yournovel Chapter 25 Intercepting
Chapter 25 Intercepting
Zeke's heart leaped into his throat; he clenched his fists and held his breath.
Erfe continued, "The chorus 'YMCA' of 'YMCA' is almost identical to the chorus 'San-Fran-Cis-Co' of Village People's 'San Francisco (You've Got Me)'."
As he spoke, Casablanca's legal representative produced a portable recorder, pressed play, and after two melodies finished playing, everyone fell silent:
The first four notes, rhythm, and even the ascending direction of the two choruses are exactly the same. It's almost as if they just changed a few words in the lyrics and sped up the tempo, making it sound like an adaptation of the same song.
The legal representative turned off the recorder and looked up at the crowd: "This is no longer just a simple adaptation, but a blatant melody borrowing. Without authorization from Village People and Casablanca Records, you absolutely cannot release this song, nor can you continue to perform it publicly, otherwise we will definitely sue you."
The atmosphere instantly became heavy. Tino and Colin turned pale, and old Rossi lost his previous confidence. His lips moved, but he couldn't say anything.
At this point, Erfe spoke up again, his tone softening somewhat: "However, there is some good news. This song is not entirely plagiarism; the melody is only borrowed in the chorus. Although the melody and arrangement style of the verse are somewhat similar to 'San Francisco (You've Got Me),' it does not constitute plagiarism. It can only be said that it is a creation in the same disco style."
Holly quickly stepped forward to smooth things over for Zeke: "See, I told you there was a misunderstanding. This kind of thing is very common in the music industry. Maybe Zeke heard 'San Francisco (You've Got Me)' by chance on some occasion, but forgot where it came from and unintentionally borrowed the melody of the chorus. It wasn't intentional plagiarism."
"No matter what, 'YMCA' is undoubtedly a good song, and it still has the potential to become a huge hit if the license is obtained."
Qi Ke secretly breathed a sigh of relief and quickly went along with it, nodding as if he had just realized something: "Uh, I might have heard it somewhere before, but I just can't remember. I just unintentionally borrowed the melody of the chorus. I really didn't plagiarize on purpose."
As soon as he finished speaking, Eiffel and Casablanca's legal counsel exchanged a subtle glance at him, but remained silent.
Feeling a little uncomfortable under their gazes, Qi Ke couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? Is there something wrong with what I said?"
"Wow, you might not know this," Erf raised an eyebrow, hesitating before continuing, "So, to put it another way, Village People's self-titled album was released here in Casablanca. It did sell quite well this year, but its audience is rather unique."
"This album was almost exclusively popular in gay disco clubs. Few people outside the gay community knew about it, and many had never even heard of the band Village People. This was because the entire album was recorded by studio musicians and unknown singers. There was no chart promotion or mainstream marketing, so apart from the gay community, nobody paid any attention to it."
He gave Zeke a meaningful look: "So, I'm curious, where did you hear this song? After all, you're a high school student from Brooklyn, you shouldn't have any way of coming across this song."
"No wonder! I was wondering why there were no problems with the copyright comparison before. This song is too niche, and the person in charge of registering the copyright had never heard of it! It's just a coincidence, a pure coincidence!" Tino slapped his forehead.
But his words did nothing to ease the awkwardness.
Holly crossed her arms, her gaze towards Zeke becoming quite amused. She put her fist to her mouth, concealing the smile on her lips.
Fuck! Zik stood there, his cheeks burning, mentally screaming, "What the hell! Why is this gay label being slapped on my head?!"
The song already had homosexual undertones, and now, because it borrowed from songs by indie bands, people are suspecting that he's an insider. Even if he jumped into the Hudson River, he couldn't clear his name now!
Feeling uncomfortable under everyone's gaze, Qi Ke casually made up a story: "I forgot too, maybe I heard it on a jukebox in some bar."
Upon hearing this, the South African members of the Sirens immediately exchanged knowing, mischievous smiles. Keith leaned forward and teased them playfully:
"Oh? Is it one of those bars like the one in East Village? The one we went to for our performance a few days ago? I didn't realize, Zeke, that you're into both men and women!"
The others joined in the laughter, and Holly waved her hand with a grin: "It's okay, I don't mind. You're so talented, it doesn't matter what."
Qi Ke opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found himself speechless.
The more I explained, the more confusing it became, and the more suspicious it seemed. I could only roll my eyes helplessly and let them tease me.
At the other end of the table, Tino's eyes darted around, and he instantly changed the subject: "So, Erf, so you also recognize the value of this song and the Sirens, right? Seriously, if Casablanca's offer is right, I'll consider you first."
Erf picked up the coffee on the table, took a sip, and smiled without saying a word.
Tino continued to escalate the situation, his tone even more boastful: "Don't underestimate them, they're in high demand right now. Congressional Records, Mercury Records, ROS Records, and Warner Bros. have all extended offers, each with attractive terms."
"Oh? Is that so?" The Casablanca legal representative put down the folder in his hand, shrugged, and looked like he had Tino completely under his thumb. "But so what? Without our authorization, this song is useless, no matter how many people extend olive branches to it."
Zeke understood; Casablanca was there to snatch the contract, not to confront him.
However, the current situation is very unfavorable for them. The copyright is in the hands of the other party, and they don't have much bargaining power.
"We can also buy the rights from the original composer; we don't necessarily have to go through you!" Colin retorted defiantly, trying to salvage the situation.
"Come on, Tino, Colin, stop fooling yourselves." Erf finally spoke, his tone tinged with mockery. "Can you even find the original composer? And to tell you the truth, he's one of ours too. Admit it, I've got you all figured out," he used a rugby term, meaning to have them completely under my control.
"Without 'YMCA,' which record company would even give this unknown band a second glance?"
"Hey! You guys said before that our other rock songs are pretty good too!" Amanda retorted, frowning.
"But those are all rock music, and they're just 'not bad'," Erf shrugged. "But this disco song has a completely different level of potential compared to the songs you guys wrote. And you probably won't be able to use most of those rock songs."
You can't possibly do rock and disco, two completely incompatible genres, on your first album; it would just look awkward. To get your album out as quickly as possible, I'll have to find you a top-tier disco producer to rework the arrangements.