#So it's also a musician that i can listen to from start to finish for days on end | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

magics-neptunes-things · 4 months

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Celebrity Crush

Hi guys!

This is a new one, but it's kind of a suit from this story. A bonus chapter, I don't know how we can call it.

I hope you will like it :)

TW : Ona Batlle being perfect as ever.(I'm so in love)

Summary : You're a worldclass singer in an interview after you left your group because your manager and staff were asshole.

Enjoy!

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After leaving your group's separation, you quickly felt better. The depression that awaited you flew away like a cloud of smoke once the stress and pressure that were constantly on your shoulders stopped existing. Even when you were on trial against your old record company, your former bosses and manager, you felt good. Because even if you ended up paying millions, it meant you were free again. And that, in your eyes, was priceless.

You must also admit that being able to be with your girlfriend on a daily basis is probably the main reason for your well-being. Ona has always been the most important person in your life and since your return to Barcelona, you have trouble being separated from her. You gladly accompany her to her training sessions and you will also happily get her when she has finished. You go to each of her games as well, even if they are on the other side of Spain or in another country. You have so much time to catch up and your wear your jersey with her name with pride.

You were afraid at first that having you around all the time would end up bothering Ona, but she seems as happy to have you back as you are. At first, you didn’t know what to do while the footballer was training, so you cleaned up your house. As the days passed, you started composing and playing music again, for fun. Your apartment may no longer shine like a mint, but it has the advantage that your housekeeper stops staring at you when you don’t put their products in the right place.

It's only two years later that you decide to release a music album, entirely produced by you. You don’t want to experience the same kind of problems as before and you’ve decided that you’re never better served than by yourself. The songs are mostly love songs related to Ona to be fair.

When you looked for musicians, you asked the guys but only Ricardo agreed. You didn’t blame the other two, even if you now use the thing to annoy them when you see them again and you start bickering like fifteen year olds.

You choose your interviews yourself and it's you who plans your concert schedules, arranging to place them at times or places that don't make you miss any match of Ona. It's sometimes more difficult for her to come see you in concert, but these being the same each time, you don't hold it against her. You have an agent, though, who is no one but your big brother, who you have complete confidence in, and who knows how to be a watchdog when it comes.

After dropping Ona off at practice today, you head to the centre of Barcelona for an interview. You initially hesitated before accepting, but when sold to you as a way to also talk about homosexuality that is forced to hide in the music world, you quickly accepted.

"Drive carefully. I will try to listen to you" Ona promised before kissing you tenderly caressing your cheek.

"All right. Be careful Onita."

Ona smiled at you and left the car, not without kissing you one more time when you whines when you saw her leaving your car.

The report that is broadcast before your interview attracts all your attention and you are happy that the subject is approached in this way. The way they educate young people on the subject also pleases you very much. During the ad page and the beginning of your interview, you send a quick message to Ona and your mother, telling them that the interview will soon begin.

The headphones on your ears, you smile at the journalist who is interviewing you. She is a well-known and respected journalist in Spain and you are happy that she is the one doing your interview.

"So Y/N, hello! How are you?"

"I’m fine thank you and you?" you answer with a smile.

"Well, I’m glad you’re here."

You smile and nod. She informed you that the interview was being filmed to be broadcast online on the radio’s website, but don’t forget that most people can’t see you. So you also thank her orally.

After discussing the report and general views, she gently guides the discussion on your own case, as agreed. You naturally asked Ona’s permission to talk about her before accepting the interview.

"And so in your case, it was your record company at the time that prohibited you from mentioning your girlfriend?"

"Yes. In truth, I was not allowed to talk about my homosexuality at all. It was the record company that started releasing subtle information to make the fans believe that something was going on between Juan and me"

"And you were already with your girlfriend when it all started?"

"We’ve been together since we were 17 and I’ve never kept the truth from them" you shrug your shoulders.

"It must have been hard for you, but also for her, I guess."

You swallow nervously, the difficult moments through which you passed coming back in memory. Playing nervously with your fingers, you quickly shift your attention to your interlocutor.

"Very. Honestly, I’m very lucky that she stayed. Many other people would have given up on me I think."

The reporter smiles at you before moving on to another question. You knew this kind of moment would come and you were prepared. But that doesn’t mean it’s nice to talk about it anyway.

"I can see people reacting to what you said and some people find it unbelievable that your former employers have not managed to separate you" she comments looking at a screen next to her.

"Oh, actually they almost succeeded. But that’s precisely when I decided to stop everything. I could see my life without music, but I couldn’t see my life without Ona" you say timidly while smiling.

The journalist smiles back at you and winks at you before grabbing a small pile of cards next to her.

"Thank you for your sincerity. Now a quick round of questions on anything and everything, all our guests come through. Are you ready?"

"Ready" you answer, a little more relaxed.

You laugh softly when she throws a jingle, before you ask the first question.

"What is your favorite season?"

"Summer" you answer. The summer break would be fairer, considering Ona’s busy schedule.

"Your favorite food?"

"The fideua of my mother-in-law, sorry Mama I love you"

"If you had to live in a city other than Barcelona, which one would it be?"

You give yourself a few seconds to think, quickly listing the places you know in your head.

"Um… Maybe Palma de Mallorca"

An hour’s flight from your families, the little island is a place you enjoy. So why not. In addition, you need the sun to live properly. Even if you enjoy London, you don't see yourself living there permanently.

"Real Madrid or FC Barcelona?"

"Barcelona, obviously" you answer with a smile.

"The first thing you do in the morning, only the answers that can be listened by our youngest ears are allowed" jokes the journalist, making you laugh.

"Turn off my girlfriend’s alarm clock I guess"

You never understood how Ona got up and got to practice on time during your absence. She never hears the sound of her alarm clock.

"Ok and last question. Who is your celebrity crush? Ban to mention Ona's name"

You laugh again and roll your eyes.

"Okay then… The Number 22 of Fc Barcelona Femini is kind of cute" you answer with malice, mentioning Ona's number.

It makes the journalist laugh and you smile while shrugging your shoulders before answering.

"What? You saw my girlfriend? There’s no way I’d mention another name"

This is where the interview ends and you warmly thank the whole team for their kindness. After posing for a photo for their social networks, you still stay with them to talk a little bit. At this time, Ona is probably coming home, Salma having offered to bring her back for once since you were not sure to arrive on time.

When you go out, some fans are waiting for you and you take a few minutes to talk to them, sign autographs or take pictures. When you finally get to your car, you answer Ona’s message that she is home to tell her that you are coming too.

"I’m home mi Amor!"

Ona appears smiling in the entrance after a few seconds and you don't hesitate to pass your arms around her to squeeze her against you. It’s only been a few hours but it’s pretty incredible how much you missed her. You smile while feeling the comforting smell of her shampoo and smile even more when she drops kisses in the hollow of your neck.

"How was the training?" you ask her while playing with her long hair.

"Very good. Only three games left and we’re on vacation"

You smile and nod. Barcelona are already sure to win the championship and you saw their third straight victory in the Champions League a few weeks before.

"I can’t wait"

You have already planned your vacation, three weeks under the sun of Hawaii. You know how tired Ona is and you intend to do everything possible so that she can recover properly. What she doesn’t know is that you plan to propose to her there and that almost everything is already organized.

Ona turns you away from the last details you have to do by putting her lips on yours, waking the butterflies in your stomac.

"Come, I ordered food. I took sushi as I didn't know what time you would arrive"

"It’s perfect" you assure her, letting her train you in your kitchen by the hand. "Like you" you add with a smirk, lightly squeezing her bum.

Ona laughs and turns around to face you and put her arms around your neck.

"What a sweat talker and a charmer" she whispers against your lips before kissing you again, making you shiver.

"I’m so in love with you it’s disgusting" you smirk a few minutes later when you’re sitting in front of your plate.

"Oh yeah? Well it seems to me that you also appreciate the number 22 of FC Barcelona?"

Sitting in front of you, Ona has eyes that sparkle with mischief and you laugh by pointing with one of your sticks.

"You can’t blame me. She’s amazing."

#woso x reader #woso imagine #ona batlle #ona batlle x reader #ona batlle imagine

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aouiaa · 5 days

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Loser!Ellie Hcs

Imagining Loser! Ellie who makes fart noises with her mouth when you bend down to pick up something, and making fun of you for “farting.”

“Ewww, that one was nasty!”

A scoff leaves your mouth as you stand up, looking back to send a death stare her way to which makes her walk over to you, giggling.

“It’s okay, everyone farts.” she says with a cheeky grin.

An eye roll from you further causes Ellie to full on laugh and wrap her arms around your waist, pressing kisses to your neck.

She would be so silly with it too. Finding different ways to comment on you “farting.”

“That’s some narly tooting there, babe.”

“Woof, another left the cannon!” she says, pinching her nose while actually fanning the air to shooing away the smell as if it was real.

“A bomb just dropped, take cover!”

Imagining Loser! Ellie who invites you over to her house when you first started dating to review her concerningly large comic book collection.

“How do you have some many?!” you exclaim, looking over the many boxes filled with comics.

“I had to do some things to acquire such items that I rather not corrupt your mind with.” she says in a rather poor attempt of sounding suspicious and menacing.

“God, you’re such a loser! you laugh, and watch as Ellie immediately drops the act and turns into a big giant tomato.

A little shy “no” leaves her lips to which makes you smile and lean over to kiss her, “It’s okay, you’re my loser.”

Imagining Loser! Ellie who also has a smaller collection of space related books than the rather getting out-of-hand comic collection.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who has the deadliest grip over the last chicken while sending a death stare your way when you do that one trend on her to see if she’d grab her phone instead.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who’s laughing to the point there’s tears in her eyes when she suggested the both of you paint each other. And when revealed, hers was very detailed and while yours…’was insteresting.’ Ellie’s words…

Imagining Loser! Ellie who makes fun of people who dress “cringe”, but also wears this.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who write love songs for you in her little journal of hers and even plays them on her guitar. You’ve even caught her once.

Upon walking into your home, you hear muffled talking or singing. Presuming it’s Ellie, you walk into the room to see her with gutiar in hand. Immediately when she sees you she stops what she’s doing and look up, her face turning red.

“Oh—shit, you’re home early…” she says, laughing nervously, settling her guitar aside and greeting you with a hug and kiss as usual.

A little laugh leaves your lips as you return such greeting and ask, “What were you doing?”

She pulls away from the embrace and looks down upon hearing the question. Playing with her pinky and rings finger, she responds, “Oh, ya’ know—just…playing.”

“Just playing? But I heard you singing.”

An audible gulp is heard from the nervous girl as she looks up at you, “I was writing a song.” she finally admits.

A wave of surprise washed over you, “Oh—wow. Can…I hear it?”

“Uhh, maybe later..”

You chuckle and nod, “Alright then, my little musician. You can work on!” you quip.

A nervous smile presents itself on Ellie’s lips, “Shut up.”

Loser! Ellie who does let you listen to the song, but is stuttering and messing up the whole time!—Poor girl, you make her nervous :(—To which earns her a kiss on the cheek and a “You got this, baby. Just relax” To which she actually does! She Some might say it was the kiss that did it.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who has a special spot in her journal fill of doodles of you.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who has mutiple unfinished paintings of you that with time will be finished, just has to find time in her super busy schedule—that consists of sleeping and bothering you—to finished them.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who sleeps with stuff animals.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who HAS to absolutely listen to music when doing anything, literally doesn’t matter it could be showering, dishes, getting ready, etc. There’s music playing.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who’s a big ‘Savage Starlight’ nerd and actually at some point sent in one of her best fanart to the official insta page, but never got a response. :(

But the girl can’t take failure as a option and is still hopeful saying, “They’ll open my message…eventually.” with a sad little huff.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who’s screaming from the bathroom when she actually gets a response back!

You knock frantically on the door to realize it when she’s opens the phone and you’re met with her phone being shoved into your face, “Look, Look, Look!

A slight irritated sigh leaves your lips as you look at Ellies phone—which has mysterious residue stains on it—and see the instagram post. Once reading the caption praising Ellie for her work, you look up from the phone and at her, “I thought you were getting killed, Ellie! God…”

“Aweeee, you care about me?” she says, putting her hands on her chest.

“No, I came to make sure they finished the job.” you reply with a cheeky grin.

“Oh wow…well in that case, gimme my phone and get out!” she frowns.

You roll my eyes playfully and chuckle, giving back her phone, “Make sure to flush.” you say, closing the door.

“That was one time!” you hear a muffled shout.

Imagining Loser! Ellie whose phone is filled with multiple pictures of you. Some of you, sleeping, doing chores around the house, cooking—and some with you seeming to be yelling at her in the photo for not helping, and terrible pictures of you that you beg her to delete, but she protests saying, they’re “beautiful” to her.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who steals your chapstick since she always loses her’s within a few days of having it.

“Ellie?” you call out, searching in your nightstand for your chapstick.

“Yeah, babe?” you hear her voice become more clearly as she walks into the bedroom.

“Has you seen my chapstick? My lips are terribly dry…” you huff, unable to find it in your clutter.

“Uhh, no.”

*Imagine her in the background, sneakily swiping your chapstick back and forth on her lips as you annoyedly rummage through your stuff for it.* LMAOOO

Imagining Loser! Ellie who does feel bad and buys you a ten pack of chapstick, stealing one of course for herself.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who buys those princess or even soda chapstick ones.

(Okay i’ll stop talking about chapsticks…😭)

Imagining Loser! Ellie who seems to never drink water, but instead drinks like Arizona, Dr. Pepper, or Canada-dry, etc.

Imagining Loser! Ellie who’s rather disgusting when eating. Having dried up residue on the side of her mouth from dinner which was hours ago only to lick it off.

“Mmm, that burger was good.”

“You’re disgusting.”

Imagining Loser! Ellie who sometimes, but not all the times, thinks about how lucky she is/was to get—or “pull” as she says to her friends—someone like you.

Loser! Ellie who loves you for loving her despite her quirks!

How you can help Palestine, Why you shouldn’t support tlou/ buy the remastered, Educate yourself, #FREEPALESTINE.

a/n; Who wants Dina or Abby hcs? 🤭

Perm taglist: @elliesprettygirl, @dyk3ang3l, @ellies2fingers, @r3starttt, @slut4mascss, @k1ssesworld

Ellie Only fics: @herelieskrisy, @mikellie , @slaysksmska, @mina-281, @teawithnosugar, @kitkatkittycat111

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chrollohearttags · 11 months

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This is so corny but imagine musician eren putting headphone around the pregnant belly of y/n and putting his song for his unborn baby to listen 🫢😭🥹

stoppp, this is literally the cutest fricking thing I’ve ever heard! 🥹 also, happy Father’s Day.

because imagine eren in the middle of working at his home studio, downstairs like he had done when he didn’t have guests over. Lately, he had been completing projects there to keep an eye on you as you had just neared your second trimester. Beginning to show a little more and experience a lot more symptoms that came along with being pregnant. So naturally, his guard was up. But one day, you decided to pay him a visit with a snack and your budding belly in tow. “Let’s go see what daddy’s up to.” Whispering softly to your unborn bundle of joy as you turn the knob. Cracking it open, you can hear the thudding sounds of trap instrumentals and his voice slowly on the beat but he immediately stops it when he notices you coming in. “Hey, you two. Coming to see me?” Becoming practically ecstatic at the sight of you waddling in with your little sundress and stomach protruding from underneath it. Your curls bunched underneath a bonnet and a pair of house slippers on your swollen feet. Because of that, he had rearranged his once sacred lair to accommodate his princess and little royalty inside of you. “Of course. We wanted to hear the new song. It sounds so good.” Muttering as he went to pull the futon closer towards his desk so that you could take a seat. Normally, he wouldn’t allow anyone to intrude on his work. It was precious to him and he didn’t like anyone interrupting that time. But for you and the little one, he obviously made an exception. Especially when he had a huge surprise awaiting the two of you.

“That one? That’s just something I’ve been messing around with. I actually had another one I wanted you to hear.”

he’d turn to make a a couple of clicks on his keyboard, navigating the mouse across the screen to a track titled ‘love letter’. You were a bit curious as to what the song could possibly be about, but then he’d reach over and retrieve two sets of headphones. One for you and the other? “For you, angel..” cooing to the baby as he carefully secured the ear cushions around your stomach. Once the two of you were set, Eren then rolled back over to the computer, excited to share his latest creation. A song titled ‘Love Letter’. Once he pressed play, he’d wait patiently to see your reaction. The instrumental would begin with a few piano notes and then…

“Wait…”

“Shh..just listen.”

that’s when the faint thumping of a heartbeat and the soft sounds of a lullaby began playing. The next thing that followed was a soft instrumental composed of piano and a melody of his voice. He’d start by rapping..about how lonely he was before he met you. But once you came along, it changed everything. He then went on to express his gratitude for not only loving him unconditionally but giving him his first child. As you listened on, you began to nod your head and tear up, cupping a hand over your mouth as you took in the beautiful beats and lyricism of your husband’s music. What was even more so special was how he held your hand and glared at you as if you were a precious flower. ‘I should’ve been dead but you saved me, now you got my last name, chain and my baby.’

never had someone so openly and shamelessly poured their heart out to you. Laying himself bare and being completely vulnerable. By the time the song finished, you were an absolute wreck..whether it was from the hormones or just being overwhelmed with love and adoration. Either way, you couldn’t help but to leap into Eren’s arms and hug him.

“I love you, princess.” Kissing your temple as hd cradled you in a tight hug.

and I love you too, little angel. Can’t wait to meet you..

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silenzahra · 1 month

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Mario and Luigi: Musicians 🎶

Yesterday I came up with an idea: what would Mario and Luigi be like as musicians? I mentioned it here first, and then the amazing @itsavee4117 did some research and found out what instruments each brother can cannonically play, though they also added two more with which I totally agree. So here's the list:

Instruments that Mario can play: piano, guitar, synthesizer, xylophone, saxophone, timpani and trumpet.

Instruments that Luigi can play: violin, acoustic guitar, ukulele and double bass too!

With this, and with the ideas I had started cooking up yesterday thanks to my favorite band releasing a new album, I ended up coming up with three ideas! 😁 So yeah, this may end up being a bit long, so make sure to grab a snack or a drink before reading!

@vulpixfairy1985 @itsavee4117 @kelbreyworshipper @bberetd @pepperycar @peaches2217 @keakruiser HERE WE GO! 💖

For the first idea, since I was inspired by my favorite band (Estopa, a band formed by two brothers from a town near Barcelona), I'll be adding (mostly at the end of the first part) the links to some reference pictures so you can see where I got some of my ideas 🥰

Without further ado: let's go! ❤️💚✨

1. First idea: Band

Both Mario and Luigi have always had very good voices. Since they were little, the two would often sing for fun, and they continue to do so nowadays, especially when they’re cleaning. They put on their own concerts with their broom and mop and do their own dances. When they live in Brooklyn, their family often joins them, and they all sing together while cleaning, but Mario and Luigi's voices always stand out. In the Mushroom Kingdom, their neighbors Toads always delight in listening to them every time it's thorough cleaning day in the brothers' home.

They both start playing different instruments just for fun. Mario, being so frisky and energetic, wants to try everything, which is why he decides to learn to play not one, but several instruments: piano, synthesizer, saxophone, trumpet, electric guitar, timpani and xylophone. It seems a lot to take on, but all it takes is for someone (aka his father) to tell Mario that he can't play so many instruments for him to put all his efforts into learning each and every one of them. The result? He's pretty good at them all, with piano, electric guitar and trumpet being his main specialties. And his favorites, too.

In Luigi's case, he wanted to focus on a single instrument, his favorite: the violin. He started practicing at a very young age and has been practicing every day since then, only missing a few days for reasons of force majeure (a family problem, something that triggered his anxiety...). When he takes up the instrument again, however, he feels better and calmer, his anxiety and problems disappear with every note he plucks on its strings, and he always feels the music so deeply that he doesn't even realize that his melodies hypnotize and enrapture those who listen to them. He always ends up all flushed and overwhelmed when, after finishing a piece, he realizes that he’s the center of attention.

He began to try his hand at the guitar in his teens, after listening to Mario practicing with the electric guitar. He opted for the acoustic, however, softer and gentler, and has become a great guitarist. Also, for fun, he tried the ukulele and liked it quite a bit, and he's also made his first steps on the double bass until becoming very good at it. He's always open to trying new string instruments in the future. They're his specialty and his favorite.

At some parties and family events, the brothers have shown off their skills with their respective instruments. On more than one occasion, they have joined on an improvised stage, Mario with the electric guitar, Luigi with the acoustic, and have sung duets of some of their favorite Italian songs to the delight of their whole family.

Shortly after arriving in the Mushroom Kingdom, as soon as Peach finds out that both brothers are quite good musicians, she immediately asks them to play in some of the typical festivities of her kingdom. Both are reluctant at first, shy and insecure, but in the end, Mario, always willing to please his beloved princess, finally agrees. He brings all his instruments from home and dedicates a whole private session to Peach, wanting, without really realizing it, to impress her with all the instruments he can play. And Peach is indeed super impressed!

Luigi, being more insecure and not wanting to be the center of attention, is much less willing to agree to the princess' request, and she, always so kind, does not press him, respecting his shyness. Mario, on the other hand, tries to convince his brother: with a soft and comforting voice, he tells him that it will be just like changing audiences, since, instead of their family, they’ll have the inhabitants of the Mushroom Kingdom being amazed by their music. And, of course, Mario will always be on stage with him, so Luigi can choose to stay further back while Mario remains in the spotlight. "If you want to, Lu," Mario tells him at the end, a warm smile on his lips. "We can do it that way if you want, but if you're still not sure, you can stay next to Peach and watch me play."

This causes Luigi to give him a sly look. "You just want the princess to admire you," he says with a chuckle, nudging him. Mario looks at him puzzled. "What are you talking about?" And Luigi, still laughing, eventually agrees. "All right, I'll do it. I'll play with you."

Before starting, since Luigi is very nervous and anxiety is eating at him, Mario stands in front of him, puts his hands on Luigi's shoulders and calls out to him in a low voice. He slowly lifts his brother's chin to get Luigi to look at him and, once he has his attention, looks him intently in the eyes as he rests his forehead on Luigi's. "It's going to be okay," Mario tells him. "We're doing this for fun, okay? We're in time to stop if you don't want to continue."

But Luigi nods, nervous but determined at the same time, and Mario, smiling proudly, places his index finger between Luigi’s eyebrows. "Focus," he whispers to his brother in a soothing voice. "All that matters is playing music and having a good time." Luigi, though somewhat taken aback at first, closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, and, while Mario's finger is still resting on his forehead, Luigi reaches up and puts his index finger between Mario's eyebrows as well (reference image). They both smile with their eyes closed and take a deep breath before separating, and, with a smile and a nod, they get ready to start.

Thus begins what ends up becoming a habit: the brothers, armed with their respective guitars, get on stage together and sing their favorite Italian songs, but also different versions of various well-known and famous songs in Brooklyn (and in all of America). Peach, in time, also tells them about the most popular tunes of the Mushroom Kingdom, and they do not hesitate to incorporate them into their repertoire after rehearsing them.

As Mario suggested, he stands center stage, with all the spotlights on him. He plays his electric guitar and sings, and throws knowing glances at Luigi from time to time. His brother remains a few steps behind, standing in front of his microphone, playing his acoustic guitar and backing him up. Respecting his wishes, which Peach has made sure to communicate the Toads in charge of the lighting, only one spotlight is pointed at him.

Fortunately, once they start singing, Luigi gradually loosens up, letting himself be carried away by the music, and forgets his shyness. Therefore, both brothers end up singing equally and putting all their souls and passion into their songs. Mario, encouraged to see Luigi more devoted to music and less overwhelmed, dares to approach him. They play their respective guitars back-to-back, giving their best shot (reference image though Mario plays an electric guitar), and often share Luigi's microphone: Mario forgets his own and approaches his brother, and both, without stopping playing, look at each other while using the same mic, singing with all their will (reference image). More than once, at the end of a verse or a song, they quickly put their foreheads together before turning to the audience (reference image), a gesture that makes them feel more united and in tune, and also at peace, as they’re sharing their passion for music with their favorite person in the whole world.

I know the last picture wasn't really necesary, since we all know Mario and Luigi do the forehead touch all the time, but honestly, seeing my favorite band doing it too fills me with so much joy I simply wanted to include it 🤭🥹 A few more references:

-Mario and Luigi hugging like this at the end of a concert

-This is how I personally picture them singing on stage!

-Mario looking at Luigi proudly, putting his hands on his shoulders and then doing the forehead touch

-Mario grabbing Luigi like this to kiss him on the head

-Mario ruffling Luigi's hair lovingly

-Mario and Luigi doing a silly dance (jump to 3.37 to see it!)

So this is it! This is my favorite band and this is how I picture our beloved brothers being on stage 🥹 I think it'd be AMAZING to see them live! 🤩💚❤️

As for Estopa, in case you're curious, the older brother is David, the singer, the one with the goatee, and the guitarist is Jose, the younger brother. They're not twins, but in many interviews they've stated that they feel as if they were. They're just as close as Mario and Luigi are and I love them 🥹 (both Estopa and the Mario brothers!)

On to the second idea! ✨

2. Second idea: Classical Music

Since Mario and Luigi can play more instruments, Peach soon comes up with an idea where they can show off their other musical skills. When she organizes balls and receptions to strengthen ties with other kingdoms, Mario and Luigi are invited to liven up the evening, the former sitting at the piano, the latter with his violin in his hands. They usually start with a piano solo that gets all the applause from the audience, since Mario is really very good, but then Luigi starts playing the violin and everyone is spellbound by the sweetness and mastery of the youngest of the brothers with this beautiful instrument. Of course, Mario is always the first to acclaim him, full of pride, just as Luigi is the first to praise Mario with his piano solos.

Often, the two of them join both instruments and play beautiful classical pieces, both completely devoted to the beauty of the notes they pluck on the piano and violin. The audience is always bewitched listening to them, completely captivated, with Peach and Daisy being the first to deeply admire the brothers' artistic talents. The only bad part? That, since they’re the ones who are creating such beautiful music, they don't have the chance to dance to it with their respective princesses. Fortunately, Peach takes into consideration that Mario and Luigi will also want to enjoy the evening and not just enliven it, so she hires a talented orchestra of Toads so that both she and her friend Daisy have the opportunity to dance with both plumbers in the purest Pride and Prejudice style.

(None of the princesses knows what Pride and Prejudice is at first, but Luigi will be sure to explain to both of them what his favorite book is about, and Peach will end up reading it and loving it too. This will make both she and Luigi appreciate in greater depth every step they take in their dances with Mario and Daisy respectively).

Here, I have to say I imagine them playing a duet of Howl's Moving Castle. Yes, I know I also used that song for my Luaisy fanfic, but it's so beautiful I believe it totally fits! ✨

3. Third idea: New Donk City Festival

Mayor Pauline organizes an annual festival to commemorate the history of her city, and, since she’s not only the mayor but also a singer, she loves to sing and dance every year in front of her devoted audience. Learning of Mario and Luigi's musical prowess, she does not hesitate to invite them to join her for this year's festival, and Mario, seeing it as an opportunity to play more than one instrument, gladly accepts. Luigi, laughing at his brother's enthusiasm, agrees, again, to stay behind, this time switching between his guitar and his double bass, and also backing vocals for Pauline. Mario, for his part, asks to have on hand every instrument he can play while on stage.

Thus, when the night of the festival arrives, Luigi stands behind Pauline, with his guitar and his voice, and sometimes playing his double bass instead. Pauline often turns to him and gives him broad smiles with which she intends both to thank him for sharing his talent with her and to encourage him to keep it up.

As for Mario, he keeps switching instruments. Pauline has not hesitated to comply with his request, so Mario moves around the stage, and at each new song, he changes instruments. The xylophone, the saxophone, the keyboard, the trumpet... Mario is delighted to be able to show off such versatility and play each of his instruments according to what each song requires, and both Pauline and Luigi are happy to see him so joyful and enthusiastic.

In the last song, since Mario has already tried all his instruments, he gets carried away by the music and Pauline's voice and, still excited and energetic, runs to Luigi, takes him by the hand and drags him until they’re both right behind Pauline. Mario then begins to dance without letting go of his brother's hands, encouraging him to do the same, and Pauline starts to clap her hands while continuing to sing. Luigi, despite his initial confusion, eventually lets go as well, so that the two brothers dance together on stage while Pauline concludes the festival. The two of them, besides being good musicians and singers, are also very good dancers.

Here you can picture Mario dancing like he does in Super Mario Odyssey and Luigi dancing like he does in Luigi's Mansion 2 and 3.

(Though without the scaried face 😂)

So this is it! 😁 These are the ideas I came up with for our favorite brothers being musicians 🥰 It's an idea I honestly love and that makes my love and devotion for the Mario brothers grow 🥹

I'll definitely be including some of these ideas in future fanfics! 😁 What do you think of all this? In case you'd like to create something related to this, be my guest! All I ask is to give credits, please 🙏💖

UPDATE: Please don't miss the incredible drawings made by the amazing @itsavee4117 to illustrate two of my ideas! 🤩🤩🤩 They're PERFECT and have me screaming! 👏👏👏

#Mario and Luigi Musicians #super mario headcanons #mario and luigi headcanons #my first headcanon post #mario and luigi #super mario bros #mario bros #mario #luigi #super mario #my writing #silenzahra

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z0mbiefrank · 1 year

Text

Transcript for Marina Toybina on the Designing Hollywood podcast

I've seen a couple people searching for a transcript of her discussing Gerard Way's stage costumes, so I have made one! Feel free to share/link as a resource. Popular quotes are bolded.

Link to source video. MCR's section starts around 22 minutes in.

The transcript is beneath the cut.

Interviewer: Well now you’ve just finished working with My Chemical Romance, which is a band that I dig. Gerard Way is also a comic book writer and artist, created the Umbrella Academy. So, first of all, how did you get that job? Because there’s a design, I mean the look of that band and what they like to do, what they’re influenced by, they’re not just your typical rock band. So what was it like? How did you get that job? You designed the whole tour right?

Marina: I Collaborated with the lead singer, yes, with Gerard. Uhm, okay everything kinda has it’s place in time. About 15 years ago, 15 to 20 years ago, I was a huge fan. I’m a rock girl at heart, and back then a lot of their music was like music to my soul. It got me through some of the harder times. A lot of my friends were musicians. I never saw them live, never could afford to get to their shows, but knew one day in my heart there probably will be an opportunity, they were in like my top 5 favorite bands. He was an artist I’ve always wanted to work with. This past summer, while I was designing So You Think You Can Dance, I just happened to turn on their music - nope- let me rewind I'm so sorry. So a year ago I was reading a release that they're coming back together on tour and they're playing LA on my birthday. I looked at my team and I was like "I'm gonna be at that show. We're gonna go to the show, we're all gonna go together." And I just jokingly said “I'll probably dress them!” A lot of things in my career have happened to manifestation, I'm a huge believer in that. I think my intentions were so clear into the universe. I believed in it so much. That happened a year ago. Then this past summer, I was driving to work, I was listening to their music and I just happened to text my agent. I'm like “You know I really want to get back into music. It's what I used to do. I used to do a lot of live performances. I used to do a lot of music videos. I need to feel that again, even though I'm surrounded with music all the time and I'm doing all these shows. But there was a disconnect in my career, to where it's like I love live entertainment.” And she’s like “Who do you want? Like are we going after pop stars?” And I'm like “No I've done all that. I want to go back to my roots. I want like Incubus or My Chemical Romance or Red Hot Chili Peppers. Get me back to rock and roll.” And she was like “Well, you know, they're touring, but it's probably… I don’t know, let's put it out there.” Then within two weeks I get an email from her like “Hey their managers want to meet with you, he wants to meet with you.” One of the biggest things about their aesthetic is one of my probably top three costume designers, Colleen Atwood, did their black parade album and it was so incredible. Back then, I was always a step behind. It's like they did The Black Parade and then I met the photographer later. Then I worked on a project with him. So it was always like some better-late-than-never I guess. And I'm like “I'm gonna work with her someday, I love her work. I've been told by many people we're a lot alike.” You know? And I'm like “Why not?” And so we get this email “He would like to take a meeting, see what we can do.” I never expected to do a tour, I just wanted to open this door of opportunity, to just collaborate, maybe do one thing together. And he just showed up in my studio and it was just an amazing artistic energy.

Interviewer: Were you starstruck?

Marina: I was trying to hold it together. I mean before they came in, I can't tell you how much I paced. Usually, there's like 15 - 20 people at my studio. This was the time and day that I was alone. I didn't know what to do. Of course, my expectations were just to present myself and see if I would be a good asset to them because I love their music and I love what he's about. Also, it’s not just the frontman for me, I think he's a brilliant artist. So there's a lot of things. I just wanted our worlds to merge somehow. Within the first five minutes of our conversation, I'm like “Oh I get his brain.” I told them my story. I told him that this is like 20 years in the making. You know, I probably sound like a crazy-fan costume designer. But we share ideas, he walked me through the concepts of things he wants to do on this particular tour and they haven't started doing the US leg of the tour. I didn't know if they had a designer. Then he did mention Colleen was doing something for him and I was like “Okay, how - can this be a triangle? You know? Can I come in in the picture?” It was just a beautiful collaboration. It was a genuine artist to artist conversation. Like “Let's do something interesting.” He walked me through his concepts, his ideas and I'm like “Alright well, let me come up with some creatives, see if we're on the same page.” Again, as much as I wanted to be like “Hey we're doing this tomorrow!” I also felt like it's important now in my career and possibly in his, to make sure the relationship is good, that this is the right artistic match to one another and… it worked! From there it was just amazing fittings, amazing collaboration and some iconic things that went viral!

Interviewer: I love hearing this from you because this is like the joyous experience of 'oh my god I dreamt of working with somebody and you finally get to do it'. But I want to take you back to that because I'm curious. How would that process even begin? You're working with somebody that you already know their music, you already know his vibe. And Colleen Atwood, who I've interviewed by the way, on the show, she's incredible. Our interview had to - she was in the middle of a work day, so it was only it was a short interview. But how does a collaboration like that work with somebody like Gerard Way? How do you guys start working together? How is that process?

Marina: For us, it was just like an initial conversation. I introduced myself, my work. They already did some background checking up to see where I stand, what my aesthetic was like. And I felt I was in a place in my life, in my career, where I was able to bring something new. That's where my confidence I think came from. At the same time I didn't want to change the artist that's in front of me. I think that's always so important for me when working with music. You're dealing with a fan base, and a reputation, an aesthetic approach that's far beyond any artistic reach of anybody new coming in. So for me it was having a conversation, understanding what characters he wanted to bring forward. This was a very playful tour. This wasn't about dressing up the whole band. This was about him being in this world of iconic characters. And how can we bring this to life? What can we do that's still very recognizable to his fans but at the same time a little bit of a shock value? But at the same time, I wanted him to be him, you know? He was in this beautiful place in his life and career where he felt great and felt confident and I just wanted to uplift that. We did our creative decks, went through the conversations of which characters we wanted to go with, these are the shows that he had. I knew which city, we kind of wanted to play off where was the right time. Halloween was right around the corner, what do we do? So it was like very strategic conversations but at the same time so much room to play and be creative. So I just gathered the top 10 characters that we had discussed and kind of started doing my own thing, and keeping him and the music in mind. Had an amazing fitting. I've never worked with an artist that's so clear. It was not just directional and very precise and very distinct on his own style, but it was clear for me when we were doing fittings, this is somebody that knows his body. This is somebody who knows his aesthetic on stage. This is somebody that knows how they're going to perform. So it just made it so much easier for me to be able to fall into his world and do the fittings like “Is this going to come off? Is this piece staying on? Are we going to do options? Is the character going to evolve on stage? Is the character going to come down on stage?” So all those conversations happen in our fittings and then I just packed it all up, with distinct notes, send them off, and then kept checking in, making sure everything was okay.

Interviewer: So when you had a direction for the characters, were you doing sketches first?

Marina: No, not at all. This was something that I felt like needed to have the research. It wasn't just about designing something on paper. When he mentioned to me “I wanted to be a vintage cheerleader” I'm like “Okay, what era are we in? 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 40’s?” and then he was like “Find me something that's within possibly this color scheme.” The image that went viral when he did wear the cheer uniform, it was probably like 10 different vintage stores that we went to. And I'm like “Okay everything's size zero.” or like “What am I gonna do? This stuff doesn't exist anymore. If I get it from Etsy it's not going to come in time.” There's like so much and it happened to be as we were leaving one of the stores I looked on a sale rack and I saw this damaged, weird, vintage cheer dress that had no zipper, that had no hem. And I was like “I love this! I love this because I can reconstruct it. I can go and get the fabrics that we need to still keep it original and authentic. And that's how we start working. I build out a mannequin his size at my studio, put it on, we reshaped it, took the whole thing apart, reconstructed it to be his measurements, and still kept it authentic. After he wore it, the pattern for the actual thing was sold out. Fans loved it so much that we were getting notifications that people actually found the original pattern of this 1940s uniform and were buying it out.

Interviewer: That's crazy, okay!

Marina: Oh it's amazing! I think, to me, that's when things are just meant to be. When not only did my work translate into something beautiful on stage, but then he becomes this incredible persona on stage that then delivers the character and plays it off. We did that throughout every single look. Every single look when it became a fan favorite or craze.

Interviewer: In terms of time, what was the process when you first got the gig and then to the first show that was performing using your work? What was the time frame?

Marina: I think I had about a month to get it all together.

Interviewer: Wow! That’s not much!

Marina: Yeh and at the same time, I had another huge project in the works so it was going back and forth. But I could not tell you, I've had difficult projects in the past, I've had difficult times with artists, or finding our own language, or how to execute some things. This was so easy that time didn't matter to me. It was such a great collaboration, it flowed, like Bruce Lee would say, like water. It just made sense and no matter how difficult my other project was or what was going on at the same time, it was like oh this is the universe showing me this is how it's supposed to be. This is what's inspiring me. And at the end of the day, the one thing I told Gerard was “You made me fall in love with music again. You came into my life as an artist that I've admired and wanted to work with for almost 20 years. There was a big part of my beginning that made me look back at this now and be like “Oh that's what. That was that feeling that I had when I was 16 or 20.”

#my chemical romance #gerard way #marina toybina #mcr #my chem #designing hollywood podcast #let me know if i should change anything #ive never done a transcript before but i hope it helps!!#resource #transcript #op #interviews #costume design #cheerleader

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jokeroutsubs · 10 months

Text

Joker Out interview with magazine Mladina, published on 30th of June 2023

Interviewed by Vanja Pirc

Photos by Borut Kranjc

This year's Slovenian representatives at Eurovision, the five-member band Joker Out, attracted an unusually large amount of attention with their accessibility and playfulness, especially with the song "Carpe Diem." In the days and weeks that followed, it became clear that their Eurovision entry, which only placed 21st, had indeed opened the door for them to go abroad. They started adding new concerts in Ireland, Croatia, the UK, Scotland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Serbia, and others to the ones they had already arranged in Slovenia and the former Yugoslav republics. They sold out all of them, some in just a few minutes. Well over eight thousand people will see them on the UK and Nordic tour alone. For musicians working in Slovene, that's an incredible statistic.

It's a remarkable milestone to see how they've come from "Špil liga," where they first came to the limelight by winning in 2013 when they were still a high school band, to today, being greeted by masses of enthusiastic fans below the stage, and being selected by the Scottish band Franz Ferdinand to be their opening act at Croatia's Špancirfest festival. We spoke to lead singer Bojan Cvjetićanin, guitarists Kris Guštin and Jan Peteh, and bassist Nace Jordan. Unfortunately, drummer Jure Maček was missing, but we could see that he is a man of many talents by looking at the huge wooden structure with a platform that added another floor to the band's rehearsal space in Šiška, Ljubljana.

After Eurovision, you made no secret of your disappointment at finishing 21st, but your Eurovision song "Carpe Diem," sung in Slovenian, is now one of the most listened-to songs of this year's Eurovision event. It's being played all over Europe, most notably in Finland, Poland, the UK, the Netherlands, Spain... Did you expect this turn of events?

Bojan: The result we achieved at the Eurovision Song Contest was really not the greatest. Not even close. But, as you can see, in the end, it doesn't even matter. What is more important for us is that we managed to achieve the rest of the goals we had set for ourselves. We approached Eurovision in a very organic way, aiming to translate our stage and concert experience from real life to the Eurovision stage. It was clear to us that this is the biggest show stage in Europe, maybe even in the world. We were aware that this is a competition of one song, one comprehensive performance to be presented in three minutes. Our goal was to ensure that the audience would remember Slovenia's performance in 2023, and we have achieved that. We also aimed to connect with other performers, and we succeeded in doing so. But most importantly, we wanted both our Eurovision song and our other songs to be well-received in the real world. The data from radio stations, online streaming platforms, and concert offers confirm that apparently, we have achieved that as well.

Before, you were known mainly in Slovenia, and to a lesser extent in the Balkans. However, your Eurovision song has temporarily climbed to the top 50 most viral songs in the world chart on the streaming platform Spotify. You even briefly surpassed Sweden's Loreen, the winner of this year's Eurovision, in terms of popularity.

Bojan: Just to clarify, we only surpassed her for a day or two. But it's really nice that it happened on Spotify's list of the most listened-to songs in the world.

Kris: Well, she did get a billboard in New York's Times Square as the winner at the time, so it's a matter of who surpassed whom, I suppose (gesturing with his hands).

Well, who did?

Bojan: I believe that what we will gain from this performance will surpass what many other performers will achieve. Eurovision has introduced us to a very large audience in a very short time, and they have really connected with our music. They are now translating our lyrics into their own languages and even learning Slovenian. We were surprised to see how many of them bought dictionaries to learn Slovenian - we know this because we were asked to sign them. Others are learning Slovenian through online platforms, and there are even dictionaries being created on TikTok. These listeners are not bothered at all that we are not creating in English at this point; on the contrary, they would like us to keep it that way. However, we have to be realistic. To truly expand our listener base, it's important to be accessible to people.

That's why you have already prepared an album a few months ago, featuring songs from both your previous albums rearranged in English. The album is now awaiting release. One of your main goals was to be able to translate your concert experience onto the stage.

Bojan: The first real international test after Eurovision was in Zagreb, where we performed as the opening act for the most popular young Serbian band at the moment, "Buč Kesidi", at a previously arranged concert. We performed outdoors in the middle of the day, with the sun still high up in the sky. However, we were greeted by a crowd of 2,500 people and received a phenomenal response. They sang along with us, and later we read in the Serbian media that we probably have the most Croatian fans among Slovenian bands. After this show, when we announced a solo concert in Zagreb's Tvornica for November, which is comparable in size to Ljubljana's Cvetličarna, the tickets sold out in five hours. So, we arranged another concert in the same venue, and that one sold out as well. The response in Croatia has been truly amazing, and they have set a very high bar for the future.

You have been intentionally engaging with the countries of the former Yugoslavia lately. Through songs like "Demoni" ("Demons"), you have approached them language-wise. In addition to Croatia, you have also been booked for concerts in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Your Eurovision song also reminds me a little of Plavi orkestar, which was once the most popular Yugoslav pop band, or Đorđe Balašević. It is probably not a coincidence that the line "The game of hatred is your thing, thank you, don't count on us" is reminiscent of his hit "Računajte na nas" ("Count on us")?

Bojan: No, no, it's not a coincidence.

Is it nevertheless more difficult to plan a breakthrough to the rest of Europe? After Eurovision, the Irish were the first to sign you up, did the audience there also know your songs by heart?

Bojan: Yeah, we haven't really gotten used to that yet (laughs). In Ireland, we managed to sell out our first show in 12 minutes. It's true that it was a small venue, comparable to Ljubljana's Orto bar, and it wasn't a solo concert, but a joint performance with this year's Irish Eurovision representatives. However, due to the high level of interest, we arranged another concert in a club twice as big, which is also their most iconic venue. Soon after, other venues started to show interest. We announced a UK tour, with over five thousand tickets on sale for four shows in major cities, and they sold out. We announced a Nordic tour, with around 2,500 tickets available, and it sold out in half an hour, along with three Finnish concerts in just ten minutes. Later, we released an additional 770 tickets, which were gone in five minutes. Offers are also coming in from many other countries, and it is impossible to predict what will happen in the upcoming months.

A number of Slovenian music artists have successfully reached international audiences, from Senidah to Laibach, from Gramatik to Umek, and you were the first ones to consider using Eurovision as a springboard. Would it make sense for our country to continue using this event to promote established musicians who are eager to make an international breakthrough? You were internally selected for this competition.

Kris: It all depends on what we as a country want to achieve from this competition in the future. We have to decide whether EMA is a competition where we find the most suitable representative and expect them to make the most of their opportunity while promoting our country along the way, or whether it is a competition where Slovenian musicians present themselves to Slovenian audiences. Personally, I believe that it is definitely better to choose a performer who already has an established infrastructure in place and a certain support base, because this can enable him to use his potential to the fullest.

Jan: I think that would be the best approach as well. However, since many musicians see EMA as one of the few opportunities to showcase their work to a wide audience through public broadcasting, it would make sense to maintain that aspect too, perhaps as a prelude to EMA, transforming it into a grand finale for carefully selected artists, similar to Sanremo.

Bojan: The main issue with the previous selections was that Slovenia didn't approach it with the intention of winning. Of course, success in such a significant event is not guaranteed. But why not approach it strategically nonetheless? For example, I believe we should send Senidah to Eurovision in 2024!

Senidah is the biggest star in the Balkans, the most listened-to musician. Is she also your role model in that sense?

Bojan: Absolutely. Senidah is the first Slovenian artist, after Mr. Predin and "Lačni Franz", to truly break through in the Balkans. She does write music in Serbian, but that's irrelevant; what's important is that she's made a remarkable breakthrough in a market that has so far been very closed off to Slovenians. And not only has she broken through, but she is topping the charts. However, I would understand if Senidah refused to participate in EMA, at least as long as the current rules are in place. EMA is too close in time to Eurovision. The winner has only one month to submit material. Imagine having to put together the most important performance of your life in just 15 days? We, on the other hand, had more time since we were internally selected—three months—and we utilized this extra time to design our pre-Eurovision campaign, which ultimately played a key role in our success. That's what left the biggest impression.

You managed to invest between ten and fifteen thousand euros of your own funds in this promotion. You have an extensive domestic touring career behind you. In October, you will fill our biggest venue, Stožice, for the first time, where you expect 12,000 people.

Kris: I've always considered it a privilege to have established a music career at such an early stage in our lives and to have quickly reached the point of financial self-sufficiency.

Bojan: It really worked out for us that right after we finished university, we began our professional lives as musicians.

Those who know you say that you are very disciplined, very organized. Bojan, your fellow classmates from Poljane Gymnasium in Ljubljana also say that even back then, you were absolutely convinced that you were going to make a breakthrough. Many people rolled their eyes at the thought, but you had a clear objective. You were networking with the right people, educating yourself, and Pavle Kavec taught you guitar...

Bojan: Yes, Pavle the legend. I knew during my time at Poljane Gymnasium that I wanted to be an artist. I hadn't fully decided whether it would be music or something else because I was also considering studying acting. But my thoughts were always centered around creating. I suppose that's more or less true for all of us. When Jure and Nace joined us, the first question was whether we were fully committed at 1000%, or if there was another one percent pulling us towards a "plan B," such as the directions we were trained in. No, there is no "Plan B" anymore. At some point, we made the decision to cut it off.

So, the high school students at Poljane Gymnasium may very well forget that you were once planning to be their sociology professor? We've also seen you in a few episodes of the series "Gospod profesor" ("Mr. Professor").

Bojan: I've given up on the professorship, but I still find acting very interesting. For once in my life, I would like to be in a film, playing a totally negative character. I would be mean as a snake. And it doesn't even have to be a Slovenian film; it can be from the Balkans.

Kris: I have to admit that I never thought of making a living from music, although I certainly saw it as an ideal. Even when I was deciding on my studies, I wavered between sociology and chemistry, and then preferred the latter because of its greater potential for employability. Well, later on, I did go into social sciences, for a master's degree in international relations.

Yet Kris, you were the one who had the ideal conditions to become a musician. You grew up playing guitar, because your father, Miha Guštin - Gušti, is the co-founder of "Big Foot Mama", one of the most popular Slovenian bands. Today, you are considered to be their successors.

Kris: I really had the ideal conditions to become a musician who does this for a living. Not only because of my dad, but my mum also worked for record labels for many years and has recently embarked on this path again, so I've been in touch with both sides of the music world, creatively and business-wise, since I was a little kid. But I didn't really start playing guitar until I was 14, 15. And nobody else among us is a trained musician either, except our drummer, Jure Maček.

Bojan: Yes, our Maček finished elementary music school, and he also played a lot, mostly with the "Logatec brass band".

Jan: Let's not forget his performances with the "Golaž brass band", and with the Cantabile Symphony Orchestra...

Jan, you are a mathematician. The link between music and mathematics was explored by Pythagoras after he listened to a blacksmith striking a hammer, and from that he developed the study of harmony.

Jan: Yeah, at the moment it's kind of like, if you have an out-of-tune guitar, you can just say you have a Pythagorean tuning (everyone bursts out laughing). To me, maths is relevant because it's the only thing in the existence of human understanding that you can really count on. It can be used to get definitive answers to at least some questions. I see it as something that gives you structure in your life.

Nace: I would have chosen to study veterinary medicine if I had gone to university, but I discovered very quickly that music was my passion. After high school I went out into the world, I played in a band on a cruise ship that more or less sailed the Baltic, somewhere between Russia, Finland and Sweden. You could say I've got a lot of musical mileage from playing abroad. But it's limited to German schlager and German rock. Our audiences were mostly German families (laughs).

You also have the most experience of performing in front of TV cameras, especially as a member of the in-house band of the TV show "V petek zvečer" ("Friday Night"), which gives airtime to more folk-music genres on TV Slovenia. Have you scrapped this "plan B" now as well?

Nace: Officially, I'm still a member of that band; maybe the managers are expecting me to come back to the show in the autumn. But it remains to be seen whether that will be possible. Most probably not.

Today, together with MRFY, you are considered the successors of our most popular rock or pop-rock guitar bands who managed to appeal to the masses, not only of "Big Foot Mama", but also, for example, "Siddharta" and "Dan D". Why hasn't there been a real breakthrough of new bands of this kind in the last few years? Were guitars considered to be outdated, were young people closer to electronica, trap, hip-hop, mixtures of genres?

Bojan: The music of "Siddharta" and "Big Foot Mama" was a kind of basic building block for me from the very beginning. These people have influenced me more than any other world-renowned musicians. So having them support us really means a lot to me. And the Špil Liga, where student bands have been entering for the last decade, has definitely been a very strong factor in the revival of the scene. MRFY are also from Novo mesto, which is considered a mini Slovenian capital of rock'n'roll, as many of the bands that have developed under the patronage of Tokac, the music producer and frontman of "Dan D", originate from there. At the same time, in last few years the Slovenian youth has become hungry for home-produced music of all genres, and this has stirred up a strong wave of creativity, which is being held in the hands of our own generation, as well as those a little younger and older than us. At this point, the whole spectrum of what we need, from clothes to design to photography, is being created by people our age, as well as those a little younger and older than us. Well, with one exception, of course, being our producer Žare Pak, but he's young at heart.

As you reach out to a wider audience, do you also feel the pressure to meet the ever-increasing expectations of both listeners and the music industry?

Jan: I feel that right now, more than ever, we can be confident and sure of what we are doing. We didn't even enter Eurovision with some deliberately made hit-like song to suit Eurovision ears, but we did a Joker Out song that could easily have been on our album last year. Our achievements so far prove that we are doing something right because people at home and abroad like it.

Kris: I also feel like we have more freedom to create now but also fewer inhibitions to go into more experimental waters in terms of music, outfits, visuals, or anything else.

Do you think that's what some people expect from you now?

Bojan: Musicians are often criticized for their style, genre, or sound. But such criticisms are absurd.

In particular, Slovenian rock or pop-rock has always been attacked in this respect for relying too often on tried-and-tested forms and less often, for example, on boldness, innovation.

Bojan: We've been on the scene long enough, and we know that the very concept of what Jokers do bothers some people. And that's why they keep pushing their idea that we don't make authentic music but rather some crap that we invented just to exist. So, they feel it would be good if we would stop doing that. These people want, or even demand, that Joker Out should stop being Joker Out. And we're happy that on the first and second album we were able to make music completely unburdened by expectations of how people would react to it. I think the second album is quite challenging in both its sonic elements and the overall meaning of the lyrics in certain songs. I'm sorry that not one of the critics mentioned "Plastika" ("Plastics") in their reviews. None of these intellectuals who have so much to say against our love songs thought that this could be a harbinger of a different, new direction.

This song was written in response to a study showing that the vast majority of teenage girls today want plastic surgery and other body modifications to meet their perverse beauty ideals.

Bojan: There's a lot of content that people don't want to see. On the other hand, I also don't understand why songs about love, which are in the vast majority in this culture at the moment, should be inferior to those about society. In fact, I hope to be able to sing about love for the rest of my life.

Kris: You will, you will sing "Umazane misli" ("Dirty Thoughts") for the rest of your life (laughs).

You addressed Europe with the words "We'll be dancing all night long, we'll love and play with each other as if there was no tomorrow." You have stated several times that you are not a political band, but isn't that actually very political? What is more political than being able to smile and rejoice even in the worst of situations?

Bojan: I very much agree. I even think that if Tokac had sung our song, the message would have gotten through to a lot more people. But because we sang it, a lot of people didn't take it seriously.

The current Prime Minister, Robert Golob, after learning that the future coalition had brought down the government of Janez Janša, said, "Today people are dancing, I am waiting for you to start dancing too." Do you think that if we had had your song then, he would have said instead, "We'll be dancing all night long"? As some employees of RTV Slovenia did when the depoliticisation of their institution could begin?

Bojan: The song "Carpe Diem" is largely written with the idea of fighting back against the things that are happening today. The fact that we had Eurovision in a country that was not last year's winner, because the event could not be held there due to the war, is quite an indication of the troubled times we live in. On the other hand, our only defense as musicians is to spread positive energy among the people and send socially relevant messages. We cannot do more than that. We do not want to take up arms, and we won't. Our only weapons can be our songs.

Culture and art can certainly be weapons too, especially in situations where people are suffering. Do you think that's why Ukrainians supported you at Eurovision, both the audience and the jury? The country is in ruins because of the war, people are displaced, and there is no end in sight to the conflict. But your dancing until dawn has been noticed.

Bojan: I am a child of refugees from Bosnia and Herzegovina. My parents had to leave their home in Banja Luka because of the war. They came to Slovenia as refugees and stayed here. They had to rebuild their lives. In light of today's events, I can only conclude that the saying 'Historia magistra vitae est' (“History is the teacher of life”) is clearly not true. Because one day, when all the problems of this world are solved, I too will be able to afford the attitude of being opposed to all that is positive. But at the moment, that is not a possibility.

Your parents, Bojan, had to move because of the war, and your mother, Kris, moved from the Netherlands to Slovenia for love.

Bojan: That's a much nicer reason, isn't it?

Kris: Well, I also have a grandfather who fled Indonesia because of the civil war.

Migration flows have been huge in recent years, with thousands of people pouring into Europe, but they are often met with contempt and harsh treatment. Do you feel that your intimate experience of all this migration has also shaped your attitude towards all those who are seeking a better life?

Kris: Absolutely. In my home, this has always been a topic we have talked about. When I was still living with my parents, we often watched the TV program "Dnevnik" together, and whenever they showed a piece on migration, my mother would get very emotionally involved in the scenes on the screen. And that sticks with you. When you see a parent who can understand someone who had to leave home for completely different reasons and on the other side of the world, it naturally rubs off on you.

Bojan: Most of all, you feel the spectrum of pain associated with having to leave your home is much more than just having to leave a place. Only then do you realize that home is really a tangle of space, of people, of smells, of tastes, of everything surrounding you. Leaving all that behind is not the easiest thing to do. It is even harder to leave under duress, and the hardest to leave knowing that your home is in the process of being destroyed and that when and if you return one day, it will not feel like home anymore. The same people will not be there, the same smells will not be there. What has shaped your life will no longer exist.

Alongside wars and conflicts, another key reason why people from other parts of the world are moving to Europe in large numbers is climate change. Your generation is leading the fight to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, to live more sustainably. How important is this cause to you?

Kris: The fight for climate fairness is one of our few very clear common political positions. Here we are completely united and support all political choices towards sustainability. It is also very clear that this is an important issue not only for us but also for a large part of our audience. It was interesting to note that two years ago, at a rally for climate justice in Ljubljana, we saw a poster with the lyrics of one of our songs. We've summed up our own thoughts on the subject in the song "Novi val" ("New Wave)," which was written last year and is currently one of our most successful and important songs.

In that song, you say "The radio only plays lightnings and strikes', the newspaper says that we' ve lost our way. Today we'll sing and raise our glasses, we were born yesterday and have already been blamed for everything." And what are you guilty of? Probably not the fact that your generation faces precarious employment, that loans are hard to come by, and so are real estate, even rental properties?

Bojan: These are the facts of life lived by the "born yesterday" generation. They are the result of the accumulation of bad decisions over decades. These facts manifest themselves in reality as obstacles that reduce our ability to build the pillars of our independence and, as a consequence, are the reason for our failure to live up to societal expectations. In a world where laws have been written for decades in favor of a mega-massive littering of the planet, we are guilty of standing up for environmental justice instead of "doing something smarter and more serious with our lives," even though previous generations have themselves turned the (labour) market into a war zone of precarious employment. We fight day in and day out with the uncertainty of whether or not we will be employed tomorrow...

But even in this song, you sing and you raise your glasses.

Kris: This song and the Eurovision song "Carpe Diem" are actually very similar in spirit and message, except the second one addresses the listener in a dance guise and this one in a much more serious manner.

The song "Novi val" ("New Wave") has received a lot of attention because of the English version you released before the Eurovision, which you performed with the renowned British musician Elvis Costello. Your now ex-member Martin has a godfather who is a friend of Costello's, and in 2013 you sent him the song "Gola" ("Naked") to listen to. He did listen to it and suggested that you send him more songs. So last year you sent him "Novi val" ("New Wave").

Bojan: Yes, that was true, and when I sent him that song, I also asked him if he would be willing to re-arrange it in English. And he wrote back that he was up for it. Shortly after that, only about a week later, he sent me another email saying if we all agreed, he was ready to sing the song with us. Interestingly enough, he felt the song even before he understood what it was about. His first reaction after hearing the Slovenian version was that it was "a charming song that transcends the understanding of language". He recorded his vocals in New York, and we recorded them in Ljubljana. At the end of the song, we kept the chorus in Slovenian, at his request.

Costello has two Grammys, two Brit Awards, and was named one of the 100 greatest rock'n'roll musicians of all time by Rolling Stone magazine. What does his support mean to you?

Bojan: I can say without any reservation that even if I never wrote another song after this, I would forever be proud of what I have achieved. But it was this collaboration that gave us an indescribable amount of new energy to create. I am very proud of it. However, I must add that I felt the same pride when Tomi Meglič or Grega Skočir gave us words of encouragement. The moment when I first felt their sincere appreciation was a turning point for me, and since then I have existed quite differently as a musician. But of course, it is clear that Elvis Costello's encouraging words carry international weight. And that is something completely new for us. It's just a pity that we haven't been able to meet up yet because he was on tour in the US at the time of the recording of the song and later the video.

He will be touring Europe in the autumn, including Hamburg. You recorded the Eurovision song there in December.

Bojan: He honored us greatly then. He sent us the song "Hamburg Postcard", which he wrote especially for us.

Kris: Let's not forget something else. Our band has always described our music as "shagadelic rock'n'roll" (the Oxford English Dictionary defines shagadelic as "sexy, but in a psychedelic or retro way", A/N). We borrowed this term from "Austin Powers", but it was actually spoken by Elvis Costello, who played himself in that film. When we sent him our song "Gola" ("Naked") in 2019, we thought it would be a good idea to let him know that we also use the term "shagadelic rock'n'roll". And then he personally gave his permission to use it because he felt that that was what it was. To complete the circle, Elvis Costello is one of the original protagonists of the English New Wave, and we are now singing together about the New Wave. He is also from Liverpool, which hosted this year's Eurovision. Our collaboration was clearly written in the stars.

Costello, as a Liverpudlian, knew the most famous local musicians, The Beatles, very well and had worked with Paul McCartney. The Beatles are also among your role models, and this year you also visited the place where the Beatles began their musical journey for the first time. Do you now understand better why they remain the greatest?

Kris: For me, visiting Liverpool and the places that influenced the Beatles and their music gave me some perspective. We knew them through songs, like Penny Lane, for example, but in reality, it's much smaller and more 'plain' than we imagined. Liverpool is a beautiful city, but the suburbs where the Beatles lived are very ordinary working-class housing estates. One could say quite bland. Now I walk around Ljubljana with different eyes. I can imagine that one of our future songs could also feature an insignificant, less exposed street that made its mark on us...

Bojan: And this is where you can see very clearly why the Beatles are the Beatles. Because everybody has a Penny Lane in their life, an ordinary street where you meet a friend. Penny Lane is the most universal thing in the world

The English song "Novi val" ("New Wave") was covered by the BBC and ITV, and the British voted for you at Eurovision. Your music and performances have always been influenced by British pop. Is that one of the key places for you, besides the Balkans?

Bojan: I think our focus is on any place that is willing to accept us, but England has a special charm because we ourselves have been heavily influenced by British music. I'm not the ultimate "nomad," I dislike long flights and exotic destinations that can be unpredictable, so Europe is very dear to my heart. I would be very happy if we could establish ourselves as a European band that could travel a little bit around Scandinavia in the summer and then Dalmatia in the winter...

Kris: Or Spain, where we would eat tapas.

Is the interest in your band in the country also related to the fact that Bojan speaks Spanish?

Bojan: Yes, I ended up doing more interviews in Spanish than in English. The Spanish have also been very active because of our links with their Eurovision representative Blanca Paloma.

Kris: It's really amazing how you can charm a foreign audience by speaking their language. I understand it with the Spanish, as they are mostly less proficient in English, but I was surprised by the Dutch. Dutch is my mother tongue, of course, but I didn't expect that it would matter because in the last few years I have noticed that in Amsterdam, almost only English is spoken on the street. Even the oldest market vendor speaks perfect English. But they were very enthusiastic. On streaming platforms, the Netherlands is one of our top 10 countries.

You mentioned earlier that your fans are now learning Slovenian. What about your future - will it be written in English?

Bojan: The next album will almost certainly have songs in English, Slovenian, and Serbian, but it's very possible that there will also be some in French or Spanish.

What about Finnish? At Eurovision, the most talked-about thing was your friendship with the Finnish representative Käärijä, who came in second place. When you, Bojan, sang his song, he praised you, saying it was "better than the original".

Bojan: We haven't talked about a musical collaboration yet, but I was a guest at his concert in Helsinki in June, and we would be very happy to have him at our concerts. Unfortunately, that won't happen in Stožice because he has a big concert on the same day.

Now that it is clear that your international ambitions are growing exponentially, what is the ultimate goal where you would say, well, now we have made it?

Kris: Even before we had international ambitions on the level we have today, we often talked about how performing on the main stage of the Hungarian festival "Sziget" would be a testament to the fact that we have achieved something in our lives. Do you remember?

Bojan: How European of us, right? (laughs)

And - have they called you yet?

Jan: Not yet, but we are already learning Hungarian just in case (laughs).

Kris: And we were just wondering why we shouldn't just announce a concert at Wembley Stadium in London in 2030.

Bojan: Yeah, because if we started selling tickets now, we might even be able to sell them by then. (Everyone bursts out laughing because the stadium seats 90,000).

#joker out #bojan cvjeticanin #nace jordan #jan peteh #kris gustin #jure macek

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ccaramel-llow · 6 months

Note

I present to you: A request featuring Jax, Zooble, Gangle, and Caine with a musician s/o because DAMMIT it sounds adorable

Reader’s a goofy fella, real silly, they can play a BUNCH of instruments, sing well, dancing, they love it

but they can be a shut in sometimes 👉👈

seeing as Zooble does the theme song (and has to rework it when someone new shows up-) and I just get the vibes you can’t convince me that Zooble isn’t at least a little bit of music nerd /lh /j

(i am also a music nerd tbh, Thats why me and zooble are marri WOAH WHO SAID THAT)

JAX

. Honestly he'd ask you to to play an instrument over someone while their speaking because hes a little evil shit you know?

. Makes fun of you and says your music sucks when he secretly loves it when you play.

, He finds you attractive and hot if you play the guitar while screaming angst-y shit if your emo like that/j , but he bullies you for doing that as well.

, He'd ask you to teach him how to play the drums while your speaking to someone. not because hes jealous or anything, Nope. He is.

, He sucks ASS and DOG SHIT at dancing. Expect him to step on your feet if you try to dance together.

, Since you're a "shut in" He tries to get you out more but then later gives up and just comes into you're room or personal business without warning to smother you with his so called " Love language " (Which is just bothering you until you yell at him to shut the fuck up)

, Hides in your room to listen to you play, Or sits outside your room just so he can hear you play.

, Loves it when you sing, He has to fight his demons and intrusive thoughts (he wants to sing along with you to rizz you up COU-)

, Beats up and bullies anyone who says you aren't great at playing, Dancing, Etc.

" My lover IS the best musician here. Wanna repeat that you little s(*&$! ?"

ZOOBLE

, They pretend like they don't care. Like at all.

, Although, In reality they care and love your music a lot! They even ask you to teach them how to play an instrument

, Zooble would always listen and be there for you when you played, Enjoying the soft/Rough melody of a song that you were presenting for them in a private space.

, Tell's everyone to shut up when your about to play, And mask's their excitement with anger.

, Their eye's shine when you pull out an instrument and their eyes go dull whenever you weren't gonna play.

, Ask's you to play a song sometimes when their in a bad mood.

, Zooble also cannot dance for jack SHIT. Do not try to teach them how to dance. They'll go insane i swear.

, Since you're a shut in, She always asks if you're busy or not, Or if your comfortable or stressed before asking to play a song because they dont want you to get overwhelmed.

, Adores your voice, And always secretly makes sure you dont over stress your voice out.

, Compliments you when you're finished singing.

" You did great out there. Uh, Hope you dont mind teaching me how to play soon?... "

GANGLE

, She LOVES It when you play calming melodies using your preferred instrument.

, Probably asks you to play the violin as she stares at you with heart shaped eyes.

, Would go feral on Jax if he breaks your instrument on purpose and cry with you in your room trying to comfort you.

, Smothers you with a lot of compliments when you are finished playing.

, Rants about you often to show you off and because you cant get off her mind.

, She smiles brightly when you play an instrument.

, I feel like she'd be an okay dancer!! She'd ask you to dance every now and then, But if you dipped her during dancing she'd be extremely flustered and her eyes would turn into the shape of a heart.

, Likes to hum along with you while you sing. Gangle really is inlove with your voice and starts to just doze off while admiring you.

" (Name) Is the very best person i had ever met... I hope xey play more melodies soon!! I love it when they sing.... BUT YOU DIDNT HEAR THAT FROM M-"

CAINE

, He would honestly go ' AWOOGA HOT DAMN ' all over you.

, Can play piano, Please let him duet with you.

, Stares at you with lovey dove-y goo goo eyes while playing, Admiring you as you both play, Definitely not imagining you guys making out.

, Like Gangle, He too smothers you with compliments but extreme. Like, He's peppering your face with teeth kisses if given consent.

, Since he's short, He'd love to dance with you!! He has to float if your too tall, But if your the same height, He attempts to pull the spin and dip move on you to rizz you up.

, ADORES YOUR SINGING. SING FOR HIM PLEASE.

, He always records you singing and listens to you singing in his free time while thinking about you.

, Would always try to get you to open up since your a shut in. If your always in your room, He always tries to get you out because he's afraid you would reach your breaking point and abstract. He cant lose you.

" My dearest is the absolute best at playing instruments, Dancing, And all that stuff... Oh how much i love xem.... What do you mean they aren't?"

#digital circus #tadc zooble #tadc x reader #tadc #tadc gangle #tadc jax #tadc gangle x reader #tadc jax x reader #musician reader #x reader #fluff #romantic x reader #slightly obsessive?#Idk #tadc caine

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sloth-babied · 8 months

Text

Stay the Night

Shuri x POC reader

Summary: You’ve been keeping it a secret that Shuri’s been your muse for a lot of your music. When you decide to show her a song you’ve been working on, she starts to piece together who you’ve been writing about.

Reader is a musician who stubbornly denies to one of the smartest people on Earth that she isn’t your muse.

Contains: Shy reader, tension, and angst if you really squint. No use of y/n.

Word count: 1.8k

Notes: No, I am not dead! Just burnt out, yk how it is. But I had motivation to write this, so I really hope yall enjoy! Not my best work, but it’s something. And sorry for not being active.

(Also I recommend listening to The Internet while reading just bc that’s what I listened to, hence the title lol)

Shuri stares at you as you adjust the headphones on her head, hyper aware of the proximity between the two of you. She only nods when you ask if she’s comfortable before the heel of your palm rests on the desk. Your finger hovers over the computer keyboard, reluctant to press play.

“It’s just a draft, so you know, lower your expectations.”

“Just play the song,” she laughs lightly, very much aware that this was a first draft from the numerous times you told her before even handing her your headphones.

You murmur a quick and sheepish, “Okay,” and click the spacebar. Her shoulders bounce, entertained by your apprehensiveness.

You deeply inhale as your heart starts beating faster, in contrast to Shuri who simply bops her head gently to the rhythm, the ball of her foot tapping the wooden floor.

You rarely showed anyone your early drafts, either out of worry in case they disliked what they heard, or if their enjoyment would jinx your chances of actually finishing the track. Yeah, you can be a bit superstitious—that Shuri knows with all the wood-knocking you’ve done around her.

Which is why it was uncharacteristic of you to show Shuri your latest project.

It presented itself as an impulsive, “You wanna hear this new song I’m working on?” and you couldn’t take it back when you were met with an enthusiastic ‘yes’.

Shuri’s brows furrow, the movement of her head much more exaggerated.

“This is good!” She compliments you loudly, tapping on one side of the headphones. You shush her humorously, reminding her of your neighbors and the lack of soundproof foam on your walls. “Sorry,” she chuckles before whispering, “This is good,” again.

It’s mostly dark in the room, the only light source in the room coming from the computer screen. The light reflects on Shuri’s skin, her eyes closed when she isn’t occasionally stealing glances at the side of your face, curious about the words you’ve written; envious of who you’ve written it for, though she’s had hopeful suspicions.

Your eyes stay glued on the screen, too embarrassed to watch the person who was, unbeknownst to her, your muse.

Truthfully, she had been the subject of many of your songs, released and unreleased, since you first fell in love with her. That was two years ago. Perhaps it was the exhaustion from the long day or the present time of night that made the idea of sharing your music more enticing. Or maybe, subconsciously, you had to tell her how you felt without actually telling her.

Shuri hums along to the chorus, naturally catching onto the melody and you scratch your cheek in an attempt to hide your smile. You feel giddy inside at the way her body reacts—just so in-sync like she always is with the rest of your music.

Until the song hits the bridge.

Through your peripheral vision, it’s hard to ignore Shuri’s head movement slowing down to a halt. You catch a proper glimpse of her, only for a second, and oh, no, her face has gone blank. You feel your chest heave and now your brain is spiraling, wondering what the hell is going on in hers.

Shuri looks off, really listening this time. She flicks another glance at you before the last chorus arrives. And when it ends, she removes the headphones at a pace that perturbs you a bit…a lot actually. You’re left uneasy when she holds your headphones on her lap. She hasn’t looked at you and she hasn’t said anything yet.

“I know it’s not great,” you scratch the back of your neck then steal the headphones from her, laying them on the desk. Aimlessly, you fumble with your laptop, laughing nervously to fill the silence. “It’s just a draft. I probably won’t even finish it.”

Shuri’s still not saying anything and, christ, is it bothering you. At this point you’d rather she say it’s downright bad instead of keeping you on edge like this. But eventually she speaks, and when you hear her say your name, you initially feel like you could breathe again because she finally said something. However, that only lasts for a second.

“Is this true?”

Your finger freezes on the mouse. You turn your head in her direction but her gaze doesn’t meet yours. You’re unsure what to say.

“What you wrote…is it true?”

She takes the mouse from you, the feel of her hand leaving tingles on your skin. She clicks back to the beginning of the bridge before removing the headphone jack. Your voice plays on the speaker and suddenly you’re too stunned to remind her of your neighbors.

What exactly did you write? Nothing specific, or so you thought.

Then she pauses the song, an audible click coming from the spacebar, anticipatedly eyeing you.

You shrug as an attempt to seem oblivious. (One might call it ‘gaslighting’.)

“I write little stories for my songs,” you try to play it off. “I mean, I guess some are real, but most of ‘em aren’t, you know?”

“You wrote about our time at the beach.” She states plainly, leaning back against her chair. She’s referring you to the secret beach you snuck her into in your hometown—a beach only so many people know of.

You glance at the notification-free lock screen of your phone on the desk; another excuse not to look her in the eye. “I take inspiration from shit in my own life.”

“And in your last album you wrote about the time we went on that hike together.” She adds. Yikes, you were hoping she wouldn’t notice that.

“We’re lost in the woods,

I’m lost in your eyes.”

Damn your corny attempts at being poetic. You nearly cringe recalling the moment you wrote that.

A year ago you went hiking with Shuri, and you insisted that you didn’t need any technology to navigate your way back home. You figured you’d walk back down the trail you walked up on, until you kept passing the same tree over and over again. Shuri laughed at you the entire time, comforted by the fact that she brought her Kimoyo bead bracelet with her, as you slowly started to freak out despite your refusal to admit you were wrong and maybe a map could’ve been useful.

“I hike all the time.” No, you don’t.

“No, you don’t,” Shuri shakes her head, one side of her lips tilting upwards. She leans forward and grabs the apron of your chair between your legs, rolling you closer to her until her knee hits the edge of your seat and your thighs loosely puzzle together.

The light from the bright red motel sign across the street peaks through each horizontal slit of the blind curtain, and the cool night breeze outside lightly blows through the half-open window, lifting the curtain only a little, red occasionally sneaking under the bottom hem of the window covering.

With the wind entering, the room should feel cool. It’s supposed to be. Yet your cheeks flush and the heat centered around your face tempts you to remove your hoodie because it’s easier to blame a jacket than the girl who’s figured you out.

You reattach your hand back on the mouse, unsure what you’d even do with it, but Shuri’s hand covers yours, your moist palm now stagnant on the object.

“You released a single the year we met,” she says, her voice quieter than before but louder than a whisper. She doesn’t explain further. You remember the party two years ago and you know exactly what you wrote. Who are you to fool one of the most brilliant minds on the planet?

The computer screen dims, allowing you to notice the red illuminating on the back of her hand. You see red highlight the outline of her body and she stares at the red on the edge of your face. Then she looks at your eyes, your lips, then your eyes once again. Shuri slides her palm up to your elbow, her grip neither tight nor loose.

“What are you so afraid of?” asks Shuri.

You had spent so much of your romantic life dejected. Countless dating apps resulting in crappy dates. Or worse: friendships. Too many “The more I get to know you, the more I get friendly vibes from you”. Too many “Honestly, I don’t think I’m ready for this,” when really they realized they actually didn’t like you. Then when you knew someone in your own life who you liked romantically, the feeling—more often than not—wasn’t mutual.

Best case scenario, you remain friends but things are only just a little awkward. Worst case scenario, they insist that things are okay then gradually ghost you.

At this point, you were ready to give up.

“I don’t wanna…” you trail off.

She leans closer and whispers, “What?”

You stare off at anything that isn’t her. “I don’t wanna lose you.”

She leans down and tilts her face up, forcing your eyes to meet hers. She raises her brows. “Because…?”

You tuck your chin and your brows quirk. “Because?”

“I want you to tell me why you’re afraid of losing me,” she places her other hand on your armrest, trapping you, and you start stammering. “Since you do it so well in your songs.”

You can’t get anything out, though she doesn’t look away. You feel stuck, considering the numerous things you could tell her. Alternatively, you sigh. Fuck it.

“I think I’ve told you enough,” you inhale, cupping one hand on her jaw and the other on the back of her neck before you firmly kiss her. Shuri lets out a muffled noise before reciprocating.

And you both think, Finally.

Her body starts to sway backwards as you press against her, however she pushes you back against your chair. Her hands grab the sides of your face—one hand under your hood and the other over—refusing to let go now that she’s on her feet. Her upper body bends down just so her lips can live on yours, and a chuckle escapes both of you when your chair rolls backwards, almost hitting the wall behind you.

Admittedly, you enjoy sitting as she envelops your lips, but you decide to stand. Your hands slide down to her waist as you slowly walk her backwards until her legs meet the edge of your bed and she ends up landing on her bottom with her elbows supporting her weight as she gazes up at you, several red horizontal lines covering her body.

God, you can’t believe this is happening. You can’t believe Shuri wants you as much as you want her. Everything feels…unreal. Dream-like.

“Come here,” she pulls your wrist and you land on top of her. The bed bounces beneath you as her hand slithers up to your neck, drawing you in for a chaste kiss. She catches you in your thoughts. “You okay?” Is this okay?

You nod, still admiring her below you. You whisper, “I didn’t think you’d…pay attention. To what I wrote. I didn’t know you were listening like that.”

Shuri caresses your neck with her thumb. She takes note of the neon blue light illuminating half of your face from a bar sign also across the street, below the motel sign.

She kisses your cheek, your chin, then your lips once again. “I’ll always listen to you.”

#shuri x reader #shuri fanfiction #poc reader #shuri x poc reader #shuri udaku #reader is a musician #afab reader #masc reader #black panther: wakanda forever

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lina-linny · 3 months

Text

summary: wooyoung has a panic attack on stage but you’re there for him

words: 1.6k

tw: panicattack, mobbing, hate, death threats

I laughed a little at something San had just said when my boyfriend Wooyoung rushed into the room. I turned to him a little worried. He had been so stressed all day and I didn’t know exactly why. In addition, he seemed to avoid us all or it was just a coincidence, at least I and Wooyoung had exchanged only a few words today. "Did you see my microphone? I can’t find it anymore," he said in a slight panic.

"Don’t worry, your micro is over here," Hongjoong replied, looking at Wooyoung as anxiously as I did. "Is everything okay, Wooyoung?" I asked cautiously. He nodded hastily and disappeared from the waiting room where we were sitting.

The concert by Ateez, because of which we sat here in the back stage area of the hall, would start in 15 min. So I decided to check on Wooyoung. I found my boyfriend in one of the adjoining rooms, where he practiced the dances, from the songs Ateez would perform.

I stopped in the doorway, Wooyoung obviously hadn’t discovered me yet. After Crazy Form finished, the same song started to play again and Woo went back to the starting position to repeat everything again.

He didn’t make a single mistake and yet I wondered how long he had been doing this, he could do the dance. Why did he still practice it so obsessively? Was he nervous about the concert? But why? He had done so many shows already. Why was he so scared?

I was tired of thinking about what he was thinking all the time, I was his girlfriend and I could talk to him. So I stepped out of the doorway and into the room until Wooyoung noticed me. He hastily turned off the music and looked at me questioningly. "Hey, how are you? I noticed that you’ve been so... nervous all day." I asked the musician carefully. He ran desperately through his hair.

"I’m fine." he smiled at me, but I knew how put-on it was.

"You think too much again, didn’t I advise you to stop? And don’t wrinkle your forehead like that. But don’t worry, I would still love you with wrinkles." he grinned, but I couldn’t pull a smile over his teasing. I was still worried.

But of course Wooyoung was as usual. If something really border him, he would keep all his worries and problems to himself until he exploded. He also liked to make everyone know that he was super good, no matter how fucked up he really was.

"Woo listen, you can just talk to me…" but I was interrupted by Jongho walking into the room.

"Hyung, where are you? Let’s go." Wooyoung’s face stiffened, but he nodded and walked out of the room with one last glance to me.

I ran after the two men after a short hesitation. I watched all 8 members prepare for the stage and at the last moment before they went out to their fans, I pulled Wooyoung aside and pressed him firmly against me.

He seemed a little puzzled, partly because I was otherwise not the person of the two of us who initiated physical contact. But after a short break he pressed me to himself.

I frowned when I noticed that he was shaking as he turned away from me and stepped out onto the stage. What was wrong with my boy? Why was he so nervous?

I stepped into one of the exits of the stage so that I could watch Ateez perform, but was not seen by any of the fans.

I noticed Wooyoung shaking, was it really just the effort of dancing? The group had now finished their first song and Wooyoung discovered me in my hiding place. I smiled at him, which he did not reply.

The next song started playing and I noticed my boyfriend making a little mistake in the choreography. He grimaced in panic and immediately made the next mistake. He entangled himself in a vicious circle, where one slip followed the next. I noticed that Wooyoung had snapped breathing, gasping for air more like it was normal.

Wooyoung kept dancing, even though his face was so panicked and scared that I almost couldn’t stand it anymore, what was wrong with him? And suddenly I saw it, my heart missed a beat and at the same time everything made sense. I saw Wooyoung tap his temple three times, this gesture being our secret sign, symbolizing a panic attack. We had developed it when I had many panic attacks several years ago.

I opened my eyes wide, a single tear streaming from Wooyoung’s eyes, and I knew he was about to collapse. So I rushed straight to the stage.

I didn't care about all the fans anymore. I just wanted to make sure, that Wooyoung was ok.

When I got to him, he stopped dancing, he shivered and gasped for air. My boyfriend clung to my arms and more tears ran from his eyes, he slumped and whimpered slightly.

I knelt down before him, and my heart was torn to see him like this. While I was holding him, I knew that these gestures alone would not help him.

Almost automatically I took Wooyoung and took him from stage as best I could. The others looked worried and a little overwhelmed at Wooyoung and me. I symbolized to them that they should finish the song and hesitantly they did so.

I dropped Wooyoung on a chair in an empty room, away from all the things that could stress him. I should try the easiest way to calm him down, maybe it helped. Otherwise, I would have to change my mind. So I started focusing on his breathing.

"Woo I want you to breathe in and out with me, okay?" he just nodded. I began to breathe in a calm rhythm and he did the same. When his breathing had calmed down a little, I started to talk to him a little. When I realised that he was feeling better again, I took him in my arms and Wooyoung clung to me.

I sighed. I hated it when he felt so bad.

"Do you want to talk about what happened?" I asked him carefully. I really wanted to know what had stressed him out so much. However, I would also respect his boundaries if he didn't want to tell me.

Wooyoung sighed and hugged me even closer to him. He was silent for a while, but then he started talking to me.

"You know, I found this website yesterday where so many Atinys were making fun of me. They said I was too fat or untalented. They also said that I would probably mess up the whole choreography at this concert again. They wrote that they would kill me if I did just one step wrong and they were right. I messed everything up." Wooyoung trembled in my arms and buried his face in the crook of my neck.

It was so different to see Wooyoung so vulnerable. He didn't deserve any of this. He always did his best. At that moment, I hated those people and everyone else who kept hurting him with all my heart. Why would a person do something like that? Didn't they have any hobbies? Were they so unhappy with themselves that they had to do this to another person?

But before I could answer him, before I could reassure him that everything was okay, the rest of the members came rushing into the room. They all looked very worried and immediately burst out with thousands of questions, ranging from "How are you?" to "What happened?".

In the meantime, Wooyoung had detached himself from me and was now content to hold my hand. He slowly explained to the others what had happened. But I noticed that he left out the reason for his panic attack. He probably just didn't want to worry the others any further, but at that moment I was incredibly grateful that he had trusted me enough to share everything with me. ~ Wooyoung cuddled up to me on the overstuffed sofa in the apartment that Ateez lived in. The nine of us sat on the sofa and two armchairs, watching a drama together. Ateez had cancelled the concert a few hours earlier and promised all the Atinys who had been looking forward to the show a ticket for the next show or their money back. Wooyoung had wanted to pretend that nothing had happened and simply carry on with the concert. But we all I, the other members and their manager had vehemently contradicted him. And so we ended up having a cosy evening watching TV on the couch.

I could tell, that Wooyoung already was feeling better because he started making fun of me again and teasing all of us.

I hugged Wooyoung to me. He shouldn't have to go through this. He gave me a kiss, grinning mischievously, which admittedly took me quite by surprise. I laughed and he joined in. Slowly my boyfriend started to press more and more kisses on my mouth until I pushed him away slightly. He pouted in offence. I laughed and gave him a final kiss.

"Okay, he must feeling dazzling." I thought with a grin and cuddled up to Wooyoung's shoulder again. I loved him so much that sometimes I would just grab this precious person and lock him in a room so that no one could ever hurt him. But I couldn't do that. The world was cruel, but there was nothing I could do about it.

I pressed a kiss to Wooyoung's hair and swore to myself that I would protect him as best I could.

#ateez x reader #wooyoung #wooyoung x reader #wooyoung x y/n #ateez #ateez oneshot #boyfriend #kpop #south korea #best friends to lovers #panic attack

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urfriendlylocalidiot · 1 year

Text

In honor of blackpink headlining Coachella tonight

Also idol!au so you’re performing too, but you perform Friday instead of Saturday :p

blackpink x idol!reader

Coachella w/ Blackpink

Jisoo

Will 100% make it a point to show up at your performance. She just has to be there for your Coachella debut. Would hum and swag along to the music. And record you up there as well, probably posting you on her private. However when you sing the song that’s dedicated to her, she’ll definitely put away the phone and just mouth to you ‘I love you so much’ whenever you steal a glance her way. When you finish your set, you guys go to a bunch of the different tents, and just spend the rest of the Friday together.

Saturday ends up being more stressful, Jisoo being whisked away to complete preparations for her performance. You still go see some artists with some other musician friends of yours, you even end up making some new ones. They all still pale in comparison to Jisoo though. However it all becomes worth it when you see her perform Saturday night though, let’s just say you if you weren’t already starstruck, you definitely are now. God, she was just so beautiful for the entire performance. And her vocals!! You fell for her a little harder that night, that’s for sure.

The next day, you both end up being super tired. So you two decide to sleep in a little, there were no major performances from friends and mutuals happening until later that day anyways. Whenever you both do decide to get out of bed and head to Coachella however, it honestly ends up being the best day. You both gush over each others’ sets and listen to the most amazing music with your love.

Jennie

Will probably surprise you and your staff with food backstage before you perform. She’ll still definitely be in the audience, and would probably drag her members to listen to you to. There was no way, she would miss your performance. And thank god she didn’t, you had a legendary set. The screams literally broke the sound barrier. She would be so, so proud of you. After your set, you and Jennie just end up going back to the place you’re staying at for the weekend, since you performed pretty late.

Saturday is good, you wake up together and those mornings always tend to be your favorite. When you guys arrive at Coachella, you guys see a few performances, however, pretty quickly has to start preparing for her headlining set later that day. You end up still perusing a few sets and even make a few new artist friends. When it is BLACKPINK’s turn to perform, goddamn, you had no idea how you got so lucky. You literally cannot stop smiling and jumping for the whole set. It was the most amazing performance you had ever seen. Afterwards, much like she did with you, you surprise her with blue roses, knowing that those are her favorite. Neither of you can stop gushing over how amazing that set was, lives were literally changed.

You end up going back with Jennie again that night. And the next morning is another perfect one. Coachella is the most fun on Sunday for you two. Neither of you guys have to perform, and you two can just spend the day doing the thing you guys love most next to performing, listening and vibing to music. So many stolen kisses during any romantic song you guys listen to. And you guys are basically joined at the hand for the entire day.

Rosé

So, so proud of you. Will cheer, scream, everything when she sees your silhouette on stage. And, wow, your set was amazing. You definitely will dedicate the songs to her, especially the one you wrote for her. For that song, you would look over at her the most, but immediately have to look away when you start blushing. Afterwards, Rosé definitely just goes to find you backstage and tells you how proud of you she is and how much she loved your set.

The next day, Coachella seems even more impressive to you, since you didn’t get to see much of it the day before. You truly think that you were probably written by a musician to do music and fall for another musician. Music is truly your passion, so of course you enjoy the festival, to you, all the artists are just simply fantastic. Rosé would definitely make try to hangout with you as much as she could that day, until she eventually gets pulled away to start rehearsing for her set. Holy smokes too, when she performed, you were literally speechless. It was the most, earth-shatteringly beautiful moment of your whole life. You’re positive that you will never be able to forget that performance. You definitely wind up backstage, jumping with Rosé at just how amazing that was.

On Sunday, you guys would also walk around and listen to the amazing artists together, it’s by far your favorite thing to do together. You’re both just so passionate about music, it’s the big reason why you guys fell for each other. Also you guys are definitely big fans of all the food trucks at Coachella. Will probably wind up spending half the day there, if you guys aren’t careful. After performing two sets at Coachella, you guys deserve it though. You two definitely wind up going to some after parties though.

Lisa

Lisa is your literal biggest fan. Will definitely have to restrain herself to not lose her voice at your performance, since she has to perform the next night. To every single song of your set, she would definitely sing and dance along. For her, your music is just the best and energizes her, no matter how tired she is. Afterwards, you would probably find her before she finds you. But when she sees you approaching, she will definitely wrap you up in the biggest hug and just tell you how much she loved your performance. You’d probably end up just going back to an after party though, since you were one of the last performers for Friday night.

God knows when you two end up waking up the next morning, however you both very quickly wind up back on festival grounds. Lisa would definitely kiss you goodbye when she leaves to practice, but will make you promise that you’ll be in the front row when she performs that night. Of course, you were going to be there no matter what, but you agreed and she promised the best performance in return. And, let’s just say, she definitely delivered on that front. You’d definitely be screaming and dancing to all the songs as well. She’s just so amazing. BLACKPINK were the headlining event for a reason, they put on the best show, no questions asked. After the best performance of your life, you sneak backstage and this time it’s your turn to wrap Lisa in a big hug, which quickly turns into you two just jumping because of how much energy you guys have. The vibes were immaculate to say the least.

On Sunday, you guys walk around and dance along to every song that has a good rhythm. Lisa will probably lead the way and take you to all her favorite artists. Which you had no complaints about, you loved Lisa’s music taste. However, she will definitely bring you to at least one slow one, so she can dance and kiss you at her own pace. At the end of the day though, you end up having more energy than in the beginning somehow.

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