Ok, so I mentioned this idea before. I don't know how well I executed it, but I tried. It's sorta unfamiliar territory so I hope it's at least a little enjoyable. This is almost like an intro and recap in one. Fair warning, there will be spoilers. So if you haven't watched SDRR and don't want to be given the whole first season then don't read this. Ok, here we go.
As per usual, the scheduled concert was crowded with people rocking out and singing along at the top of their lungs. Booze spilled occasionally but no one minded when they were completely lost in the hard sound blasting in their ears. Gigi watched from backstage as her father Johnny Rock took to the stage with his band. In that moment she could see the man he used to be, the party animal who screwed up and had an ego so big it made him famous among many but infamous among the small few who really knew him. He had been the lead singer of The Heathens in the late eighties early nineties but quickly fell from fame after only one album. In Gigi's opinion, it had been Johnny's fault, yes, but also the rest of the band's as well for various reasons. It was all personal and petty. He struggled in the music industry for twenty five years until she found him, giving him that second chance he needed. She had moved to New York in search of him.
She was hoping that he wasn't too washed up to help her become successful, unlike his failure. With the persuasion of money and her natural talent for singing she knew she would impress them. She led his old band, now named The Assassins, and he stepped down to become the lead songwriter as well as her coach. She didn't know what he had to offer her besides points on what not to do, but so far, they were getting somewhere. There was a bit of a challenge in being an aging rock star in a music landscape fueled by hip-hop and pop, but that wasn't going to stop him. He was even learning to care for someone other than himself. But her choice to find him wasn't all about reconnecting with him. That was great and all, but what she really wanted was to be famous. She only hired her father's old band because she didn't want to waste six months of her life auditioning tragically hip, Brooklyn boho douchebags with unkempt beards and idiotic body ink.
She shuddered at the thought alone. She considered herself whip smart at the young age of twenty one and she was hell-bent on making it big. So much so that as soon as she found out her mother had been a backup singer for her father's band back in the day she steeped herself in NYC rock history. She grew up listening to the only album The Heathens ever recorded before breaking up. Now that she was exactly where she wanted to be she would recapture that kick-ass 1992 sound but dress it up inside a new, modern, voice. That voice being her own. She was looking forward to the next six months where she hoped to have a four song demo tight enough to land her a major record deal. The laughter of the crowd drew her attention back to the stage where Johnny was recounting a time when he was strung out on some drug, that being the reason he might not remember the song he was going to sing, yet he asked the crowd to bear with him. She shook her head at that.
Gigi didn't drink, smoke, or take drugs and frowned on his abuse of all three. Even now at an older age he still tended to take it too far. It was kind of funny, but although he and his bandmate/rival Flash thought they were the ones in charge, she knew better. Ever since she showed up she was in charge and loved every moment of the control she had over her new band. It was definitely not a man's world anymore. With the opening of quick drum beats, Bam Bam began the only song her father really sung for the band since she had become the lead singer. It was an old favorite performed with others that they included along with the newer songs. Rehab and Flash joined in, and soon, Johnny was screaming out the words in the same way he had all those years ago. As he sung and she nodded her head to the beat she thought back to how she got to this point in time, standing backstage waiting to take her place and perform for their quickly building fan base. She was almost there.
Lotsa money and plenty of cocaine.
Yeah, somebody somewhere gonna know my name.
I'm gonna hit this city tonight where it lives and breathes.
Uh huh.
Looking at her father, the once famous Johnny Rock, she remembered the time she met him, seeing him for the first time ever. It was in a bar after some concert. He tried to put the moves on her, ignoring her trying to tell him that she was in fact his daughter. She quickly taught him a lesson in the form of a stinging slap and a knee to the balls. That was followed by tossing proof at him from his place on the floor. She stormed out pissed but planned to confront him again once she cooled off. That came when she found him leaving his agent's office with a scowl she figured to mean he had gotten some bad news. She was going to be his good news and told him so, but all that was exchanged between them was a reminder of the cutting words from her mother.
He didn't seem too impressed until she mentioned just how much she would pay him if he got his broken band back together. She might have been an aspiring singer, but she couldn't write for shit and needed Flash. Her good looks made up his mind though. The rest of the band was easy enough to dig up. Johnny wasn't too keen on asking Flash for help, but eventually, they were all back together. A moment of the blame game was blown away after she sung for them. Needless to say, Gigi hadn't been bluffing when she told them of her talent. Ira, who she brought along as their agent, was impressed. And although Johnny held it back, she could see that he was too. Her stunning performance was enough to solidify the idea of getting back into showbiz where they all longed to be, no matter how much they hated each other.
'Cause Elvis died all religious and fat.
No way in hell I'm going out like that.
I'm going lean like Bowie.
I'm a pretty Bowie lean machine.
Once the contract to put Gigi as the lead singer for the band and Johnny as the songwriter was signed, they agreed to come up with five songs in the next two months. Rehab and Bam Bam signed it without much complaint and Flash signed it only after stating that he wasn't in it for the money because he was already successful enough. She rolled her eyes at his cockiness but didn't care as long as everyone was on board. She almost regretted her decision to get help from her father when she entered the studio the very next day. He had spent the night doing drugs and drinking until he passed out. To show for it he offered the basic riff and melody of a song. Flash added a hook and helped him further it with lyrics.
Then came the test run which Gigi sung exceptionally. After that was the rehearsal and recording. The experience alone was a rush and she couldn't wait to be doing this for as long as she could. But with the one song down and four more to go, it all seemed to lose focus when a clause in the contract rendered Johnny sober for thirty days. He tried to argue that the best stuff was made while under the influence but he was overruled by the group. She should have known he would find a way around it when he purposefully wrote that god awful song. She saw right through him, as did most of the others, but they played dumb and allowed him to go back to drinking and drugs. He just had to lay off the cocaine. It worked out well enough.
'Cause sex and drugs and rock and roll.
Gonna save my dirty soul.
Sex and drugs and rock and roll.
Alright! Alright!
It wasn't so hard until Gigi encountered the difficulty of writing a song with Johnny. He said it was to get a better feel for her style and what she felt but she was quickly frustrated. She wasn't a songwriter. That was what she had him and Flash for. They continued to work on it regardless and Gigi couldn't help but wonder if her father cared for her. He hesitated, which hurt her just a little because no matter how much she acted like she didn't need a father, she still kind of wanted one. And despite arguing with him over the subject, she understood that he wouldn't suddenly love her just because she was his daughter. It would take time. It was a bitter pill to swallow but she told herself to be patient. After all, she hadn't ever thought of him as her father until recently, so really, the feeling was mutual.
And she couldn't very well forget the time Ira set up Johnny's death and published it all over the internet. They obviously took advantage of that to further her career. Coming up fwith a cooler way for Johnny to die instead of choking on a chicken bone was what landed them with the name The Assassin's, courtesy of Bam Bam's comment toward Flash killing Johnny. And she could never forget her first performance where the one and only Joan Jett wished her good luck. It was something about making bi girls want to fuck her and straight girls want to be her. She could roll with that. Then came the performance that she had been dreading, only for it to come out perfectly. It was the song she and her father worked on together and seemed to build the beginnings of a bridge between them.
Yeah, Mick Jagger can do anything he wants.
Fly his jumbo jet to his own Caribbean haunt.
Fashionable faces and paparazzi everywhere.
Their hoax that Johnny Rock had died gave The Heathens a massive surge of interest from Belgium so Ira booked them one last gig called 'The Johnny Rock Resurrection Tour'. The plan was for Gigi to sing three songs at the concert to introduce The Assassins. Just when she felt she was getting somewhere with her father, Flash asked her out to lunch where he proposed that they ditch him and write songs together. His excuse was that Johnny held her back and would likely self-destruct as he always had and ruin it for her. She knew that Flash of all people had a good idea of who her father was, but she already made the decision to include him and wasn't going to change her mind now. He deserved to be a part of their new rise to fame and nothing Flash said was going to make her think any differently. On their way to the gig they talked about their idea of a rock star treatment, which was utterly ridiculous. She tried to make them see how stupid their requests were but they ended up getting what they wanted anyway.
Once there, they tried opening with Johnny but the booze and drugs got to him, making him hallucinate and freak out, leaving the stage empty. And as scared as Gigi was, she put on a brave face and saved the performance, in the process introducing The Assassins. It was a proud moment for her she replayed in her head multiple times. She felt free on the stage, singing her heart out and interacting with the crowd as she strutted around. They loved her. On their way home, Flash and Ira attempted to drive Johnny out of the team but Gigi wasn't having it. She made her very own announcement to the band that Johnny might not be the lead singer anymore, but he was still very much included as a writer and coach. Johnny looked satisfied and she caught the tail end of shock in Flash's eyes that he had just been out-maneuvered, but he covered it up fairly quickly. He hadn't tried to fight her after that, and it was in that moment that she knew she was the true leader of their little motley crew. She enjoyed every second of it.
Yeah.
Well, baby, that's what I'm after, honey,
That's what I need.
Smothered by the kiss of notoriety.
By being the one who felt like it was her job to keep everyone in check, Gigi urged all the band members to see a therapist in an attempt to make them behave toward one another. She was sick and tired of the past shit from two decades ago that was always wedged between them. They had to work together to make the band work or else it would just fall apart as it had before. There couldn't be any immature finger pointing or accusations about things that didn't matter in the here and now. So with some complaining and refusals, they took part in some sessions. Their therapist had worked with a number of rock bands so she felt they hired the right person to assist them. They worked through group sessions as well as individual ones. Although she felt like she was the only one to take them seriously when she was alone, she often fell into the dysfunction while with the others.
In the end, their sessions turned out horrible. The therapist gave up and walked out on them, stating that they were ten times worse than Metallica, Kings of Leon, and Aerosmith combined. He then went on to say that they were the most fucked up band in the history of rock and roll. Sad to say, they celebrated the achievement. Gigi did comment that they made Metallica look like the Jonas Brothers. So in a strange way, their failure as a group became a bonding experience. They were united in discord, a dysfunctional band as well as a dysfunctional family. As long as they agreed on something, be it agreeing to disagree, then it was progress. That day ended with Ava stating that they couldn't work as a democracy. They needed a dictatorship with Gigi in charge. She felt that she had already been in charge so far, but now that she had the support of the rest, she never felt more in control as she did in that moment.
Gimme what I want right now.
Pile it up, pile it up!
Yeah!
Being left to her own devices most of the time, Gigi came up with a way to test her father's devotion to not only her, but what they were working on. So, she set out to get a henna of Johnny's name and then showed him, suggesting that he should get a tattoo of her name to cement his love and commitment to her. Yes, a low blow and very underhanded of her, but weren't they all? He refused at first, excuses spouted to cover up his fear of needles, but she was pleasantly surprised when he went through with it. And right on his pale white ass too. She would have cherished the memory if it wasn't for her mother showing up to visit her and share a song she wrote. Gigi gave her props for raising her, but she was still an annoyance she avoided. She wasn't afraid of calling her a stupid bitch and repeating it louder for her mother to hear, but the older woman didn't care and was ready with a retort in response.
Gigi hadn't gotten her smart ass attitude or her sass from her father after all. What really bothered her this time was her mother's insistence to get in the way of her hold on Flash. God, he was so stupidly blind to her using him, and she couldn't let her mother ruin that, so naturally she fought back. She was told to find a guy her age and she complained of their uselessness, claiming Flash was more mature like her. Her mother actually believed she liked him, but truthfully she wasn't at all interested. It was a means to an end. So after worrying over him taking interest in her seducing mother, she ended up leaving defeated instead, and Flash showed off his tattoo of her name on his ass as well. She made sure to let him know that it was awesome of him to rearrange the Gaga tattoo that had been their previously just to butter him up. It was too easy. The only downside was Johnny finding out that her tattoo had been a fake. He was pissed, but at least Gigi knew that he could commit.
Because sex and drugs and rock and roll.
Gonna save my dirty soul.
Sex and drugs and rock and roll.
Alright! Alright!
It wasn't enough to find out that Gigi's father was a washed out rock star, so it almost didn't come as a surprise when she heard of her grandmother, Elizabeth, who had tried to catch fame in broadway only to become pregnant with Johnny at the wrong time so that she lost to Julie Andrews. She could have had the role of Mary Poppins, so she never missed a chance to guilt-trip Johnny. Honestly, Gigi was glad she hadn't gotten the role. Mary Poppins wouldn't be the same if it wasn't Julie Andrews. That was how they were roped into performing at Elizabeth's wedding to some obviously gay producer of her upcoming off-broadway musical. It was seventies themed, which kind of interested Gigi but also entertained her when she saw the rest of the band's getup. And to think, Elizabeth looked so pleased with them doing this for her. But by the time they began to play she attempted to upstage them by singing songs from her own show. Johnny felt it coming all along so the rest of the band weren't opposed to walking out after the song. Gigi could understand her father just a bit more now that she got to see her grandmother's personality. It all suddenly made sense in a weirdly clarifying way. Her grandfather on the other hand was a pretty cool guy, and she had to admit that Johnny shared some traits with him too.
'Cause I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, no!
It amused Gigi that Johnny still thought she wanted Flash romantically. It amused her more knowing that Flash thought he was getting back at Johnny for sleeping with his wife all those years ago by being with Gigi. He never missed a chance to rub it in Johnny's face that he was going to fuck her one day and he wouldn't be able to do a thing about it. It agitated both father and daughter, but the difference between them was in how they reacted. It was fun to join in messing with her father so she went along with whatever Flash said just to rile him up. Johnny was furious and protective, which told her he did in fact care. She was greatly annoyed with Flash's immaturity. It was something a teenager would pull. Not a grown man. She was glad she wasn't stupid enough to actually go out with him. She didn't even see it coming when Johnny steered her away from Flash with some new client of Ira's.
His name was Jim, and he started a musical and fashion movement called 'NormCore'. Whatever that was. She eventually learned what her father had been up to, which he cleverly covered by acting like he didn't approve, only after getting her kicks with someone that was indeed more her age. It wasn't like they could work anyways since he was way too much like Johnny and that physically sickened her. Johnny decided that Flash was the lesser of two evils so she was right back where she started. Which was fine with her. She had her fun and now it was back to business. Through all this no one even paid much attention to Bam Bam and Rehab, who oddly enough, made their own musical movement called 'BeastCore' in an effort to gain some appreciation they lacked from the band. It was tough love, so if they couldn't take it, more power to them to do their own dorky thing. As long as it stayed on the side.
Out in the ether, baby, up in the air.
My face'n my place'n my eyes'n my hair.
All kindsa people worshipping whatever I do.
The idea of a richly paying record company like Sony taking interest in Gigi was mind blowing. So much so that everyone was well aware of what would come with such a contract yet they were swayed into agreeing. The bad news came when the company specifically asked for Gigi only, which meant the end of The Assassins. It wasn't enough to dissuade Johnny and Flash who were wanted as well to be songwriters. Ava was happy to tag along. It left Bam Bam and Rehab no choice but to pursue their BestCore project and they became EDM DJs. Gigi quickly became agitated with the state of clothing she was forced to wear once she agreed. That being nothing whatsoever. They were skimpy outfits that only covered the bare minimum. She caught Johnny wincing at the wardrobe choice.
Flash did nothing but agree to whatever they dressed her in because he was too busy ogling her assets half the time. Her first music video was a remake of a song they had already been working on as The Assassins. It reflected a more hip-hop style which butchered it. Gigi and Johnny pulled the plug as soon as they learned that she would have to learn choreographed dance moves as well as lip syncing during concerts. Both agreed that music had to be performed not mimed. It had to have soul, and this wasn't it. It was a great offer, but they had to refuse. And right in the middle of taping the music video too. They all celebrated the near miss with the expensive alcohol Johnny stole and Gigi decided to show Flash just how upset she had been with him. It sure brought a smile to her father's face seeing him scolded.
Yeah, because I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, no!
After working out the pros and cons of keeping Flash as a 'boyfriend' she settled on breaking up with him. It was perfectly executed and left him grasping at air. She then looked into contacting Greg Dulli, a producer that Johnny hated but would greatly help them regardless. His representative, a man named J.P., wanted to record some songs. It forced Johnny and Flash to meet with Bam Bam and Rehab about rejoining the band. They couldn't continue without them, so with some persuasion, Johnny managed to get them back. He looked so self-satisfied when he explained that all they wanted was the rights to the EDM version of one of the songs from The Assassins. They wanted it for a perfume commercial of all things. Because Johnny didn't take it seriously, he agreed and the rights were given. So they moved forward and recorded another song with the help of J.P.
Gigi had thought she was manipulating him into sticking around yet she soon figured out that the whole band had been manipulated by him to create the touching song they ended up with. His methods were fool proof, but she was still upset with it. He took it as a reaction to him telling her about hearing that Ava and Flash slept together. She couldn't care less about that and had a feeling that had happened ever since Flash got jumpy with her when she mentioned that he should be going out with someone Ava's age. And right when she was starting to feel like they were getting somewhere, she witnessed the horrifying truth of what kind of commercial the song Johnny gave to Bam Bam and Rehab was really used for. Gigi was not happy with the fact that people would hear her voice and think of the feminine hygiene product it was used for instead of some perfume as they had said. She made sure to thoroughly yell at Johnny for that one. They would really have to up their game.
Yeah, baby, I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, I don't wanna die anonymous.
No, no! No, no!
No, no! No, no!
Despite everything Gigi had gone through with the band and her father, she wouldn't take any of it back. She allowed a smile when Johnny finished off the song with a flourish, the crowd cheering. With a bang of the drum's cymbals accompanied by the bass guitar the song came to an end, pausing only for one last beat of the drums. She was glad Johnny had been given another chance to perform. He at least remembered not to drink or take too many drugs this time around so that he stayed on his feet. He left the stage to pass her, patting her shoulder as he went.
"Knock 'em dead, honey," he encouraged. She nodded and sauntered out to stand in front of the mic. She made sure to hype up the crowd before starting. It was just another venue, another concert, another moment on stage where she commanded the crowd with her voice alone. Well, maybe her body too. She was halfway through the second song when she almost faltered on the words. Her eyes had just landed on a face she hadn't seen in years and thought she never would again. Her heart picked up and her brows creased, her hand tightening on the mic. She wasn't supposed to be here. Why was she here? Gigi didn't know what to do, so during a break in the song that Flash took over for a guitar solo, she gathered her cool and was ready just in time to finish the song strongly. She would worry about the familiar face cheering with the crowd at a later time. Hopefully she could slip away before she was confronted. If not, she would have some major explaining to do.