Heaven's BBS | Video

[declamando]

From: Nuada Airgetlám
Posted: August 5th, 6:00PM

--

[On the backdrop of an airy room with wooden walls and wide windows, a woman with long pink hair and a welcoming smile raises the hand that's not holding her phone to wave at the screen.]

Hello everyone, and welcome as well to the people who've just arrived today. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Maria Cadenzavna Eve, and Barry and I were discussing an idea a few weeks ago that I thought I'd share with you all now that this spirit activity's been stirring up the last few days.

Anyone who enjoys music, or would just like something to relax themselves with after the last few days, I'd like to invite to a karaoke night on August 7th. You don't have to think yourself good at singing - just have fun and be passionate, and make it a good night for everyone. In my world, music is something that brings people together and heals hearts, so I hope we can do the same here with something as simple as this.

I'll be posting the address of the studio below. Feel free to arrive anytime between 5PM and midnight, whatever suits you and anyone you'd like to bring. And if you have any questions, please ask them here.

If you are professionally interested in music or performance, too, please look out for me and Barry on the night. We co-run Sparkle Motion, one of the talent agencies here, and we're always looking for new performers.

Thank you, and I hope to see you there.

[With a bow of the head and another wave, Maria ends the video. A few seconds later, the address of the karaoke studio is posted beneath it.]

Comments

[Text]

[cakebuffet]

Karaoke night? That's an awesome idea!

[Ann is grinning to herself as she responds; she might not have any memories of her life before this place and whether or not she liked karaoke then, but it sure sounds fun now.]

What kind of performers do you represent? Just singers?

text

[declamando]

I'm glad you think so. I don't think we've had anything of the sort in the time I've been here, so I thought it would be a good way to get people together.

Anything related to musical performance - singers, dancers, instrumentalists, those kinds of performers. Experience isn't an object, as long as there's the skill and dedication there.

text

[cakebuffet]

Definitely! It's a great ice-breaker, and it'll get people's minds off some of the not-so-fun stuff that's been going on around here, even if it's only for a little while.

Interesting! Do you have a lot of clients here?

[Is there much market for that kind of thing in the afterlife?]

[declamando]

That's what I had in mind. With the spirits running rampant recently, I think a lot of people would've been stressed in the last week.

There's a lot of interest in the entertainment area from people in the afterlife, but we mostly make our own work - requesting to perform at major events, that sort of thing. It's harder to get the attention of people on the Near Shore, but even if they forget soon enough, we want to leave the effect of a performance with them.]

[cakebuffet]

All that work without any guarantee that they'll remember! You must really love what you do.

[declamando]

I do. To me, music is a powerful thing. It can change lives forever, or for just a day, bring people together or share a feeling between those who are apart. I've always had a deep respect for it.

audio, from: Asato Tsuzuki

[sweetdeath]

That sounds fun! I didn't realize you worked with Barry.

audio

[declamando]

I'm hoping it will be. I wasn't sure how many people would be interested, but karaoke is good fun even with only a few. And yes, we've been working together ever since he opened the agency. I'm the industry expert, so to speak.

[sweetdeath]

That's right, you said you were a singer, weren't you?

Haha, I hope you guys don't mind me not being all that great!

[declamando]

That's right. I used to be an idol before coming here.

It's fine, as long as you enjoy it. There's a place for discerning taste in talent, but a karaoke bar isn't one of them.

[sweetdeath]

That's what I think! As long as we're all having fun... and I'll try not to be too terrible.

[He chuckles.] Man, I don't think I've ever done karaoke with a real idol before, though. Are there a lot of pros here?

[declamando]

[That gets a laugh out of Maria as well.] I trust that the effort will pay off.

There's been a few, though a lot have come and gone - we had two other professional idols around when I arrived, Sheryl and Freyja, but they both vanished quite a while ago now. [Maria still sounds a little pensive about it, really.]

[sweetdeath]

Oh... sorry. Were they friends of yours?

[She sounds sad.]

[declamando]

Sheryl more so - I never really got the chance to make friends with Freyja, since she left quite quickly. But it was nice to have people who shared that background.

[She says, as if someone else from her world with that background isn't here. The information getting back to Tsubasa is something she can't risk.]

[sweetdeath]

Yeah, I bet. Being famous is like a different world...!

[declamando]

It's not as distant as you might think. Or at least, I try not to be.

[sweetdeath]

I guess it's not as different a world as the Heavens are.

[declamando]

That's very true. This is probably the most different world most of us will experience.

[Except the ones who can travel worlds on their own...or only remember this one.]

[sweetdeath]

For sure. Anyway -- I'll see you there!

[declamando]

I'll look forward to it.

( video )

[drizzle]

Karaoke night? Isn't that one of those places the kids from the Near Shore go to to sing and eat and stuff like that?

[Because if it is....]

We don't have to bring anything? Like food or drinks or a fog machine?

video

[declamando]

It's not always kids, but yes, you have the right idea. [It doesn't seem like the girl has a problem with that element of it anyway, so Maria just keeps on smiling.]

You can get food and drinks there if you want to...a fog machine I'm not so sure about, but you can always ask the staff if they have one.

video

[drizzle]

Ah, really? I haven't seen many adults use it, but I'll take your word for it.

[True be told, she was excited at the idea of singing and having a good time with her fellow shinki and deities. It was a chance to mingle and get to know more people. Maybe get tips and the like about her new life.]

How does karaoke even work? Do we have to bring our own songs or something? [A pause.] At least, I know there's singing involved in those places.........kinda. [Guess who has sneaked in to overhear the so called singing in some of the rooms?]

[declamando]

Admittedly it's still younger adults, but that's still a little older than kids.

[Maria's a young adult herself, but she's still suggesting this, and Barry is a lot older than her.

With a slight laugh, Maria shakes her head.] There are computers with big song lists in them, so you can look for songs you like and they'll play them. There's also a screen so you can see the lyrics if you need to.

[drizzle]

Will it have any song or only the ones known in this place?

[She has a basic idea over what a computer is, but she always thought it was a tool for learning and other important functions. For music, she never consider it could be used like that.]

Good to know! I don't know many songs. It'll be helpful to have the lyrics on the screen to follow. Along with the song. I can at least follow its rhythm.

[declamando]

Only the ones from this place, I'm afraid. There's a few performers here who were professionals in their world who haven't found their own music in this one.

[Which makes sense, given their situation, but that gap has still been a bit disconcerting for her.]

That's why it's there - not everyone is going to know songs by heart, and it's meant to be fun more than anything. That means not needing to stress about remembering lyrics while you're in the middle of a song.

[drizzle]

Professionals? [Give her a second to think about it.] Do you mean like those "idols" a lot of people talk about? Because I usually refer to them as troubadours instead.

[Idols are suppose to be symbols for religious worship, and singers who do it professionally shouldn't be consider that in the least bit. She has a strong opinion against the idea of singing for self-interest.]

It's pretty convenient. No wonder those places are so popular! Singing really does help relax. I'm looking forward to it. I really hope we'll get to sing with everyone!

[declamando]

That's exactly what I mean - I was an idol singer in my world. Troubadour is an interesting way of putting it, but the word's fallen out of fashion for a long time now.

[She assumes this girl is one of the ones who's from a time where that kind of thing isn't widespread. She's been here long enough now to have met a few.]

It is a nice way to unwind, and also good for socialisation if you're the type to enjoy that. I'm sure you'll get to sing with everyone, since karaoke is all about the group experience.

[drizzle]

Has it? Really? [Somehow, it felt like the word "troubadour" was very common knowledge to her, but it could be possible she may be from a very outdated world. It could explain her fascination with everything; regardless of her lack of memories.] Well, "idols" are a weird way to refer to someone as. I consider it to be a sacred word not meant for anyone to just use without consequences. [Now that she thought about it.] In a way, you can use it now without any problem since you're a goddess, right?

[The more she heard about karaoke, the more excited Nike began to feel. She was beginning to feel more than hyped up.]

It sounds like it! I can't wait to try it. I've always been curious about it. Everyone that came out from those places always look exhausted, but in better spirits. [Then she wonders.] Do you think it'll be easy to find the songs we can sing ahead of time?

[declamando]

Yes, it's rather an old one from this era's point of view. [She can kind of see Nike's point once she explains the thing about idols, though, because that definitely sounds like a disparity in meaning.] While it's true I could use it regardless because of being called a goddess, in this era an "idol" isn't just used in the religious sense. For example, if you consider someone your "idol", it's someone you want to live up to and be like. That's more the sense the musical idol uses the word in.

[Hopefully that's a sufficient explanation on the meaning change.]

If you go looking online, it'll certainly be easy to find popular music that they'd have on the machines, so you can decide what you'd like to sing before you come. And yes, it can be tiring, but it's an uplifting experience nonetheless.