Nashville Nights by Tracey West Page B

so much fun today,” Hope said as she gave Aly and AJ a hug. “Let me show you where we are filming. The studio is huge—it’s like a maze!”
    Just then, a large black limousine pulled up behind Jim’s car. A chauffeur wearing a black suit and hat sprung out of the driver’s side and walked around the car to the rear passenger door. He opened it with a flourish, and three tall, beautiful young women stepped out of the car. They all looked a lot alike, with their long brown hair, dark skin, and high cheekbones.
    Aly grabbed AJ’s sleeve and tugged. “Do you know who that is?” she hissed in a loud whisper. “It’s HeavenSent!”
    AJ recognized the sister group right away. The R & B singers were superhot. Last month their single “Spotlight” had hit number one. AJ wondered if the sisters were going to be in Faith and Hope’s video. But instead of walking toward Nashville Star, they turned and headed for the building next door. They disappeared inside as the girls watched.
    â€œWow!” Aly said. “Holly, Sabrina, and Eve in person. I’ve seen so much of them on TV and in magazines the last few months. Hey—they’re a sister group! Did you ask them to be in your video?”
    Hope nodded. “We did, but they refused. They said they were busy shooting their own video.”
    â€œFrom what I’ve heard, HeavenSent is one of the hardest working groups in the business. It seems all they do is practice, tour, record, and do publicity,” AJ said.
    â€œSometimes it seems like that’s all we do, too,” Aly pointed out.
    â€œRight, but you need to make time for other things, too,” Hope said. “If I didn’t see my friends and family every few weeks, I’d be too sad to sing.”
    â€œTrue,” Aly agreed. “And a little chill time now and then is important, too. I mean, we’re musicians, but we’re people, too.”
    â€œWell, whatever HeavenSent is doing, it’s working,” Faith chimed in. “I’m sure they’ll clean up at the National Music Awards. I’ve heard they’re very competitive.”
    â€œLet’s get going,” Hope said. “Lionel is eager to get started. He’s the video director.”
    Aly and AJ followed Faith and Hope inside the studio building. They walked through a maze of hallways until they came to the soundstage where the video would be shot. It was a huge room with a high ceiling that had a network of lights hanging from it. A balding man with a beard was holding a clipboard as he talked into a phone. When he saw Faith and Hope approaching, he smiled and ended his call.
    â€œYou must be Aly and AJ,” he said. He held out his hand. “I’m Lionel, the video director. It’s great to be working with you.”
    Aly and AJ both shook his hand as they said hello.
    â€œAnd I’m sure you’ll want to meet the other sisters appearing in the video,” Lionel said. “Let me introduce you to Cadence and Calista.”
    AJ and Aly looked at each other, their eyes wide and their mouths open.
    â€œCadence and Calista Collins are here?” AJ asked in disbelief.
    Faith let out a giggle. “We wanted to surprise you. They’re in town for a month, recording a new album. Isn’t it great that they agreed to do the video?”
    â€œGreat—it’s awesome!” Aly chimed in. “We loved their TV show when we were little.” She began to sing. “Welcome to the Fun House. We’re gonna laugh and giggle the day away.”
    AJ rolled her eyes. “Oh, no. Now she’ll be singing the theme song to Fun House all day! But seriously, we watched that show every Friday night.”
    â€œWe did, too,” Hope said, smiling. “All of America did. Imagine growing up on TV like that? I think they were six when they started the show, and it lasted for ten years.”
    AJ nodded.