Chapter 38

7:00 PM.

Green Tea Restaurant on Canghai Road.

Zhang Hao treated Zhang Pengfei to a meal, and the two of them invited Lin Zaishan to discuss the production of a new album.

The Believers' first original album, "Truth," was completed the day before yesterday.

Zhang Hao and his group of young people were very excited, feeling that they had finally achieved something.

However, after listening to Zhang Pengfei's objective and professional evaluation, they all felt that the original underground album, which cost 20,000 yuan, was immature in many aspects.

The underground album should still be sold online, but they should have higher goals and aspirations.

Zhang Pengfei suggested to Zhang Hao that if the Believers wanted to become a professional pop-rock band, they could take a shortcut by having more mature and talented musicians guide them and help create a higher-quality new album.

In this process, the Believers would learn a lot and recognize their shortcomings.

More importantly, if the Believers had a new album that could stand out, it might attract the attention of record companies, and they might sign a good contract early on, taking the first step towards becoming a professional rock band.

Zhang Pengfei's persuasion was actually aimed at getting the Believers to produce another album, so he could earn money by helping them with studio recording and post-production.

In Zhang Pengfei's eyes, his younger brother Zhang Hao was just a wealthy little lamb from Donghai, and not taking advantage of him would be a waste.

However, Zhang Pengfei was aware that he couldn't produce a truly outstanding album for the Believers with his level of skill.

Fortunately, he recently met Lin Zaishan, a super senior rock veteran, and learned from Sun Yuzhen that Lin Zaishan was short on cash.

So, Zhang Pengfei set up this meeting, hoping that Zhang Hao would invite Lin Zaishan, the super rock veteran, to produce their album.

Zhang Hao had money, and if he could really get Lin Zaishan to produce their album, the quality and production costs would be high, and Zhang Pengfei would earn more money.

If this deal could be made, it would greatly help the Believers and allow Lin Zaishan to earn a substantial income. Zhang Pengfei would please both sides and earn a recording and production fee, achieving a win-win situation. Therefore, he was very enthusiastic about making this happen.

Zhang Hao was convinced by Zhang Pengfei and was very interested in the plan.

He had personally witnessed Lin Zaishan's deep musical foundation and outstanding talent.

Even the casually rewritten "Bao Qingtian in Kaifeng" made them feel very excited. Not to mention "Listen to the Wind" and "Butterfly," which were even better.

These songs were definitely not something they, as rock newcomers, could write.

Although Zhang Hao was a proud young man, he knew who was better when he met a true master.

As Zhang Pengfei said, if they could really get Lin Zaishan, a genius who had proven himself in the rock golden age over 20 years ago, to produce a new album for them, they would learn a lot. This would be a valuable musical experience and a shortcut to success.

Young people today all want to become famous early, and no one wants to waste their youth in mediocrity.

Now, with such a precious opportunity, Zhang Hao couldn't help but cherish it.

That evening, to show his sincerity, Zhang Hao humbly told Lin Zaishan about their band's love for music and their dreams.

Then, without beating around the bush, he offered a very tempting price—100,000 yuan!—to invite Lin Zaishan to produce a new album for them.

Lin Zaishan was not very interested in producing underground albums.

The Believers were a new rock band with poor coordination, and it would take a lot of time to produce a satisfactory album for them.

Copying songs wouldn't take much time, but rehearsing and recording with a non-professional band would be a headache for Lin Zaishan, who was a perfectionist, and would likely take a long time.

He didn't want an album produced under his name to be a symbol of shoddy work.

However, Zhang Hao's offer of 100,000 yuan was a significant motivator.

After all, in this world, a senior producer from a major record company might not earn 100,000 yuan after tax for producing an album for a first-tier but not top-tier singer.

Of course, record company producers wouldn't handle lyrics, music, and arrangements.

But even with those additional costs, 100,000 yuan was not a low production fee.

The record industry in this world was very depressed, and selling records alone didn't make money.

Record companies were very tight with production costs for singers' albums, focusing mainly on promotion and marketing (including music video production).

The cost of promoting and marketing an album was often several times or even dozens of times the production cost.

Only the most popular and top-tier pop singers might spend over 100,000 or even a million yuan on album production.

For most singers, the pure production cost of an album would not exceed 100,000 yuan, and some albums could be produced with just a few thousand yuan.

Zhang Hao was willing to spend 100,000 yuan on a production fee for an underground album, showing their sincerity.

"Uncle, next year, the three of us in the band, including me, will graduate, and the other two will graduate the year after. I really hope that before we graduate, our band can take a step into the professional circle. We all love music and want to go further on this path. So, Uncle, we sincerely hope you can guide us. If you're willing to produce our album and teach us some music-making experience, we would even be willing to call you our teacher."

"You guys want to call Uncle Lin your teacher, why not change the band name to 'Mountain and Believers'? How does that sound? Haha, you'll be Uncle Lin's believers."

"Fatso, stop joking around."

Smiling, Zhang Pengfei looked at Zhang Hao and pointed to Lin Zaishan, who was wearing a black T-shirt and had long hair: "I understand your desire to pursue this path. I was once a passionate young man like you. But I must remind you: to succeed in music, don't rush. To be a true musician, talent alone is not enough. In this industry, inspiration comes from hard work, and genius comes from accumulation. Especially for a rock band, you need at least 10,000 hours of rehearsal and coordination before you have the capital to succeed. Your band is still too young."

"I know we're still young. We want you to help us produce an album not to rush, but to learn and accumulate more." Zhang Hao explained earnestly.

Lin Zaishan smiled faintly. Young people always like to argue. But no matter how they argue, an experienced person can see through their true intentions at a glance.

Zhang Pengfei interjected, "Uncle, Haozi and the others really love music and genuinely admire you. They want to learn from you. If you have the time, please guide them."

"It's not about guidance. I'm now a marginal figure in the industry. If you want to rely on me to make a big splash, I can tell you responsibly: it won't happen. But if you really want to learn from me, I can help you."

"We just want to learn from you, nothing else." Zhang Hao quickly responded, sensing Lin Zaishan's willingness to help.

Zhang Pengfei also persuaded, "All experience comes from practice. Producing a mature album for them will definitely teach them a lot. Haozi is offering 100,000 yuan to produce the album, showing his sincerity. If you think it's too little, we can negotiate."

Zhang Hao nodded eagerly, indicating that there was room for negotiation.

"There's no need to negotiate. 100,000 yuan already speaks volumes. If you really want me to produce the album and learn from me, there are a few conditions you must agree to."

"Whatever you say, as long as the conditions are reasonable, we will accept them!" Zhang Hao agreed readily.

"First, about the album. You're paying 100,000 yuan for me to produce it, so I won't take it lightly. I will carefully tailor the songs for you, and I hope you will cherish these works. Since you want to learn, everything related to the creation of the new album will be handled by me. I will write the lyrics, music, and arrangements. Don't interfere. Since it's an album produced under my name, I will be responsible for it. I will have the final say in the selection of songs. When the time comes, don't say this song is good and that one is bad, or that you want to sing this one and not that one. Whatever I write, you will sing. Be humble and learn the rhythm of making a mature album, don't give me random suggestions."

"Of course, Uncle, rest assured. We are here to learn from you, and we won't make decisions on our own. We wouldn't dare to show off in front of a master like you."

Hearing that Lin Zaishan would handle all the lyrics, music, and arrangements, Zhang Hao was overjoyed!

He was a bit hesitant to ask Lin Zaishan to handle all the songs.

He expected that Lin Zaishan would write half the songs and select the other half from others, and they would be satisfied with that.

But now, Lin Zaishan was going to create all the songs for their new album, which was amazing!

The 100,000 yuan was well worth it!

"Second, about the production time of the album." Lin Zaishan, being responsible, told Zhang Hao, "Don't expect to finish the album in a short time. Good albums are always carefully crafted over time. Although there are classic albums created by geniuses in a short time, don't have that expectation. I don't produce industrial mass-produced albums, and I don't think you want me to do that either."

Zhang Hao nodded, mentally praising Lin Zaishan's responsible attitude. Although Lin Zaishan was just talking, he didn't seem like a musician who would cut corners.

From the meticulous attitude Lin Zaishan showed when making music, it was clear that he was reliable. The post-production of "Butterfly" involved several tracks, each unique and creative. His work was impressive and beyond imagination.

"I need time to write the songs, and you need even more time to rehearse and record. From the planning and creation to the final mixing and post-production, it will be a long process. You need to be mentally prepared. I've seen your band's level at Dongyi University's recording studio. I don't want to say anything too harsh, but your level... well, it's really not up to par."

Lin Zaishan's expression was a real blow to Zhang Hao.

With a bitter smile, Zhang Hao didn't argue with Lin Zaishan.

Compared to a professional rock musician like Lin Zaishan, their band was indeed not up to par, and this was what they needed to learn and improve.

Zhang Pengfei spoke up for the Believers, "The band is still new and needs more practice. If you can teach them more, I believe they will improve quickly. These kids have good musical talent and potential."

"I don't know much about your band members, but I got a preliminary impression when I arranged 'Bao Qingtian in Kaifeng' for you. Do you want to hear my initial thoughts?"

"Please, I want to hear them." Zhang Hao was eager to hear the evaluation from a senior veteran like Lin Zaishan.

Zhang Pengfei's ears perked up.

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