Tenney Shares the Stage
Nashville, TN – 2017| Author | Kellen Hertz |
| Cover Illustrator | Juliana Kolesova |
| Originally Published | © 2017 American Girl |
| ISBN | 9781338117578 |
Table of Contents
- A New Sound
- Be Professional
- Mud Pie and Melodies
- Out of Tune
- Sing Your Mind
- Facing the Music
- Where Are You?
- Silence
- When the Music Stops
- Duet for One
- The Search
- Alice
- Secret Plans
- The Gathering Place
- Healing Music
A New Sound
Tenney never wants a show to end, and tonight is no different. She and Logan Everett are wrapping up their set at Cumberland Park, a one-day music festival that raises money for Nashville’s parks. A few months ago she only dreamed of performing her own songs here.
Her parents once thought she was too young for a real music career, but hard work and good timing changed their minds. She caught the attention of Zane Cale, a producer at Mockingbird Records, who decided her sound would be stronger with a partner and teamed her up with Logan, a fourteen-year-old drummer with plenty of talent and an ego to match. “Thank you, Nashville! We are Logan and Tenney!” Logan hollers into the mic. “We are Tenney and Logan,” she corrects, and the crowd laughs as they take their bows.
Backstage, Logan shrugs off her compliment, muttering they could’ve been snappier, and Tenney bites back her annoyance. Since signing with Zane, they’ve rehearsed twice a week, and though they get along fine, Logan loves sneaking new twists into a song without warning her. Still, when they listen to each other, they sound great together.
Her little sister, Aubrey, barrels up for a hug, insisting the show was missing only her, on accordion. Aubrey, only seven, is already skilled on the accordion and begs to guest-star at their next gig. Logan promises it isn’t impossible, just complicated, right as Zane bounds over to rave about their set and hint at a future record for “the dynamic duo,” saying they’ll stick with Tenney and Logan for now.
Zane wants to talk with Tenney’s parents, too, so the group heads to the parking lot, where food trucks are lined up. Mom’s truck, Georgia’s Genuine Tennessee Hot Chicken, sits in the middle. Dad, who runs a music shop but pitches in at the truck when he can, teases them as “the Gruesome Twosome” through the window.
Zane praises the duo for four free shows in the past month, but when Logan pushes for paid gigs, Zane says they need to build a following first and develop a signature sound as songwriting partners. Tenney insists she writes better solo, and Logan agrees, but Mom points out they’re partners onstage and off, and Dad adds that you don’t climb a mountain by walking around it.
Tenney’s excuse about not writing to a drumbeat falls flat once Zane notes Logan also plays guitar and bass, and even Logan laughs when he snaps, “I agree!” to prove they can disagree productively. Zane assigns songwriter Portia Burns, a family friend, to guide their sessions, and lays out a plan for an EP of three to five songs, needing three rehearsals a week plus weekly time with Portia.
Logan balks, insisting he can only manage two rehearsals a week and refusing to practice at his own house. Mom suggests Dad’s music shop instead, since Logan lives nearby in Rosebank, and Dad offers a spare drum kit. Logan finally agrees, but when Tenney presses him about being sure, he snaps that his dad’s a professional musician who knows what success takes, leaving her stung and confused.
As Tenney walks Logan out to his mother’s truck, Mrs. Everett, a pediatric nurse still in her scrubs, swoops in for an embarrassing “Sorry I’m late” kiss on Logan’s forehead before driving off. Watching the truck disappear, Tenney realizes there’s a lot she still doesn’t know about Logan, and that’s part of why she doesn’t quite trust him yet.