Harrison Clark could see Carrie Thomas's true thoughts.
She loved this song and really wanted to sing it.
Not just singing a demo, but as the real performer of the song, interpreting it with her own understanding.
Because the song was written about her, and after understanding it, it held a fatal attraction for her like a shackle.
Hence, Carrie had pretended to be happy during dinner, congratulating insincerely.
She was very lost, so much so that when Harrison said he would share the proceeds with her, she was easily angered.
Unconsciously, Harrison had been pondering in his room for an hour already. Glancing at his watch, it was already nine o'clock at night.
He made a decision.
Harrison took out his cell phone and found Bella Ross's number.
"Bella, sorry to disturb."
Bella on the other end seemed to be eating, and muffledly said, "What's up? Didn't I tell you to reply tomorrow?"
"Well, Bella, about the song 'Boring'..."
"You're not selling it, right?"
"Ah? How did you know?"
"Lucia said so. If you didn't agree on the spot, most likely you wouldn't sell it. And Lucia also said that you intended to let the girl who sang the demo sing it, right?"
Armed with the short end of the stick, Harrison felt embarrassed for refusing the help of others, and didn't know how to respond.
"It's alright, you don't have to worry. Lucia said that choosing a song isn't just about buying and selling, but also about destiny. Just like dating, it's not just about looks, but rather compatibility. Radium is honey to her but arsenic to others."
"While listening to the demo, Lucia felt that the owner of that voice was the most suitable person for this song, and Leah Clark was only the second-best option."
"I believe you must have felt the same way after listening. Of course, since we promised to help you, we won't go back on our word. So, we didn't take the initiative to mention it to you. Now that you have realized it on your own, it's even better."
"Harrison, let me tell you another thing. Lucia also said that if you eventually decided to sell the song to Leah, she would be quite disappointed. Because it would mean that you are good at creating but not at finding the best voice for your work."
"Alright, I'm still out with Lucia shooting a MV right now, so I'll hang up. I'll help you reply to Leah Clark soon. This is quite common in the industry, so don't feel burdened."
After hanging up, Harrison was silent for a long time.
He was really surprised that Avril Green, once defeated by Carrie Thomas, had such strong music skills.
Come to think of it, Avril seemed to have only lost to Carrie during their time.
Looking at Avril's lifetime achievements, if it weren't for the brilliant Carrie of the same era, Avril should have been the highest achieving female singer in the past few decades.
One should never underestimate anyone.
Harrison breathed deeply, went upstairs, and knocked on the door.
Carrie didn't answer him.
Harrison shouted outside the door, "I've just replied to the other party that I'm not selling this song. I want you to sing it."
"What?!"
Carrie opened the door abruptly, "Have you gone mad?"
It turned out she had been standing at the door all along.
Harrison shook his head, "No, I'm clear-headed."
"Have you taken the wrong medication? Leah Clark is at her peak right now. Do you know what it means for you if your song is successfully sold to Leah? It means that from now on, as long as you work harder, you will continuously receive invitations to write songs."
"I know, but it doesn't matter."
"I'm just an unknown newcomer. It's a waste for me to sing this song, and I can't offer you any help. Moreover, I can't afford it."
Harrison shook his head, "If the song is popular, both you and I will be popular. The popularity of a song is related to the singer's fame, but it's not the decisive factor. More importantly, it lies in the quality of the song itself. In my opinion, you are the most suitable performer for this song. Don't you have confidence in yourself? Do you really think your rendition won't be as good as Leah's? Just because others are more famous than you now, should you belittle yourself and only look up to others? Are you doubting yourself? What gave you the courage to drop out of school? Wasn't it absolute confidence?"Harrison Clark threw out several questions in a row, making Carrie Thomas fall silent.
Carrie Thomas took a deep breath and asked in a deep voice, "Do you really think so?"
She was shaken.
"Yes, I've thought so since I heard you practicing singing."
"Thank you for your approval, but I really can't afford 200,000 now. And even if I buy your song, I have no way to make it happen."
Harrison Clark thought for a moment, "You sing it, we make it ourselves, just a single. Then release it on the platform and follow the paid download route."
Carrie Thomas shook her head immediately.
"That's unrealistic. Nowadays, listeners only listen to free music, and the habit of paying hasn't been developed yet. Unless they are diehard fans, very few people will pay for downloads. Even when famous artists release new songs, they have to be free for members. Not to mention it's just a single from a complete newcomer. No one will pay for it."
Harrison Clark shook his head, "Just because others can't do it doesn't mean you can't."
In fact, five years later, Boring, as Carrie Thomas's debut, was recorded by herself, released on the platform, and went viral quickly. This made her famous in a short time and brought about her rapid transformation.
Of course, at that time, many people thought she was just an Internet singer who would fade away quickly. No one expected her to have been accumulating strength and be ready to soar once she entered the spotlight.
Before she became famous, Carrie Thomas hadn't thought about all these possibilities.
She was just unwilling to give up at that time and decided to do her best in this final struggle, ultimately succeeding.
Now, Harrison Clark brought this moment forward by a few years. She hadn't experienced all that yet and hadn't reached the point of complete desperation, so she naturally had some reservations.
As expected, Carrie Thomas asked in confusion, "How much do you really believe in my abilities? Have you ever heard me sing a complete song?"
Harrison Clark was alert and almost gave himself away.
He simply smiled mysteriously and pointed to his head, "Intuition. My intuition tells me that this is the best answer. How do we know the outcome if we don't try? If we fail, we'll just use the free model and share the revenue based on the traffic."
"The traffic sharing ratio is very low. You can't earn back the 200,000 this way."
Carrie Thomas seriously considered the feasibility of Harrison Clark's proposal and finally said,
Harrison Clark shook his head indifferently, "Fame is money. Even though I let you sing it, the copyright is still mine. No matter how low the platform's revenue-sharing ratio is, as long as the song becomes popular and has enough fame, the next time I sell a song, the price won't be 200,000. Afterwards, whether it's you or anyone else who wants to use this song for commercial performances or any other media performance, they'll have to pay me."
"If I sold it to Leah Clark, I wouldn't have the copyright, and I can't be sure if she would give me credit. All the subsequent income would be out of my reach. I let you sing it because I'm actually considering a longer-term plan."
To persuade Carrie Thomas to let go of her suspicions, Harrison Clark came up with countless reasons to convince her.
She was finally convinced, "Is this your real plan then?"
Harrison Clark laughed, "You can understand it that way if you want."
After settling things, the two immediately took action and began to work out the details together.
Harrison Clark wasn't familiar with the specific steps, so he let her figure it out.
Carrie Thomas calculated the cost, "I only have 50,000 in savings. But in the next step, I need to spend more than 100,000 to find someone to arrange the music, just having a guitar accompaniment is definitely not enough. Then the production of the accompaniment and the recording of the master in the studio need about 100,000 as well. In total, we need at least 200,000 to start."
Harrison Clark interrupted her, "We don't need to arrange the music. I've already done it. I have the complete sheet music here."
"Ah?" Carrie Thomas was dumbfounded, "How many instruments are there in total?"
Harrison Clark started to count, "Guitar, bass, drums, piano, celesta, organ, harmonica... twelve in total."
Sharp inhaling sounds echoed in the room as Carrie Thomas looked at Harrison Clark with incredulous eyes, trying to determine if he was lying.
"Did you make all of this?"
Harrison Clark shamelessly nodded, "Yes."
"Are you sure you're not a second-generation from a music family who's never studied music before?"
Harrison Clark asked back, "Why would I lie to you?"
Carrie Thomas looked away, "I give up."