The Interview

JANUARY 1999 (11)

Warped Tour. That's where I'm gonna be heading for the summer. A month long tour of just fucking around onstage with Proof. The performing thing wasn't a hassle at this point. It was fun for me. I loved having this perk of my job.

It's been about a week since me and Kim broke up and I've honestly been living better without having to worry about her. She still lets me take care of Hailie whenever I please. Well, whenever I have the free time. With my album almost releasing, I have a lot of promo runs to do. Interviews, freestyles, concerts, you name it.

Sadly, a bit of my personal life has turned into a public debate. Apparently, someone saw me and Alana at the hotel. They didn't take any pictures of anything but they made claims that we were making out. So far, Alana has denied all the accusations but there are still many magazines that still are painting the picture that we have a thing.

So far, several magazines have had our names in the headlines. It's been nice to have my name in the conversation of people but I didn't want this to be the topic. When I sent the demo version of my album for it to be mixed and mastered, I left the disses at Alana on the album so that may stir up so controversy.

She's quickly becoming the most popular pop-star. Her style is incredible. She sings her hooks and taps her verses. Like most female emcees but she embraces her pop-side. She's versatile as fuck though. She can be singing her heart out in one track and she's rapping about killing you in the next. And her storytelling is off the chain. She's just—

God damn it. I've been doing this so much recently. I just can't get her out of my mind and I hate it. Maybe the only way to get rid of the feeling is making a song about it. But I'm not good at making love songs.

Scoffing, I lay down on the couch. I was in my new apartment for the time being. I would be touring as soon as the album was released so finding a house to settle in would be kinda stupid. I grabbed the remote for the TV and started browsing through channels.

There was a few horror movies on. I spent a few minutes flicking through them. One in particular reminded me of the song I made a week ago. It was just a little way to vent but I kept the hook and scrapped the rest of the song completely. Now though, I felt kinda inspired to write a story.

I got up quickly and went to my desk where my notebook had been from the night before when I was rhyming sentences together for my next project. I had a few vaulted songs that I wanted to release on my next EP or mixtape.

When I opened my notebook, my heart almost skipped a beat. I saw Alana's number on the bottom of one of the pages. She had given it to me after the show. I never thought about using it until now. I couldn't resist it.

I sauntered to my cellphone and dialed the number. The phone continuously for 30 seconds. I was going to hang up before I heard her voice. Her soothing, sexy voice.

"Hello? Uh, who is this?"

"... Alana, it's me. Marshall. I'm sorry about last time. And I'm sorry that this shit in the public now."

"It's fine Marshall. I really can't talk right now. I'm about to get ready for a interview. I'll call you back later, Marsh. Bye."

She hung up. It made me feel so lonely when she did that. I really adore this girl and it's not even funny anymore. I'm too soft for this. I'm just gonna finish my writing I guess.

TWO HOURS LATER

I'm at the studio right now, jotting down lyrics and listening to a few instrumentals that I was given by Jeff and Mark. Lately, I've been on a somewhat writing and recording binge every since the album got done. And I've been watching Dre closely when he produces my beats. I think I'm learning how to do a few things better than I used to.

My last few songs I've written were just random ideas I had that I never felt like finishing. I haven't as inspired as I used to be a few months ago. My main inspiration is Hailie and making a better life for her. But when I do that, who will be the reason I want to strive and get better? Alana? Deshaun? Dre?

"Hey Em, I know you're busy but we need to get your schedule right. After your album drops, you're supposed to be performing at Del Mar in California in March. I don't know if you have any shows planned for February but I got you booked for five interviews and also, I'm working on seeing if there are any free spaces on the Warped Tour." Paul said, walking into the studio and sitting to the chair next to me.

He stared at me for a brief moment before sighing. "I know this is a lot for you but this will launch you further to stardom." He says, chuckling slightly.

"I just need money to provide for my daughter. All the other interviews and shit can suck it. I'll go on the tours but I don't know how long I want to stay there if I can't bring Hailie." I said, focusing all my attention on the conversation. I had to think about it. I could lose time with Hailie and make money to give her a better life. Or I could stay here and work a normal job until the royalties from the album come in.

"Fuck it. Sign me up man. How long will I be there?"

~~~

Here it is. The thirteenth part of this story. I didn't have enough to update the past few days but I finally finished. I know it's a bit shorter than usual but the next chapter will be way more interesting and longer hopefully. I had few more changes to make regarding the album which you will see in the next part. For the next few parts, the story may go at a faster pace. There are some things that I found out while researching so I could get everything accurate (for a fictional story that is) and I learned a few things that will be a shocker for the next chapter ;)   Let's see how Marshall and Alana progress with their careers both blossoming now. Anyways I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. Bye bye