Chapter 81
Sia set her bag down near the vocal booth, taking a quiet mont to look around the studio. There was a calm focus to her movents, like soone who'd done this a hundred tis but still knew how to appreciate the mont.
Pepper handed her the printed lyrics, but Sia was already familiar with them. She glanced at the page briefly and said, "Yeah, I've gone through it a few tis. I actually really liked the first track—Titanium. That was one of the main reasons I said yes to this project."
Pepper nodded.
Sam leaned toward and whispered, "She's way more chill than I expected a famous singer to be."
"British charm," I whispered back.
I turned to Carly and Freddie. "You guys ready to hear the last two?"
Carly gave a thumbs-up, and Freddie was already lifting his cara.
I stood up and walked toward the booth. Sia was adjusting her headphones when I stepped in.
She gave a quick nod but didn't seem bothered at all that I had the Marshllo helt on.
"Ready?" I asked.
"Always," she said with a slight smile.
The track began, and she started to sing to sing 'Titanium' (David Guetta – feat Sia).
♪ You shout it out
But I can't hear a word you say
I'm talking loud, not saying much
I'm criticized, but all your bullets ricochet
You shoot down, but I get up♪
♪I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose
Fire away, fire away
Ricochet, you take your aim
Fire away, fire away
You shoot down, but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shoot down, but I won't fall
I am titanium♪
♪Cut down
But it's you who'd have further to fall
Ghost town, haunted love
Raise your voice, sticks and stones may break my bones
I'm talking loud, not saying much♪
♪I'm bulletproof nothing to lose
Fire away, fire away
Ricochet, you take your aim
Fire away, fire away
You shoot down, but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shoot down, but I won't fall
I am titanium
I am titanium
I am titanium♪
When the final note echoed through the studio, I stepped out of the booth, and giving a small nod to Pepper.
"So?" I asked, glancing at the others.
Regina leaned forward, a thoughtful look on her face. "It's getting harder and harder to pick a favorite of your songs..."
The others nodded in agreent.
"Seriously," Carly said. "They're all so different but equally good."
"Yea," Sam added
I smiled beneath the helt, then turned back toward the booth.
"Alright," I said, "let's finish this."
I stepped back into the booth for the final track.
This ti, it was "Friendzone" (Friends – Marshllo)
Sia adjusted her mic again, and I gave her a nod. The beat kicked in
♪ Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh
Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh
Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh
Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh♪
♪ You say you love , I say you crazy
We're nothing more than friends
You're not my lover, more like a brother
I've known you since we were like ten, yeah♪
As the track played on with its sassy back-and-forth energy
Freddie let out a soft "What a sad song..."
Everyone turned to look at him weirdly.
The song carried on, leading to its sharp, iconic final
♪ Want to spell it out for you? F-R-I-E-N-D-S
F-R-I-E-N-D-S Mmm, ooh, ooh, ooh Ah-ah-ooh-ah-ooh ♪
When I stepped out of the booth, Sam was already laughing hard.
"Hey," she said between giggles, "you should call it 'Freddiezone'."
"shut up, Sam" Freddie shot back
I gritted my teeth. 'Yeah, it kind of brings so resemblance.'
I said "Man, I didn't sing it because... you know..."
Freddie raised his hands quickly. "That's okay. It's just not my favorite song out of the ones you sang..." he added jokingly.
Carly was sitting nearby, a small conflicted expression crossing her face.
---
Not long after, everyone started packing up and heading out. Carly, Sam, Freddie, Regina and even Pepper said their goodbyes, leaving the studio one by one.
I stayed behind. The recording wasn't over—not really. Sotis it took hours, even days, to get everything perfect for the final release.
By the ti we wrapped up the technical clean-up and playback sessions, the sun had dipped low outside.
Pepper ca back just as everything was finalized. She listened quietly to the mastered version, nodding along. When it ended, she looked at and gave a satisfied smile.
Sia stood near the door, her bag over her shoulder.
"I really enjoyed this," she said. "Let's maybe work on sothing else in the future, yeah?"
I gave her a small wave, still wearing the helt. "I'd like that."
She smiled again before heading out into the night.
Pepper turned to after the door closed. "I've already lined up a few things—so radio stations and magazines for the launch. We'll be releasing soon."
I nodded. "You don't have to worry about making the release perfect. After all, I plan on dropping two or three songs every month."
There were so many electronic tracks I rembered—no reason to hold them back.
Pepper raised an eyebrow and smiled. "I registered a bunch of the songs you gave , and you had more than hundred before... With this much music under your na, you could release more than a dozen albums. Did you steal so unknown jukebox or sothing?"
"Nah, I'm just really that good," I said without blinking.
Pepper just stared at and said nothing.
Then she cleared her throat. "Anyway, My Big Fat Greek Wedding is in advanced stages of production. Brokeback Mountain will take a bit longer to finish."
She gave a quick glance. "Your friend Joey is doing a great job as the lead in My Big Fat Greek Wedding."
"That's great!" I said.
I thought back to when I first told Joey about the role—how I told him to give everything he had at the auditions. Like with Paranormal Activity, I wouldn't risk compromising a movie with the potential of My Big Fat Greek Wedding just to hand a part to a friend.
In the future, when I had more money and the studio could afford to take chances on sub-par actors, I wouldn't mind as much. Neither would Pepper, probably. She didn't care as long as it wasn't a big-budget project.
------
Support Link: s/c/MHJunior [Up to 35 advance Chapters]
Please give a Review and Powerstone if you like the novel
Reviews
All reviews (0)