that was founded the latest, but its business has surpassed that of Greater China Records.
As for EMI Records, it is now the strongest and has the most complex capital structure. It was originally a French company, but four years ago it was acquired by British Columbia, which in turn is a branch of the American Columbia. Just this year
, the British gramophone company HMV has acquired British Columbia, and its shareholding structure is difficult to explain clearly.
In fact, EMI Records is no longer called EMI Records, but is called Yingshang Electrical Music Industrial Co., Ltd. EM. However, because EMI's name is very famous in China, it has been used ever since.
As for the common people's names, they are more vivid and direct.
The label of Greater China Records is two parrots, so it is commonly known as "Double Parrots". The label of Victory Records is a dog that has been lying down listening to music, so it is commonly known as "lying dog" or "dog listening to opera". EMI Records
The label is a red rooster, so it is commonly known as "big rooster" or "red rooster".
Normally, if someone bought an EMI record, he would say, "I bought a big cock."
At this time, China's record industry is very difficult to operate. Firstly, the competition is too fierce. Secondly, it is being impacted by radio stations. Thirdly, the current situation is turbulent.
Take EMI Records as an example. The "December 28 Incident" two years ago caused this company to suffer serious losses. Victory Records took the opportunity to cause trouble, poaching each other's employees, and cutting prices. The competition between the two companies caused a lot of trouble.
As we all know, it is nicknamed the "Chicken-Dog War".
This "chicken-dog war" hurt both sides. Although the "big rooster" retained its leading position in the industry, it was severely damaged by the "crouching dog".
On the other hand, "Double Parrot" is doing well. After all, it is the only national enterprise among the three giants. If Chang Kaishen's speech is to be recorded into a record, it must be recorded by a Greater China company, and government agencies must also seek cooperation with Greater China.
It's government business.
"How long has Mr. Li been working at EMI Records?" Zhou Hexuan suddenly asked.
Li Kaisheng smiled and said: "I just took office three months ago."
"No wonder you didn't take the ordinary route and actually came to me to buy the copyright." Zhou Hexuan said with a smile.
The first thing a new official needs to do when he takes office is that Li Kaisheng has just become Manager Hua of EM China, so he naturally wants to make some achievements so as to win the recognition of his British boss.
Nowadays, pop songs are not very popular. 99% of the records on the market contain opera content, and song records are very rare.
Li Kaisheng said: "It is Mr. Zhou's hard work. You also want it to be widely circulated. Only we, em, dare to resist the pressure of the Nanjing government and the Japanese and release this kind of anti-Japanese song across the country."
"If you can guarantee a smooth distribution, I can consider selling the copyright to you." Zhou Hexuan said.
Li Kaisheng smiled and said: "I would like to ask Mr. Zhou to sing in person."
Zhou Hexuan shook his head and said: "I'm not a professional, you'd better find a professional singer to sing."
Li Kaisheng advised: "Mr. Zhou, you can think of it this way. If you sing and record the songs in person, you will definitely get a lot of attention, which will be very beneficial to publicizing the anti-Japanese war. You and I are both Chinese, although I
I started my career as a comprador and was criticized as a foreign bitch, but I am also patriotic. I also hope that an excellent anti-Japanese song can be widely circulated."
"Maybe." Zhou Hexuan chuckled. He didn't believe in the other party's patriotism. I'm afraid it was mainly to increase record sales.
"If Mr. Zhou sings in person, it is an elegant thing to say, so why not think about it again." Li Kaisheng continued to persuade.
Zhou Hexuan was noncommittal and asked with a smile: "If I record and sing in person, how much will the total royalties from singing and songwriting be?"
Li Kaisheng probed: "10?"
Zhou Hexuan raised his eyebrows: "My voice is so worthless?"
"How much does Mr. Zhou think it should be?" Li Kaisheng asked.
"30." Zhou Hexuan's number tripled in one breath.
"Hey... let me think about it." Li Kaisheng gasped. Now it was his turn to hesitate.
Zhou Hexuan is also a capitalist. How can he be so easy to talk to when it comes to money?