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At the stop to switch drivers and refuel, Arun pops over from the crew bus to sit us all down and check in on the day’s schedule.
“We should be at the venue in about two hours, traffic depending,” he says, checking his watch that easily costs more than half my wardrobe. “I need you all to be showered, dressed, and ready to go for the show since we have interviews right before. You won’t have much time besides a quick sound check in between. Got it?”
He looks around at each of us, meeting our eyes and waiting for our agreement. The four of us shake our heads in understanding.
“Do we need to know any of the questions ahead of time?” I ask. Our early interview days were a little rough, none of us knowing how to properly, or appropriately, answer questions.
We’ve since refined our media skills a bit, with time, age, and experience in the industry, as well as a few tongue lashings from Arun and our label.
“Nothing you haven’t already been asked before. You’ll probably get a few questions about the canceled previous tour, when to expect the next album, typical boring bullshit. Just be your charming selves, don’t fight with the reporter or each other, and we’ll consider it a success.” Arun claps his hands as he stands, clearly done with the conversation. This isn’t anything new to us, so he doesn’t need to be too worried.
“Thanks, dude,” Nikolai holds out his fist for Arun to tap with his own as he passes by the exit, to which Arun slaps the back of his head with a smile instead.
“Concussion!” Nikolai shouts, grabbing the back of his head in mock pain. “That’s coming out of your pay!”
“See you boys later.” Arun waves, exiting the bus.
I scan the room, Reid nudging Nikolai off of him as he tries to flop over into his lap, but it’s a half-hearted attempt.
“We’re not boys,” Reid mutters, not actually bothered by the comment but also not able to let an opportunity to complain about something pass him by.
Good to see some things haven’t changed.
8
SCAR
I hate to admit it, but my palms are damp with anxiety as I sink into the deep leather lounge chair in Boone’s greenroom waiting for the cameraman to finish setting up his tripod. The interviewer talks softly with Naomi, huddled near the table in the corner piled high with bags of chips, bowls of nuts, and a massive spread of gourmet looking donuts.
Maybe I need to step my rider game up because Boone clearly has got his down. When Vik asked me what I wanted included on mine before heading out on tour, I simply said gum and protein bars, not fully realizing what I was missing out on.
“You’re gonna do great.” Boone slaps my knee as he plops beside me, holding out a handful of M&Ms and extending them to me in a silent offer. Some of the colors have dyed his skin, looking a little sweaty. I shake my head in disgust.
“There are plates over there, you know.”
“Who needs ’em?” he says, tipping his head back and pouring the remaining candy down his throat, chewing extra loudly just to annoy me. I kick him in the shin, lightly, as I’m wearing some of my chunkiest boots and don’t actually want to cause him any harm.
“Good to go,” the camera guy announces to the room, stealing the interviewer’s attention away from her conversation and turning to focus on me and Boone. She does a bit of a double take, scanning the two of us up and down before awkwardly glancing back to Naomi to gauge her reaction.
I know how it must look, the two of us settled in close with each other, Boone wrapping an arm around me to pull me in closer to his side, my body turned toward his. Our legs seem to tangle themselves together unwittingly. It looks like we’re something more than we are, and boldly displaying it in front of Boone’s long-term girlfriend.
But Naomi doesn’t bat an eye and we don’t make a move to disentangle ourselves. We have and always will be best friends.
“You got ten minutes before I need Scarlett for sound check.” Vik pops her head around the door, her buzzed hair freshly bleached white, highlighting her razor-sharp cheekbones.
That snaps the interviewer’s attention into gear and she strides across the room in even steps before settling into the couch adjacent to ours. She gives us each a small smile, before pulling out her phone and nodding to the cameraman to start rolling.
“Hi everyone, it’s Jada, and today I’m fortunate enough to be with one of the biggest names in the dance world, Boone Maxwell. He’s on the second stop of his U.S. tour co-headlining with pop rock band, Whisper Me Nothings, and their opening act, Scarlett Lane,” she says, ramping up her enthusiasm with each word.
“I know many are curious to know, why co-headline a tour around the country? You could easily do your own tour, especially after your latest album blew many fans away?”
I’m grateful her first question out the gate is directed at Boone. When I signed onto the tour, I knew there would be interviews and media requirements involved, but I’ve never had the spotlight turned on me like this. Thankfully, Vik and Boone agreed that for the majority of the smaller interviews throughout the tour that radio stations and bloggers were signed up to do, we could do them together. And for the bigger ones like TV or news spots, they didn’t really want me anyways since I’m still under the radar, so Boone can take those up on his own.
“I love the blend of genres together,” Boone replies sincerely, genuinely interested in her question and doing his best to be engaged. “We collaborated years ago when they were just getting started and had a blast doing that song. I’ve kept in touch with Walker since then and we’ve had a lot of fun in the studio, messing around with our two very different styles and I’d love to do another collab with those guys soon. It was about time for both of us to head out on the road, and doing a bus tour like this with a band provided me some of the stability I’ve really been trying to find for myself after so many years of flying city to city, playing multiple shows in one day in different time zones.” Boone drags a hand down his face as if even remembering his past touring schedule exhausts him.
“Now wait a second, did we just get another confirmed Boone Maxwell x Whisper Me Nothings collab?” Jada prods, leaning forward in excitement, eyes glinting.
“Hey, no, no, no, nothing to confirm right now,” Boone backtracks a bit. “I just said I’d love to collab with them again. It’s a really interesting mix of talents and sounds, especially as we’ve all evolved as artists over the years. So who knows, we’ll see what we come up with. We got four months on the road together after all.” He smiles, teasing the camera with his big smile.
