*Chapter 387: American Music Awards*

After their conversation, Ivanka returned to New York to manage her work more conveniently. Before leaving, Ivanka mentioned that if he couldn’t return to New York on weekends or holidays, she would fly to Los Angeles to be with him. Link wanted to tell her it wasn’t necessary, as even if she came, they wouldn’t be intimate. It felt pointless either way.

He also found Ivanka's condition of only being intimate after marriage a bit odd. Generally, in the U.S., or even in more conservative places like China and Korea, the number of previous partners isn’t a major concern when it comes to marriage. Why was Ivanka using this as an excuse? Or was she really serious about never having been with a man before?

Whenever he thought about it, he felt conflicted. After his talk with Taylor, he was ready to end things with Ivanka and embrace his playboy lifestyle fully, but hearing this, he hesitated to let go. Beautiful women are plentiful, but capable ones like Ivanka are rare. Giving her up felt like losing something truly valuable.

After several days of indecision, Link came to realize that Ivanka was quite skilled at keeping him hooked. Since starting Link Music with her, he had been not only enchanted by her but also entangled in her net.

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In the third week after the release of "The Expendables," the film earned $12.75 million at the box office. Although it dropped to third place that week, its North American total reached $74.47 million.

By this week, "The Expendables" had been released in over thirty countries overseas, with a cumulative global box office of $104 million. The worldwide total was expected to exceed $300 million.

While the film's box office results did not match those of earlier releases like "Inception," "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1," or "Toy Story 3," it was still one of the year's standout films.

The film’s cool action sequences and Link’s charismatic role contributed to its popularity overseas, drawing many fans. Chris Liu and actresses Sazaki Nozomi and Yui-chan even called to say his performance was amazing, portraying a handsome, skilled, and flirtatious man that fit him perfectly.

"Cut!"

"Next scene!"

After moving filming for "Captain America" to Los Angeles, the work became smoother but also more monotonous. The schedule was an eight-hour workday, from 9 AM to 4 PM, with no overtime because Hollywood's overtime pay is too high, and the production team preferred to avoid additional expenses.

With his free time, Link focused on boxing training, building his muscles and reaching a weight of 181 pounds. Besides preparing for his role, he was also gearing up for next year's light heavyweight competition.

As he gained weight, he had to adapt to his new muscle mass, coordinating his body movements and maintaining his speed. If he could keep his super welterweight speed in the light heavyweight class, it would be a significant advantage.

After increasing his weight, he tested his punching power. His right punch reached a maximum of 1650 pounds, and his left punch 1500 pounds, about twenty pounds more than in previous tests. This news boosted his confidence for the upcoming matches.

His only dissatisfaction with his weight gain was from De La Hoya. The fight was scheduled for next month, and since they were not in the same weight class, it was an unequal challenge. De La Hoya, aiming to match Link's weight, tried to bulk up by ten pounds. However, upon seeing Link’s increased muscle mass and strength, he commented that Link must be afraid of losing, thus bulking up before the fight.

In mid-November, the American Music Awards took place. Link attended the ceremony at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, the same venue as the MTV Video Music Awards, with a similar lineup of performers.

The American Music Awards are based on comprehensive data from Billboard and its website, including album and digital single sales, radio airplay, online traffic, social media engagement, and tour revenue. Essentially, it measures popularity in the U.S., album sales, online buzz, and concert ticket sales.

Link was undeniably the top performer in all these aspects. His third album, "The Woman I Love," had sold 4.68 million copies in the U.S. and around 20.5 million worldwide, making it the only album in 2010 to surpass 4 million in the U.S. and 20 million globally.

Second was Taylor's "Last Kiss," with 3.85 million U.S. sales and around 9.5 million worldwide. Eminem's "Recovery" was third with 3.23 million U.S. sales, followed by Lady Antebellum’s "Need You Now" and Justin Bieber’s "My World 2.0."

Among the 11th to 20th spots, artists like Sade, Usher, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, and Selena Gomez had significant U.S. sales.

Due to Link’s lead, he won four major awards at the American Music Awards: Artist of the Year, Best Pop Male Artist, Best Pop Album, and Best Adult Contemporary Singer, making him the biggest winner of the night.

Eminem won Best Rapper and Best Rap Album for "Recovery," Usher took Best R&B Album and Best R&B Singer, and Lady Gaga got Best Pop Female Artist. Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, and Lady Antebellum shared the Country Music awards, and Justin Bieber was named Best New Artist.

Many nominees, including Wiz Khalifa, Selena Gomez, Lana Del Rey, Katy Perry, and Bruno Mars, did not win due to stiff competition.

After the American Music Awards, Link returned to the film set to continue shooting. In mid-November, he traveled with the "Captain America" crew to the UK, Sweden, and Norway for location shoots. They worked for over two months, completing the main scenes. Post-production would be finished in Los Angeles in about ten days.

In December, Link returned to the U.S. to participate in a boxing match against De La Hoya at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The match, announced early in the year and heavily promoted, had generated nationwide anticipation.

To add excitement, he and De La Hoya performed two songs before the fight. The match lasted three rounds. De La Hoya’s skillful and cunning tactics made it challenging. Eventually, Link took advantage of De La Hoya's fatigue, trapping him in a corner and landing two solid punches to win by KO.

The fight’s pay-per-view (PPV) revenue reached $125 million, making it the second-highest on Forbes' boxing PPV income list. The first was De La Hoya vs. Mayweather in May 2007 with $136 million.

Despite high PPV revenues, the fight did not surpass the De La Hoya-Mayweather match. The fight’s outcome was anticipated due to Link’s dominance in the super welterweight class, and De La Hoya’s aging and recent losses had reduced confidence in him.

The fight’s viewership on YouTube and other sites was strong, generating around $20 million in revenue. Combined with ticket sales, Link and Dynasty Sports earned $72 million from the event, while De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions earned about $38 million. The total prize money reached $110 million, making it Link’s first fight earning over $70 million.

Link’s boxing income for the year exceeded $200 million.

After the fight, Link led his tour team on a European tour, performing 52 concerts over two months. By February, he returned to North America, performing 16 more shows in the U.S. and Canada, concluding with a successful concert at Times Square in New York.

The tour, which started in October 2009, lasted 18 months, with 166 concerts in 82 countries and regions. It sold 4.43 million tickets, making Link the top-selling artist in the past decade for global tours, surpassing major artists like Backstreet Boys, Madonna, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, and Michael Jackson's "Dangerous" tour.

The "Dangerous" tour, held in 1993, had 69 shows and sold 3.5 million tickets, averaging 50,000 per show. Link’s tour, with 166 shows and 4.43 million tickets sold, set new records in both the number of shows and total ticket sales.

Media praised him as a “model worker” for his frequent and energetic performances, often holding four shows in a week. Despite the pace, he consistently delivered high-quality performances without lip-syncing, off-key notes, or lackluster efforts, earning widespread acclaim from both media and fans. Many artists publicly expressed their intention to follow his example, focusing on physical fitness before embarking on global tours.

(End of Chapter)