Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion

"Link, during the press conference later, if someone asks a sharp question, be cautious with your answers, and skip any that you can’t answer."

On the day the album sales broke one million copies, Link’s music held a press conference at the Los Angeles branch office. Link would face the journalists and address some of the public’s concerns.

Worried about slip-ups, Ms. Mandy had prepared a stack of interview backup scripts for him to review before going onstage.

"Got it."

Link stood in front of the mirror, his body erect like a javelin.

Assistant Anna was tying his tie next to him. He was wearing a custom casual suit, charcoal gray with silver patterns, and there was a patch of embroidery on the cuff.

In Link’s eyes, this suit was a bit out of place, but Ivanka, Mandy, and Assistant Anna all thought it looked good.

Because Anna had worked as a fashion magazine editor for men for several years and was familiar with fashion elements, Link chose to submit to their will when it came to dressing up.

"Is the suit too formal?"

Link asked about the platinum tie clip on the collar. Anna had originally suggested he wear a diamond earring to match the outfit, but Link didn’t agree. He was okay with painting his eyebrows and putting on lipstick, but wearing an earring was out of the question.

He was a straight iron man, not interested in gender-neutral dressing.

As a compromise, the earring was changed to a tie clip.

There was also a platinum watch worth $680,000 on his wrist.

"You need to dress a bit flashier for the photo ops at today’s press conference; it will attract more people to pay attention to you. You look very good as you are now."

Ms. Mandy looked him up and down and said with a smile.

Link was already good-looking and well-built. Dressed in this suit, he looked even more dashing and acquired a noble aura about him, as if he was glowing.

"Mr. Baker, with your body and aura, you could become a world supermodel if you chose to become a model," said Ms. Anna.

Link gave a soft smile; he knew he was much more handsome than before but didn’t care much about that. For a man to lead an exciting life, it was most important to rely on ability, not looks.

He flipped through the interview scripts, memorizing a few key points.

Hearing that everything was ready out front, he proceeded to the interview hall with Ms. Mandy and Assistant Anna.

Click, click!

As he appeared, a barrage of camera shutters sounded.

Link walked up to the journalists and began to answer their questions.

More than eighty major media journalists were present, representing newspapers, TV stations, and international news agencies. A host of cameras were all pointed at the stage.

"Mr. Link Baker, congratulations on your debut album selling over a million copies and becoming a platinum album."

"Thank you!"

Link answered politely.

"Mr. Baker, we all know ’The Fighter’ has an inspirational theme. Seven of the songs on this album were written by you. I’d like to ask what your original intention was when releasing this album. Singer Kanye West thinks that your album was designed to cater to the market and the public, exploiting the financial crisis to make big money. Do you agree with this viewpoint?"

A reporter from The New York Times started off with a particularly sharp question.

Link picked up the microphone and said with a smile, "That’s two questions. I’ll answer the first one about my initial intention in creating this album.

Last year, a lot of things happened to me. I got injured, had boxing matches, went to the Olympics, etc., which took me from being a nobody to becoming a rather successful public figure.

During this transformation, I went through many things and had many realizations. I wanted to express them but had no good avenue to do so until I met a friend who was a very talented singer-songwriter. Under her guidance, I started learning to play the guitar, piano, and write music.

The songs I wrote after learning music are attempts to express and share the insights of my growth and tell my story to more people."

The journalists nodded and asked with their microphones, "What do you have to say about the second question, Mr. Baker?"

Link looked at the reporter and said, "I’ve heard that Mr. Kanye West suffers from a neurological disorder and should not be provoked. I’ll refrain from commenting on his opinion for now, and when he’s recovered, I’ll talk to him in person."

Wow!

At his response, the journalists at the venue instantly became restless.

’Kanye has a neurological disorder?’

’He can’t be provoked?’

Although Kanye West had openly stated he has ’bipolar disorder,’ which includes bouts of depression and mania and is a kind of mental illness, it doesn’t affect his work or life, and he’s a normal person.

However, in Link’s reply, he treated Kanye West as if he were a mental patient. Such a bold answer.

Ms. Mandy hurriedly signaled to Link. Kanye was a famous black singer, a top music producer, and an A-list celebrity in America, almost on par with Michael Jackson.

To put it more directly in numbers:

Kanye, at 32 this year, debuted in 2004. His first studio album, ’The College Dropout,’ sold 441,000 copies its first week, reaching number two on the Billboard charts and was selected by Time Magazine in 2005 as one of the ’100 most influential people.’

In 2005, he released his second studio album ’Late Registration,’ which sold 860,000 copies in its first week and reached number one on the Billboard charts.

In 2007, his third studio album ’Graduation’ sold 957,000 copies in the first week and reached number one on the Billboard charts.

Earlier this year, he released his fourth studio album ’808’s & Heartbreak’ which sold 450,000 copies in its first week, achieving number one on the Billboard charts.

Currently, Kanye’s global album sales are close to one hundred million, and he has won numerous Grammy awards, making him a king of the American entertainment industry.

Link, a new singer on the scene, openly clashing with Kanye might seem inappropriate.

Receiving a cue from Miss Mandy, Link shook his head slightly to indicate it was no big deal.

Though Kanye was formidable, he wasn’t bad himself; not only was he a singer, but he was also a world boxing champion. Appearing too soft in public would disappoint his boxing fans.

"Mr. Link Baker!"

Upon hearing his response, over eighty reporters simultaneously raised their hands.

Miss Mandy pointed to an ’American Express’ reporter who, holding back frustration, asked, "Mr. Baker, are you not responding to Kanye West’s comments out of consideration for his illness? Do you think he’s sick?"

Link lightly chuckled, realizing that while the reporters weren’t great at asking interview questions, they excelled at stirring up trouble. Read new chapters at empire

"Yes, the news said he was ill. I hope he recovers soon to bring more good music to his fans,"

Said Link earnestly.

"Mr. Baker, are you implying Kanye’s mental state is unstable?"

"Mr. Baker, Kanye West is a patient. By not responding to his comments, are you discriminating against him?"

"Mr. Baker..."

The reporters jostled to ask their questions.

Link pressed his hand down and said to the reporters, "Ladies and gentlemen, please be quiet. This is the album release for ’The Fighter.’ Please ask questions related to me or the album. I will not answer any other questions."

"...."

The reporters opened their mouths but had to swallow their myriad questions.

"Mr. Baker, the singer friend you just mentioned—is it Miss Taylor Swift? What is your relationship with her?"

The other reporters listened intently when the ’American Express’ reporter asked the question.

Link smiled at the question. Last year when Taylor released her second album, they had planned to go public with their relationship. However, since he was in intensive training, he was concerned about being mobbed by paparazzi and journalists, so he asked to delay revealing their relationship.

Some media in New York had exposed their relationship, but since neither of them confirmed it face-to-face, the rumor eventually faded.

Now, when the time was originally set for it to be revealed, they had recently broken up, so the rumor need not resurface.

"Yes, Miss Swift is my guitar teacher and also my mentor in music composition. However, we are not currently dating,"

Said Link.

"Why? You two seem like a good match,"

Shouted a reporter.

Link simply smiled and leaning on the table said, "Thank you. I also think we are a good match, but we are both too busy. I’m busy with training and fights, and Taylor is also quite busy. We simply don’t have time to discuss matters of the heart, which I regret."

"If you had the time, would you pursue Miss Taylor Swift?"

Shouted the ’Entertainment Weekly’ reporter.

After a moment’s thought, Link said, "Yes, Taylor is a very outstanding girl. I guess there’s nobody who wouldn’t want to date her."

"Mr. Baker!"

An HBO television reporter also came to stir things up, naturally asking a boxing-related question.

After the major success of Link’s album, the boxing world had differing opinions on his career as a singer.

Some thought he was cool, not only great at boxing but also good at singing. For instance, De La Hoya praised Link publicly multiple times, saying he was planning to form a duo with Link.

Others believed he was a promising boxer and should invest more time and energy in boxing instead of singing and dancing. They argued that dedicating his time to the music industry would surely diminish his boxing abilities.

For example, Tyson and Holyfield, from the position of veterans, advised him not to be distracted by things outside of boxing.

"Mr. Baker, your album sales are doing well. Will you give up boxing to become a full-time singer in the future?" the HBO reporter asked.

"No!"

Link resolutely responded, "I’ve said my goal is to be a world boxing champion in more than five ranks. Until I achieve this goal, I will continue to fight in the boxing arena."

"Mr. Baker, last week Joe Calzaghe and Roy Jones Jr. had a boxing match at the Hard Rock Sports Arena. Mr. Calzaghe beat Mr. Jones in twelve rounds, taking the light heavyweight ’The Ring’ Golden Belt from him.

As Mr. Jones’s compatriot, would you consider avenging him and fighting Mr. Calzaghe again?" the HBO reporter asked.

Link laughed and said, "I’ve been following their match, and they both fought very well—few boxers surpass them in technique. As for revenge? Mr. Jones has not yet retired; the matter of revenge doesn’t require my intervention."

"Would you fight Mr. Calzaghe yourself? Boxing fans are eagerly looking forward to your match with him," said the HBO reporter.

Link replied, "I look forward to a match with Mr. Calzaghe, too, but the matter of arranging a fight is up to the company’s schedule and Mr. Calzaghe’s health. If there is a match, Dynasty Promotions will announce it on the website homepage, so please stay tuned."

"Mr. Baker...."

The HBO television reporter wanted to ask more, but two reporters grabbed him and pushed him back. Today was the album interview, and this guy just wouldn’t stop with the boxing questions—it was really annoying.

"Mr. Baker, Lil Wayne said on a TV show yesterday that you can’t sing and advised you to stick to boxing. What’s your response?"

"Mr. Baker, the singer 50 Cent believes that ’Unstoppable’ being the number one single for three consecutive weeks is due to Link Records cheating...."

"Mr. Baker, your new girlfriend Amber Heard publicly said you are amazing in bed, that you can go all night—is that true?"

The reporters lobbed a barrage of music and boxing-related questions at him, and Link answered each one, careful not to fall into their traps.

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