[Chapter 554: The Earning Power of a Top Singer and the Concert Plan]
That day, Linton was slacking off in his office, casually testing the newly released Tomb Raider II game from Fire Elf Games.
Two years ago, Fire Elf Games had launched Tomb Raider and Resident Evil, both of which were massive hits in the market and won high praise from players. Within two years of their release, both games sold over 10 million copies in North America alone. Moreover, their overseas sales had even surpassed those numbers by now, making them global sensations.
These two titles had brought Fire Elf Games huge profits. The company had since transformed from a small startup into one of Silicon Valley's most renowned game developers. Naturally, sequels for these hits were in the works.
Tomb Raider II had just hit the shelves last month. Thanks to the success of the first game, it sold over 8 million copies worldwide in its first month. The sequel offered a much larger, more realistic map, introduced vehicles, and implemented diverse gameplay mechanics, greatly enhancing the player experience.
Linton was thoroughly enjoying the game and even found himself wondering if he could launch a Tomb Raider movie next year. Coincidentally, Nicole Kidman's recent summer hit, The Long Kiss Goodnight, had been wildly successful. Her confident and fierce action scenes had won audiences over, effectively carving out a fresh path for female-driven action movies in Hollywood. Nicole had become one of the rare top female action stars, reaping the rewards of being a pioneer and gaining countless fans worldwide.
Given her current star power combined with the massive influence of the Tomb Raider game fanbase, Linton thought the project had serious potential. Although the film's release would precede Angelina Jolie's Tomb Raider by several years, he felt the box office could only do better. Nicole Kidman was, in every way, far stronger than Jolie was back in 2001.
Moreover, Tomb Raider was a female-led action movie, so if it succeeded, it would elevate Nicole Kidman's career to true A-list superstar status, which in turn would help Linton accelerate his own cultivation.
As he played and pondered, Li Xiaoran knocked and entered. "Boss, Daniel from Universal Records is here."
...
Daniel was here with good news -- and to deliver money.
Linton's album, The Brightest Star in the Night Sky, was a classic fan-oriented album, propelled by an overwhelming fan base and immense popularity. It had ignited the market from the moment it dropped.
By the end of October, the album had sold 29.56 million copies in North America, while overseas sales reached 31.09 million. The videocassette sales in North America and overseas were 3.21 million and 2.93 million units respectively.
However, the market potential was nearly exhausted, with daily sales dropping below 20,000 copies.
Earlier that month, Daniel had proactively approached Linton to settle the album's financial accounts. Linton had assigned Henry to liaise with Daniel and verify the data.
Though Universal Records was a company fully owned by Linton, corporate profits and personal income were distinctly different and couldn't be mixed.
Following Daniel came lawyers, company accountants, as well as Mira and Henry, who waited in the secretary's office.
The settlement consisted of three parts.
Part one covered the album's sales revenue. With 29.56 million copies sold in North America at $20 each, total sales amounted to $590.71 million. Meanwhile, 31.09 million overseas copies at an average $19 amounted to $591.20 million.
The combined global album sales totaled a staggering $1.11891 billion.
According to their agreement, Linton was entitled to 21% as performer's royalties, plus 14% from songwriting and composition royalties, totaling a 35% share. His cut came to $413.66 million.
The second part involved videocassette sales. VCR sales in North America reached 3.21 million units at $38 each, totaling $121.98 million. Overseas sales of 2.93 million units at $35 came to $102.55 million, making a total videocassette revenue of $224.53 million.
Again, Linton earned 21% of these sales, amounting to $47.15 million.
The third part covered song copyright royalties. The 13 new songs released this year on the album performed steadily. Global copyright licensing fees totaled $133 million. With a 35% royalty share, Linton received $46.55 million.
Adding these three parts together, Linton's total earnings from the album and related rights came to $507.36 million.
Seeing that number on the settlement documents, Linton was stunned. "Is it really that much? You guys aren't inflating the numbers on purpose, are you?"
Daniel blinked. "Boss, the data is absolutely accurate. We double-checked everything, and Henry's team confirmed it too."
He answered calmly, thinking to himself, 'Who would be stupid enough to overpay the artist? If you weren't the big boss, I'd happily shave off 20%.'
Henry chimed in, "Boss, we've thoroughly audited and verified the data. There's no mistake."
He was over the moon. Though his financial division's share dropped to just 0.5%, the five-person audit team had earned $2.5 million in just a few days -- it was a huge payday.
Linton couldn't help but marvel once more at the $507.36 million figure. The income of top-tier singers was on a different level compared to Hollywood film stars of similar status -- by quite a large margin.
Take Mission: Impossible for example. As both director and star, Linton had paid himself an astronomical fee of $32 million plus 25% box office royalties in North America. Though the movie shattered box office records with a $407 million domestic gross, his final payout was just over $90 million. That combined fee still paled in comparison to his album royalties by a huge gap.
No wonder in his inner circle, Madonna and Shania Twain consistently earned far more than the rest of the women.
Linton recognized he had fallen into a misconception. While top singers indeed earned more than top Hollywood stars, the difference wasn't usually more than fivefold.
The extraordinary revenue share for his album stemmed not only from huge sales and his high royalty percentage, but also two key reasons.
First, every song on the album was self-written and composed. That segment accounted for 40% of the total revenue -- a capability few other top singers possessed, as they had to share songwriting royalties with other creators.
Second, Universal Records was his own company. During the revenue settlement process, there were no shady dealings. Otherwise, for profits this large, no record company would play fair.
Even with a high-level financial audit team hired, record labels were notorious for cooking the numbers on sales and pricing. The difference was how much they cut the artist.
Even for their own "golden" artists, a 20% cut was considered generous.
For other top singers, even with such high sales volumes, earning $250 million would be a triumph.
The income gap between Madonna, Shania Twain, and other female singers wasn't just about sales or image. There was another factor to consider.
As mentioned before, Hollywood had significant pay disparities between male and female stars due to box office draw.
Top male actors in commercial films earned at least $10 million per film, with some demanding box office shares. The absolute giants pulled in over $20 million plus up to 20% of domestic box office earnings.
They also often negotiated script changes to each role to better fit their star persona and took on producer roles, gaining creative control and final editing rights.
In contrast, female stars' pay was nowhere close. Most commercial films centered on male leads, with female roles often reduced to mere eye candy. Consequently, men carried the box office, commanding far higher fees.
So far, Julia Roberts was Hollywood's only true female superstar, able to command $20 million per film -- but only in her romantic comedy niche, and without any box office participation. Other A-list actresses earned no more than $8 million.
However, following the summer's massive hits -- Twister and The Long Kiss Goodnight -- two new female stars, Naomi Watts and Nicole Kidman, had emerged. Their next movie salaries breaking the $10 million barrier was all but guaranteed.
Male and female stars at similar levels earned nearly double in pay disparity. However, endorsements and other commercial ventures showed less of a gender gap -- often based on personal brand and popularity. Most female stars secured higher endorsement fees than their male counterparts.
In music, by contrast, there was basically no gender difference. Male and female singers of equal stature earned similar incomes. The competition focused on single and album sales.
Another crucial aspect was stage presence, affecting concert ticket sales, commercial events, and endorsements.
For most singers, touring and concerts generated more income than record sales.
Linton was uniquely odd in that he never performed at commercial events or concerts, much to his fans' frequent complaints.
Unsurprisingly, Madonna and Shania Twain ranked at the very top, both in sales and stage presence, making their earnings among the highest in the music industry.
Their image, fan appeal, and commercial value exceeded Naomi Watts and Nicole Kidman's by a considerable margin.
Especially Madonna, who advertisers adored. She remained the highest-paid celebrity in commercial endorsements worldwide, no contest. For the past three years, Forbes reported she earned over $200 million annually from endorsements -- eclipsing all other entertainment stars.
Linton, by contrast, had strictly limited his own endorsements for three years. After his prior contracts expired, he retained only Pepsi, Mercedes off-road vehicles, and Armani -- brands that upheld his prestige and boosted his public image.
Otherwise, his endorsement fees might well have exceeded Madonna's.
After deducting 6% agent commissions and Henry's 0.5% financial audit fee, Linton's pocket swelled by an additional $474.4 million.
In high spirits, he asked Li Xiaoran to open a bottle of red wine to celebrate with everyone.
...
Seeing Linton's mood lift, Daniel perked up. After the others left, he stayed behind and tentatively asked, "Boss, do you have any free time at year-end?"
"What's up? Got another idea?"
"I'm thinking you could spend two months doing a nationwide tour. I guarantee the market would explode if you held a concert."
"Why? Haven't your record sales targets been met this year?"
"No, boss. Thanks to your album, we've already surpassed our goals. But who ever complains about too much money? And after all, the profits belong to you."
"Let me ask you this: my album earned me $500 million in royalties. How much profit did it make for the company?"
"A little more than your cut. The album made about $580 million in profit for the company. Overall company profit should reach about $900 million this year."
"Great. Since the company is doing so well, I'll keep my promise from the beginning of the year. After New Year's, Universal Records will separate from Universal Studios and become a Class A subsidiary, with you as president."
"Thank you, boss, for your trust in me and Universal Records. We'll keep working hard to deliver even better results."
"Good. I'll be watching your performance closely."
"Boss, what about that concert I mentioned?"
Linton was surprised Daniel hadn't given up despite the promotion news.
Since he had no major plans before February, holding two concerts sounded reasonable. It would be a way to thank his fans and experience firsthand the boost to his popularity from live performances.
"All right. Let's do two shows -- one in Los Angeles in December, and another in New York in January. No other cities."
"Perfect! Fans in L.A. and New York are lucky. I'll get started on the plan and have the details to you in a few days."
"Sounds good. Prepare the plan accordingly. I intend to perform all 46 songs from my three albums live."
"Wait, boss -- 46 songs in one show? That's impossible. Your voice won't hold up."
"No worries. I know my limits."
"Boss, the concerts aren't just singing; there's dancing too. At least two-thirds of the songs require singing and dancing. Your stamina can't handle that. I recommend halving the set list to 23 songs. Invite some guests to keep the show full."
"Relax. I'm the only one who knows how much energy I have. Don't worry about my voice or stamina. Just arrange it as I said -- 46 songs live. For guests, keep it to Madonna, Shania Twain, Vivian Chow, Izumi Sakai, Akina Nakamori, and Noriko Sakai. Don't want to owe anyone favors later."
"Understood. I'll start on the plan right away."
*****
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