Taylor Swift, undoubtedly the best female singer after the millennium, or to be more absolute, she would be completely qualified as the best singer.
Because her shelf life was too long; Eric, before he transmigrated, she was still at her peak, unlike other stars of her era who competed with her.
For example, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, etc., all of them gradually faded in popularity, or occasionally shocked the world with a sudden burst of genius, but then disappeared again.
Only Mei Mei constantly reinvented herself, always on the path of self-innovation and surpassing herself.
In the first few years of her career, her singing skills and style were not yet perfected. Although she was popular then, she was still some distance from reaching the top.
Especially when vying for the most authoritative Billboard charts, she often encountered various unexpected hit songs that overshadowed her, which was somewhat unlucky, earning her the nickname Mei Mei from her fans.
Of course, this nickname also carried the meaning of praising her as a beauty, with 'mei' (beautiful) replaced by 'mei' (unlucky).
Furthermore, she was also the one who opened the door to the era of digital music payments. The prerequisite for achieving this was that people were willing to pay for her songs, demonstrating her appeal.
Her fan base and total views of MVs and songs on major social media platforms and video websites were all among the top.
The key is that she always focused on music, unlike some artists and singers who, once popular, use their fame to create brands, sell cosmetics, and other merchandise. She made it clear that her income from concerts and albums alone could easily surpass their commercial empires.
Although she had a string of ex-boyfriends, it did not affect her male fan base in the slightest, as her songs appealed to all ages, from people in their sixties and seventies down to child fans.
A single global concert tour could generate over ten billion dollars in direct consumption, with indirect consumption reaching tens of billions of dollars. This led to leaders or high-ranking officials from countries like Mexico, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and Indonesia inviting her to perform concerts.
If MJ was the undisputed global superstar of the 80s and 90s, then Taylor Swift was the undeniable super overlord after 2010. Her appearance plunged global music into a situation of one superpower and many strong contenders.
In the film industry, the last global superstar was Leonardo DiCaprio, while in the music industry, it was Taylor Swift.
As for whether another world-class superstar will emerge, it is probably very difficult.
At most, they will have influence in their own country and surrounding areas; it will be almost impossible to reach a global audience again.
"How are this little girl's singing skills?" Eric asked, pointing to a photo of a youthful Mei Mei.
Michael glanced at it: "Not bad. She's on the country route. Among this batch of trainees, she's not top-tier, but upper-middle level."
"The main thing is that she's still young, 14 years old, and her body and voice haven't fully developed. Some people are amazing at a young age, while others are limited by it."
"You weren't serious about the previous contestants. Do you think this little girl has a future?"
Eric nodded, thinking to himself that she had a great future, completely a walking ATM.
"Very good, I like her name, Taylor, Taylor, tiger, a strong girl, hahahaha."
Michael laughed at the pun, then waved his hand.
"No, no, no, Swift doesn't look strong at all. She's a cute little girl. The first time I saw her photo, she gave me the feeling of a country girl who walked out of a distant small village."
"After listening to her song demo, a series of images came to my mind."
"It's like she usually sleeps on the grass, or holds a wooden guitar, occasionally with a foxtail grass in her mouth, then softly hums the songs she wrote."
Eric looked at Mei Mei's photo again carefully, and indeed felt she looked a bit rustic and country-like, her features not as defined as in later years.
She must have had some work done, at least her canthus opened, and her nose and mouth done. But that's nothing, it's all micro-plastic surgery, which celebrity doesn't do it?
Jackie Chan even had his canthus opened when he was young. As long as it's done successfully, people will still adore you.
"In short, we must sign Taylor Swift. I have a premonition that she will become a huge star in the future, a world-class singer."
"Eric, you think so highly of her?"
"Yes, my premonitions have always been very accurate. No matter what place she gets on The Voice, we must sign her."
"I'll listen to you, but there's a small problem currently. Taylor Swift is currently signed with RCA Records. To sign her, we need her consent, her parents' consent, and we'll have to pay a breach of contract fee."
"But the price isn't high. After all, she's just a new, unknown artist. Perhaps it's tens of thousands, or maybe over a hundred thousand dollars."
"Then find a way to convince this little girl. UTA can't just have one artist; we need more."
Eric continued to flip through the resumes, and soon another familiar name caught his eye—Katy Hudson.
Many people probably don't recognize this name, because she later changed it to Katy Perry, who is widely known as Fruit Sister.
Although her achievements were not as great as Mei Mei's, she was also a first-class female singer who had once been immensely popular.
"This girl is also good, Santa Barbara. She's actually a girl from Santa Barbara."
Michael nodded: "Don't be surprised, she has some local fame, a very popular local singer. Even I've heard of her. If you go to a bar, you might run into Katy Hudson performing on stage."
"Does she have a record label now?"
"No."
"Sign her, sign her! I have a premonition that this girl will also become popular."
Michael couldn't help but frown, hesitating as he asked, "Eric, are you looking for a singer or a lover?"
"Ah? What?"
"Why are you only interested in women? These young men are also good. For example, Cyril, his rap style is very distinctive and sounds great."
"And this one, his voice is excellent."
Eric pouted helplessly, thinking to himself, what can I do? I don't recognize the others.
These were already very famous ones. If it were ordinary singers who were only popular in the United States, he wouldn't recognize them even if they were right in front of him.
He continued to flip through, until the very last one, where a third familiar face appeared. Finally, a young man.
The photo clearly showed he was of mixed race, with brown skin and a pair of bright, piercing eyes.
The name column read Peter Gene Hernandez. Many people probably haven't heard this name either, because he would also change his name later.
Bruno Mars, nicknamed Mars Bro, a male singer who would become immensely popular in the future, a regular at the Grammy Awards.
His incredibly sassy song "Uptown Funk," combined with its catchy MV dance, made him an absolute global sensation.
One meme can illustrate his power: "Huo Xing Lao Xian, Fa Li Wu Bian" (Old Immortal Huo Xing, boundless magic power).
"Michael, I'm not looking for a lover. This young man is also very good. Hawaiian?"
"Born in Hawaii, currently living in New York. He prefers hip-hop rock and doesn't have a record label."
"Very good, then we want him too. I feel this kid will also become a big star."
"Well, if you say sign him, then sign him. At least it proves you're not choosing concubines for yourself."
Unexpectedly, Billy, after wandering for a few months, actually found a few future stars. As expected, he, like Judy, possessed a lucky constitution.
Friday afternoon, just before closing time.
At the MGM Building, a meeting was underway. Besides The Coopers, all the other attendees were company executives.
Everyone's attention was focused on the father and son, their eyes subtly revealing excitement.
They had once thought this day would come, but they never imagined it would arrive so quickly.
Many people initially joined the team out of respect for Harry Cooper, but they never expected that after only half a year of joining, Harry Cooper would show signs of retirement, gradually handing over all major company powers to his son.
Many people, even if they didn't say it aloud, were very worried in their hearts, fearing that the recovering MGM would collapse.
However, in recent months, films like "happy death day" and "don't breathe" have achieved successive successes, turning small investments into significant box office gains.
Then came the release of "transformers," which has currently raked in over 700 million globally.
In any industry, strength speaks for itself. Everything proved that Eric Cooper was an incredibly wise leader, and his decisions had almost never failed.
Now, everyone wholeheartedly followed his leadership, hoping he could lead them to a brighter future.
Today was the time to witness the results of over a year of hard work, in short, the 'pork-carving' meeting.
Eric looked at Harry Cooper: "Say a few words, Dad."
Although he no longer interfered much in business, his father still held the position of president.
He nodded slightly, first letting out a long sigh, as if to completely expel years of accumulated stagnation.
Having sat in this position for so many years, he finally got his wish today, seeing the rise of MGM.
Although it wasn't him who achieved it, what difference was there between his son and himself?
If he hadn't believed him and given him 10 million dollars back then, the current situation wouldn't exist.
In other words, he was essentially an angel investor.
"We are gathered here today for a reason, which is clear to everyone."
"MGM is going to be relisted, and achieving this step is inseparable from everyone's efforts."
"This is the result of our joint struggle, inextricably linked with the sweat of every individual, so everything is what you deserve."
"Here, I want to express my gratitude to everyone. Thank you!"
Clap, clap, clap, clap... The meeting room immediately erupted in enthusiastic applause.
His father looked at Eric, who nodded and said, "I won't say anything superfluous. This time, MGM will take out 30% of its shares for public listing and financing."
"Additionally, another 15% of shares will be used for internal financing. The opportunity is here; how much you can take depends on your abilities."
HO
The meeting room instantly erupted in gasps, and many people's breathing quickened.
The 15% share exceeded their expectations. When they discussed it privately, they had thought Eric would at most offer 10%, putting a larger share on the market.
Undoubtedly, such a move would bring greater benefits to the company and to him personally.
But he chose to give more benefits to the partners who built the empire with him. Many people instantly felt a sense of dedication, believing they would die for such a boss, who was hard to find even with a lantern.
However, what the attendees didn't realize was that Eric was so generous because he held bigger trump cards: Facebook and YouTube.
Even by 2023, Disney and Netflix are strong, right? Looking at global film companies, they are the two dominant players, with other companies unable to compete.
Even so, the market value of these two companies fluctuates around 200 billion dollars, sometimes reaching 250 billion dollars.
In contrast, how much is Facebook worth? It once exceeded one trillion, with all global film companies combined not being as valuable as a single Facebook.
Even later, due to various erroneous decisions that led to a sharp drop in stock price, such as investments in the metaverse and other puzzling ventures, it still managed to maintain around 600 billion dollars, still surpassing the total market value of all film companies in the world.
And YouTube has always belonged to Google and has never been listed.
Countless people and institutions are waiting for it to go public independently, and its valuation is nearly 400 billion dollars, also far exceeding Disney and Netflix.
So the upper limit for film companies is clearly there; compared to social media, they are indeed far behind. The status and influence of the two are also not on the same level.
Therefore, Eric had no qualms about offering 45% of the shares for financing, and he needed the money. 45% was only the first step.
The money raised this time would be used to repay debts and support the operation and development of Facebook and YouTube.
Subsequent financing would continue until his remaining shares were maintained at 10% to 15%, which would be enough.
Additionally, another 20% of the shares would be sold to AK Films, essentially moving from the left hand to the right.
When AK Films grows larger in a few years, it will certainly also go public. At that time, he will continue to hold a portion of AK Films' shares through another company, creating continuous nesting.
Moreover, although he offered 15% of the shares to these executives this time, they might not have the financial capacity to acquire all of them.
While the value of these shares was not as high as it would be after listing, it still far exceeded the value when Eric first took over MGM.
A film company, unlike a traditional industry, is a company that increases its stock price by telling stories. The better the story is told, the higher the market's expectations for you.
And judging by the current situation, MGM's story is clearly being told very well, so these 15% of shares are actually valued at 800 million dollars.
Don't accuse Eric of overpricing; the government's procedures are already in their final stages, and the price is set at nearly double this amount. He is genuinely offering a lucrative opportunity to his subordinates.
However, even if these individuals have been executives for many years, earning millions of dollars annually, Eric estimated that even if they mortgaged everything and took out loans, they collectively couldn't raise 800 million.
According to regulations, company executives who want to sell shares for cash after listing will only be able to do so after one year, while founders will be able to do so after three years.
Within one year, shares can only be held. If they truly borrowed to buy, and the price fell, they would likely face financial ruin.
The gamble was whether they believed Eric could continue to create miracles.
And whatever they couldn't buy would naturally be put onto the market for financing, so it's highly probable that more than 30% of the shares will actually be released to the market.
The meeting was not long. After it concluded, everyone instantly dispersed like birds and beasts. Needless to say, they all went to find ways to raise money.