SO YOU WANNA BE A POP STAR?

Can there be a balance between artistic authenticity and business-minded compromise?

Five teen singers have reached the finale of the latest reality show, one that offers the winner a deal with a major record label. Each performer represents a very different genre of pop, and each has specific strengths. During the finale, the five sing as a group, and their song goes viral. The winner is: surprise! All of them! They are offered a group deal: Either they perform together as the Jeweltones, or they get nothing. But can their disparate styles (and personalities) mesh into a cohesive whole? Or will they crash and burn? Readers alternately follow two of the group members: sensitive, folksy singer/songwriter Everly, who is White and Jewish, and bold, bombastic Vinny, a gay, Italian American budding drag queen. (The other group members are diverse in race and sexual orientation.) Some of the topics realistically presented here are body positivity; health issues; the pressures of male beauty standards; sexism, racism, and homophobia in the fickle music industry; and how social media branding is both essential and severely toxic. Like Sergi’s previous work, Major Detours (2021), the choose-your-own-adventure format allows readers to flavor their experiences as they wish, developing the characters’ relationships and musical tastes and even creating a drag persona.

An engaging, interactive story that musically minded readers will especially enjoy.