Chapter 187: Continue to compete for the ranking (plus update 810 for the leader)


    ?While Link opened the champagne to celebrate, "The Blueprint 3" distribution company Roc Nation Records also held a cocktail party at the Hilton Hotel to celebrate the album''s weekly sales victory.


    Just at the party, Jay-Z was not happy.


    ?Before the album was released, he had high hopes for the album. According to his and the company''s estimates, the sales volume in the first week would be at least 800,000 copies, with a high chance of exceeding one million copies, setting a new record in his career.


    But no, the first week sales were only 458,000 copies.


    This data is something that many first- and second-tier singers cannot even dream of.


    ?For him, a top figure in the music world and a king-level figure, 458,000 albums seems a bit mediocre, and can even be called a failure.


    The main reason for the failure was that part of the market share was eaten up by Link''s album. Without Link''s album, "The Blueprint 3" would have a great chance of selling more than 600,000 copies in the United States.


    Thinking of the young man Link, Jay-Z had a low and fat black face, smoking a Cuban cigar, looking coldly at the lively dance party, and saw his wife Beyoncé dancing with Duck Drake, and his face became even darker. .


    “Jay-Z, what’s wrong?”


    ??Kanye came over and asked, holding a wine glass.


    “What do you think of the sales of this album?”


    “Sales champion, of course it’s good.”


    ??Kanye said.


    ? Jay-Z shook his head. Rap ??music has been doing very well in recent years. Kanye''s "Graduation" in 2007 and Lil Wayne''s album "ThaCarterIII" last year sold more than 900,000 copies in the first week.


    Eminem, T.I., and Chris Brown also sold more than 600,000 copies of their new albums in the first week.


    Compared with these people, he obviously felt that his appeal and influence in the music world had declined significantly, which made him very uncomfortable.


    “I heard that Link will go to Berlin to participate in the swimming championships next week. If he wins a few more gold medals, there is a great chance that his album sales will exceed ours next week. What suggestions do you have?”


    ??Jay-Z asked.


    ??Kanye is also one of the producers of "The Blueprint 3" and is responsible for the production and singing support of ten songs in the album. The album is a hit, and Kanye can also get a share.


    ??Kanye thought about it. Link went to the World Swimming Championships to compete with top foreign swimmers. If he could defeat those opponents and win a few more gold medals, the media would report on him. It was inevitable.


    ?Link’s exposure in the media will increase, and the new album will be noticed by more people, and sales will increase. This seems to be inevitable.


    ?This week "KeepOnMovin\''" has only more than 30,000 copies less than "TheBlueprint3". According to this trend, it is very likely to surpass the latter next week and top the album sales chart.


    ?The media is now paying close attention to the album sales of Link and Jay-Z. If it is surpassed next week, Jay-Z will be embarrassed.


    It’s just that Kanye thought for a while and couldn’t think of a good countermeasure.


    “Should we also hold a few more book signings and invite some celebrity guests to help sing?”


    ??Kanye reminded.


    Jay-Z held his cigar between his fingers and shook his fingers, rejecting the proposal. He is a big boss in the rap industry, worth 7.8 billion U.S. dollars. Let him sit there all day without moving and keep signing autographs for fans. It was okay when he was young. Not possible now.


    He cannot afford to lose that face.


    ? Jay-Z saw Lil Wayne, T.I., and Chris Brown, and waved them over, told them what happened, and asked them what they could do.


    Lil Wayne rubbed his chin and thought for a while, then said with a smile: "This kind of thing is very simple. If we continue to hype Link''s racial discrimination and let fans attack him, his album will definitely not be sold."


    "this is not OK!"


    ??Jay-Z shook his finger. Washington has already said hello. It can compete with Link for rankings and suppress him through industry competition and other methods, but it can no longer involve the issue of racial discrimination.


    ?Link is an Olympic champion, world boxing champion, popular singer, swimming star, and youth idol. He also has many fans and is very influential in the United States.


    ??If you falsely accuse him of racial discrimination without conclusive evidence, the impact will be very bad, and it will not be good for anyone if it makes a big fuss.


    "How about hyping up his dirty stuff? Link attaches great importance to reputation and public image. This is why those fans host him. As long as we expose his dirty stuff in the media and make him infamous, those young people will no longer support him."


    T.I. suggested.


    “This is a good suggestion.”


    ??Jay-Z’s eyes lit up.


    Some media have analyzed that the reason why Link gained huge popularity in just over a year is because of his excellent public image.


    He was born at a lower level, and through his own efforts, he became a world boxing champion, a multi-millionaire, and a representative of the American dream. He is diligent and studious. He became a multi-millionaire and studied hard. He took the initiative to go to university. He is a good example for young people.


    He can sing and compose, and is known as a pop music genius and youth idol.


    He also actively participated in sports games to win honors for the country.


    Except for committing some crimes before he was a minor, he is almost a perfect idol.


    If he can use black material to break his good image, fans will be disappointed and his albums will not be sold.


    “Dirty material? What black material does Link have?”


    ??Kanye asked.


    ? Jay-Z looked at T.I who made the comment.


    T.I. was stunned for a moment, "I heard that guy is very strong in that area. His private life must be very chaotic. Hehe, maybe dozens of girls in one night."


    “Who did you hear that from? Do you have any photos for me to see?”


    ??Kanye asked curiously.


    “I guess, I think he should be that kind of person.”


    “It’s impossible without evidence. Think of other black materials.”


    ? Jay-Z waved his hand and asked everyone to think about Link’s dark stuff.


    ??Kanye thought hard for a while, but couldn''t find any black information about Link.


    ??He does not take drugs or alcohol, does not engage in prostitution or gambling, and does not abuse violence. Although he has had several rumored girlfriends in the past two years, he has never dated more than two girlfriends at the same time.


    Generally speaking, in terms of his private life, he has nothing bad to say.


    "impossible!"


    ??Jay-Z does not believe that there are perfect idols in the entertainment industry. He also comes from the bottom and knows how difficult it is to climb up from the bottom. He also knows how much dirt is hidden inside many celebrities who are glamorous on the outside.


    ??The same must be true for Link.


    Lil Wayne rolled his eyes and said, "Why don''t you arrange for someone to stuff a bag of groceries into his car, and then call the police to arrest him."


    ??Jay-Z thought about it, but it didn’t work either.


    ?Link himself is a multi-millionaire with many lawyers under his staff. He has friendships with the Dewar family and the Thompson family. He is also an elite athlete valued by the sports committee. This frame-up will not affect him at all.


    ? Seeing that everyone couldn’t think of Link’s dirty information after thinking for a long time, Jay-Z threw down his cigar angrily, stamped it with his foot, looked at the music manager and said:


    “Invest another 5 million in publicity and contact more media. I will continue to win the championship next week.”


    ?Everyone thought about it and realized that this was a good idea. Jay-Z already had a lot of fans and the quality of the album was also good. If they increase their publicity and promotion efforts, it would not be difficult to win the top spot on the album sales chart again next week.


    As long as Link can be beaten for one more week, after the third week, when others release new albums, Link will have no chance of winning the top spot on the album chart again.


    ?Link’s album couldn’t win the first place, so everyone won the battle for the charts.


    In the second week after the release of Link''s album "Go Forward", Jay-Z''s Roc Nation Records, United Epic Records, Kanye''s GOOD Records, and Lil Wayne''s Young Money Company invested millions of dollars through various channels. Come to promote the new album "TheBlueprint3".


    Jay-Z also held many charity concerts in New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and other places in the name of the "Shaun Carter Foundation" to donate money to out-of-school children from low-income black families, and invited people in the circle to Hundreds of singers, actors, and sports stars participated.


    ?At the New York concert, Jay-Z donated 500,000 US dollars on the spot, causing a sensation in the audience.


    ?These concerts were broadcast live through MTV Music Station, with the highest viewership exceeding 15 million.


    ?Almost on the same day, good news came from the World Swimming Championships held in Berlin, Germany.


    ?Athlete Link Baker defeated French player Bernard and South Korean player Park Tae-hwan in the 100-meter freestyle track and the 200-meter freestyle track respectively, and won two gold medals.


    After the news reached the United States, all major American media reported on the matter. ESPN entertainment and sports program television network broadcast the live swimming championships through satellite signals.


    ?In the following days, the publisher of "The Blueprint 3" invested a large amount of money to promote the album throughout the United States to increase the exposure of the album and vowed to remain at the top of the album chart.


    ?Link also fought hard at the Berlin Olympic Swimming Center and won 7 gold medals, including 100/200/400/1500m freestyle, 100m/200m breaststroke, and 4x100m freestyle relay.


    Set two swimming records, and currently he is the holder of four FINA swimming records.


    ??The only regret is that American swimming star Phelps accidentally slipped and injured his knee before participating in the 100-meter breaststroke. He had to withdraw from the race midway, and Link could not compete head-on.


    After the competition, Link and the U.S. swimming team took a flight back to Los Angeles.


    (End of this chapter)