Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion

It actually didn't take three days, just one day for Ivanka to send someone to Atlantic Records to retrieve the contracts of Mars and his two partners without paying a penny in damages.

Atlantic Records had proposed that they wanted to obtain the distribution rights for Link's second album in overseas regions.

Ivanka did not agree.

The overseas distribution of Link's first album was handled by Universal Records, and the partnership was quite pleasant; they planned to continue collaborating with Universal Records for the second album and had no intention of changing partners at the moment.

However, Ivanka suggested that the South American distribution rights could be given to Atlantic Records.

After considering the offer, Atlantic Records agreed to release the people.

Link was a popular singer; his first album sold nearly 5 million copies worldwide, and the sales for the second album were guaranteed to be impressive. Securing the distribution rights for one region was sure to yield significant profits, obviously more valuable than three unproven behind-the-scenes personnel.

For musicians like Mars, Atlantic Records had hundreds of them under its banner, so it was not a loss.

"Bruno, Philip, Ali, welcome to Link Music."

After signing the contract, Link shook hands with the three men from Mars.

"Thank you, Mr. Baker!"

Mars shook his hand excitedly and even stole a glance at Lana Del Rey passing by the window. He suddenly realized that he truly liked Link Music; it was wonderful here.

Link also noticed Mars's expression and turned to see Ivanka passing by outside, secretly astonished—was Mars attracted to Miss Ivanka?

That was quite bold.

After Mars joined Link Music, two rap songs were also quickly recorded.

"Lighters" was performed by Mars, B.O.B, and Ali Levine.

"I'm the One" was completed by Link and rapper Wiz Khalifa.

Wiz Khalifa, a friend of Snoop Dogg and associated with West Coast rap, joined Link Music upon Snoop Dogg's recommendation after receiving an invitation.

Wiz debuted in 2006, was 22 years old, and had a tall and slender figure covered with tattoos.

His notable work was "See You Again," performed previously with Charlie Puth and Taylor, although it hadn't been released yet.

I'm the only one oh-eh-oh oh oh-eh-oh

I'm the one oh-eh-oh oh oh-eh-oh

I'm the only one

"How does it feel?"

In the recording studio lounge, Link played "I'm the One" once through and asked Graham, Mars, and Wiz Khalifa,

"Out of ten, how many would you give?"

"10 points!"

Wiz Khalifa, smoking, blew a smoke ring and laughed, "Link, you should have confidence in our collaboration."

Mars nodded and said, "The rhythm of this song is great, and your teamwork with Wiz is also good, at least nine points."

Graham also thought it was good. Mars was better than he had anticipated, and the song was of high quality after production, not inferior to any rap tracks currently on the charts.

"I hope you're right, I don't want to be ridiculed by Kanye and the others after its release."

"Don't worry, they won't have a chance."

After receiving everyone's approval, Link's debut rap song "I'm the One" officially landed on major American digital music platforms, and he also tweeted about it.

'Rap song I'm the One, thanks to Wiz Khalifa!'

Soon after he tweeted, tens of thousands of fans commented, calling it a great song and looking forward to his rap album release.

Lady Gaga and several acquaintances liked and congratulated him on his cross-genre success.

In its debut week, "I'm the One" sold 171,000 copies in Amazon digital music store and iTunes music store, among other digital platforms, with over 12 million plays online and over a billion on the radio.

It shot up to number 48 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and ranked fourth on the Billboard Hip Hop/Rap Songs chart.

Only behind Eminem's "We Made You," Lil Wayne and Rihanna's "Live Your Life," and Drake's "Best I Ever Had."

As a newcomer in the rap scene, Link's debut single surpassed many veteran rappers in sales and play counts, reaching the top ten on the rap chart and causing quite a stir in the music scene.

The media reported the event extensively.

Billboard magazine commented that the song's entry into the top ten of the rap chart in its first week was mainly due to its high quality and the excellent collaboration between Link and Wiz, calling it a 'stunning' rap song.

The New York Post reported that "I'm the One" reaching the top 100 on the Billboard singles chart and the top ten on the rap chart in its first week proved Link's successful crossover. He was not only a star in the boxing ring but also very popular in the music industry.

The Chicago Tribune commented that the song's lyrics and music were of very high quality, perfectly blending electronic, pop, and rap music, once again proving Link's immense talent in music composition. They mentioned him alongside Lady Gaga, Adele, and Katy Perry as one of the most anticipated new singing talents of 2008/2009.

Netizens jokingly called him 'Three Queens and a King.'"

However, after Link released his new song, there were also some negative comments online.

Some trolls jumped out to criticize him, claiming that by writing the 'rap song I'm the One' and dubbing himself the number one in rap, he was declaring war on Kanye and other rap artists.

Other trolls called out to Kanye, Lil, 50 Cent, Eminem, and Jay-Z, top-tier rap artists, asking for their opinions.

Regarding the online comments, Link was busy attending a school sports meet and did not respond.

Kanye and others also did not publicly respond.

Until the second week when "I'm the One" climbed to the 23rd spot on the Billboard singles chart and second on the rap chart, surpassing the songs of Drake and Lil Wayne.

"How is this possible, Link, a pop singer with not many fans in the rap world, how could his new song be listened to by so many people?"

Brooklyn, inside a club, 50 Cent looked at the Billboard magazine in his hands, somewhat in disbelief.

"Could those numbers be fake?"

Drake asked annoyedly.

His new song "Best I Ever Had" was released in March and stayed in the top three on the rap charts for over six weeks. Just last week, his song was pushed out of the top three, and he was quite irked.

"Impossible, Billboard has been around in the music industry for over a hundred years, and it's known for its credibility. The data they release can't be wrong."

Lil Wayne said, holding a pool cue. Enjoy new adventures from empire

"But why is his performance so good? I've listened to that song, and it's pretty mediocre."

Drake said disdainfully.

"Mediocre? I think it's not bad."

Eminem leaned on the pool table, striking the cue ball with his pool stick.

"Em, don't get too happy. You're first and he's second. Watch out next week—he might stab you in the back."

Lil Wayne poked Eminem with the pool cue.

"Fuckin' hell! So what do you guys plan to do? Stop fans from listening to his song? Or take him out with a gun?"

Eminem joked.

Upon hearing this, 50 Cent, Lil Wayne, and others shook their heads repeatedly.

In the nineties, gangsta rap was all the rage, consistently leading the pack in record sales among various types of music at the time.

However, after several shooting incidents in the nineties, Tupac and B.I.G. were killed, many gang-affiliated rappers were terminated from their record companies, and rap music was also somewhat affected.

If they dared to use such methods to attack their competitors again, the entire group's careers would be impacted.

Resorting to violence against Link wasn't appropriate.

"I have a good idea."

Eminem leaned on the table, holding a beer and smiling, "Link is a pop singer who has crossed over to rap and done well. You guys might also try crossing over to pop music and crush him on the pop charts."

Lil Wayne and the others decisively shook their heads. Pop music wasn't that simple, not something you could just play around with. The competition was fiercer there, and ordinary people couldn't even get a foothold, let alone reach the charts.

Thinking about this, they also felt that Link, that bastard, seemed kind of impressive.

A boxer who transitioned to the music industry and established himself in the pop music circle in less than a year.

Now switching to rap, his single soared on Billboard; the guy certainly had some skills.

But admitting that Link was impressive was absolutely impossible for them.

"How about we rush our schedules, release a few singles early, and together push Link's songs down?"

50 Cent suggested.

"That's a good idea. Kanye has a single planned for release next month. Let's persuade him to release it earlier."

Lil Wayne stroked his chin and said.

Everyone thought it was a good idea. They then set down their beer mugs and pool cues and left the club together.

Eminem looked at the deserted game room, cursed under his breath, and reluctantly picked up his clothes to leave.

—

On the third week of the release of "I'm the One," Kanye released his rap single "Monster" early.

Lil Wayne, Beyonce, Jay-z, 50 Cent, T.I., Diddy, Shawn Carter, Drake, Chris Brown, Busta Rhymes, and other artists publicized this single through various social media platforms.

On the day of its release, "Monster" reached 174,000 downloads across various platforms, surpassing the first week's download numbers of "I'm the One."

In its first week, download numbers soared past 600,000, becoming the highest first-week download of 2009.

"Monster" also charged straight into the Billboard Singles chart at number 9, ranked number one on the rap song chart, while Link's "I'm the One" was placed 22nd on the Billboard singles chart and third on the rap chart.

The media, upon seeing Kanye's early release of the single, suspected he was targeting Link, and the two sides had not reached a reconciliation.

Journalists came knocking for confirmation.

Kanye's music manager claimed that Kanye had just happened to be preparing the single and it had nothing to do with Link.

Meanwhile, Kanye's fans, seeing his new song outsell Link's and stop "I'm the One" from reaching the top of the rap chart, called it a massive victory and claimed it restored dignity for the rap artists.

Many trolls went to Link's Twitter comment section to suggest he listen to Kanye's new song, saying it was a hundred times better than "I'm the One."

And commenting that since his "I'm the One" didn't reach number one, it should be renamed 'I'm the three' or 'I'm the loser'.

"'Monster' has a first-week download of 614,000? Kanye really is strong."

Link looked at the news in the paper, feeling somewhat envious of Kanye's popularity.

At the moment, he was only considered a top-tier artist in the music industry, and compared to someone like Kanye, who was at the peak of popularity, he faced a huge gap in both influence and fan numbers—a gap that couldn't be closed by just a few singles or albums but also required time to cultivate a loyal fan base.

"Boss, these trolls' comments are too much. Should we respond?"

Miss Anna asked.

"No need! Responding verbally is too weak, besides being a waste of money. It's not very cost-effective. I prefer to prove that I'm the best through my actions."

Link shook his head, tore off the towel he was wearing, and in his swimsuit, dove into the pool.