Fallon sat in one of the recording studios with her father and Anika, notebook in hand. She wasn't sure why she was there, since she wasn't the one who would be inside the booth. The one inside the booth was V, one of the artists signed to Empire. Fallon rolled her eyes as V started singing. She didn't have anything against her, she just wished Lucious would actually let her sing the song she helped write. He said it would be a duet, and here Fallon was, on the outside of the booth, listening to V sing solo.
I would tell you that I love you tonight,
But I know that I've got time on my side,
Where you going?
Why you leavin' so soon?
Is there somewhere else that's better for you?
"That's not balanced," Lucious told the sound guy, adjusting the levels as V kept singing. Fallon sighed, resting her chin on her fist. It wasn't the sound, it was V. The song lacked emotion. Seemed like Lucious felt the same, since he stopped the track in the middle of her singing. "I need you to sing like you are going to die tomorrow. Like this is the last song you will ever sing. You hear me? Show me your soul in this music." He looked at the sound guy. "Hit it again."
He started the track again, and V picked up where she left off.
I would tell you that I love you tonight,
But I know that I've got time on my side,
Where you going?
Why you leaving so soon?
Is there somewhere else that's better for you?
What is love,
If you're not here with me?
What is love,
If it's not guaranteed?
What is love,
If it just ups..?
V stopped singing, waiting for a reaction from Lucious. He was quiet, spaced out. Fallon stood up, putting her hand on her father's shoulder. "Dad." He finally came back, noticing the eyes on him.
"You okay, boss man?" the sound guy asked.
"It's not there yet," Lucious said, standing up.
"Still?" Anika asked, watching him walk.
"Bunkie, wake up," Lucious told his cousin, who was currently having a power nap on one of the couches. "Wake your ass up!" He walked into the booth with V.
"Nik," Fallon called, getting her attention. She stood next to her. "Is Dad okay?" This wasn't the first time Lucious has zoned out in the middle of something. In these last few months, it seemed Lucious had been paying no attention to her at all. He didn't do much of that before, but now he didn't even do the bare minimum.
Anika looked down at Fallon, arms folded. "You know how your father is. He's just stressed," she dismissed. Fallon didn't think that was fully true, but didn't say anything.
"Yeah, I heard we were going public."
"How'd you find out about that?" Fallon looked at Anika with a knowing look. "Becky?" Fallon nodded. That girl couldn't keep a secret to save her life. The two chuckled as Lucious walked out of the booth, telling the sound guy to hit it again, for the third time.
And there it was. The emotion that was missing. She finally pulled it together. She sounded good, as much as Fallon hated to admit it. But V was her friend, so she was happy for her.
"Wow," Fallon smiled.
"She is truly magical," Lucious mused. "I mean, her voice, her lyrics–"
Fallon didn't hear the last part of his sentence. Her lyrics. Her lyrics? Most of the lines V was singing were written by Fallon, and he had the nerve to call the lyrics hers?
"Right," Fallon scoffed, leaving the room.
"I don't like it," Imani put her hands on her hips. She and Jamal were playing around, making a beat for a song Jamal wrote. Empire was throwing a yacht party, and all of the Lyons were there, enjoying themselves. Andre was walking around with his wife, Ronda, Hakeem was preoccupied with women in bikinis, feeding him shrimp, and Fallon was probably somewhere with Anika.
"What?" Jamal asked, letting the headphones rest on his neck. "You think you can do better than me or somethin'?"
Imani nodded, "Absolutely. May I?"
Jamal chuckled. "A'ight," he nodded. "Go for it."
Imani pulled her locs up into a ponytail as Jamal slid over on the seat in front of the piano. "I would do something like this." She played a few notes as Jamal held the headphones in between them so they both could hear the music. She smiled, seeing her brother bopping his head to the new beat.
Jamal nodded his head, smiling. "Okay," he nudged Imani. "I like that."
"You're welcome," Imani stood from the seat, seeing Hakeem coming down the stairs.
"Don't get cocky, now," Jamal chuckled.
"Empire state of mind," Hakeem started, making his way down the stairs. "Let's go!" He danced his way over to the soundboard. Imani laughed as the two shared the soundboard, moving in sync as they made a beat together.
Things are looking up,
I'm ready for tonight,
I feel good, real good,
Can't nobody hold me down,
I'm gonna take advantage of,
All these flashing lights,
Cause it's the best time, the best time for it,
We can do it,
Imani laughed, moving away from the soundboard over to Jamal. She pulled her phone up to her lips, using it as a makeshift microphone.
Can't nobody tie me down,
If you want I got it,
Tomorrow's not promised,
Jamal laughed, looking up at his sister. She just read the lyrics for the song five minutes before they started playing around. And there she was, singing it like she wrote it. Just completely care free. He loved to see it.
So live inside the mo...ment,
Tell me, what are we waiting for?
Oh, what the hell are we waiting for?
Imani looked up at the balcony, seeing the oldest Lyon, Andre, standing there, looking over them with Ronda. She smiled, throwing them a wave. Andre gave a nod, and Ronda smiled down at her.
Hakeem moved away from the soundboard, adjusting the hat on his head. He stepped around Imani, starting to freestyle.
Yo, Mal,
Yo, when I was five years old,
I realized there was a road at the end,
Pretty girls, cars and bank rolls,
Gold and platinum plaques...
Imani danced around, making her way to the front of the piano. She sat down next to Jamal, watching his fingers glide across the keys. Hakeem continued freestyling.
Gotta believe in yourself and gotta know your worth,
I did it clean as a whistle, stayed away from dirt,
Ah, I told you I'mma get it,
Everybody, they talkin'
I dreamt about how I'm livin'
Reality was written,
I put effort in my vision,
That's why I hustle so hard,
To be the best that ever did it, oh!
Hakeem snatched the sunglasses off of his face, looking at his siblings. Those three were a force to be reckoned with whenever they sang together. If Fallon was with them, she'd add a whole new dimension to the sound with her enchanting, almost siren-like voice. Those four together would send Empire off the charts, if Lucious ever gave Jamal, Imani, and Fallon the time of day.
AUTHOR'S NOTE
First official chapter of this story out before the end of the year?! The world must be ending! In all seriousness, though, I plan to make some huge changes to my update schedule since I only have three main stories I want to update.
Tell me your thoughts, I love to read your comments!
