Up on that stage, in his jeans and his boots, Dean Winchester felt invincible. He had people that adored him for what he did, he got to show off what he loved doing in front of sold out crowds, and he got to just be himself. They never choreographed any of his routines, he just got up on stage with his bow-legs and did what he did. None of his shows were ever the same.
As he sang the last few bars of 'Little Toy Guns', one of his more famous covers, the crowd burst into applause. He flashed them a bright white grin. He loved getting praise. He wasn't vain, oh no, he just liked knowing he was doing a good job at what he loved. He loved knowing people liked hearing him sing and do awkward dances while up on stage, screens showing his music videos behind him as he did. That had been Charlie's idea. Charlie was the resident tech expert part of his crew. She thought it would be epic to have videos playing behind him after he did a big-time concert alongside Montgomery Gentry, a small town band called the Barn Burners, and Alan friggin' Jackson. When Dean had been introduced to his all-time hero, he had nearly fainted.
As Dean headed back to the wings, his manager-slash-mother came up to him with a grin.
"Oh honey, you were amazing." Mary grinned. She'd been a country singer too. She was littler known, but Dean had followed in his Mom's footsteps. John had been a drummer in a rock band that did Kansas covers.
"Mo-om." Dean muttered. "Not at work." He was a light shade of pink, but he actually didn't mind it.
Mary rolled her eyes and kissed Dean on the cheek. "Well, come on, Mr. Famous. I have big news for the crew, and you."
Dean followed his mother curiously, noting that the crew was nowhere to be seen, probably waiting somewhere for Mary and Dean.
His suspicions were confirmed when they reached the green room, and the crew was lounging around on chairs and couches. Charlie and Jo were off in the corner flirting; Kevin and Sam were talking nerd; Bobby and John, Dean's Dad, were talking about the band they were in; and last, but not least, Adam was in the corner, sulking because he hadn't made friends within the crew. Sure, Adam was 24, but he wasn't very sociable. His one best friend had died in a car accident when he was 16. After that, he didn't really talk to anyone.
Dean went over to sit with his youngest brother to hear Mary's announcement. Mary had cleared her throat before she spoke.
"Alright, everyone. I have great news! Dean has been chosen by the manager of another huge name in the business to sing a duet for his next album." Mary grinned.
Dean nearly chocked on the pop he had acquired. He was going to sing a duet with a stranger? If anything, Dean was a soloist who did duets by himself. The only other person he had sang with was Adam, as Adam had appeared in a few of his shows as a special treat. Adam had some awesome pipes, so Dean granted him his own fame. Johnny and Kenny Jackson, they were called. They'd adopted stage names, because they wanted privacy.
"Can we make this a three-way?" Adam asked curiously. "The Jackson brothers and the other singer?"
Mary tilted her head in consideration. "I'll talk to his manager. It's a great idea, honey." she smiled. Adam grinned. He loved any opportunity to get himself out there.
Once Mary left the room, the crew went abuzz.
"A duet?" Charlie could be heard muttering.
"Wonder who he is?" Sam mused for the whole room.
John had gotten up and went over to his sons. He grinned at them. "Congrats. You might get more publicity from this."
"Which means more concerts." Adam and Dean finished. They learned early on that the more publicity you get, the more people want you to play gigs.
John nodded. "So you better practice." he said teasingly and headed back over to Bobby.
A similar situation had unfolded in a city on the other side of the country. Vancouver, BC, to be exact. A dark haired man with a devilish smirk had been singing to a similarly large crowd, the fans cheering and a few with some.. embarrassing signs.
Castiel di Angelo was a great singer. He had climbed into popularity by singing cover of '90s country songs on YouTube. He had later branched into the early 21st century, but nothing beyond 2008. The song he had just finished, as a nice closer, was 'Take It Like a Man'. It was an awesome song, one of his favourites. Castiel wasn't afraid of singing female songs. He just sang. He didn't care about pronouns or labels.
Once he finished, he was off the stage after a few bows, heading to his manager in the green room. She had instructed him to find her there after the show. Unknown to Castiel, she was dealing with another manager, who was in Trios-Rivieres at the moment with her client.
Castiel stepped into the green room, where Naomi sat, almost glaring at him from her seat. She motioned for him to sit across from her, offering him a bottle of water. He accepted it with a nod of gratitude and waited for her to speak.
"I've gotten you a duet for your next album." Naomi said simply. She took a sip of her own water, penning a few things down on her clipboard. Naomi was a very.. up-tight, strict manager.
"A duet? With?" Castiel asked. It wasn't unusual that Naomi got him duets. Most were just for their albums, but this one was for his? He was excited.
"Johnny Jackson." Naomi told him. Just then, her Blackberry went off, signifying a text. She help up a finger to Castiel while she answered it. "Strike that. Both Jackson brothers. It seems Kenny is eager to join."
Castiel tilted his head in thought. "The number one cover artists on the charts?" he asked. They were right above him. They were amazing, he would agree. He was excited to duet with them.
Naomi nodded. "I talked to their manager, Maryanne Winchester, and she said both boys would love to. You will be meeting them in Lawrence in three days time." she informed him.
"Kansas?" Castiel asked. Lawrence was his home town. He grew up there, but was isolated from everyone else in town. He'd always heard stories of the high school's best singer, Dean Winchester, dominating in musicals. Every show, he wished his parents were let him go to one, but they were strict in their ways. 'You are the youngest. Your older siblings can teach you'. They were just excuses to use Castiel as their own personal Cinderella.
Naomi nodded once more. "Seems the three of you have similar roots." was all she said. That was the end of the conversation, apparently. Naomi had stood up and left, probably going to meet the crew to tell them to clean up the stage. She treated the crew like crap, despite them being Castiel's family. Anna worked tech, Gabriel and Michael were manual labourers, and Lucifer was anything else that needed doing. He was a versatile guy, for being named after the Devil.