"If you had asked me two months ago, I would have told you with 100% certainty that there's no problem. But now, I'll need to call the organizers. By the way, who do you want to arrange for?"
"A newcomer who hasn't debuted yet," Wayne replied calmly.
The person on the other end, Harvey, was momentarily speechless.
The Oscars? While its viewership isn't as high as the Super Bowl, it definitely ranks in the top ten in North America!
The main issue is that the Oscars currently only feature a limited number of musical performances between award presentations, unlike a decade later when the ceremony could feel like a half-concert. Competition is intense, and even top stars struggle to get a spot.
"I can pay," Wayne continued.
"Let me ask for you," Harvey said, his confidence boosted by Wayne's offer. After all, it's hard for the organizers to say no to money.
However, Harvey still couldn't make any guarantees, especially with only half a month left until the March 25th ceremony.
After hanging up, Wayne thought for a moment and called Mike. He first told him that the script for *The Notebook* was finalized, and Mia should be sending it to him soon, offering Mike a significant business opportunity. Wayne then asked Mike to help him find a music composition teacher, as he planned to learn songwriting.
After all, Wayne had quite a few good songs in his head. By releasing them, he could make money and impress women—a win-win situation.
"Sure, I'll look into it right away!" Mike, though puzzled by Wayne's sudden interest in songwriting, had grown accustomed to his style. Without asking further questions, he readily agreed.
After making these two calls, Wayne took no further action. Glancing at the time, he resumed writing the script for *Wedding Crashers*.
To Wayne's surprise, Harvey acted faster than expected.
In less than half an hour, Harvey called back: "I'm sorry, my friend. The organizers can't make time for any new performers."
Wayne was a little disappointed, but not entirely surprised. After all, the Oscars weren't as commercialized as they would be in the future, with fewer performances.
Harvey continued, "However, if you're trying to boost your new girlfriend's popularity, being a guest performer at a big-name concert would also be effective. If you need, I can arrange for her to perform at concerts by Destiny's Child, Linkin Park, or Britney Spears. They all have shows in Los Angeles over the next two months."
"Of course, if you're willing to wait until September, I could even get her a guest spot at Michael Jackson's 30th Anniversary Concert."
Wayne didn't immediately respond.
He knew well that being a guest performer at a major concert could indeed boost Avril's popularity.
However, he could likely secure similar opportunities through Mike and WMA's channels. Was it worth owing Harvey a favor?
Sensing Wayne's hesitation, Harvey chuckled slyly. "And if you're interested in a deeper connection with Britney or Destiny's Child, I can help with that too."
Classic Harvey!
Wayne raised an eyebrow. He didn't doubt Harvey's ability to arrange such things. The film and music industries might seem separate, but they were actually closely intertwined, as both sectors' top players often came from the same parent companies.
Given Harvey's extensive Hollywood connections, it wouldn't be difficult for him to arrange something like this.
Of course, Harvey could only assist—he couldn't guarantee Wayne would "get" Britney or any of Destiny's Child. After all, they were major stars in the music industry, not easy targets.
Wayne wasn't particularly interested in Britney Spears. Though she was pretty, her poor choices in relationships and family left her in a mess, ultimately leading to her breakdown.
As for Destiny's Child and Beyoncé, Wayne had even less appreciation for them.
But seeing Avril go head-to-head with Britney on stage—that could be interesting.
"I'll pass on the 'deeper connections,' but please arrange for Avril to be a guest performer at Britney's concert."
"No problem. Leave it to me! I'll keep you posted!"
After hanging up, Wayne thought for a moment and called Avril to share the good news.
"What? Britney Spears' concert? Oh my God, that's so cool!"
Avril, who had been sound asleep and a bit annoyed at being woken up, was suddenly wide awake with excitement.
Although Britney Spears had only debuted in 1999, just a little earlier than Avril, she had already become the second most popular female singer in North America, just behind Madonna.
However, after her excitement, Avril paused and suspiciously asked, "Do you have a thing with Britney too?"
"Not at all," Wayne chuckled. "Although I have over ten women, you're the only one in the music industry."
"And I'm not interested in Britney Spears. In my eyes, you're way prettier than her."
For a young woman in love, nothing is more delightful than receiving sincere compliments from her partner.
Avril instantly felt overjoyed, her earlier annoyance forgotten. As for Wayne's admission of having more than ten women, she had long been aware of that and didn't dwell on it.
After some sweet talk, Wayne brought up another matter.
"By the way, what's the penalty fee for breaking your contract with Arista Records for the two-album deal?"
Avril was momentarily confused. "Three million. Why?"
"Then discuss with your manager. Either pay the penalty and terminate the contract, or renegotiate for a 20% sales share," Wayne suggested.
Before he finished speaking, Avril gasped.
"Twenty percent?! That's impossible!"
In the U.S., while singers' shares from physical album sales aren't as low as those in Japan or Korea, the general range is around 10-15%. If the singer doesn't write the songs, the percentage is even lower.
Twenty percent was unheard of, even for top stars, let alone a newcomer like her.
Thinking Wayne didn't understand the industry, Avril quickly explained.
Wayne just smiled and said, "In my eyes, you're no less than a superstar like Britney Spears."
Avril couldn't help but smile at his words, feeling a sweet warmth in her heart.
Wayne continued, "If you're uncomfortable negotiating, I can have a lawyer handle it for you."
Avril hesitated. "But Sandy has helped me a lot. Without him, I might not have even had the chance to sign a record deal, let alone meet you."
"Don't worry, gold will always shine. You're my 'Destiny's Child,' and I'd have found you no matter where you were."
His sweet words once again made Avril giggle, rolling happily in bed.
"And it's precisely because he's helped you that I'm giving him a choice. I'm only asking for a 20% share. Otherwise, I'd just have you terminate the contract and sign with another label."
Wayne paused before continuing, "Once you've secured the guest spot at Britney Spears' concert, let Sandy know. If he really believes in you, he'll know what to do."
"Alright, I'll listen to you." After some thought, Avril agreed.
Though she felt a bit guilty, it was clear that her heart leaned more towards Wayne. Besides, he was doing this for her benefit.
Just the opportunity to perform as a guest at Britney Spears' concert alone would cost Sandy and his record company millions to secure.
After making up her mind, Avril wasted no time and called Sandy immediately.
Sandy, expecting good news, was dumbfounded.
"What? Renegotiate the contract? Or terminate it? This was Wayne's idea?"
"Yes, and I agreed," Avril said. "He got me a guest spot at Britney Spears' concert. Plus, if we switch to a profit-sharing model, wouldn't you earn more as my manager?"
Sandy was stunned, but then he frowned, thinking it over. Avril had a point. If she earned 20%, and he took his 10%, that would mean 2%.
If her album sold over 500,000 copies, he'd make even more!
Would Avril's debut album sell more than 100,000 copies?
Of course! If he didn't believe in her, he wouldn't have convinced the company to sign her or flown all the way from New York to help her!
Especially now that Avril would be performing at Britney Spears' concert, which would be seen by millions.
Especially since these people already love music, the conversion rate will definitely be much higher than regular TV or radio promotions!
"Alright, you're right. Switching to a profit-sharing model would definitely make me, the manager, earn more. I'll discuss it with the company as soon as possible."
Sandy, after hanging up the phone, spent a whole hour thinking about how to present the idea before finally picking up the phone to call the boss of his company.
Because of one spontaneous idea from Wayne, a fairly decent-sized record company was thrown into a frenzy. This is the influence that money and power can bring.
But, when you owe someone a favor, you'll eventually have to repay it, and it seems this particular favor will need to be returned sooner than later.
Time quickly flew by, and March 14th arrived. Whether it was due to motivation from the new project or some other push, Nancy Meyers had already completed all the work on *Mean Girls* by yesterday afternoon, two days ahead of the original schedule.
Wayne had no choice but to postpone the *The Notebook* auditions that were scheduled for this morning to noon, switching the morning to a screening for *Mean Girls* instead.
No one really objected to the change, not even Nicholas Sparks, though the big-time writer was clearly quite displeased.
But Wayne didn't care about him anymore. The rights had been sold, the script had been written, and Wayne wasn't interested in further collaboration.
As for future collaborations, Wayne wasn't concerned. In a few years, when special effects technology improves, he won't even bother making these small-budget romance films.
"Hey! Wayne! Long time no see!"
Inside the large screening room, Harvey greeted Wayne with a big hug as soon as he saw him walk in with Mia and Jessica.
Even Wayne himself felt a little uncomfortable, not to mention the representatives from other distribution companies. After all, Harvey's body odor was a bit much to handle.
However, it's hard to refuse a friendly face, especially when Harvey has been quite helpful to Wayne.
"Long time no see, Harvey. You're looking pretty good."
"Thanks to you! *Gifted* performed excellently in the DVD sales market. I made a huge profit!"
Harvey was upfront and honest.
After all, he couldn't hide the numbers, especially since the IRS isn't exactly lenient. In many cases, their power far exceeds that of the FBI or CIA.
*Gifted* had been in the DVD market for over a month now, and while its sales couldn't compare to action films, fantasy films, or horror films, they were still solid. With 1.66 million DVD sales and 183,000 VHS tapes sold, Miramax had already made tens of millions in profit. For a film of this genre, that was quite impressive.
"It's because you have the vision and guts, right?" Wayne exchanged a few more pleasantries with him before moving on to deal with others.
The scale of this screening was about the same as the one for *The Dark Side*, but this time, people were noticeably more enthusiastic.
First of all, Wayne had kept his promise. Despite Hummer Pictures having already built a North American distribution channel, they didn't keep the film rights but sold them instead of self-distributing.
Secondly, this time the director of *Mean Girls* was none other than Nancy Meyers!
Although James Wan had also gained some fame with his successful debut film raking in $292 million globally, he was still no match for Nancy Meyers in terms of experience and achievements.
Just look at *What Women Want*, which she directed and was released last year. It grossed $374 million worldwide, far surpassing *Happy Death Day*.
Wayne's string of successes, combined with Nancy Meyers' reputation and skill, made these distribution companies take *Mean Girls* far more seriously than *The Dark Side*!
(End of chapter)