We were scheduled to perform right after Louie Capistrano, who recited the National Anthem backward.
Brave the of home the and
Free the of land the O’er
It was pretty amazing. He knew the whole thing by heart. By the time he got to See You Can Say O, the place was going nuts.
“How are we going to top that?” Becca whispered to me, backstage.
“Good question,” I answered.
Mr. Radonski, our very intense gym teacher, was the host of the show. “How about another hand for Louie and his ‘Star-Spangled Backward’!” he yelled, and the place went crazy again. Oh, great.
He made the calm-down motion with his hands. “And now, let’s welcome to the stage, the rock and roll sounds of CHICKMATE!”
Everyone clapped as we ran onto the stage and grabbed our instruments. I adjusted the mike. “Hey, everyone, what’s up? We’re CHICKMATE,” I said, trying to be as cool as Jane Plantero but obviously not even coming close. “We’re going to start with some Joan Jett.” I nodded to Sammie behind the drums, and she counted off: “1-2-3-4!”
As we launched into the song, people started cheering. Becca and I sang in unison. The people in the audience who knew the song sang along with every word. We sounded really good, I think. Everyone in the band smiled at one another as we played. It felt great.
Music is so powerful. Whether you’re listening to it or playing it yourself, it is amazing how it can take you to a better place. I think that’s why I really want to be a musician, to write the songs that help other people get to that place.
We finished “I Love Rock and Roll” and went right into “California Gurls.” By the time we finished that one, the crowd was just as loud as when Louie Capistrano did his crazy backward trick.
Sammie came out from behind her drums to the front of the stage, and we all did a group hug.
“We did it!” Jackie yelled.
“That was amazing!” Sammie yelled.
“I can’t believe it!” Becca yelled.
Then they all waited for me to say something.
“You guys are awesome,” I said finally.
We hugged again, then went down to the front of the stage. We held hands and took a bow. The crowd cheered even louder.
I soaked it all in, even though a voice inside my head kept repeating one thing:
CHICKMATE is over.