Chapter 12 #2
Asao released a cocky laugh, shaking his head. “How you think your artists will feel knowing your ego is going to cost them opportunities? I bet this isn’t the first time you’ve fucked them over just to flex your shit. You want your artists on my stage or not?”
The men engaged in a war of wills which Cobra lost. When he refused to respond, Asao stood and motioned to Niles. “We’re out.”
Before Asao could take the first step, Cobra swallowed his pride. Regardless of his ego, the debt hanging over his head humbled him. “Wait…”
Asao angled his head to the side and waited for Cobra to continue.
“I want my artists on stage. I’m willing to negotiate.”
“Aight then, let’s do business.” Asao returned to his seat. “I hand select the artists I’m offering a spot. The artists will receive a flat rate to be paid out of a sponsorship directly to them.”
“That’s not how it works.” Cobra frowned, understanding Asao was attempting to cut him out of the deal.
“That’s the only way it works. The offer is to give them exposure, not give you another way to fuck them over.”
“I’m fair to my artists. Their contracts—”
“Muthafucker, don’t even waste your breath hyping them three-sixties you be handing over to your artists,” Niles muttered.
“We pay the artists. Not you.”
“And why the hell would I agree to that?” Cobra’s eyes moved between Niles and Asao.
“Because you want them on my stage. The exposure puts their music back in rotation, which makes you money. ’Cause we all know they aren’t getting a damn thing on the backend with them three-sixties they signed. Now, you want the deal or not?”
Cobra considered the offer, knowing an association with Asao would indeed push his artists’ streaming numbers, but that would take time and he needed cash in hand immediately to keep his label from going under.
The end was inevitable but he wasn’t ready to surrender just yet.
Money in his pocket meant the ability to bring in a new artist who could potentially be a quick payday.
That wouldn’t happen if his doors were closed.
“That’s not enough of an incentive. I want ten percent of ticket sales.”
“No…” Niles stated bluntly, giving Asao an in to negotiate for what he truly wanted.
He didn’t give a damn about having Cobra’s artists on stage.
They could easily function without them.
He had a lineup ready to offer their time just to rep the city.
Yarah and Sol had already signed on for whatever he needed.
Their names alone would bring the crowd out.
Any other commitments were just icing on the cake.
“He speak for you?” Cobra sneered with a narrowed glare on Niles before he turned his eyes toward Asao who smiled smugly.
“You already know he does, and considering you don’t have anything we want, his answer stands. You want your artists on stage or not?”
Cobra balled his fist and clamped his jaw before deciding to try one last thing. Kolby had intentionally placed a bug in his ear a few days prior that made him hopeful.
“I have something you want.”
“Nah, I don’t think you do,” Asao said smoothly.
“Samari Janaé.” The smugness in the way Cobra delivered her name had Asao’s expression tight, which worked into his favor. He needed to hand over a natural reaction in order for Cobra to believe what he was about to say.
“Why the fuck you bringing her up?”
“Because I know she’s important to you.”
“And how do you know that?”
Cobra shrugged. “People talk.”
Not people, Kolby who intentionally brought you information I wanted you to have, Asao thought.
“Mari being important to me doesn’t have anything to do with you.” Asao felt Niles’s eyes on him but didn’t hand over his attention.
“It does when I own her.”
Yeah, muthafucker. You’re doing exactly what I expected you to…
Asao laughed cockily and stood. “You’ve really got me fucked up. Meeting over.”
He rounded the table to leave but Cobra stopped him. “Like it or not, she’s mine. I own her but I’m willing to let you have her for the right price.”
Asao turned and leaned over Cobra. “She isn’t for sale, muthafucker.”
“Maybe not her, but I know for certain her career is. I own her name. The only way she does music is if I let her, but I’m willing to negotiate.” He smiled smugly. “Make me an offer.”
“Fuck you. Sao, let’s go.” Niles glared at Cobra whose eyes darted to Asao.
“You still gonna let him speak for you?”
Asao glanced at Niles before he responded. “Nah, how much you want?”
“Two hundred and fifty thousand and she gets her name back. I’ll even throw in her masters. But I want fifty percent of ticket sales, Nefatari as a headliner, and sixty percent of what you’re paying my artists.”
“You must be out of your fucking mind,” Niles said through a laugh but Asao spoke up immediately after.
“Aight, send the contract by the end of the day and I’ll sign it.”
“No the fuck you won’t,” Niles said, looking at his boy like he’d lost his mind.
“Shake on it,” Cobra said with a cocky smile, ignoring Niles before he stood, extending a hand to Asao who dropped his eyes and scowled.
“I’m not shaking your hand. End of day or no deal.”
He moved past Cobra, knocking into him as he left the conference room with Niles behind him. Niles didn’t say shit until they were in the car.
“What the fuck was that?” Niles said, like he was ready to go to war with his boy.
Asao laughed, which only made matters worse. “I know like fuck you don’t think this shit is funny. You just agreed to give that muthafucker half of our ticket sales, fuck over his artists, and pay quarter a mil for ol’ girl’s masters. I know you fuck with her heavy but—”
“The deal isn’t legal.”
“It is if you sign that shit.”
“Nah, it’s not. He doesn’t own her masters.”
“Fuck you mean he doesn’t own her masters? She’s signed to him, right?”
“He sold them shits to her ex and Cobra knowing about us was intentional. I made sure someone dropped that detail to him. Like I said before, he knows how I get down. If I’m with Samari, wasn’t no way I was gonna be cool with him having any connection to her.
Considering the fact that he’s desperate for money, he did exactly what I assumed he would and offered a way to dead that shit by buying her out of her contract. ”
“Fuck is you talking about?”
“B-Syde is fucking with Cobra’s assistant Kolby.
As a favor, he hit her up and she put Cobra on game about Samari.
Cobra is in debt and has been selling off whatever he can.
I was gonna ask to buy Samari out of her contract but didn’t have to because he offered that shit up, which makes it better for us. ”
“How the hell does that make it better for us? You aren’t making sense.”
“Fam, calm the fuck down. I’m telling you I got this. Get Raaj on the line and put that shit on speaker.” Niles dialed their attorney.
“What’s up, Niles? I have ten minutes before I walk into a meeting…” Raaj state.
Before Niles could get a word in, Asao took over the call.
“Ay, Raaj, this is Sao. I need to run something by you.”
“What’s up?”
“Remember that case you were telling me about where the agent tried to sell off his client’s artwork but that shit fell through because he didn’t legally own them.”
“Yeah why, what’s going on?”
“That work with anything? Like if you enter into a contract to sell something you don’t have ownership of, all the details of the contract aren’t binding, right?”
“Sao, what the hell is going on?” Raaj sounded concerned and Niles looked at his boy, communicating that he still wasn’t making sense.
“I’m about to purchase some masters from Cobra that I know he doesn’t own…”
“Then why the fuck are you doing it?” Raaj’s tone was clipped and Asao almost fucking laughed.
One thing Asao fully trusted was that the people in his corner always had his best interests at heart.
That not only held true with his boys but also his attorney who had been front and center for almost every legal contract that held Asao’s signature.
Each one was either drafted by Raaj or reviewed by him to ensure all legalities would guarantee Asao was covered.
“Because if the shit isn’t legitimate, I can sue him, right?”
“Yeah, you can, but there’s likely another way to handle it. I’ll be tied up for the next couple hours, but if you need me to move some stuff around…”
“Nah, you’re good. I have to do it this way. As long as I know that shit isn’t binding, I’m good. I’ll send it over for you to review, but regardless of what it says, I’m signing it as long as the shit doesn’t hold weight.”
“If you enter into a contract with bad faith and misrepresent ownership, the contract is fraudulent and null and void. You’re sure he doesn’t own the masters? Not one percentage of them?”
“Nah, he doesn’t.”
“And he has full knowledge that he doesn’t own them?”
“Yeah, he knows because he sold them shits.”
“Then no, the contract won’t be binding and you can sue for breach of contract, fraudulent contract provisions, and fraud. We can demand punitive damages.”
“How much?”
“Pretty much any number? It’s up to the judge, but I know a few who would be willing to rule however we want.”
“Yeah, that will work.”
“Don’t do anything yet. There has to be…”
Asao quickly cut him off. “I know this shit sounds crazy and doesn’t make sense, but you’re just gonna have to trust me on this one.”
“I can’t promise that you’re covered if I don’t have all the details or know what you’re doing, Sao.”
“I feel you but all I need is for you to make sure that if he sells me some shit he doesn’t legally own, I can sue and the contract isn’t binding.”
“If what you’re saying is true and he doesn’t own the masters, then yes.”
“Bet. As soon as we have the contract, Niles will send it.”
“We’ll talk then. Don’t sign anything until I get my eyes on it.”
“Aight.”
“I’m serious, Asao.”
“Didn’t I say I wouldn’t,” he said with a grin right before he ended the call and Niles glared at his boy.
“That was your plan the entire time.”
“Pretty much?”
“You couldn’t tell me that shit.”
“Could have but I didn’t. It worked out better without you knowing.” He shrugged and started his Jeep.
“How is this shit supposed to work? You just said he’s broke. What’s the point of suing him for money you know he doesn’t have?”
“He can’t fight me. That means whatever we want, we get. It’s not about the money. Samari gets her career back, we get his artists, and that muthafucker gets to keep breathing because this shit is happening one way or another.” Asao smirked, communicating what he meant, and Niles shook his head.
“You love playing with fire. That shit could have gone hella wrong.”
“Doesn’t matter, I’ll always bet on myself.”
“You said we get his artists, that mean you’re signing up?” Niles smiled smugly ,knowing his boy wasn’t trying to actually run a label but was now talking about taking on Cobra’s artists.
“If they’re worth something we might, but the goal is making sure they’re not tied to that muthafucker.”
“You’re damn sure doing a lot of label shit for somebody who said they didn’t want one.”
“You put that on my shoulders, now let me carry it.”
Niles chuckled. “Do what you do. I don’t have no complaints. You just better hope this works.”
“It’s gonna work. There’s no falling when you’re on the come up.”