Chapter 60
A woman with long dark hair and glowing skin, wearing a champagne ball gown, stands on the red carpet holding a microphone labeled with a giant E!
Behind her, a wall of people held at bay by a red velvet rope yell and cheer.
The crowd is mostly young women, though there are some older women and young men scattered throughout.
They wear the same white T-shirt, printed with the image of a young woman with blond hair, freckles, and eyes as blue as the ocean.
In the image, the young woman stares out into the distance, a smile on her face, hair blowing in the breeze.
Above it, black block letters spell out Patron Saint Virginia.
EVA FERNANDEZ: Welcome to the sixty-seventh annual Grammy award preshow celebration, coming to you live from outside the Arena in downtown Los Angeles. I’m your host, Eva Fernandez, reporting from the red carpet. We’ll get to the fashion, but first, I have some special friends here with me tonight.
Fernandez turns to the crowd.
FERNANDEZ: Say hi to everyone watching at home!
The crowd screams and waves, lifting handmade cardboard signs that say things like “It’s All for You, Virginia” and “Please Haunt Me for the Rest of My Life.”
FERNANDEZ: Two weeks ago, Grammy newcomers the Future Saints released a statement announcing they would be disband-ing following tonight’s award show appearance.
The band cited “personal reasons” for their split and asked for privacy moving forward.
Of course, the statement follows less than three months after lead singer Hannah Cortland’s frightening near-death experience at Miramar Beach and subsequent enrollment in a recovery center.
While many music insiders have been bemoaning the demise of the band, something else rather unusual has happened.
Fernandez turns to smile at the people behind the velvet rope.
FERNANDEZ: As you can see, behind me hundreds of people line the sidewalks, filling the area outside the Arena in support of the Saints.
Since the news of their disbanding, the hashtag #PatronSaintVirginia has trended across social media, with fans responding to the announcement by planning a myriad of ways to support them.
Fernandez turns to one of the women in the crowd. She looks to be in her mid-twenties, with blond hair and shiny lip gloss. She wears her Patron Saint Virginia T-shirt with the sleeves rolled up and fiddles with her stack of bracelets.
FERNANDEZ: Hello there. What’s your name?
KELLY LATIMER: Kelly Latimer.
FERNANDEZ: Kelly, what brings you to the arena tonight?
LATIMER: My older sister and I flew in from Indiana to support the Saints. We love their music. We’re devastated they’re breaking up, but we really wanted to show them what they’ve meant to us. Even though we can’t go inside the Grammys, we wanted to be here for their last performance.
She tugs on her shirt.
LATIMER: And we wanted Hannah to know we’ll remember Ginny. That’s the reason behind the shirts.
FERNANDEZ: What does your sign mean?
Latimer turns her sign so it faces the camera. It reads “Virginia, You Will Live Forever.”
LATIMER: All the quotes on our signs are lyrics from the Saints’ new album. We want them to know we hear them loud and clear.
FERNANDEZ: That’s lovely. Thank you.
She turns to an older woman on her left, with clear-framed glasses and a shock of white hair.
FERNANDEZ: And your name?
SUSAN BEARD: Susan Beard.
FERNANDEZ: Susan, did you discover the Patron Saint Virginia campaign on Twitter?
BEARD: TikTok, actually. My daughter introduced me to their music, and I love what Hannah Cortland stands for. She shows young women that you can be flawed and messy and still talented. You don’t have to be perfect to be powerful. You can pull yourself out of the dark.
She glances at the young woman next to her, who grins nervously at the camera.
BEARD: My daughter and I drove up from San Diego to show Hannah she isn’t alone.
FERNANDEZ: Thank you so much, Susan.
Fernandez turns back to the camera and squares herself in the frame, flashing a megawatt smile.
FERNANDEZ: As you can hear, the enthusiasm from fans of the Future Saints is quite moving. We hope the band can feel the love as they head into what’s an absolutely tremendous night for them, with their first-ever Grammy nominations and award show performance. Back to you in the studio, Ryan.