Page 10 of Playing With My Heart Strings

Once she starts singing, I’m absolutely captivated. Her alto voice has an edge to it. It isn’t quite gravelly, but it isn’t like her delicate speaking voice either. No, her singing voice has power.Soul. I make a mental note to keep her around.

The song doesn’t last nearly long enough for my liking. When someone can sing in such a way that makes youfeel,that’show you know they’re good. And that’s exactly what listening to Aspen Barlowe was like.

Before I know it, fifteen singers have performed, and the day is over. There are a few singers who I know right away won’t make it through the final cut and a few more who I want to keep.

Alex, my producer for the day, pulls me aside the moment I step off the stage. “Dusty, let’s talk about who you’re liking.”

We walk to a lounge area and sit down to debrief. Alex goes through the list of the women who performed today. Honestly, a lot of them weren’t memorable enough, but the ones that I do remember stick out to me.

I list off the names of the girls I know I want to keep. “I know I liked Aspen and Sage.”

“That’s great, Dusty. There will still be fifteen more performances tomorrow, but we’ve got at least two of the nine picked, so that’s a great start.”

Back at the hotel, I call my manager Craig. He’s been like a father to me all of these years. He took me on when I was an eighteen-year-old kid trying to make it in a cutthroat industry and has stayed through everything. There have been plenty of times when I wanted to quit and Craig talked me down from the ledge.

“Hello?” He answers on the second ring. “Dusty, how’s it going?” His voice washes over me, bringing me comfort I didn’t know I needed today.

“Everything’s going great, actually,” I admit. “The first day on the set was rough. I didn’t know how to answer their questions.”

Craig laughs. He knows how terrible I am at interviews. It’s been the one thing that hasn’t changed in eleven years.

“Today went a lot better, though. The first fifteen women performed, and there were some really impressive singers. This process might actually work.” I pause as I catch myself being optimistic about this show.

“Wow, only one day on the set, and they’ve already got your mind changed on this whole reality TV thing, huh?” he teases.

I roll my eyes, and all the while he’s still chuckling. “If this is what it takes to keep my career on the rise, I’ll do it, Craig. You know this.”

“I know, Dusty. And I’m proud of you. You’ve come a long way since you rolled into Nashville that first day.” If I’m not mistaken, Craig sniffs on the end of the other line.

Is he crying?

Craig has always been the more emotional one of the two of us. I know it’s just because at the end of the day, all he wants is for me to succeed. I owe him a lot, if not everything, for what he’s done to get me where I am today.

5

dusty

Give a Little to Get a Lot

The second dayof auditions is in full swing. After listening to fifteen singers yesterday, I feel like I have a better idea of what I’m doing and what I’m looking for. It might be more difficult to choose seven more women at the end of today, if I keep Aspen and Sage in mind, but that’s something I’ll figure out when I get there.

“My name is Kelsie, and I’ll be singing an original,” the light, feminine voice on the other side of the barrier says before strumming a slow, melancholic tune on her guitar. Her voice is haunting, eerily beautiful. It’s not my usual style, but I feel like we could make it work.

When her song ends, I don’t say a word, much like how the auditions from yesterday went. She says a brief thanks, then they bring out the next girl.

I wish I could at least singwiththem to see how our voices would fit, but I guess that’s something that will happen later. It does seem odd that they have me choose singers based on their voices alone instead of how well they fit with mine, but it’stoo late to change anything now that we’re halfway through the auditions. I’m not sure I’d have any choice in the matter anyway.

The next singer comes out, and I find myself instinctively tapping my foot along as she sings a cover of an old Trisha Yearwood song. This is the type of girl Nashville wants me with. Even though I don’t have a single idea what she looks like, I’m already confident she fits the bill.

“Thank you, my name’s Katherine.”

I have ears on so producers can talk to me, if need be, since we’re rolling live and they can’t exactly come out on stage. They also take the opportunity to tell me when there’s someone they think would be a good fit for the show and strongly recommend I listen carefully to them.

“Up next is Jade. She’s high on our radar, just so you know,” the producer says in a dry tone.

I roll my eyes, hopefully not obviously enough for the camera to pick it up. That’s the last thing I need Rob Acerra seeing. I’m never in the mood for his nagging.

Heels click against the floor as Jade walks to where I assume is a stool. I’ve gotten into the rhythm and can predict whether someone is carrying an instrument or not based on the way they walk, and I don’t think she has one.

---