Leann -
The first week sped by so quickly, but we finally completed our official demo and as soon as the final song was mixed and mastered, Chauncey rushed it out to catch up with Xclusive's demo as it was still being shopped to labels. They were hoping they could get both groups picked up by the same label, but so far, no one had bitten or liked the vibes we were giving out.
Chauncey, as he always is, was pissed and upset, but Brandy reassured the eight of us that it had nothing to do with us. According to her, while a label could actually like something, they often held their true feelings back when it came to kid and teen artists. Sometimes, they wanted to get a plan for how to market us in order first; that way, the debut albums wouldn't fail and they wouldn't lose money, and we wouldn't end up in debt the first time out when they tried to recoup money for their promotion and marketing. It made sense to me.
Yesterday, we began our week of photoshoots and press packages, along with some of the performance reels they wanted to have in case a network wanted to start the buzz on us sooner than Chauncey hoped. The hours were long, very long, and with the limited amount of sleep we've been able to get, it surprises me that any of us are able to function. It felt like, last night, as soon as we laid down and closed our eyes, we were popping back up and rushing to shower and get dressed at 5 a.m., and back across town to the photographer's studio by 6:30.
It was complete chaos and madness, but it was so exciting and exhilarating. The ripping and running, slight pressure to be and look perfect; I liked it. It set in very quickly that I was doing the right thing, making the right choice in bettering my future.
Brandy was looking back and forth between us and a clothing rack, I guess trying to guess our sizes. She already had a good take on our personal styles, and the outfits for the very first shoot yesterday were so dope. Of course, she stated that while we can rock the tomboy style that was becoming popular, at some points we'd have to show our feminine side as well. Troy, Torii, and Ava were all down for that. Especially Troy and Ava; they were girly girls, right down to getting their nails done and wearing excessive amounts of pink without complaining. Torii, she loved that makeup was an important part of our look, already the first to hop in a chair to get her face made up. And me; I wouldn't necessarily say that I was just completely tomboy-ish, but the whole dressing up and over-the-top makeup didn't always fly with me. "Leann, I think that pink is your color."
"Think again, Brandy."
"I like pink." She handed a skirt to Ava and quickly went back to looking at the clothing rack. "Does it have to be so short?"
Brandy spoke without looking at any of is. "It only looks short; it'll stop at your knees. This blue top and these black slacks are perfect for you Troy. I'll see about finding you some type of blazer since that's strapless though."
Troy nodded, also making note that her and Torii's dad would be thrilled at her being the one that stays covered up. "Thank you, Brandy." She excused herself to go and get changed.
"Troy, when you come back, look around to see if you can find some black heels in your size."
"Okay!"
Brandy turned back to the racks, thanking one of the photographer's assistants as she rolled in three more; things for males and females. She called out to Raymond and Marliss, handing them suit jackets and a few pairs of shirts just as soon as she'd picked them out. "Here boys; colors and mixing and matching is still kind of big right now." She looked up at them and smiled. "White will look great against your skin tone Tariq. Try out different color shirts to go with it though. Come back and let me see." He nodded and walked off before she turned to Raymond. "And Raj, I like this royal blue on you. That was a great color for you yesterday. Pair it with this yellow shirt, I think that's going to look good."
"Yes Ma'am."
Raymond left and she turned back to us, still in her mode as she went between the racks and back to us within a matter of seconds. How she finds so much energy so early in the morning, I will never understand. "Here's a gorgeous white top for you Ava. I get the whole church girl vibe from you."
"Gee, thanks. That would make my mother so happy."
"You are so snippy this morning, when all you have to do is say 'yes, thank you' or 'no, thank you'. Sheesh. Go and find some shoes and head to the makeup chairs."
"Here's a black skirt Le..." I shook my head and she reached past me. "Here's a black skirt, Torii. Let me go and see if I can find some slacks for you as well Leann."
"Thank you, I appreciate you." As she walked away, with clothes still in her hand, I heard her call out to Greg and Desmond, letting them know that she'd have something for them in just a few minutes.
After finally getting the perfect outfit, one that compromised with my need to feel and be comfortable and Brandy's want for us to appear cute and feminine, I headed to the makeup area with the other girls and sat down, instantly thrilled that this cute, light skinned dude was about to play in my hair. He had gorgeous green eyes and I wanted to get lost in them, just as a little pick me up for the day.
"All real and natural ladies?"
Torii yawned and shook her head. "My weave game is amazing this month; I'm all braided and sewn up. Troy's got about forty inches of real, relaxed hair for you to play in though."
"It is not that long."
"Well, how long is it then?" She looked at me and smiled.
"Different lengths, eighteen and twenty, and I have bangs."
"I couldn't do it."
The cute dude smiled at their interaction, checking my hair to see if any of it was damaged. Lord knows I don't take care of it. "Would you ever consider cutting your hair, Troy?" She whipped her chair around quickly and cut him the evilest eye, almost like she wanted to cut him just for asking that question.
"No disrespect, Sir, but scissors in your hand belong nowhere near my hair. Thanks in advance."
"Yes Ma'am, I'm sorry." He cleared his throat, smiling as he focused back on me. "Leann, I certainly love this blonde color on you, it suits you well."
I smiled, loving the way he massaged my scalp. "Thanks! Just call me Goldilocks, the caramel thug."
We fell out laughing while he turned and turned on the radio, hyping up the mood to help us relax while we were under the care of him and his partners. I had to admit, they were an amazing group of makeup artists and hairstylists. Some of whom we'd worked with yesterday.
"I want a sneak preview of y'all, I wanna see whose albums I'm going to be buying soon."
We all looked at one another and shrugged. As the song changed, and Salt -N- Pepa's Whatta Man came on, Troy and Ava easily fell in sync, singing the chorus. To my surprise, Torii jumped in on the first verse, doing an on point impression of Salt before she stopped goofing around and flowed for real, changing a few of the words to suit herself. I laughed, dancing in my seat as Troy and Ava sang the chorus again. Then, everyone looked to me, and I came in throwing my own personal flavor on Pepa's verse. Only when it was time for me to start, and I had two point five seconds to remember how to start my part did I realize that one of the stylists had turned the radio down, and we were just singing alone.
Looking towards the door, I saw both Brandy and Chauncey watching us, smiling and clapping and that made me trip up; but, the entire moment had been fun. It made me realize that in all this time, the girls and I hadn't done anything silly to really bond, and singing for the small crew around us, it was nice. It was special. I was hoping we'd have more moments like this.
Once they got us ready for the shoots, I had to admit that I loved how they hooked me up. I'd never worn my hair in more than braids or a ponytail so I was shocked to see how good I looked with it out and curly. And I wasn't as put off about my makeup as I thought I would be. It was subtle and brought out my brown eyes. Dressed in these form fitting black slacks and a white tank with suspenders, I felt all mafia-ish. Call me crazy, but this is a style I could definitely grow to love.
We got ourselves together and began the succession of photo shoots. I was the tallest, so I was always in the middle or on the end.
Brandy was pushing my damn button trying to get me into more feminine outfits, but I went along with it as we all changed into many different styles.
"Can I not wear heels?"
"Why not wear heels, Leann?"
"I just feel odd. Troy, Torii, and Ava are wearing heels to seem as tall as me and I'm in heels, still standing taller than them."
"I'm just a dwarf by nature, nothing will change that." I shook my head at Troy and she went back to relaxing her face as they applied new makeup.
"Don't worry about it Leann, we look cute and that's all that matters."
"Ava's right. Go on and get your next outfit on, and no worries, it's not a dress this time."
I let out a sigh of relief and thanked Brandy, walking off towards the back room. The last thing we had to do for the day was individual interviews to explain who we were and our roles in the group.
We'd been working all day, but I just know the end result will make it all worth the lack of sleep and energy.
By the time we got back to our room, following an impromptu stop to meet and work with this vocal coach they'd hired; mainly for Ava and I, my throat was hurting and Ava could hardly keep her eyes open. "I never ever want to sing lead on any song ever."
I laughed and shook my head as I took my shoes off. "You did sound good though Leann."
"I'm mad this lady had me singing Scales And Arpeggios from The Aristocats before attempting to get me to sing notes I know I can't hit."
"At least you don't have the weakest voice."
We all looked at Ava. She had such a depressed look on her face, still upset about the way the vocal coach chose to tell her that she had some things to work on. Troy looked up from her notebook, giving a reassuring smile. "Aww, Ava, you don't."
"Please Troy, I'm the Desmond of our group." I covered my mouth, whimpering at the fact that she would say that. Not because she compared herself to him, but because of what he means as a member of Xclusive. It was not a good, or fair comparison, to say the least.
"Stop trippin' Ava, you know you're a good singer. Hell, at least when you're given a solo, you'll be able to carry it without sounding like a dude or a dying cat."
She smiled, thanking me for my attempt to hype her up. "But I was pleased with myself, and the way I sang once she finally hopped off of my case."
I nodded, adding my own two cents. "We all did a fantastic job. And best of all, Chauncey had nothing to complain or cry about when it came to us, so I think we're finally on the right track. Now let's hope we can sleep in a little tomorrow."
"I know right. I'm so damn tired. Say, do you think we'll get to see any part of LA other than the studio before we go back home?"
"I hope so, Ava. Just seeing certain places as we ride through the city makes me want to move here though."
"Really?"
I nodded, finally kicking my shoes off after I removed the earrings I'd been wearing. "The way my life is now; I just know California is way better than Louisiana will ever be. I'm praying so much that this works out. I can't go with my old life anymore."
"What's so bad about it, if you don't mind me asking?"
I looked at Torii for a moment before clearing my throat, speaking lowly. "My dad's a drug addict, and a drunk, and he don't really make no secret about it. I've pretty much been taking care of myself and my brother for the last few years. It's always been bad, but the last year or so has been the worst. I've been working my ass off, going without so that he can eat and have clothes. I just want to leave all of that behind and stay away from it forever."
"You want this to make life better for your brother?"
"Yeah. He deserves so much better. There's no reason he should know his father is a fiend, right? He definitely shouldn't know what cocaine or a pipe, or heroine and having to find the right vein is." I took a deep breath, pulling my hair into a ponytail. "He shouldn't have to know the things that I know, not at such a young age. He's staying with a friend of mine now. Thought to go to CPS, but down there, they don't care about kids. We just become case numbers; I was one before he was born." I sighed, clearing my throat. "With him being with my friend, I know he's safe and taken care of and when I turn eighteen, I can just take him with no issues. That's all I want."
Troy, Torii and Ava were all staring at me, I guess waiting to see if I'd say anything else. Or, to see if I'd cry, but I gave a wide smile and thanked them for listening. "But enough of the bad talk."
Ava, sitting in the corner of the room, cleared her throat and gave a small smile. "We're going to make this work. We're going to be famous. Highly sought after. And NUMBER ONE."
"Damn right!"
We all changed and sat up talking, getting to know even more about one another and going deeper into our lives. If this was going to work, we had to be real friends. While we're out here, we're all we've got.
Torii –
I'd just gotten off the phone with Daddy and took a seat on one of the couches in the corner of the studio where we'd been doing our photoshoots for the day. I took one deep breath and closed my eyes, hoping to catch a five to ten-minute nap before they decided they were ready for me again.
Just as I'd gotten comfortable, I heard someone clear their throat. Opening my eyes and looking to my left, I gave a half of a smile in response to Raymond's weak one before asking him what he wanted. "Just a chance to talk to you. We see each other every day, but never talk. In fact, you don't talk to anyone other than your sister and your girls."
I blinked a few times before shrugging. "They're my groupmates; I'm supposed to talk to them. You, on the other hand, are just a possible, future label mate."
"We may end up working together one day, on a song or album or something though."
"And that's when I'll talk to you, Raymond."
He smirked. "You know I prefer to be called Raj, right?"
"Yeah, Raymond, I know."
He said nothing for a good minute before I asked again what he wanted, stating that I preferred to sit alone. "Oh, right. I guess my real reason for asking that we talk a little, is because I think you're beautiful. I just want to get to know a little more about you, maybe, eventually, when we have some free time, you and I can go out on a date."
I stared at him for a few minutes before smiling and turning my head. Resting against the palm of my hand, I closed my eyes.
"Come on Torii, what are you about to say no for? I see you looking in my direction sometimes. I see you looking at me. Am I ugly or something?"
"You're decent looking."
"Oh, you don't like light skinned dudes?"
I looked at him, mugging. "Did that ever come out of my mouth?"
"I can see it all over your face."
"We're both black, Fool, and you're cute or whatever. I just don't find you attractive in the sense that I would want to go out on a date with you. Is that answer good enough for you, Raymond."
"Sure. But I've got a feeling Torii."
I looked at him, slightly irritated because all I wanted in this moment was a quick nap. "Yeah, what's that?"
"You're going to be my wife one day."
"Ha!" Raymond looked at me as if I'd crushed his soul, but what he said was pure comedy. How do you look at someone you barely know and decide they're going to be your lifelong spouse? How do you decide that as a teenager? "You're funny, now if you'll excuse me; since you wasted my chance to take a nap, I've gotta get back to work."
I stood up and took a half a step before I felt him grab my wrist. "Our last night in Cali, the schedule is clear. What do you say you and I go somewhere and have a nice dinner, or whatever you want to do?"
I rolled my eyes. "Sure, if you take on the understanding that nothing will come from it. I've got a boyfriend back home."
Raymond's smile turned to a frown and I pulled my arm away before running across the room to stand next to Ava after the photographer called out to me.
The following morning and afternoon, there was more work to be done. More photos, more promotional videos, more interviews, and even our first radio interview since Chauncey had gotten word out to a couple of stations that he finally found his best acts to date. Asked to sing live on air, we got some really positive feedback and words of encouragement from individuals that Brandy said would determine when and how often we get played on the radio. And we all knew, radio plays were just as important as sales.
Chauncey said that it was a dirty way of dealing, but if you rubbed radio DJ's and hosts the wrong way; they could essentially cut your time on airways short if they wanted to, or not play you at all. Same with the video jockeys at MTV. We were told to always be kind and respectful, which was a given and common sense, but to also be mindful of what we say and how we say it. Even when there was no harmful intent, things could go wrong. Speak when we're spoken to, think before we answer, and a few other short tips. She said we'd be receiving full media training about a week before we really start getting interviews, but Brandy had an enormous amount of faith in us. Felt we could handle ourselves without it.
To our surprise, while we were out and finally getting a quick chance to walk around the city that we all hoped to live in one day, we got a page from both Brandy and Chauncey. When we called back, we were surprised to learn that for the first time, we'd have to sing for some executives at a couple of labels. The thing about that was, it wouldn't be for them to look at us.
Since they hadn't gotten to the process of finding background singers, and we had no home label where we could use their session singers, we were going to have to sing background for Xclusive.
I didn't mind, because I felt that had it been for us, on such short notice, we may not have been as ready as Chauncey would have felt we were.
Making it back to the rehearsal space we were greeted at the door by Brandy and rushed off to a backroom so that we could change. She gave each of us these really cute black dresses and boots. "Leann, I know dresses aren't you're thing, but you've got to make your brother group look good tonight, just as they will do for you when it's your turn. They're wearing suits, naturally. And as the background singers, you know that it's common for those in the position to dress alike."
She nodded, surprising all of us by not objecting or making snide comments. She let her hair down from the ponytail she'd been wearing and did a quick style before letting Troy do her makeup. I was thankful that we had stockings with it, 'cause at the very least our legs wouldn't have to be cold in this ice box we always had to practice in. "Told you I wasn't kidding when I said I was ready to make certain sacrifices. I know they're not watching us specifically, but they're still looking."
Brandy smiled, hugging each of us before she pushed gently and rushed us all to the stage where the boys were already waiting. "That's right Leann, and I'm proud of you all. Keep this attitude, stay willing to work whenever and wherever, and I promise you'll make it to the top and stay there." She made a few final fusses over all four of us before stepping forward to make the introductions to those sitting in the small audience.
It was scary to think that some of the biggest names in the industry were down on that floor. When I tell you that I was beyond shocked to see a dude that had done background vocals and recorded a song with Mariah Carey... I could have lost it right then and there. Not only him, Pebbles and LA Reid, Clive Davis, Louil Silas Jr. who'd brought one of mine and Troy's favorite singers to national attention, and so many others.
I gently tugged at the necklace I was wearing, saying a quick prayer and asking my mom to watch over us. Even with us being in the background, there was no way that we could mess this up. Not for Xclusive, and definitely not for us.
"Gentlemen, and Ladies, thank you so much for joining us this evening. Chauncey Howard and I were absolutely ecstatic to hear back from you, and even more thrilled to hear that you've found interest in one of the two groups we are currently developing. For your listening pleasure, we have the four young men of Xclusive; Desmond, Tariq, Raymond, and Greg. And though it's not quite their turn yet, the lovely ladies singing background for them this evening are the members of our second group, Fly Girl. Their names are Torii, Troy, Ava, and Leann. While getting a feel of our groups live, we do hope that you enjoy them, so much so that you entertain the thought of offering them a home label as neither group has one yet."
Brandy stepped off to the side after thanking everyone for their time and applause, and the band Chauncey had pulled together quickly began playing behind us. I was glad that the song was one we'd heard the boys practicing. Otherwise, it might have been a real struggle on our end.
Instead of Marliss taking the lead, Raymond stepped forward and began, harmonizing as we sang the background to start them off.
I just hope we canpull off singing a song that's far more mature than we actually are.