ChapterOne-From UTurn to 7th Anthem

February 18th, 2008

  It's February, and UTurn is finished. The promotion and release of their next album, Zero, is canceled. The filming for their TV series, United States of UTurn, has stopped. There are no plans to air the pilot episode. The only things they did was record two "goodbye" songs, and release a greatest hits album in North America. Their final single was How Things Used To Be. There was limited promotion.

  The band is now dropped from their labels: Boston indie label Q Division, and major labels Hollywood, Universal, Fascination, and Polydor. Everyone they worked with are gone. They now have nothing.

   They packed everything up in their short-lived Hollywood house. Then they returned to Boston, and packed their belongings in their house. They felt sadness as they looked around. They had been living in this house since they were barely 16. Now they're almost 19, and they feel defeated.

    It's now their last day in the house. They all sat in the living room for a meeting. They all didn't feel like talking, but they had to. Justin spoke first, "So...do we stay together and fight for UTurn? Or do we really split up?"

  Andrew replied, "If we are to continue, we can't be named 'UTurn' anymore. Our former people own the UTurn franchise."

    Bailey asked, "And if we change our name, is anyone going to stay? I'm willing to stay, even if we return to being a four-piece."

    Justin replied, "We dropped everything to become popstars. What is there for me? I can't go back to playing sports. I'll stay."

   Andrew said, "Same here. I might try to go do Broadway, but I've become pop than theatrical lately. I don't think I'm good enough anymore. Also, I fought within myself until I realized that I would rather do pop music and Broadway than anything else. I'm staying, too."

   Alyson said, "I was the one who formed this band. When I was in high school, I never thought about what I wanted to pursue except go on American Idol. Now I feel like there's nothing for me. I'm willing to fight for the band. Anyone else?"

    There was silence for a few minutes. Then Stacie said, "I'm leaving. Look, I loved being in UTurn, I'm tired of fighting. I'm willing to move on and try to get back to a normal life."

    Then Amanda spoke up, "Honestly, I really like doing pop music and performing. I've really grown as a singer and a dancer. Being in UTurn gave me something to live and fight for. I'm staying."

  Trevor also said, "This band made me feel worthwhile. Before I joined, I wanted to end my life. Instead, you guys, along with Riley and Marcus, saved me. I'm definitely staying."

    Libby chimed in, "I know Ethan forced me into the band. I didn't really want to be in UTurn. You all didn't want me. Since then, things have gotten better. My attitude changed. I feel like I grew up from a bitchy high school cheerleader to a more mature popstar. I'm sure as hell staying."

  Then Stacie said, "You could replace me with Riley. Maybe she'll be willing to rejoin now that you're not with anyone."

    The members agreed.

   It's few days later, and the currently unnamed band had moved into a two-bedroom apartment. Both the boys and the girls had to share the rooms.

  They tried try recruit former UTurn member Riley Brown, but she wanted to stay in college for a while before she returns to the music industry. The current members respected her decision, so as a result, they decided to become a 7-piece band.

  The members all gathered in the living area to talk. Andrew spoke first, "I think we should come up with a new name for the band."

    Alyson suggested, "We could use one of those aliases we came up with for that nightclub tour we did."

    Amanda asked "Like what? Some of the names we created were either weird or crappy. C'mon, 'MAJLABST'?"

   Alyson responded, "Yeah, it wasn't easy combining names from all 8 of us. Okay, what about 'Rebelz'?"

    Bailey replied, "That's like calling ourselves 'RBD.' Besides, their fans are horrible."

    Then Andrew said, "Do you all remember when we came up with our first alias, '8th Anthem?' We all thought that name was badass. Maybe we should be named '7th Anthem.'"

    Justin said, "Out of all the fake names we created, that one was the best."

   The members agreed to the name change. The UTurn era may have ended, but this was the beginning of 7th Anthem.

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THIS IS THE NEWLY-RENAMED 7TH ANTHEM IN THE PIC>>>