The interview ended, and the reporter stood up, bowing at a forty-five-degree angle to shake hands with Leon. The main task of the Tokyo trip was now down to tomorrow's fan meeting in Shibuya.
The group boarded the commercial van and headed straight for the next stop—Aoyama, where the headquarters of Sony Interactive Entertainment was located.
Suddenly, Phil said to the accompanying translator, "Tell the driver to change the destination. We're going to Ginza now."
"What are you talking about?" Leon sat up straight immediately and shot Phil a look.
From the moment the interview started at NHK, the old geezer had been distracted, constantly staring at his watch.
His body was in the studio, but his soul had already flown under the skirt of a hostess.
"Look what time it is. We won't get to Aoyama in Minato ward until at least eight o'clock." Phil explained, "Kitano invited us to go directly to a restaurant in Ginza to chat over drinks. Don't worry, Shuhei Yoshida will be there too."
Since it was for work, Leon didn't say anything more.
Ginza at 8 PM was incredibly lively, filled with dazzling neon signs and fashionably dressed young men and women everywhere.
But Phil was greatly disappointed. As soon as he got out of the car, he started ranting, "Fck! Where's the Dutch Red Light District I was promised? This can't even compare to Manhattan Beach! Aren't the women here going to die of heatstroke wearing so many clothes?"
As a fundamentalist lecher, the amount of fabric on girls was Phil's sole criterion for judging their value.
Tokyo in November had already entered a big temperature drop. Even sex workers wouldn't be as dedicated as Americans across the ocean, shivering in the cold wind wearing bikinis.
"Don't embarrass Uncle Sam in Japan..." Leon teased the depressed old geezer.
The meeting place was a private club in Ginza. It operated on a membership basis, never opened to the public, and even less so to foreigners.
Seeing a group of Western faces, the receptionist politely declined them in English.
It wasn't until she heard the name Saburo Kitano that the receptionist immediately changed her face, bowing repeatedly in fear and trepidation.
"I am very sorry! Please forgive my negligence. Distinguished guests, please follow me!"
Led by her, Leon and his party entered a private room.
As soon as they appeared, Kitano shouted at the top of his lungs, "Leon-san! Phil-san! Welcome to Tokyo!"
He rushed over excitedly to hug everyone warmly, but stopped when he reached Anya.
He was no stranger to Bonnie, but it was his first time seeing the blonde girl in front of him.
"Leon-san, did you bring this girl yourselves? Didn't I tell Phil that I would take care of everything in Tokyo?" Kitano looked Anya up and down, smiling lewdly. "Kawaii ne..."
"This is Anya, a new actress." Leon pulled Anya to his side. "This is Mr. Kitano; he works for Sony Music Group."
Facing the strange environment, Anya had a bit of stage fright.
The Japan seen in reality didn't seem as beautiful as in manga; instead, most of it was wretched to the point of being somewhat nauseating.
But with Leon by her side, she quickly overcame her social anxiety and took the initiative to greet him, "It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Kitano."
"If I guessed correctly, you are the British girl mentioned in the news who snatched the female lead of Ready Player One from Megan Fox and Amber Heard?"
"Yes..." Anya lowered her voice, a bit embarrassed.
After Kitano finished introductions, Shuhei Yoshida, President of Sony Interactive Entertainment, also stepped forward to shake hands with the guests one by one. He was the real protagonist of this negotiation.
Thin figure, short stature, old-fashioned gold-rimmed glasses, plus a serious expression—one could tell at a glance he was a shrewd businessman.
"Please, our distinguished guests who have come from afar, take a seat." Yoshida invited everyone to sit down.
The dining table was filled with representative Japanese ingredients like sea urchin, wagyu beef, tuna, snow crab, etc.
This club prided itself on using only top-tier ingredients, but the cooking methods were relatively singular—mostly raw, unprocessed ingredients.
Anya tried to pick up a piece of fatty tuna (Otoro), dipped it in wasabi soy sauce, but the tempting fish meat fell onto the table just as it approached her lips.
"Just a little bit..."
"Let me teach you." Leon laughed while guiding her hand-in-hand on how to use chopsticks correctly.
With rounds of toasts, sake and Japanese whiskey mixed in their stomachs, Yoshida and Kitano soon became flushed.
The Japanese man, unable to hold back first, said, "Leon-san, you are an artist under Columbia Records. In a way, we are family. Cheers to our friendship!"
"Cheers, Mr. Yoshida!" Leon was enthusiastic on the surface but cursed inwardly: Family, and you still offer such a ridiculous price?
Yoshida put down his glass. " regarding the IP licensing, Kitano-kun has spoken to me many times. I guarantee this is already the lowest price we can give. I am very sorry."
Hearing this, Phil, who had been whispering to Kitano, interjected, "In 2005, your company licensed Spider-Man to a Thai advertising company. If I remember correctly, the price then was only $100,000. Is US dollar inflation really this severe?"
Yoshida spread his hands and said, "This has nothing to do with inflation. The Spider-Man IP is rapidly appreciating. We are rebooting this series and don't wish for this image to appear in other movies."
The reboot of the Spider-Man series, The Amazing Spider-Man, was nearing completion and scheduled for release next summer. Sony Columbia Pictures had high hopes for this film's performance.
"I understand your thoughts, but think about it from another angle. If Ready Player One succeeds, it will be beneficial for enhancing the influence of these IPs," Leon said.
"Correct, but such benefits might not be higher than the potential risks."
"How about this? Let's make a deal to ensure both parties benefit."
"Let's hear it?" Yoshida leaned forward, showing great interest.
"I want all IP licensing fees for Ready Player One reduced by half, including all 20 IPs on the list."
"Leon-san... you..." Yoshida's face turned red instantly. "That's impossible!"
"Hear me out." Leon knocked on the table. "In exchange, Sony can use all my music copyrights in a movie within three years, and The Amazing Spider-Man is no exception."
This sounded like a win-win decision. The quality of the soundtrack is inseparable from the film's performance and is an important part of film production expenses.
If original music is tailored for a movie, the cost is even higher. Music production budgets generally account for about 5%-10% of a blockbuster's total investment.
Leon's works occupied the top two spots on the Billboard. Sony exchanging half the licensing fee for this wouldn't be a loss.
Yoshida crossed his arms and pondered for a while before saying, "As far as I know, the master rights to your first album are still in Jay-Z's hands, and the master rights to your current works should be with Columbia Records..."
The implication was clear: Does Sony still need to pay to use your works?
Leon was prepared for this. He lit a cigarette and said in a deep voice:
"It seems you don't understand my agreement with Columbia Records. I own half the master rights to We Don't Talk Anymore and Old Town Road. Do you think Stringer won't support me?"
"What?" Yoshida raised his eyebrows.
"You heard right. It's a bit complicated to explain, but my copyright management company also owns many big hits. No matter how you look at it, you won't lose in this deal."
Yoshida lowered his head in long thought.
Calculating based on one minute per IP for the 20 needed in Ready Player One, the total licensing fee would be as high as $4 million. Half price meant $2 million. Exchanging that for the soundtrack rights to a dozen top hits wasn't a losing deal; in fact, there was profit to be made.
Considering Leon was a singer under Columbia Records, making the negotiation too stiff wouldn't be justifiable.
After thinking for two minutes, Yoshida took the initiative to raise his glass. "You gave me a reason I couldn't refuse!"
"Cheers!" The two clinked glasses and downed half a glass of whiskey in one go.
"Great! It should have been like this long ago!"
Kitano hugged Phil, appearing even more excited than the two parties who reached the cooperation agreement.
He got up, walked to the door of the private room, opened it, and shouted:
"Bring them in!!"
As soon as his voice fell, a middle-aged woman dressed like a mama-san walked in with mincing steps in a low-cut dress.
Shortly after, a large group of scantily clad hostesses followed into the private room.
The woman standing in the center position (C position) wore a fox-like charming smile. Even more amazing were the majestic "headlights" on her chest.
Even a tiny movement could generate intense fluctuations. It was hard to find a matching model even in America, a country known for producing "large vehicles."
Leon felt this woman looked very familiar, like he must have seen her somewhere.
"Since the work matters are settled, now please enjoy what true Japanese culture is!" Kitano walked up to the girl in the center and introduced her: "This is Miss Anri Okita, an amazing action movie actress. You Americans probably don't know how hard it is to book her..."
"Nice to meet everyone~ I hope you all have fun in Tokyo." Okita stunned everyone with fluent English.
Hearing the name, Leon immediately felt even more familiar. Wasn't this the most popular action movie teacher in the island nation right now?
Women in this line of work usually had side jobs, using movies to raise their value and making big money in places like bars and soaplands.
"Teach these Americans a good lesson! Understand, girls?" Kitano put his arm around Okita's waist. "Especially that young American. He's a big shot. Don't tell me none of you recognize him?"
The hostesses looked at each other. Most Japanese people weren't interested in "barbarian" music.
While they were still hesitating, Okita had already swung her headlights and sat down next to Leon. "OMG, today is definitely my lucky day... Oh my God, my friends are going to be jealous to death! Can I take a photo to commemorate this?"
"No." Leon refused mercilessly.
"You look as cool as you do on TV. Can I get a little closer to you?" Before he could answer, Okita was already hugging his arm and rubbing against it.
Anya looked at the exotic woman with exaggerated proportions in front of her, then looked down at herself. The strong contrast made her pout uncontrollably.
"This occasion doesn't seem very suitable for me..."
Watching the men's behavior in the private room become increasingly crazy, Anya whispered, "I'll go back to the hotel first..."
"Let Jorge take you back. I'll be done here very soon." Leon nodded. The atmosphere here indeed wasn't suitable for a 15-year-old girl.
Anya nodded, obviously not knowing how long his "very soon" would be.