Originally, Leon's plan was to return to New York immediately after his own performance.
With Cardi B's debut EP selling like crazy, as the boss, he had too much to deal with. Plus, he had to attend the MTV VMAs in ten days.
His new song's debut at such an influential music festival was a huge success, so this important face-time opportunity at the VMAs needed to be taken seriously.
But under Phil's repeated insistence, he decided to stay and watch Kesha's live performance on the second day.
Although both of them had listened to TiK ToK until their ears bled, this was their first time seeing it performed live.
When a song becomes a global phenomenon, it largely dictates the direction of pop music for a long time to come.
On the afternoon of the second day, after a long wait, Kesha finally took the stage as the grand finale amidst widespread anticipation.
She didn't appear backstage until an hour before her set. Leon only watched her from afar; they didn't exchange words.
Two tall Black bodyguards stood by Kesha's side at all times, like a wall separating her from the other singers, declaring the difference in their status.
Kesha looked unremarkable, and her styling was... hard to evaluate. It gave off a "dirty" vibe.
Her own explanation for this was "Trash Chic."
But Leon felt this look was less decent than some homeless women in Brownsville.
"Oh my god... oh my god, Kesha is going on stage!" Ariana Grande stood beside Leon, rubbing her hands together excitedly like a little elf.
"You like her a lot?"
"Of course, she's absolutely huge right now."
Leon smiled and said nothing. Ariana's "good girl" persona would probably struggle to catch fire in America.
Kesha, on the other hand, although plain-looking, perfectly fit the "bad girl" image in the audience's mind.
She pushed the limits of the "bad girl."
Before Kesha, no one imagined a young girl could be so "hardcore." Controversy and topicality were her heavy weights for standing firm in the entertainment industry!
Wake up in the morning feeling like P Diddy
(Hey, what up girl?)
Grab my glasses, I'm out the door
As soon as Kesha opened her mouth, a massive sing-along erupted in the venue.
The ubiquity of TiK ToK was ridiculous; even Lady Gaga's Poker Face lagged far behind it.
This song broke the record for the highest first-week sales of a single in the US. And with 610,000 digital downloads, Kesha became the female artist with the highest single-track downloads in history!
When the chorus hit, the crowd went completely insane.
Tick tock, on the clock
But the party don't stop no
Woah-oh oh oh
Woah-oh oh oh
The Made in America festival instantly transformed into a giant rave with over 100,000 people. You had to be there to understand how earth-shattering it was.
Leon was deeply shocked by this scene. Undoubtedly, the effect of Kesha's performance surpassed his collaboration with Kendrick yesterday.
Ariana stood beside him, eyes closed, swaying her body to the melody with a look of enjoyment.
If he didn't know she had received rigorous dance training since childhood, such practiced moves would make anyone suspect this innocent-looking angel was actually a club rat.
"Did you see it, Leon?" Phil patted Leon on the shoulder.
"See what?"
"The future trend of pop music."
Leon frowned. The old geezer's question was too broad; probably not even God could predict the ever-changing pop trends.
But whether it was Lady Gaga's explosion or TiK ToK becoming a phenomenon, there were traces to follow.
Leon hesitated for a moment and replied, "Electronic music will be the future trend?"
Phil smiled with relief. "Your intuition is really good..."
Electronic dance music had a brief moment of popularity in the late 90s and early 2000s, then quickly faded.
But with the iterative upgrades of electronic music synthesis equipment and numerous DJs contributing rich audio material libraries, electronic music was rising again.
Pop music goes without saying; the works on the Billboard charts were proof enough of EDM's popularity.
And in rap music, from Old School to Trap, current rap was leaning more and more towards electronic music.
The hottest rapper of the moment, Kanye West, was an expert in this type of music.
---
A week later, Cardi B's debut EP achieved dazzling results, just as Leon expected.
In fact, it was almost too dazzling—she directly surpassed her boss, Leon, on the charts.
The title track Bodak Yellow galloped onto the Billboard chart like a dark horse, debuting in the Top 20. Meanwhile, Leon's Take Me to Church was only ranking in the 30s during the same period.
Sales figures also proved Cardi B's popularity. The entire stock of 35,000 units (CD plus vinyl) sold out in the first week.
Many fans who managed to grab a copy even became scalpers, flipping them for a profit.
For a newcomer, this was an incredible achievement.
This also meant Cardi reached the threshold of a B-list celebrity with just one EP, overshadowing her boss in status.
Leon didn't show a hint of unhappiness about this. The hotter Cardi B was, the more money he made.
When it came time to split the money for the first week, Phil was so anxious his eyes were practically spitting fire.
The contract between Leon and Cardi B only gave her a 10% sales royalty plus copyright revenue. This was even worse than the slave contract Leon originally signed with T-Ray.
The contract was for one year, meaning Cardi B could only adjust the terms after the contract expired or by paying a huge termination fee.
Phil reminded him, "I think it's time to expand the company... Look, we don't even have a professional finance person here."
Leon immediately agreed. Previously, all the financial work for the label was handled by him and Bonnie, with accounting and tax work outsourced to the accountant of the brothel downstairs.
Hiring a professional accountant in New York was a significant expense.
Before, he was limited by a lack of funds, but the situation was completely different now.
Since Bodak Yellow was a mini-album containing five songs, the pricing was naturally much higher than Leon's single.
After selling out all CDs and vinyls, the revenue broke $300,000.
And the factory was still printing continuously. At this rate, Leon might become a millionaire in less than a month.
"Sht, being an unscrupulous boss is so easy."
Cardi B complained more than once that she was so busy she didn't even have time for hookups, while Leon lay back and took most of the profit.
However, this was only relative to newcomers. Some A-list stars easily took over 40% of record sales, and companies made money by holding the copyright revenue of the singers.
"Once everything with the company is settled, you should start working on your new album." Phil lit a cigarette.
Because Beyoncé appreciated Leon so much, Roc Nation VP Lenny didn't dare pressure him too hard, so the pressure naturally fell on his manager, Phil.
"No problem. I already have a lot of inspiration for the new album." Leon flashed a cunning smile.
Within a week, he had completed the initial screening of Big Dan's works. He mercilessly chopped more than half of the 100-plus songs.
Next, he just needed to filter further and see which works fit his persona better.