enjoyebooks Chapter 18 Rehearsal
Chapter 18 Rehearsal
"Almost done," Tino said, rubbing his hands together. "The stylist, costumes, and venue are all booked. DJs from several top 40 radio stations have also agreed to come tomorrow night. As long as the performance goes smoothly tomorrow, there won't be any problems with the radio stations broadcasting it."
"DJ?" Zeke asked.
Tino contacted many people, but highlighting DJ separately seemed a bit strange to him.
He knew that the term "Top 40" originated from music charts such as Billboard in the United States.
It refers to the 40 most popular, most played, and best-selling hit singles of each week. Later, it gradually evolved into a radio format: it is dedicated to playing the most popular songs, catchy tunes, and hit singles on a loop, pursuing high listenership, mass appeal, and commercialization.
"Let me give you a tip: DJs have a lot of power. They can decide what music to play at will, and what the Top 40 radio stations play means what songs are currently popular. If you're in the record industry, never offend them."
Zik nodded, indicating that he had learned something.
"Oh right, I ordered a few pizzas and a big bowl of meatball pasta to go. They probably haven't eaten yet in the attic, so we need to hurry up and rehearse."
Zik nodded, and Tino added, "You have to go too, to continue coaching them. I saw you dance quite well in the rehearsal room today, and you have ideas for the dance moves, right? For disco performances, the typhoon and the dance are very important, you have to figure something out."
"No problem." Zeke readily agreed, got up and walked to the counter, told Old Rossi that he had to go back to continue guiding the band's rehearsal, and left the phone number in the attic.
The group packed up their food and set off to return to Tribeca.
This time, Zik rode in Amanda's car. The car was quiet, and Amanda's lawyer would occasionally chat with Tino about the details of the contract, his tone much gentler than before.
Back in the attic, Amanda's lawyer immediately went to her side and whispered a report on the contract.
Soon, Amanda's previous arrogance disappeared, and her gaze towards Zeke became more wary.
It seems her lawyer told her that Zeke had a gang background and was a local tyrant she couldn't afford to offend, so there was no need to offend him over such a trivial matter.
Without saying another word, she took a check out of her bag and readily handed it to Zeke: "This is a $1 advance payment, as per the contract."
Zik took the check, confirmed the amount was correct, and carefully put it into his wallet, feeling quite satisfied.
Although today is December 25th, Christmas Day, and also a Sunday, and tomorrow is a compensatory federal holiday with banks and courts closed, the check will have to wait until after the holiday to be cashed. He also doesn't know how much tax he will have to pay after cashing it, but having the check in means that his efforts have not been in vain, so it's still something to be happy about.
The Sirens were starving, and when they saw the packaged pizza and meatball pasta, they immediately swarmed around and wolfed it down.
After finishing their meal, they didn't slack off at all and immediately threw themselves into rehearsals with a very positive attitude.
Zik stood aside, guiding them step by step on how to present themselves on stage, based on the performance images of YMCA from the Apocalypse in his mind.
Rock music is flamboyant and unrestrained, emphasizing power, while disco focuses more on rhythm and dance coordination, being light and carefree. The two are completely different.
The band members had difficulty adapting at first, so Zik patiently demonstrated and corrected their movements again and again, providing meticulous guidance on everything from positioning and gestures to facial expressions.
Rehearsals continued until close to dinner time, when the two hired mercenary trumpeters went on strike.
Amanda, Anton, Keith, and the other South Africans had no relatives or friends in the United States and no family to reunite with for Christmas, so they were naturally willing to continue rehearsing. Bassist Jimmy and keyboardist Holly were Americans, but in order to become famous and get a record contract, they were willing to give up the opportunity to reunite with their families and persevered through gritted teeth.
Zeke was even more eager to stay away from home, lest old Rossi throw a party and brag about how he was a musical genius, made a fortune selling songs, and had one foot in the entertainment industry, making sure everyone in Brownsville knew about it, even though he suspected it wouldn't make much difference even if he wasn't home.
But these two mercenary trumpeters were different. They were just temporary musicians that Tino had hired. To put it bluntly, they were just tools. The live performances would play pre-recorded accompaniment, so their role was not significant. Moreover, they were not included in the record contract, so there was no need for them to give up the opportunity to reunite with their families on Christmas Day and stay up all night to rehearse with them.
After packing up their instruments, the two prepared to say goodbye and leave.
Tino immediately stepped forward to stop them, glaring fiercely at the two: "If you leave now, you won't get any work in the future. Even if you get into a recording studio, I will never contact you again. Think it over!"
But the two mercenary trumpeters remained unmoved, shaking their heads: "Sorry, Tino, it's Christmas today, we have to go home to be with our families, we can give up this job."
Tino's expression turned grim. He turned to Zeke and asked in a low voice, "Zike, what do you think? Will their departure affect the rehearsals?"
Zik thought for a moment, walked to the stereo, took out the accompaniment tape he had recorded earlier, and pressed play. A powerful melody rang out, with the trumpet and trombone parts clear and bright, almost indistinguishable from a live performance.
He listened for a while and nodded: "No problem, the accompaniment is already recorded very well."
Tino finally breathed a sigh of relief. Although he was still somewhat reluctant, he took out the money and handed it to the two hired mercenary trumpeters, saying irritably, "Alright, alright, I'll give you half the money first, and you can pay the rest if the performance goes well."
The two trumpeters took the money and turned to leave the attic.
For dinner, they ate some cold pizza and pasta with coffee. Rehearsals continued, with Zik patiently guiding the band members, refining the details and correcting their typhoon and dance moves.
Time passed slowly, the night outside the window grew darker and darker, then gradually faded away. When the first ray of sunlight shone through the dirty glass window of the attic, the glass turned a faint amber color, and the dust in the air danced freely in the sunlight.
Zik could hear the sounds of the street gradually waking up: the horns of delivery trucks, the shouts of pedestrians, and the bells of shops opening in the distance, all intertwined and creating a lively atmosphere.
Everyone was exhausted. Tino, being old and lacking energy, had long since taken over the sofa and was snoring loudly.
Keith rubbed his eyes. "Zeeker, let me drive you home. You must be tired after a long day."
Looking at Keith's bloodshot eyes, Zeke thought to himself: In his current state, he definitely can't stay sober. It's too dangerous for him to drive me back to Brooklyn.
Just as he was about to refuse, Amanda suddenly spoke up, "Zick, you don't need to go back. There are extra rooms here; you can sleep in that room with Holly. I'm sure she won't mind."
Zeke was stunned for a moment, and before he could react, Holly walked over with a smile, took his hand, and said in a light tone, "Come on, you're exhausted, take a good rest."
Her hand was warm and soft. Zeke didn't pull away and let her lead him into a small room in the corner of the attic.
When Zeke woke up in the afternoon, sunlight was already streaming into the room through the window. He instinctively turned his head and found that Holly's half of the bed was empty.
He sat up, rubbed his sleepy eyes, and couldn't help but think: American young people are really open-minded, especially rock musicians. There are no unnecessary constraints. Just because they are attracted to each other, they can sleep with someone they've only known for a day, so relaxed and carefree.
Just then, cheerful laughter and chatter came from the kitchen.
Zeke quickly put on his clothes and walked over. He saw Keith, Amanda, and Anton, three South Africans, sitting at the table with Holly, holding coffee and chatting happily in a very harmonious atmosphere.
Seeing Zeke enter, Keith blinked, a knowing smile on his face, and teased, "How did you sleep?"
Zik smiled with feigned modesty and shrugged: "Heavy as a stone, thank you for taking me in."
Holly looked up and smiled at him.
The group chatted for a few more minutes, and then Tino walked in with a stylist carrying suitcases and several large bags of performance costumes. As soon as he entered, he started loudly making arrangements:
"Hurry up, everyone! Stop chatting! The stylist's here! Get your clothes and makeup done quickly. We still need to move the equipment to the King's Lounge later. Today's performance can't afford any mistakes!"