Rise To Stardom - Chapter 224

Chapter 224: Small Detour
The massive hall was cloaked in darkness.

Yet, center stage, a single, piercing spotlight illuminated a piano.

Roughly a thousand individuals filled the grand expanse of the hall, their presence visible by their silhouettes.

There was a hush of anticipation that hung in the air.

Like the calm before a storm.

Then, a single, lone figure, walked onto the stage and into the spotlight.

Upon witnessing whom he was, the entire hall swelled with a wave of pure, unfiltered nostalgia, washing over them.

But before the hall could erupt into a cacophony of cheers, a familiar string of notes was played on the lone piano.

A serenely-beautiful voice, rich, resonating and emotional, followed up immediately after;

🎹 ♪

Weekends were your favorite…

That was all it took.

Jack, Kiara and Blake, hit their buzzers in an instant as the hall, lit up in a cascading burst of light!

And upon expecting to find out which contestant’s voice so closely mirrored a certain young man they all knew, the absolute shock on all three’s features, knew no bounds.

There Kyle was in the flesh, rekindling the moment Rising Voices facilitated the birth of a star!

You’d laugh as I told you about my week,

You’d tell me you loved my smiles,

And I was content with yours…

🎹 ♪

With the cat out of the bag, the hall was finally allowed to erupt as crazily as they could!

Blake on the other hand, aggressively kept banging his buzzer over and the over again in a wave of exhilaration!!

Yet Kyle, with a blooming smile tugging on his lips, never stopped his performance for a minute;

🎹 ♪

In time you’ll see child,

We were just a page in your story,

And maybe that’s what you are,

But I’ll keep holding on…

🎹 ♪

Kiara, now a permanent judge on the show, was already up her feet, her body gently swaying left and right as she sang along with the same emotional weight that mirrored Kyle’s vocals.

Even the hard to impress Jack, was doing the same, his hands gently clasped together as the audience, without even been told or practicing beforehand, joined in for a crowd moment and chorused alongside Kyle;

🎹 ♪

I may not have known but,

You gave me the best of both worlds,

Now you rest in peace,

And I’m left here, holding on to your embers…

🎹 ♪

And just like that, Kyle’s performance of [Embers] continued on, the entire hall completely captivated by the performance.

Howard who was backstage, had a stupidly happy grin plastered on his lips as Chris nudged him gently.

Yet, without even minding, the Executive Producer maintained his vivacious visage, counting his lucky stars that he never went down the path of causing unnecessary dramas on his shows to increase viewership ratings like so many other producers did.

How else would he have gotten Kyle to perform as a guest on the finals of the seventh season?!

Ever since the fourth season which had shattered all the records of the previous three, Rising Voices, although they weren’t struggling with viewership ratings by any means, had never for once, touched the same heights as they did in the previous four seasons, especially the fourth.

‘But with this! It’s definitely possible!’ Howard’s business-like mentality came back as quickly as it left.

And upon noticing the way he was rubbing his palms in excitement, Chris simply shook his head in resignation with a light smile.

As for the seventh season’s contestants similarly backstage, each and every one of them, kept staring at Kyle with star-struck eyes as he kept singing.

Within the very depths of their hearts, they all hoped with every ounce of their beings, to touch the same heights that he did despite not even being a winner of the popular reality singing TV show.

After all, even after all this years, he was still the most remembered contestant in the history of the show.

🎹 ♪

Holdin’ on to your words…

Holdin’ on to your smiles…

Holdin’ on to my best memories of you…

Right here… holding on to your embers…

🎹 ♪

With the emotionally-resonating and powerful bridge sang, the judges, and the entirety of the audience, all up on their feet, rounded up the song together, alongside Kyle;

🎹 ♪

I may not have known but,

You gave me the best of both worlds,

Now you rest in peace,

And I’m left here… holding on to your embers…

🎹 ♪

With the last, beautifully somber note played, Kyle gently retracted his hands from the piano.

Willing himself not to get too emotional as he always did whenever he performed [Embers], the young star stood up from the stool, everyone in the hall, already showering him with a mixture of cheers, whistles and applauds!

Blake in fact, jumped right off his elevated panel and walked towards Kyle while gesturing for a warm hug, one that the young man partook in with a warm laughter.

“You are as beautiful as the day you got eliminated!” he joked and the audience burst into a wave of laughter as Kyle remarked mirthfully whilst similarly laughing;

“I don’t know if I should be offended or flattered, Blake.”

“Both. Both is good.” the judge simply responded with a curt nod and a light shrug, eliciting another wave of hearty laughter from the audience.

“Blake’s shenanigans asides, what are you doing here Kyle?!” Jack soon asked the question on everyone else’s minds as the laughter settled, Kiara following up with a curious yet still excited smile;

“Shouldn’t you be busy with your tour?!”

“Oh you know. Felt I’d just make a small detour. Pay my respects to where it all started.” Kyle commented playfully in response, although there was a hint of genuineness in his voice that couldn’t be missed.

“Well, we most definitely appreciate it. Thank you, for taking time out of what I presume must be a completely packed schedule.” Jack warmly responded and Kyle waved it off humbly;

“Oh it’s nothing.”

“I do have to be on my way though now. It’s been lovely getting to speak to you all again!” Kyle exchanged handshakes with Blake whom was practically beaming.

No sooner had he done that, he promptly waved both Jack and Kiara, alongside the audience, goodbye.

And in return, they all saw him off with another round of thunderous applauds.

Within the next span of seconds, he was off the stage, Blake already walking towards the elevated panel to take his spot on his seat.

“The Grammies better give him his flowers again this year. Or else it’s war.” he sportively commented aloud as he settled into his seat, earning another ripple of light-hearted chuckles, both from Kiara and the audience.

As for Jack, he simply shook his head in mild amusement.

But even he, completely agreed with his fellow judge’s statement.

…

…

…

Arriving at a booked hotel near SoFi Stadium a few minutes later for the third concert of his tour which would be happening tomorrow, Kyle quickly made his way to the dining room.

And there, he met the artist whom was tasked with opening his concert, casually lounging on a dinner chair while speaking with Selena–– her agent, Oliver and Owen.

“Hello~, dreamboat~. You’re just in time.” she remarked with her signature springtime smile, a palm propping up her chin as she probed curiously with twinkling eyes of interest;

“Now, what’s this I hear about playing your fictional mother?”

“Phrasing, Lily.” Kyle mildly shook his head and chuckled as he pulled out one of the dining chairs to join all four in their conversations regarding her role in [Tech Wiz: Year One].

As this was happening, somewhere else in L.A, the Recording Academy’s Esteemed Panel of Core Judges, had a small meeting to discuss something pertaining to the 64th Grammie Award Winners.

Having caught wind of what some academy voting members in various brackets were up to, just before the winners in all the selected categories were tallied, all three were glad they had intervened just in time.

“I presume you’ve all seen the documents. It’s a manipulation unlike any we’ve ever seen.” Milo Jackson, a Hollywood Legend in the music industry whom had once been crowned the King of Pop during his younger years, disappointedly stated.

“Yeah. Did some extra digging of my own and I have to say, Lex sure has his nasty shadow spread in some pretty deep places.” Johnny Vito, a similarly legendary and highly influential music producer whom was aged 60 and still kicking strong, took a sip of his wine, his eyes casually glazing over the document.

“Thoughts, Vee?” he remarked as he glanced over to the woman on his left, her reading glasses, resting on the ridge of her nose as she kept reading the proposal.

Veronica Sinclair, renowned for being a Madonna in the 90’s and practically re-inventing how certain music genres could and should feel, was still considered the most influential woman, not just in the music industry today, but in Hollywood, period.

And on her timelessly beautiful face, lay a sharp look of critique, her hands putting away the document as she commented, her voice filled with a sense of justice and integrity;

“We’re purging them. Every last one of them.”

If it had been a few years back, this sort of incident would’ve probably scaled past and swept under the rug as all three, had way too much trust in their own handpicked Academy Voters.

But, ever since a string of major controversies and debates over certain wins had kept piling gradually over the years, all three had become more proactive in their checks of how the voting process was being run.

And it was then that they realized, even if they as the core judges, maintained an unbiased approach to whomever was announced as the winners after they themselves had dropped their votes, the rest of the Recording Academy, wasn’t exactly forthcoming.

This, in the long run, they knew wouldn’t bode well.

Also, individually, to all three at least, it had been one of their greatest achievements to become core judges for the most prestigious music award which had been awarding decades’ worth of excellence in the ever-changing music landscape.

As a result, The Grammies, at least by the standards of this world, was one that they were trying to ensure remained relevant.

And to do that, they had to ensure a complete lack of favoritism and guarantee that, only those that deserved to win, won.

* * *

(A week later…)

The 64th Grammie Awards was here.

And kicking it off was the Premiere Ceremony.

The ceremony where the lesser-publicized but still prestigious awards were presented.

Arriving minutes before the event even began, was Kyle and Oliver, both dressed in pristine navy-blue and black suits respectively as they settled into their reserved seats.

The lights in the luxuriously modern hall were also dimmed, albeit the many silhouettes of all the celebrities, models, journalists, influencers, industry-elites and various other attendees present could be easily spotted.

In an effort to pass the time before the event officially commenced, Kyle and Oliver engaged in a casual conversation, the hall gradually growing more crowded as light murmurs filled the air.

Then, literal moments, just before the event officially commenced, a certain individual, accompanied by a stunner of a lady entered the hall.

Soon, both found their way to their reserved seats, ‘coincidentally’ situated right beside Kyle and Oliver’s.

The duo, respectively, were Lex and his secretary, Donna.