Going Platinum,
Copyright © 2008 Disney Enterprises, Inc.
All rights reserved. Published by Disney Press, an imprint of Disney Book
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Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2008926333
ISBN 978-1-4231-3252-3
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C
ONTENTS
“A
loha! And welcome to the luau! I hope you all are ready for a fantastic night!” Brown Cesario cried. The director of Camp Rock stood on the stage in front of the lake, the summer sun setting behind him. Many of the campers were wearing grass skirts, and everyone wore a brightly colored plastic lei around his or her neck. Brown beamed as he inspected the crowd. Satisfied that everyone looked the part, he jumped off the stage. He had work to do.
“Boy, Brown is taking this pretty seriously, huh?” Mitchie Torres said to her friend Caitlyn Gellar. The two were sitting on one of the benches near the stage. “He's like a little kid at Halloween!” Mitchie eyed Brown's bright pink and yellow Hawaiian shirt as he danced over to the food table.
“Brown does love a good theme night,” Caitlyn said, grinning. “Last year, he wore a Frankenstein's Monster costume for the annual Monster Mash. He painted his whole face green. It was awesome!”
Mitchie smiled. Unlike Caitlyn, who had been lucky enough to come to camp before, this was Mitchie's first summer at Camp Rock. But she already knew that Brown was wild enough to do something like dress up as a large, green monster.
Mitchie's smile grew even wider. She still couldn't believe she was here! It had been a dream come true when her mom, Connie, had gotten a job as camp cook. It got even better when Brown asked Connie to stay for the camp's second session. Mitchie would never have had such an amazing summer otherwise. She would not have met Caitlyn, Shane Gray, or all her other new friends. To Mitchie, helping out her mom in the kitchen was worth it.
“Mmm,” Barron James declared as he walked over to the girls. “This is some pretty darn good cooking.” He was with his best friend and music partner, Sander Loya. Together they had a soulful sound that was always a hit at any jam session. “I am so grooving on this dinner!”
Sander nodded in agreement. “And I'm
so
getting more!” he exclaimed, heading back over to the food table.
Mitchie smiled. She had helped her mom prepare the big meal. Connie took pride in selecting a menu that fit each of Brown's theme nights.
“Isn't this great?” Lola Scott asked, coming to stand between Mitchie and Caitlyn. She had a flower in her curly brown hair and a pink lei around her neck. “I love the tiki torches. It really feels tropical around here tonight.” She sang a few lines from a Bob Marley song for effect.
When she stopped, Mitchie and Caitlyn stood up, and the three friends made their way over to where Brown was dancing.
“Check out Brown's moves!” Lola said. “He's a real hula superstar!”
The girls watched as he danced with Dee La Duke, their musical director. A circle had formed around the duo.
Across the circle, Mitchie caught sight of Tess Tyler. The camp diva was in a shell-shaped bikini top and a
real
grass skirt. No way would she wear a plastic one, Mitchie mused as she watched Tess sway to the beat. At Tess's side, as always, were Ella Pador and Lorraine Burgess, a new girl who had come at the start of Second Session. Lorraine had quickly become a part of Tess's entourage. She had even moved into the Vibe Cabin after Mitchie moved out to stay in the Beat Cabin with Caitlyn.
Suddenly, Peggy Dupree jumped into the circle to dance with Dee. Mitchie smiled to see her friend having so much fun. At Final Jam, Peggy had used her full nameâ Margaret Dupreeâwhen she performed, and she had taken first place. Afterward, Peggy had walked away from being one of Tess's backup singers. Peggy still lived in Vibe Cabin, but she had grown closer to Mitchie and Caitlyn.
The dancing continued as Dee pulled Shane into the circle. Mitchie giggled. Shane was a guest instructor and the resident star of Camp Rock. He was also the lead singer of Connect Three, a band that was steadily climbing the pop charts. Mitchie laughed as she watched Shane try to hula. His cheeks flushed red under his thick, dark hair. But he looked relaxedâand not at all like a stuck-up rock star.
That hadn't always been true. Earlier in the year, Shane had thrown a fit about a wrong coffee order on a photo shoot. The incident had made entertainment headlines. Shane's label had sent him to Camp Rock to mellow out for the summer. Not only was Brown his uncle, but the camp was where he had gotten together with Jason and Nate, his Connect Three bandmates.
Shane had hated the idea of dropping out of the A-list scene for the summer, but the hiatus had served him well. The press on Connect Three was once again more about their music than about the spoiled behavior of their lead singer. And Shane had really been getting back to his roots, partly by working as a guest instructor and partly because he had started hanging out with Mitchie.
As Shane moved his hips the way Dee demonstrated, he caught Mitchie's eye. “C'mon, Mitchie,” he called. He flashed her one of his megawatt smiles. “Let's see your moves!”
Mitchie tried not to groan. Performing in front of a crowd was still hard for her. She was better at singing or composing music alone in her cabin. Slowly,
very slowly
, she was getting more comfortable performing in front of people. But dancing the hula? That was pushing it!
Still, it was hard not to get caught up in Shane's enthusiasm. She joined him, her grass skirt swishing back and forth as she attempted to do the dance.
“Nice!” Shane called out approvingly. “You've got the beat!”
Soon, almost everyone was moving. Colby Miller grabbed Caitlyn's hand, and the two of them danced in the middle of the circle. Like Lorraine, Colby had first come to camp for Second Session. He had quickly become friends with Mitchie and, eventually, with Caitlyn, too.
“Nice moves,” Caitlyn teased him now.
Colby laughed, his eyes twinkling. “Thanks. Hey, rumor has it that Brown is making an announcement tonight. Have you heard anything?”
“You never know what Brown has up his sleeve,” Caitlyn said, grinning.
“I know!” Colby agreed. “Well, whatever it is, I can't wait to hear.”
Tess, who had been dancing nearby, joined in their conversation. “Maybe we're finally getting air-conditioning in the bunks,” she said, fanning herself. “I requested that last summer, and I am
still
waiting.”
“With all the hot air she spouts, it's no wonder she needs AC!” Caitlyn whispered in Colby's ear.
Just because her mother was T. J.Tyler, the award-winning singer, Tess thought everyone should treat
her
like a star, too. But Caitlyn had learned not to play those games with Tess a couple of summers ago.
When Mitchie first arrived at Camp Rock, Caitlyn had tried to warn her about Tess. But Mitchie hadn't listened. Instead, to impress Tess, she told everyone that her mother was a big music-television executive. Tess dropped her in a flash once the truth came out. Caitlyn almost had, too. It had taken her some time to forgive Mitchie for lying, but things were back on track.
Turning now to Tess, Caitlyn said, “I don't think that air-conditioning is the big news. But it looks like we're about to find out what is.”
Brown and Dee had walked onto the stage, where a microphone was set up. Holding up his hands, Brown signaled for everyone to be silent. Caitlyn, Colby, Shane, and Mitchie moved closer so they could hear the evening's announcements.
“Is everyone having a good time?” Brown shouted. The crowd cheered loudly, and he grinned. “You know, this reminds me of the time when I was on tour in Hawaii with the Stones,” Brown began.
Rolling her eyes, Caitlyn sighed. “Here we go again!” Brown loved to tell stories about when he had hung out with famous rock bands. Sometimes he went on and on, and Caitlyn was grateful when she saw Dee give Brown a gentle poke on the shoulder.
“But first, let's get through the announcements,” Brown said, taking the hint from Dee. “All those in Dee's dance class, please make sure to pick up your practice CD from Keynote tonight.” Brown read a few more items from his clipboard. Then he looked up and glanced around at the campers. “And now, I have a very special announcement.” He extended the moment with a long pause to make sure he had everyone's attention. “This afternoon, I got some amazing news.”
“It better be air-conditioning,” Tess said under her breath.
“I got a call from Shane's manager,” Brown went on. “And he told me that Connect Three's new album . . . just went platinum!”
The camp erupted in cheers and claps as everyone strained their necks to try and spot Shane.
For a moment, Shane just stood there, a big grin on his face. Then he picked up Mitchie and twirled her around in a circle. “I can't believe it!” he cried.
“That's incredible!” Mitchie exclaimed happily.
“Congratulations, Shane,” Tess said, squirming her way in between Mitchie and Shane. “This is the big time. Really cool.”
“Sorry the news isn't
cooler
for you, Tess,” Caitlyn said sweetly. “Guess you'll have to keep waiting for that air-conditioning.”
Tess was about to retort but thought better of it. Turning on her flowered flip-flops, she walked off to find Ella and Lorraine.
Up on the stage, Brown was trying to get everyone quiet again. “Wait, there's more!”
The crowd hushed and waited for Brown to continue.
“In addition, the record company is so pleased with Shane's new positive press and what Camp Rock has done for him . . .” Brown went on.
“Camp Rock
rocks
!” someone cheered from the crowd.
Brown smiled. “. . . Which is why we're going to host an all-star record party for Connect Three hereâat campâthis Friday night!”