American Idol is an unavoidable peak in the history of talent shows.
Since its premiere in 2002, this veteran singing competition hasn't just kept FOX in the lead in the fiercely competitive entertainment sector for years; it's also contributed plenty of fresh blood and endless hot topics to the American music scene.
Back in the day, FOX bought the copyright from the British rights holders for $70 million, adapted it, and officially launched the show in 2002.
As soon as American Idol aired, it firmly gripped the number one spot for primetime ratings.
On the night of the Season 1 premiere, the average viewership hit a terrifying 28.9 million. The skyrocketing ratings brought in steadily climbing ad revenue—
In 2005, a 30-second ad spot on American Idol cost $250,000. By the finals in April 2006, that rose to $700,000.
By the time the season finale aired to reveal the champion, the price for a 30-second spot had soared to $1 million.
During the two-hour live finale, FOX raked in $40 million just from commercial breaks.
That is how you make real money!
But now, the influence of American Idol is waning, and Leon keenly sensed that the market needed a new stimulation point to maintain growth.
Hip-hop is currently the music genre most loved by young people.
Rebellion, money worship, having no bottom line...
These aren't just characteristics of rap music; they are the badges of honor that rappers wear proudly.
Leon had just gained massive influence in the rap circle by producing Billy, the most ruthless diss track in history. Countless underground rappers now looked up to him as the Godfather of Drill music.
Plus, he was about to get his hands on Vibe magazine, the publication that represented the glory days of 90s gangster rap.
If there was ever a time to make a rap talent show, now was undoubtedly the best moment!
Those rappers had almost no filter—if they weren't starting drama, they were on their way to start drama.
The prospects for this show were worth looking forward to.
Leon made up his mind: once the media company issues were sorted out, he would start looking for ways to make this show a reality.
---
The next day, inside the recording studio.
Max Martin was making final adjustments to the initial instrumental track.
Leon had already received a call; Beyoncé would be gracing them with her presence in half an hour for the first sound check.
"The drum pattern here seems a bit too dense..."
"I think the vocal runs in the first measure could be stronger; Beyoncé is a powerhouse vocalist."
"The bass could be pumped up a bit..."
Leon didn't stay silent; he did his best to describe the instrumental he heard in his head to Max.
Professional matters should be left to professionals.
Moreover, this song was Max's work from lyrics to composition in the original timeline.
This was the easiest job Leon had ever had as a producer; he just needed to nail down the collaboration between the two Divas.
"Oh my god... is that Beyoncé?"
"Holy sht... it really is her."
Outside the recording studio, the buzzing voices of Jorge's goons drifted in.
Click, clack, click, clack—
The iconic sound of Beyoncé's high heels got closer.
Surrounded by two hulking bodyguards, she walked into the studio.
She was wearing flashy aviator sunglasses, a light trench coat over black stockings, and high-heeled boots.
Combined with her dark golden waves, she radiated an astonishing, domineering "Boss Btch" aura.
"Hi, pretty boy~" Beyoncé ignored everyone else present and went straight for Leon, giving him a passionate hug.
With the boost from her heels, their heights were almost the same. Face to face, they were close enough to smell each other's breath.
The intimacy went far beyond a standard polite hug.
Max was obviously unaware of the relationship between the two and scratched his head in confusion.
He had never seen Beyoncé act so intimately with a man other than her husband.
The hug lasted for half a minute before Beyoncé let go of Leon.
She turned her head and extended her right hand to Max. "Hi Max, long time no see."
"Yes, Miss Beyoncé, you are as radiant as ever," Max complimented.
After listening to the demo track, Beyoncé spent about twenty minutes getting familiar with every beat and lyric.
Her delight was written all over her face. "Just like you said before, this song is practically tailor-made for me!"
Throughout 2011 so far, Beyoncé hadn't harvested many trophies.
She was merely a runner-up in the competition for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at this year's Grammys.
It was a stark contrast to the 2010 Grammys, where she swept 6 major awards.
This song, Bang Bang, would be perfect as a single to warm up the market for her upcoming solo album, 4.
But soon, Beyoncé noticed something was off. "Isn't this song a collaboration between you and me? Where is your verse?"
She eventually locked her gaze on the rap section.
But thinking about it carefully, it didn't seem right.
The lyrics in that section were all bragging about one's ass and techniques to please men.
Unless Leon was gay, there was no way he could perform that verse.
Leon held Beyoncé's shoulders and whispered in her ear, "I'm working as the producer on this track. Actually, you'll be completing this piece with two other female singers."
"Two other female singers?" Beyoncé frowned. "Who?"
For a singer of her status, she rarely did features. Those qualified to collaborate with her were usually influential figures in the music industry.
They had to have either status or traffic.
The last time Beyoncé collaborated with a female singer was with the incredibly popular Lady Gaga.
Their collaboration Telephone won the Best Collaboration award at the VMAs.
Leon explained, "You'll know soon enough... right now, you need to focus on your recording part."
Although Beyoncé was full of doubts, under Leon's continuous guidance, she didn't dig deeper.
She took off her trench coat and walked into the recording booth.
Walking with the wind, like a Queen arriving.
Her tight sweater outlined the shocking curves of her upper body, looking like they were about to burst through the fabric at any moment.
For rookies like Robbie or Ariana, walking into a recording booth was like stepping onto a battlefield; it was hard not to be nervous.
But for Beyoncé, recording was as natural as drinking water.
Once she put on the headphones, her aura fully activated, entering the zone in a split second!
"She got a body like an hourglass, but I can give it to you all the time~"
"She got a booty like a Cadillac, but I can send you into overdrive~"
The soaring head voice combined with the difficult-to-transition growls were handled perfectly by Beyoncé.
For her vocal range, this was simply too easy.
Her range was wide enough to span from Bb2 to Eb6.
Her widest range was F2-F6, a full four octaves!
Her technique in crescendo, decrescendo, sustained vibrato, and rapid runs was incredibly solid.
The key point was that, to get herself more into the zone, Beyoncé actually started dancing impromptu in the booth.
When singing "She got a booty like a Cadillac," she swung her 'tail lights' aggressively, making Leon dizzy just watching.
Even while singing and dancing, her breath remained steady. This ability to control breath and live performance was something perhaps only P!nk could challenge in the current music scene.
Bang bang into the room (I know you want it)
Bang bang all over you (I'll let you have it)
Wait a minute let me take you there (ah)
Wait a minute tell you (ah)
Inside the booth, Beyoncé twisted her body dramatically, her face full of seductive smiles.
Every now and then, she would hook her finger at Leon through the glass.
Outside the booth, Leon marveled at the performance. "Have you ever seen anyone do this in a studio? I mean... even while dancing, her performance is still flawless!"
Max nodded along to the beat. "She is Beyoncé. Doing this is just basic operations for her~"
This sound check could only be described as perfect.
Beyoncé's impromptu dance also added some interesting variations to the vocals.
It was predictable that when the three of them combined to record the final version, the effect would be even more explosive.
After the one-minute sound check ended, Beyoncé walked out of the booth in her high heels.
Everyone, including the bodyguards, applauded her.
She came up to Leon, bent down, and used her slender finger to lift his chin. "Are you satisfied with my performance, Mr. Producer?"
"Ahem... I am very satisfied." Looking at Beyoncé's face, which looked like a valley of desire difficult to fill, Leon knew he inevitably had to "pay his debts" later.
He quickly stood up and added, "Your vocal skills are unquestionable. I can't wait to hear what the final version sounds like."
"Want to come to my office to chat?"
Beyoncé understood immediately, biting her lip lightly and throwing him a meaningful look.
It was exactly noon, and the company was empty.
After arriving at the office, before Leon could even lock the door, the Diva hugged him.
The two immediately entangled in a flustered mess.
"Fxxk..." The temperature in the room rose rapidly.
Amidst the tickle of hair strands and the scent of perfume, Leon realized he probably couldn't dodge this bullet today.
The debt he escaped in the Tribeca apartment had come due.
Beyoncé didn't offer any explanation, quickly removing the seals on her body, batting her long eyelashes and saying softly: "Give it to me..."
Just then, both of them heard footsteps outside the door.
"Shxt!" Leon instantly realized the door wasn't locked.
Beyoncé was flustered for a moment, panicking.
Leon smoothly stuffed her under the desk.
Two seconds later, the office door was pushed open, and Bonnie walked in holding a stack of files.
Before she could speak, she was scolded by Leon. "Damn it, how many times have I told you to knock before entering..."
Bonnie noticed the bra on the sofa at first glance, but she didn't pay it any mind.
The Wicked Angel factory mailed over many clothing samples every week.
"Sorry... I didn't know you were in the room."
"I just organized the setlist for your performance at Coachella in five days. If you think it's okay, I'll send it to the organizers..."
Saying that, Bonnie took two more steps forward, wanting to place the files in her hand on the desk.
"Stop! Just put it on the sofa, I'll look at it later."
It's good for employees to have work initiative, but for the first time, Leon felt that if this initiative went too far, it would be a disaster.
What was worse, the Diva chose this moment to launch a provocation against him under the desk.
A numbness like an electric current traveled through his blood vessels to his whole body.
"Boss, why does your face look a bit off?" Bonnie asked kindly.
"Shxt... maybe I just have too many things to worry about recently." Leon quickly improvised. "You should hurry up and leave, there's nothing for you here..."
"Go home and rest immediately!"
Bonnie pursed her lips, then turned and left.
As soon as her front foot left, Leon stood up instantly.
His eyes were red, like a beast that had seen blood.
This battle seemed unavoidable.
Even with the nickname "White Ngga," he could barely parry under those powerful, beautiful legs.
He realized a truth—when fighting a cowgirl from Texas, you better give it everything you've got.
"Fxxk..."
Twenty minutes later, Leon lay on the sofa, hurriedly lighting a post-coital cigarette.
His eyes were hollow, as if he had lost his soul.
"I never thought you were this good..." Beyoncé was energetic, as if nothing had happened.
She leisurely put the seals back on.
Leon couldn't give her any feedback.
That voice from the deep abyss, which hadn't appeared for a long time, sounded again in his mind.
[Shameless Trait Refreshed. New Trait: "The Bull" (NTR) has been recorded.]
[The "The Bull" Trait can activate the "Inspiration Hijack" function, forcibly seizing a flash of inspiration that has already sprouted in someone else's mind!]
[Including but not limited to music, film, writing, invention, and other fields.]
[There are three chances for "Inspiration Hijack." Once consumed, the Trait will be immediately deleted.]
[The Abyss will be watching you.]
Leon's eyes widened round, not having fully digested the meaning of this paragraph yet.
The way to obtain inspiration sounded like the previous "Inspiration Exploitation."
But thinking about it carefully, he discovered the difference.
Just the fact that the scope of deprivation wasn't limited to music was already too much of a bug (cheat).
"Leon?"
"Pretty boy?"
"Honey, what's wrong with you?"
It wasn't until he felt his shoulder being gently shaken that his thoughts were pulled back to reality.
He shook his head and said, "I'm fine, Miss Beyoncé, I was just savoring the moment..."
Beyoncé let out a long sigh of relief. She almost thought the other party's condition just now was caused by her being too rough.
"It was very pleasant collaborating with you..."
Beyoncé spoke with a double meaning; their collaboration wasn't limited to music.
She continued to ask, "I'm just curious, which female singers did you invite to participate in the recording of this song?"
"Taylor Swift." Leon felt there was nothing to hide and blurted it out.
The obstacle in this collaboration obviously wasn't with Beyoncé.
Hearing this, Beyoncé was silent for three seconds first, then asked, "Will Taylor agree? I'm worried..."
"No problem." Leon interrupted her and said, "Miss Taylor isn't that petty of a woman. Besides, that incident was entirely caused by that reckless idiot Kanye West."
"Miss Taylor will understand this point."
Beyoncé nodded skeptically.
Based on her understanding of Taylor, and the media exposure, she didn't believe Taylor was as innocent as in her lyrics.
Taylor was a woman who held grudges very much; this could be seen from how she wrote songs to roast her ex-boyfriends as soon as they broke up.
Beyoncé put on her trench coat preparing to leave; she knew this matter wasn't something she should worry about.
"I'll wait for your good news, Honey~" In the blink of an eye, the Diva's level of intimacy in addressing Leon had upgraded.
Before leaving, she didn't forget to offer a playful blowing kiss.
Leon, now left in peace, lay on the sofa staring at the ceiling, trying to figure out everything about the "Inspiration Hijack" skill.
"Forcibly seizing a flash of inspiration that has already sprouted in someone else's mind..."
"WTF... what the hell does this mean..."
Just as he was distressed about it, he saw the pile of playing cards he often fiddled with on the desk.
His brain instantly connected to the internet, understanding everything.
Just like playing poker, a released work can be seen as a card played out.
"Inspiration Exploitation" is taking all the cards the target might draw directly from the deck.
Leaving the target with no cards to draw.
And "Inspiration Hijack" is like snatching a card from the target's existing hand and putting it into your own hand.