Leon looked at his schedule for November, which was almost submerged in endless commercial performances and new album promotions.
During this period, he would travel to twelve different cities, covering the entire United States.
Due to the intensifying conflict with Kanye and Chris, he simply gave Davis a sum of money to have him personally protect him.
Although this ngga was short, he was exceptionally good at fighting.
In Brownsville, even gang members dared not provoke this "vicious dog" who would pull a gun at the slightest disagreement.
Leon used his usual PUA tactics to brainwash him: "Protect me well, and you'll be the next one to get famous!"
This wasn't just talk.
What Leon thought in his heart was that if this ngga could really take a bullet for him, maybe he really would release a record for him.
Assuming the other party survived.
On the way to Atlantic City, New Jersey, to promote the new album, Leon received a call from Roc Nation Vice President Lenny.
The gist of it was that Jay-Z didn't want his conflict with Kanye to expand further.
In short: hype is fine, but don't overdo it.
Phil smiled from the side and said, "Looks like Kanye snitched on you to Jay-Z. Your days at Roc Nation might not be too easy from now on."
Leon spread his hands and didn't speak.
Beef between rappers is a common way to generate heat. Jay-Z, having mixed in this industry for so many years, wouldn't fail to understand this principle.
Currently, Roc Nation was pouring huge money into his new album. Having some beef on the eve of release was definitely a good thing.
Leon said, "Kanye is the little brother Jay-Z personally made famous... but that's already in the past, isn't it?"
"Kanye established his own record company."
Kanye had joined Roc-A-Fella Records (RAF), the predecessor of the Roc Nation Kingdom, as early as 2005. At that time, Jay-Z was the president of this company.
During that period, he truly established his status as an A-list rap superstar with the "College Dropout Bear" trilogy.
But in 2007, Jay-Z stepped down as president of RAF and took most of the artists and resources to form his own Roc Nation Kingdom.
But Kanye didn't leave with big brother Jay-Z; instead, he signed directly with RAF's parent company, Def Jam.
Although Jay-Z owned shares in Def Jam, this behavior was still a naked betrayal to the big brother.
Phil snorted coldly, picked up his glass, and swallowed a mouthful of whiskey.
"Although you have some means when solving problems, you are still young after all."
"Power is the prerequisite for mutual respect. Do you understand what I mean?"
Leon nodded. He understood that his status was still not big enough.
If Kanye had been hovering in the B-list after leaving Jay-Z, maybe Jay-Z would criticize this traitor regardless of the occasion.
But now he was an A-list superstar, and very likely the next rapper to enter the hall of fame of superstars.
In this situation, opposition seemed superfluous.
Bored in the car, Leon opened social media apps and scrolled through.
"Damn, Bro, look at this!" Davis, sitting in the back row of the business car, excitedly handed over his phone.
The page on the screen was paused on Chris's Twitter homepage.
"WTF? What kind of madness is this ngga up to again?"
Leon took the phone casually.
This time, Chris didn't issue a death threat to him but instead unleashed the main weapon rappers use to resolve conflicts: DISS.
In the Black community, DISS can be understood as a culture, a weapon.
Simply put, it is an "art form" evolved from Black people cursing in the streets.
In a DISS track, a rapper will integrate the opponent's dirt and compile it into a complete work with drum beats.
Chris's work was titled Longinus. Just from the name, one could tell who it was targeting.
Leon's nickname was "Street Jesus," and Longinus was the name of the Roman centurion who plunged his spear into Jesus's heart.
"Look, this ngga is sending heat again!"
Phil looked even more excited than Leon, busily turning the phone volume up to the max.
In the lyrics, Chris described himself as a true gangsta thug, while Leon was a soft egg who had never even touched a gun.
He even wrote his experience of beating women into the lyrics to show off his thug temperament.
However, Chris seemed to be aware that he had suffered a loss in the Los Angeles club incident, so he didn't waste too much ink on descriptions of violence.
Instead, he focused on showing off that he had played with more women and earned more money...
The entire lyrics were his fantasy. This is a common tactic for rappers writing DISS songs.
The method of spiritual victory.
In reality, I might have been tortured by you into a wretched state, but in the lyrics, I am Al Capone holding a Thompson submachine gun, defying all laws.
But there was one line in the lyrics that was indeed very true; even Leon had to admit he was poked by this line.
"My garage is full of Lamborghinis, while you can only connect with your blonde white chick in a scrapped Corolla..."
Hearing this, Phil laughed out loud directly. "You damn miser... earning so much money but unwilling to change to a decent car."
Davis also jeered from the side. If he were Leon, he would buy a luxury apartment on the Upper East Side first even with a loan...
Watching everyone jeering, Leon also felt it was time to get a new car.
Capitalism... making money isn't for enjoyment? Is it to give back to society?
"This ngga is sending you free heat. Seize the opportunity to deal him a heavy blow, send him a DISS back!"
"You might have forgotten that I am not a rapper."
Phil waved his hand disdainfully. "It's just curse words with a backing track. Any homeless Black guy on the street can write a song like that."
Hearing this, Davis, as a battle MC, obviously showed displeasure. Cursing people was his profession.
"Bro, DISS songs are not as simple as you think!"
"You have to rack your brains to come up with some punchlines that can make the audience climax! This isn't just simple cursing in the street!"
After speaking, he nudged Leon with his arm. "If you need it, the hardest man in Brownsville can provide you with guidance at any time..."
Traffic is the life of an artist.
Regardless of what Jay-Z's thoughts were, he definitely had to seize the traffic delivered to his door now.
It's just that he had never touched rap. Even compiling all the curse words in his mind into a song would take some time.
"Let Chris be arrogant for a while first... let's see how the heat of this matter goes."
Two hours later, Leon and his group arrived at the destination of this promotion—Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino.
This casino was once the center of all of Atlantic City, but with the decline of the gambling industry here, it was on the verge of bankruptcy.
More famous than the casino itself was its owner, Donald Trump.
Although he sold most of the shares of this casino last year, he still retained the hope of reviving it in his heart.
Since the 70s, he has been the most famous real estate developer in New York. Major cities in the United States have skyscrapers and casinos named after him.
Later, he extended his tentacles into the entertainment industry and also carved out a world for himself.
In the entertainment circle, he was MJ's close friend; in the sports world, he became Tyson's manager and was the only man this beast admired...
He even appeared on the most famous wrestling entertainment program in the US, WWE, last year and shaved the head of the company's boss, Vince McMahon.
No matter what he did, he could succeed. His luck was so good that he seemed like the Chosen One.