After Bright turned on all the lights in the home, that was the cue for Magenta to wake up. Starting off with her signature high pitched tone that annoyed Bright to no end. "OH MY.... GGGAHHHH!!" Magenta chuckled and bounced out of bed, feeling way better than she had in months. Not to mention those headaches were gone too. For now anyway. They always seemed to pop back up whenever they wanted to. She needed to speak to either mom or dad about it.
Relieved, Magenta stretched her hooves, popping the joints and more. Then made her way to the bathroom to get ready when her door opened, pulling a jump out of her. Bright stuck her head in and blandly asked, "Are you up?"
Magenta sighed and made her way into the bathroom. "Yes, Bright," she answered. "I'm up. If I weren't you wouldn't have heard me cheer. How was it?"
Bright opened the door wider and stepped into Magenta's room, making strange sounds as she tried to come up with a way to word it. "Ehh.... errr, it was... Eventful. Let's just say you're national news once again. And that Starfire wanted you to push the track through them."
Magenta immediately popped her head back out from the bathroom and yelled, "WHAT?!"
Bright smiled and answered calmly, "Don't worry, I told them no. Starfire's insane."
Magenta breathed in relief and ducked back into the bathroom. "Thanks Bright. Jeez, that would've ruined my reputation. Did they have a reason?"
Bright jumped on Magenta's bed and answered, "Yep. Apparently, this new beef between you and Covered Scenes caused a growth in popularity. Turns out Covered Scenes was right. Not everypony listens to your music, but the ones that do listen multiple times a day. That beef yesterday caused those that don't listen to listen, creating a spike in sales. Well Starfire wanted to use that to their advantage and wanted this beef to continue as long as it could so they can make more bits."
"They're risking my YouHoof channel for money?" Magenta deadpanned. She sighed and walked out of the bathroom, making her way to the desk in the corner. "Starfire's selfish, I don't care what they say. If I continue with this beef that'll drop my sales on YouHoof, which means we'll have to get in with Starfire. Which will disrupt my plans to get this release out there. I'm pretty sure they know that." Magenta pulled open a drawer and whipped out her makeup kit, stylized just for her. It would make Rarity proud.
"Yeah," Bright agreed. She hopped off the bed and made her way to her sister. "But... I have a bad feeling. Starfire must've been really desperate to want you to risk the start of it all for their own bits. They know our channel is very important to us, yet wanted us to risk our reputation and channel by engaging in a beef."
Magenta nodded and grabbed a bottle of glitter. Then raised the bottle above her head and shook it into her mane before running a single hoof through it. Next she sat it down and grabbed her magenta colored lipstick. "Yeah, it must have been a real problem. Thing is, Starfire doesn't really have any. None that I know of anyway. Is the track released yet?"
"Not yet, it's only seven. We're releasing it at ten. I setup the timer last night. You know who called last night?"
"I was sleeping, Bright," Magenta deadpanned. Then popped her lips and smiled at herself in the mirror. She looked great. Especially after putting on her eyeshadow.
"Carolid. We were talking about you and she made a good point about you actually starting your own label. Equestria has a law that reads that if you were underage, you could own a business as long as you were represented by a company."
"Uh huh." Magenta applied some mascara and batted her eyes in the mirror.
"Carolid suggested you use YouHoof to start." Magenta stopped applying and listened. "She said get in contact with their corporate offices and setup a meeting with them. But I said that since we were under Starfire's contract, we couldn't really do anything."
"Ahh, jeez," Magenta groaned. Then went back to applying her makeup. "Thought you were onto something."
"I am. I looked it over last night. Even though we are exclusive to Starfire, their contract states we couldn't have representation by a third party record label, distributor, or promotion agency. YouHoof isn't any of those." Magenta slowly lowered her makeup and stared at Bright in the mirror. "YouHoof is a social media platform that pays creators who fit the profile. We artists just release music up there that are classified as vlogs. I checked into YouHoof's Equestrian Classification Record? They are classified legally as a Social Media Platform that enrolls specific vloggers into the payment program. Not a Record Label, Promotion Agency, or Distributor."
Magenta dramatically dropped her makeup and turned back to Bright with a look of hope. "Are you saying all we have to do is get represented by YouHoof and we can do this thing, Bright?" She asked quickly.
Bright nodded and answered, "Yes. We can schedule a meeting and work out more specifics. I found a loophole."
Magenta jumped in the air with a raised hoof and cheered, "YES!! Way to go, Bright!" She wrapped her sister in a tight hug, then slapped her hoof and delivered a rather rough hip bump that nearly pushed her sister to the ground. "You're a bucking genius!"
"Maggy, language!" Bright scolded.
Magenta rolled her eyes and made way towards the closet. She jumped in and began digging through clothes, flinging some recklessly behind her to find a great outfit. "Sorry, I'm just really excited! I need to get YouHoof on the phone as fast as possible!" Magenta walked out of the large bedroom closet wearing a magenta colored jogging suit with the name Mahlooho on it, eagerly making her way to the door. Talking about plans and more as she was followed by Bright. "We need to get artists, marketing tools, a place to build studios! I can afford all of that, it's only an estimated five million in total. Not to mention contracts and more! We get sponsored and work through YouHoof who will be my 'adult' until I turn twenty-one."
Bright shook her head and responded, "No, Maggy. The way it would work is YouHoof would be the parent company of whatever you want to call the label until you turn twenty-one. They can and would help you get all that setup."
"Even better!" Magenta and Bright Snow walked down the stairs and into the large living room, heading for the phone on the table. Magenta reached out to dial the number, an inch away from her hoof before the phone began ringing. The two froze and glanced at each other. Quite the time to ring, wasn't it? Shrugging, Magenta grabbed the phone and answered it. "Hello?"
"Hey, Magenta," Sound Boost greeted. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine, thank you. Look, is this important, we have to make a very important call," Magenta responded.
"Yeah. The CEO wants to see you in her office," Sound Boost answered. Magenta took note of his tone. Most of the time he was all jumpy and excited. Now he seemed... Depressed.
She turned to Bright and asked, "Sound Boost, are you okay? You sound... Uncool."
"Everything'll be explained once you get here."
"Okay, I'm on my way." Magenta hung up the phone and turned to Bright. "The... CEO wants to see me. You coming?"
Bright shrugged and responded, "Yeah, but we need breakfast first."
After a quick grab for the nearest bagels, Bright and Magenta boarded their elevator and rode down towards the lobby, listening to the calm and soothing jazz playing. While they moved, Bright and Magenta calmly ate their bagels, avoiding the daunting realization that the CEO of Starfire wanted to meet with them. The C-Suite executive wanted to see them. They've never met them. After a few seconds, the ride slowed and the doors parted for the lavish lobby of the Rising Sun Hotel. It wasn't that busy this morning, although it was getting to that point when others should start to wake up. Ignoring those thoughts, Magenta and Bright calmly walked through the lobby heading for the front doors. The sun had already risen and it was nearing ten o'clock, based off the readings on the clock above the door. They walked out through the front doors and into the streets of Manehattan. Then made their way down the sidewalk for Starfire. Even though ponies called for them, they didn't pay them any mind. Beyond trained were they in ignoring the shouts of fans and more.
After around ten more minutes, at nine fifty-six, Magenta and Bright finally arrived at the Office Building hosting Starfire Records. They walked up the stairs, waving at a few ponies they worked with and into the tall building. Just like usual nopony really spoke to them. Just nodded and continued on while they sat by the elevator on the fancy marble floor. Finding this a good time, Bright leaned into Magenta's space and whispered, "What do you think it's about?"
Magenta shook her head and whispered, "No idea. I don't even know who the CEO is." The elevator in front of them dinged open, allowing them access. Within a few minutes, Magenta and Bright next walked into the chill lobby of Starfire Records. It was mostly empty. Save for Sound Boost who was sitting in a chair on the side, reading a book.
He glanced their way and practically threw the book to the side so he could rush over. "Alright, kid," he whispered hectically. Then wrapped a hoof around her shoulder, leading her towards one of the stairs while Bright hopped on a couch. "The CEO is Gold Spoon, but just call her Ms. Spoon. She doesn't smile and rarely makes jokes. So just nod, greet, answer questions, and when she asks you the big one... Say no. Decline."
Magenta got a bad vibe. She glanced his way and repeated, "Decline? Say no? To what?"
"Just. Say. No. Alright?" Sound Boost stopped in front of a pair of double wooden doors and knocked. Then turned to Magenta and repeated, "Say no. We'll be downstairs."
Sound Boost quickly walked away, leaving Magenta at the door with a bad feeling. She couldn't ponder on it though because an older feminine voice on the other side called, "Come in!" Magenta took a deep calming breath. Then reached out and opened the door. The room was similar to Sound Boost's. Marble floors, a wall of glass that had a great view of Manehattan behind the grand wooden desk. Sitting directly behind the desk was a unicorn mare that had a yellow coat with a mane and tail colored a mix of silver and violet.
That's a terrible combination, Magenta thought before walking in. "Hello, Ms. Streak," she greeted. Then motioned in front of her desk. "Have a seat."
Magenta quickly did, eyeing the newspapers on her desk of herself. Once again making the headlines. Magenta Streak-Covered Scenes Beef?
The mare in front of her sighed and coldly introduced herself. "My name is Gold Spoon, I'm the CEO of the Label. I am the manager of the managers. Now the reason I called you here is because I needed to speak with you about this Covered Scenes-Magenta Streak beef. Sound Boost isn't going to tell you, so I will. Ever since yesterday, your sales have soared. Your next pay period will be a lot bigger than usual and we're expecting a lot more."
Magenta smiled but stayed on her hooves while she continued. "But the thing is, we don't want it on YouHoof. YouHoof is great, of course, right? The foundation of your success and career. But it causes issues. Conflict. We want our representatives and clients to stay away from drama, and YouHoof caused it."
"What are you saying?" Magenta slowly asked. Sirens were blaring loud in her mind right now.
"My team and I have come up with a compromise. In exchange for you giving up YouHoof, we double your contract from one hundred million bits to two hundred million bits. If you don't, we... Cancel your contract."
It's like Magenta's heart shattered. Her eyes wide as her mind processed what the CEO just stated. If she quits YouHoof, they extend her final income. If she doesn't, she gets no income. "Y...y-you're cutting me off from Starfire?" She whispered. "With all due respect Ms. Spoon that's very unfair, I've worked hard to make sure everyone here is represented."
Nodding, Gold Spoon responded, "And I understand that. But Starfire doesn't want to look bad. This YouHoof beef helped us, but we have to let it go."
Say no, Sound Boost's voice rang in her mind. YouHoof was the beginning of everything! She couldn't just quit all of that! Using her magic, Ms. Spoon slid a card her way, smiling. "Why don't you think about it?" She whispered. "And enjoy your vacation."
Magenta grabbed the card and stood up. Then quickly made her way out the door. Her mind was blank as she walked down the stairs, heading for the lobby. Bright was relaxing on one of the couches. Bouncing up when Magenta stepped on the floor with a confused and dumb look on her face. Concerned, Bright asked, "What happened?"
Magenta focused on her for a moment before motioning with her head toward the elevator. Bright joined her on the trek for the doors when Sound Boost stepped into view. "Did you say no?" He asked Magenta.
Magenta held up the card and answered, "I'm buying my time. I already have a plan. I need to make a post on YouHoof about this." Bright was looking between the two, huffing in annoyance. She really hated being left out of situations. Thankfully, the elevator arrived if the ding was any indication. After the doors slid open, Bright quickly pushed Magenta in. "I'll call you later, Sound Boost!"
"You do that!" He responded before the doors shut.
Once they did, Bright turned to Magenta with focused eyes trained on hers. "So what happened?" She asked urgently. "Leave out nothing!"
Magenta took a deep breath and decided to just drop the bomb. Without taking her eyes off of the steel doors, she answered, "You and I both knew Starfire wanted me to drop YouHoof."
Since Bright wasn't talking, she bet a bit that Bright was going to yell when she did. After a few more quiet seconds, she and Bright walked out the doors and back into the lobby. Still no word from Bright. Finding this a great time, Magenta grabbed her phone and speed dialed a number. After the tone ended, a mare's voice appeared on the other end. "Hello?"
"Hey, Babs. It's Magenta. Look, do you want to come by my penthouse?"
"Yeah, sure. I'm not working until tomorrow anyway. What time?"
"Now would be great." Magenta glanced over at Bright who was walking with a red face. Oh boy. "And make it quick please? Bright's about to blow right now."
Bright's head shot to Magenta when she yelled, "THEY WANT YOU TO WHAT?!!" The other ponies outside enjoying the sunny day stopped whatever they were doing and looked up at Bright who was shaking her head. "NO! NO WAY, ABSOLUTELY NOT!! THEY ARE OUT OF THEIR BUCKING MINDS!!!"
"I'll talk to you later, Babs," Magenta calmly said. Then hung up and dialed Coloratura while they walked for the hotel. Bright was still having her tirade.
"Hey Magen... What's going on on that side of town?" Coloratura greeted.
Magenta calmly pushed Bright's face away, who was still yelling. "Are they serious?! Are they really bucking serious right now?! Who the buck told you to do that?!!"
"CEO, Bright. Look, Rara, just get to the Penthouse. Seriously. And bring the others. I'll tell you what's going on when you get there, it's an emergency. It's not going to mess up our plans, but I need you guys to hear this first." Magenta didn't even wait for a response. Instead hung up the phone and pushed Bright into the Hotel Elevator. "You can yell all you want inside the elevator."
"I'm yelling, NOW!!" Thankfully, the elevator door dinged open. So Magenta practically threw Bright inside and ducked in with her, closing the door three seconds later. "Why did they ask you to—" Magenta thrust a hoof into her mouth.
"Not now," she whispered. "We're still in public. Wait until we're in the penthouse."
The last thing Babs expected to see when the elevator doors parted for Magenta's penthouse floor was Coloratura, Firestarter, Blue Arrow, and Spit Rhymes all talking at once. She calmly walked forward into the penthouse and into the living room with the rest of the frantic celebrities. Bright was drinking a large bottle of water, Magenta was reading something and the other four were asking questions like the world was ending. Magenta caught Babs' eyes and smiled. Waving, she greeted, "Hey, Babs!" The others stopped talking and turned to her.
"H-Hey, Magenta," she responded slowly. She glanced at Firestarter then back at her and asked, "What's... Going on?"
Magenta threw the contract to the side and sighed. "Well... Earlier, I was called into Starfire's CEO's office. Thanks to this Beef, I've gotten a lot more bits because everyone is watching it. Unfortunately, Starfire doesn't... Like that. So they offered me a compromise. In exchange for dropping YouHoof—"
"What?" Babs interrupted.
"—they'll double my contract for two hundred million bits. If I don't, they'll drop us from the label."
"WHAT?!!" Babs yelled. She ran over and yelled in horror, "Th-That's not fair though! You're the top performing artist and you started from YouHoof, plenty of ponies listen to your music on YouHoof!"
"That's why I'm saying no. I'm leaving Starfire. And it's all because of that Covered Scenes pony. And this couldn't have came at a great time. This morning before we were called in—they don't know about this yet." Magenta motioned towards the four in the room. "Bright told me that she held a conversation with Carolid last night who reminded her of something that may in fact make my next step come true just in time. Owning a Record Label."
Coloratura reminded her, "But aren't you too young to own a business?"
Magenta nodded and answered, "Yes, I am. But she also made a good point. According to Equestrian law, anypony underage can own a business as long as they are owned by a parent company. Sort of like how a foal has adult supervision and guidance. Carolid said we could actually do it and distribute under Starfire, but Bright said we couldn't because we were owned under Starfire's contract."
Firestarter and asked, "Okay... So..."
Magenta smirked and added, "But they left the door open on their contract. Bright did some digging last night. The contract states we are not to engage in any third party record label, promotion agency, or distributor. Label, Promotion Agency, or Distributor. YouHoof, is none of those."
Bright burped loud, clearly stressed out and added quite blatantly, "YouHoof, under Equestrian Record is a Social Media Platform that hosts a program paying creators. They are not those, so the contract legally doesn't apply to them."
"Our plan before was to get YouHoof to partly own my new Record Label while we setup distribution, promotion, and event acquisitions. My Record Label would be partly owned by YouHoof. But since we are dropping Starfire Records in the future, we don't have to worry about them once we do. I'm also taking down my music from Glow Sounds since Starfire makes money off of them and keeping the copies on YouHoof for myself. So long as my music is on Glow Sounds, Starfire continues making money off of me."
Startled, Blue Arrow quickly asked, "Can you really do that?"
Magenta gestured to the papers on the table setup in front of her. "This is the contract they gave me. A copy of it anyway. According to it, they handed me the copyright so that music legally belongs to me and only me. Nopony else. I can have it taken down whenever I want to. The only rights Starfire held over it was timing whenever it came out. I gave them the record and they put it out when they wanted to. But I can take it down whenever I want to."
Babs repeated, "So you're leaving Starfire."
Magenta nodded and answered, "Yep. Bright and I have been thinking about it for awhile but was too afraid that they would sue us or something. They're dropping us. So, we don't have to worry about that. Right now I'm buying my time by acting like I'm making up my mind when in reality, I'm making a phone call to YouHoof..." Magenta pressed the answer button on the phone, dialing a number. "...so we can get this thing started."
Everyone listened to the dial tone ring, summoning YouHoof's Corporate Headquarters in East Manehattan, literally a ten minute walk away from the penthouse. After a few more seconds, the phone picked up with a voice. "YouHoof Customer Service, can I have the name and reason of contact?"
"Yes, Magenta Streak and Operations Management," Magenta answered.
Oh! Ms. Streak! Is-Is there an issue with your channel?"
"No, but I need to schedule a meeting with YouHoof's Partner Office please. I don't have the number."
"I'll page you right to them because, unfortunately, we don't schedule appointments on this floor. Give me a moment." The room was filled with piano music while they waited patiently.
While they did, Firestarter asked, "So is Starfire and Magenta Streak enemies now too?"
Magenta shrugged and answered, "We're approaching a cold war." The phone picked up before they could continue the conversation.
A male voice greeted calmly, "YouHoof Partner Support, can I please have the name, and reason for contact?"
"Yes, Magenta Streak, and partnership opportunity."
"Ah, yes. Magenta Streak. How may we help you today?"
"I'd like to schedule a meeting with Chief of Operations please as soon as possible."
"Alright." Magenta listened to the clicks and movements on the other side. "He has a ten o'clock and a three thirty next friday. Would you like the ten o'clock?"
"Yes please." Magenta looked towards Bright just to check on her to see her sleeping. Was she really that upset? Thankfully, she didn't break anything. She looked to everyone else and motioned towards her. "She looks terrible right now," she whispered.
"Give her some chocolate," Coloratura suggested.
"Alright, Ms. Streak, you're down for ten o'clock next friday morning."
"Okay, thank you." After that, she hung up and looked towards her friends and family. "Well... I'm about to start my own Label. And Starfire's not going to be happy."