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At the afterparty following the awards ceremony, Leon and Taylor remained the absolute center of attention.
Celebrities from the industry kept coming up to toast and congratulate them. Historically, very few couples have been able to display such dominance at a heavyweight awards ceremony.
If you had to find a point of reference, perhaps only Jay-Z and Beyoncé in 2009 could even knock on that door.
"Congratulations, young man, for snatching a big award from right out of Bieber's hands."
Stringer held a champagne glass, maintaining his image of an old-school gentleman.
Although Adele's spotlight was overshadowed by Taylor tonight, Columbia Records was still the biggest winner with five trophies.
Thanks to his achievements in successively discovering Adele and Leon, he was considered the most likely person to succeed Doug Morris at the helm of Sony Music Group.
"I only harvested one trophy; the real big winner of the night is right here."
As he spoke, Leon wrapped his arm tightly around Taylor's waist, earning a coquettish eye-roll from her.
"Haha, I've witnessed many sensational music industry couples, but none were as dazzling as you two," Stringer said. "Even Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley couldn't compare."
A few seconds after saying this, his smile froze awkwardly as he realized he had said something rather inappropriate.
The news of MJ marrying Elvis's daughter, Lisa, was the biggest entertainment news of 1994, but that marriage, watched by countless spotlights, did not have a happy ending.
Lisa was tormented by the marriage into a woman struggling with drugs and alcohol, publicly stating that her relationship with MJ was more "toxic" than any relationship she had ever had.
And MJ gradually faded from the music scene after the marriage, his health deteriorating, and his career focus shifting to charity.
Stringer took a sip of wine with feigned elegance to change the subject. "Have you two never thought about working together? I believe it would certainly spark even more creative inspiration between you."
The old fox finally revealed his hand, extending an olive branch. If he could recruit Taylor under his banner, his merits would be complete.
Gathering the three divas—Adele, Beyoncé, and Taylor—plus the 'Satan of the music industry,' Leon.
Columbia would have no rivals in the record industry for the next decade.
"I have actually looked forward to that scene." Taylor looked at Leon, stars in her eyes.
Most women in love have had such fantasies:
How wonderful it would have been if we sat in the same classroom during our student days.
If only we could work in the same office...
With female hormones in full swing, she didn't want to leave him for a moment, from body to soul.
"That sounds great." Leon had long guessed Stringer's thoughts and replied perfunctorily, "When the time is ripe, everything will happen naturally..."
"I look forward to that day." Stringer smiled and raised his glass. Just as he was about to walk away, he turned back suddenly.
"By the way, Leon, how do you plan to arrange your Christmas? We haven't set a holiday schedule for you yet, but many TV stations, like ABC and NBC, have sent invitations hoping you can perform during their live broadcasts around Christmas Eve..."
Last Christmas, Leon spent it at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, at the NBA Christmas game.
On Christmas Eve the day before, he had told the same lie to three different women.
Christmas Eve performances on the three major broadcast networks are an old tradition. The general process is to broadcast some familiar Christmas songs to the audience, then let celebrities say some pretty words of blessing.
This kind of resource is quite good for Mariah Carey; since the release of "All I Want for Christmas Is You," she has shown her face on TV almost every Christmas. It is the most profitable single of her singing career.
But for Leon, this kind of resource was better than nothing.
He didn't have a standout Christmas love song, and besides, he had already accepted the booking to sing in Times Square on New Year's Eve.
At that time, he would lead New Yorkers in shouting the New Year's countdown together with Taylor.
"Forget it. I want to have a proper Christmas this year." Saying that, Leon looked at Taylor with deep affection.
Under the disguise of deep affection, his mind was full of scenes of her bare butt cosplaying as a little Christmas reindeer.
Taylor, however, sighed softly. "Sorry, honey. I have a performance at CBS on Christmas Eve. I didn't plan to agree, but Scott had already taken the job for me. I'm getting tired of singing 'Last Christmas'..."
"It doesn't matter, baby. How long will it take to finish?" Leon asked.
"Based on past experience, it might drag on until nine o'clock."
"I'll have a surprise ready and waiting for you at home..."
Seeing the young couple discussing intimate topics about their passionate Christmas night, Stringer tactfully walked away.
The main content of the afterparty was singers flattering each other in various ways.
Singers paid lip service, wishing each other big awards next year, while in their hearts, they wished you would be "cancelled" tomorrow, ruined to the point where you could never turn over a new leaf.
After dealing with an hour of hypocritical celebrity socializing, Leon and Taylor held hands, ready to leave—to start a passionate night against the backdrop of four AMA trophies.
At this moment, a group centered around Jay-Z suddenly started jeering collectively.
The banquet BGM was switched to that famous anthem of New York, "Empire State of Mind."
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of
There's nothin' you can't do
Now you're in New York
Jay-Z was in an exceptionally low mood tonight. Rihanna received two nominations but came up empty-handed.
Although his wife, Beyoncé, won the award for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist, there was almost zero communication between them during the entire ceremony.
When Taylor won Artist of the Year and showed off her affection with Leon live, Beyoncé left in a hurry.
Despite gaining little in terms of awards, in social settings, as the King of the East Coast, he was still the absolute focus of the party. Almost all the rappers in the venue were circling around him.
In this atmosphere, the depressed Jay-Z couldn't help but drink a few more glasses.
People around him kept egging him on:
"Boss, that kid Leon is looking at you."
"Fk, even a dog knows gratitude better than him. Would he be here today without the Roc Nation kingdom?"
"That bastard is laughing, did you see that? Is he provoking us?"
Under the continuous stimulation from his minions, Jay-Z got more and more worked up.
The last time the two communicated face-to-face was at Diddy's White Party.
For a long time after that, their communication stopped at wars of words on social media.
Empowered by alcohol, Jay-Z picked up a glass of his own brand's D'Usse cognac and walked straight toward Leon.
Realizing the situation was a bit off, Taylor subconsciously tugged at Leon's arm.
"It's okay, looks like he wants to have a chat with me," Leon reassured her.
To his surprise, Taylor just pursed her lips, then stood calmly on the same line as him.
Compared to the country girl who was humiliated by Kanye to the point of almost crying two years ago, the change was significant.
Jay-Z stopped just one meter away from Leon and spoke in an aggressive tone, "More than a year ago, I picked you out of the trash heap in Brownsville, and watched you, a stray dog, turn into a vicious cur that bites its master..."
"Are you scared?" Leon shrugged, a smile hanging on his face the whole time.
"Scared? What stupid things are you saying?" Jay-Z held his stomach, pretending to laugh so hard he couldn't stand up straight. "Do you think winning a few more trophies can change the current situation? Those things are just a pile of scrap metal in my eyes."
He opened his arms, immersed in the BGM of "Empire State of Mind." "No matter how many good songs you write, no matter how many newcomers you sign, nothing will change. Everyone knows who the true symbol representing New York is."
If there weren't quite a few reporters at the party, Jay-Z would probably have been even more blunt—The New York music scene is my empire!
Facing the provocation of the King of New York, Leon wore a contemptuous smile from beginning to end.
He was no longer that young singer who had nothing but records.
He had achieved success in all the fields he invested in and had full confidence to confront Jay-Z head-on.
He let go of Taylor's waist and took two steps forward, shortening the distance of less than a meter even further.
The two faced each other almost nose-to-nose.
Leon lowered his voice and said, "I will take everything from you."
"Really?" Jay-Z tilted his head and whispered in his ear, "Before that, you have to ensure you can stay alive."
The reporters, eager for gossip, picked up their cameras and snapped furiously.
"What are they saying?"
"Is there anyone who can read lips?"
Seeing the atmosphere wasn't right, Lil Wayne immediately rushed over with his minions, roaring aggressively:
"Fk you, white boy, show some respect!"
While speaking, Drake, who had lost 3 million dollars in the charity poker tournament not long ago, was eager to express himself and, with courage from who knows where, pushed Leon.
"Stay away from my boss!!"
DJ Khaled, Pitbull, Chris Brown, and more artists from Jay-Z's side surrounded them.
The reporters screamed in excitement: "Holy sht! Hurry up and take more pictures! Don't miss any angle! This scene will definitely make the headlines tomorrow!"
Click, click, click.
The entertainment industry had been civilized and polite for a long time since the millennium; such a tense scene was bound to get people's blood pumping.
But Jay-Z wasn't the only one with a lot of little brothers. The commotion at the party quickly caught Kendrick's attention, and he immediately shouted at the top of his lungs, "Look at Leon over there!"
"What's up?!"
50 Cent, King Von, and Cardi B reacted immediately and gathered beside Leon.
Even Ariana Grande ran over to stand in front of Leon, though her tiny stature could barely cover anything.
"Motherfker! You want to start something, huh!"
"Chris! Looks like the lesson I taught you wasn't enough! Hurry up and do what you're best at—kneel down and kiss my ass!"
King Von and Cardi B started spraying verbal fire from left and right, one throwing Chicago gang signs, the other throwing Bloods gang signs.
Female stars like Katy Perry, Christina Aguilera, and Lady Gaga put down their wine glasses one after another, watching the fun while chatting with their assistants.
"Hurry up, guys, make some big news..."
The reporters chanted silently in their hearts, expecting this conflict to evolve into a classic like the NBA's "Malice at the Palace" brawl in 2004.