Businessman

Two weeks passed and I was sitting with the CEO of Twilight Reverie, John W. Borgen, in his office, awaiting Kiia’s arrival to go over the last details of Ozean Horizon’s record deal, as well as some conditions that Mr. Borgen had not even informed me about.

“Cy, I must say, this is one of the most complex deals we’ve ever done. I frankly can’t believe how nuanced it is to ensure that we’re profitable despite them maintaining ownership of their masters and you agreeing to produce all of their records under this deal pro bono.”

“Well, you said as long as we’re not losing money, I could do what was needed to get the deal done.” I said defensively for no real reason.

“Listening to their first three albums, it is surprising that they never signed with a major or an indie label. I know that this is the era of DIY, but they should have thrown their hats in the ring when they were younger.” He was still somewhere between disbelief and disappointment.

“I mean, they’ve got a built in fanbase, and their singer is only three months younger than I am. Their potential is why this deal is so nuanced…if they reach their ceiling we’ll make our cut, and have all of the leverage for their next contract in five years.”

Mr. Borgen laughed. “I’ve got to say, you’ve become our best talent scout in such a short amount of time. When we agreed to this transition it was supposed to be temporary, but it’s hard to argue with the guy who’s signed and scaled three platinum-selling artists.”

“Yeah,” I said, deflecting the compliment. “But we’re both looking for another Beyond the Realms and Cy Rondeau…we want an artist that can produce diamond albums and stadium tours.”

“Well, unfortunately, those aren’t found, they’re meticulously crafted. Albeit, we never expected your solo career to burn so hot without the band. If we knew that, we would’ve sent you down that road sooner than 2017.”

Finally, Kiia arrived, ending the bickering nostalgia of two corporate cronies.

“Miss Salo, thank you for being able to meet with us in person to finalize the deal; I know that it must be frustrating that the rest of the band was not invited, but they were heavily involved in most of this process.”

“Thank you, Mr. Borgen. I spoke with them, and none of them seemed to mind not being here. You may not hear this often, but you do intimidate people with your presence sometimes,” she said with a nervous smile.

He laughed.

“So, this is the final version of the contract with the notes from our last revision. As stated, Ozean Horizon maintains control over their masters for any original music written and recorded during their time on Twilight Reverie, and Cy Rondeau will be producing all of your material to ensure that you retain full creative control of your music, as has been agreed upon in the deal.”

“Thank you, I’m honestly blown away that we were able to come to that agreement,” she said, bowing.

“With that said, following a discussion with our A&R team, and a personal conversation that I had with Cy during the negotiation, I have an amendment to this contract that I would like signed as an addition to this deal.”

I turned my head in confusion, this must have been the secret condition.

“I have spoken with several major sponsors in the city, and we have booked Ozean Horizon to perform on New Year’s Eve in Times Square.”

He paused before mentioning his condition…he always did this.

Kiia’s eyes popped out of her head. This was the reason you would sign with a major label; to get in front of thirty million people.

“However, since you’re still a new discovery in the commercial music market, we needed to make a concession with the network to give them the star power to increase viewership around the event.”

He turned to face me, and then shifted his focus back to Kiia.

“Ms. Salo, I would like you to perform at least one song with Cy Rondeau on New Year’s Eve as a part of this deal. If Twilight Reverie and Ozean Horizon are going to maximize the value of this deal, this is a non-negotiable for all parties involved.”

My blood pressure dropped. I felt like a phantom. Why did I need to step on stage so soon? I know I said that OH made me want to play again, but wanting to play and actually doing it weren’t the same thing.

“Give me a second to consider this, sir. As you know, despite recent happenings, Mr. Rondeau and I have not always been on good terms with one another.”

I couldn’t read if she was opposed to the idea, or if she was trying to buy me time to regain my composure. I wasn’t going to make this decision. I couldn’t. If it was up to me, I’d let the whole deal crumble over this. I really hadn’t changed in the last three years after all…my talk about diamond artists, it was all for show I guess.

“Thank you, Mr. Borgen, now that the shock of your proposal has passed through my system, if you could please present the documents for me to sign, that would be great.”

She turned to me as she finished her sentence. This was my consequence. I earned enough of her trust at the bar that night, and now she expected it in return.

“Well, the sponsors are certainly going to be ecstatic; the headlines write themselves. Ozean Horizon, the legendary American underground sensation makes their commercial debut after a historic negotiation with Twilight Reverie, where they’ll be joined by diamond-selling artist, Cy Rondeau, the rock idol who hasn’t performed in three years.” Mr. Borgen smiled. “God, what a time to be alive. I look forward to doing business with you, Kiia.”

“The pleasure is all mine,” she said, returning the signed contract. “It’ll be nice to get out on stage with someone who so many people look up to.”

I felt like she was harassing me at this point. She didn’t think that highly of me.

“We’ll get to promoting the show as soon as possible,” Mr. Borgen continued. “I would love it if you all could get into the studio to work on one or two singles to release in conjunction with the show. I know it’s a tight deadline, but after hearing about you from Cy, I believe you can get it done.”

These were his parting words as he moved on for his next meeting, leaving Kiia with the husk of me.

“I didn’t know that was a contract stipulation,” I lamented.

“It’s fine,” she said, more callous than usual. “I expected the label was going to have you perform with us early and often. You legally took responsibility for us, so it would only make sense that you would help us get more attention with your name.”

“I knew my name would be plastered all over it, but I didn’t think they would rush me back on stage after how the last tour ended.” I sighed, still panicking.

“What do you mean? The media said the last tour ended due to an unexpected logistical issue with your visas while you were on tour in Europe.”

I laughed. “It’s fine.” I switched my tone back to neutral. “I’ll figure something out.”

The silence was uncomfortable.

“I’ll schedule studio time closer to you guys’ home base in Rhode Island next week to start working on the singles Mr. Borgen requested, as well as rehearsing whatever we’re performing in two months.”

“Okay, thank you.” She said, clearly put off by how quickly my mood shifted.