Andrew or D-Ragon, a small time rapper trying to get his foot in the door of MakeyagoDayum Entertainment. His friend, Joseph has no talent at least any dealing with music, is his hype man. You know, the folks in the background jumpin' around and screamin' in your face with a microphone in their hand but ain't really saying nuthin'. Now DJ Star, Marlon, is Andrews's best friend, and he would do nothing with out him. He would rap on no ones track or to any body's music but his. Marlon was there in the beginning and all three were in for the long haul until....

" Hey Drew man, wake up the contest is a month away and we don't have anything down." Marlon walked into Andrews's messy room and searched around for his shoe. They stayed up late talking and drinking beer. Andrew smoked cigarettes and hit a bob so he was feeling right nice as they say.

"Man that ain't my fault, I was spittin' out lyrics and yo ass was just drinkin." Rolling over but not getting up. He rubbed his eyes and frowned at the pasty taste in his mouth. His stomach rumbled from hunger and head ached from all the beer they drank.

"Well ain't nobody drinking now so come on to my house so that we can put some music together." Marlon said as he through clothes around and turned over pillows on the floor where he was sleeping last night.

"Awwight, hold up, let me get a shower and make a sandwich, I'm hungry as hell, Dog."

"Get a shower but eat at my crib, I ain't trying to lose this flow I got going in my head. I know what I want to put down and I don't want to..."

"Dayum stop yellin', I'll be ready in a sec. Yo man I hope you got some food at your place dog, or we stoppin' at McDonalds.

"What ever, just hurry up!"

Marlon waited in the car. The music was blasting some under ground mix that only a few DJ's could get. He still had the rhythm he woke up with and he bobbed and snapped but to the music in his head not the one seeping through the system in his car. It was Saturday morning, well, afternoon by this time and Marlon wanted to have his set together while the other weak bammas was still wondering who was giving the contest. A contest that was sure to put them in the Game for real. MakeyougoDayum Entertainment was the mystery label behind the contest and was the ticket out of that efficiency of his and that piece of crap ass place Drew was in. Even with jobs at the New York Insider a weekly magazine, as Assistants to the editors they can hardly afford to get a decent place between them.

"Yo Yo Yo lets do this" Drew said to Marlon, but got distracted by this girl that had on the shortest black skirt and the tightest blue tube top holding a baby in one arm, another running in front of her, and carrying one in her stomach.

"Hey Marl, ain't that your ex-girl?"

"Who? Her?" As he looks at the girl coming up the street. She looked in their direction to see where the music was coming from, saw that she is his ex-girl friends' twin.

"Naw, that's Joi's twin." He turned his head and resumed the music in his head. Joi and Jewel twins that both had a thing for him. Any normal heterosexual Mans dream, to have twins, but Marlon chose one and it was Joi that got him. Jewel then got pregnant shortly after she started messing around with his brother Mark, to let Marlon know what he was missing, 'cause you know how brothers talk. At least, Marlon and Mark talked. They talked about the women they've had and the women they want. They talk about the women that they never had, the women they have shared. Mark being the oldest by four years at 27, has never been single. Even as a young acne infested teen the girls flocked him. Marlon on the other hand found it hard to keep a girl. He was so into his music that he never had anytime. He was either in the house with his turntable that he saved up for two summers to buy, or he was down at the club where Mark worked as a bus boy. Big Mike said, even though he was too young to work in a club, that Mark brought the ladies, and the ladies would buy drinks just to have him get the glasses. Mark made a pretty penny too, they would tip him with money and phone numbers, and Marlon got his money from Big Mike as the clubs DJ. Marlon always knew how to mix the music and would get change from doing parties too, Mark on the other hand, always spent his money on the ladies. Marlon couldn't see that and would buy Ramen noodles 5 for $1 to save his money, none of the girls saw his. With Marlon, it's always been about his friends and making money for his 'muzik'.

Yo what's up? You trying to go get something to eat or what?" Drew asked in between flowing off the baseline. Drew could flow with the power to control rhyme and beats. He could make a lyric stop, dance and flip in your speakers.

"I got a beat that will make that shit butta Yo!!" Talking about verses that Drew was freestylin'. Marlon gave Drew a pound and pulled into the parking space. Joe was standing on the front of the building leaning on the glass doors,

"Man where the hell ya'll been? I've been here for about an hour!" Joe said walking to the car. He gave Andrew's extended hand a slap n hug when he got out of the car.

"Yo stop cryin' how was the dirty south? You bring home some of them biscuit fixin', gravy makin', chicken fryin', bathroom outside women wit cha'?" Marlon said as they all went into a loud roaring laughter in the hall. Marlon could hardly get the key in the door for laughing so hard.

"Man I see you still dumb as hell, stop play and open the door. I got to pee like shit for waitin' on ya'll."

"Awwrite, I got you .... but for real... " He stopped when he got the door unlocked, "did you?" Marlon asked trying to hold a straight face before laughing all over again.

Once they settled into a grove that Drew and Marlon both agreed on, Joe just relaxed and waited for the right moment to throw in his 'Ye ye yeah's' and the ' What huh's" he bobbed back and forth and pumped his fist in the air. He always got rawled up and the other two liked how he got the crowed going. It made it all the more hype. J-O is his stage name and has been since they were in Junior High school. Joe would be the one telling everybody where the party was, he was the one to see if there was some big beef going down, and definitely the one in all the talent shows MC'in'. So if there was anyone to bring the party it was J-O. That is exactly what he was hoping to do for the contest. This was going to be their big break and he wanted to be on point. They always treated him as an important part of the group, that he appreciated.

"Hey Dog, what ya'll think about this joint.... How about Marl you hit this slowjam beat like um... um... Man give me a beat!" Joe says to Marlon that is at his digitized equipment laying the beats for this demo.

With the slow beat Joe requested he closed his eyes to let the music take him in.

"Now mix in the beat to I'mma Star" a song Marlon created for the 2nd annual school talent show. J-O said with his eyes still closed. Marlon mixed in the base first and then drowned out the slow beat and was now thumpin to the hard beat of 'Imma Star'. Drew nodded in agreement,

"Yeah that sounds awwite, let me hear it again." Drew said listening to the mix again, he nodded the second time and was certain they would use that as the opening of his set.

He figured it all out, the contest that MakeyagoDayum Entertainment was giving to scout new talent is having it at The Super Club. Marlon got the hook up from this dude that do the silk screening and had their T-shirts done. Joe and Marlon got the sneakers they decided to wear last week, Andrew had his two weeks before. They had to look their very best at the Super Club. That is the biggest spot in the area and it has an upstairs that looks over the first level to the stage. The third level wraps around the stage and has a sunken dance floor. The Super Club is the spot for after parties and little show events. The big concerts are over at the WPF Spectrum.

"Yo, Joe that was good, 'bout time you got a little ear for music." "How could I not being around ya'll for the last 9 years. I think I be screaming shit in my sleep!" Joe said sitting happy with the response. While Andrew on the other hand was bouncing around spittin lyrics. Andrew liked rappin'. He would come with something that would make the girls smile and the older women blush. Andrew kept females but love his little honey, Soull (pronounced: Sa- ool) . She was from the islands and must have whipped something terrible on him 'cause she done had his nose open for a while got him in trouble a couple of times, he knows it, but is better at keeping it in check. Soull, on the other hand is good at keeping him in check. She comes to the studio (Marlon's house) and tells him that it is time to go, usually it's when they have been at it all day and he was getting tired anyway, at least that's what he tells Joe and Marlon.

"That's some otha' type stuff that is makin you scream in yo sleep! I got up and left many a nights cause I couldn't' sleep for your ass screamin' and shit!" Drew said hittin Joe with a two piece jab getting him up on his feet.

"Yeah? I thought it was cause old girl said bring yo ass!" Joe said and was buckled over laughing when Marlon couldn't hold it in either and joined in.

"Don't hate.... Participate!!"

"Yeah, say whateva. Soul, Sa-ooll whatever her damn name is, she gotcho head man!! You been got!!

"Naw, she ain't got my head" He said pointing at his cranium,

"She got my head!!" He said pointing at his crotch. She actually had both.

They laughed and messed around all day. Marlon couldn't believe they finished 3 songs and both intros an outros.

"There ain't no way we won't get a deal next month, Yo! This tape is tight!" Marlon says thinking about the work that they just did. It was dark outside and was ready for them to roll out. Looking at his clock he know that Drew got to be gone before the street lights come on or Ms. DrewMomma will be ringing his phone for him. Marlon got his number changed twice and telling Drew to give her his pager number but she keeps saving the number on the caller ID.

"Yo we through, ya'll can go. I got this girl coming and I don't want ya'll raggin on her." Marlon said putting away all the papers he was jotting lyrics and music down on and straightened up the place.

"Who's coming over? I know it ain't Stacey! Is her baby father still stalking her? Man don't be getting all messed up over some girl!"

"Naw man! Go head, go home before your stalker girlfriend call here playing 20 questions." Marlon said and looked at Joe laughing in the corner

"What you laughing at, you go home to your girlie magazine and spend the rest of the night in the bathroom." Drew said tired of hearing about Soull. Sometimes they take it too far, when it's no longer funny, but annoying to him.

Three weeks, four days, and 12 hours later, the trio was the next act up in the contest.

"Give it up to Supa Dave and Mistro on the Mix." The announcer pauses and waits for the applause to die down,

"We have up, I'm sure you've heard them before, they are here on amateur nights and open for celebrity spotlights. Get ready, Get set, Get Rocked by Plaaaaaanets......" The Announcer fades into black and the crowd claps and thunderous applause to the familiar group that frequently performs there. They were looking to tear the club up again tonight, but this time for the deal that will sure to get them the Hell out of Dodge.

"If you come to party like we do...
let me hear you say Oh yeah...
But if you come to hate on my crew...
then get yo punk ass outta here...Outta here... Outta here..." J-O echoed in the black of the stage. All were visible were letters on the T-shirts special made.

'It's all about presentation' They would say in unison. They had stage presence and the bomb flow, so what they needed was to get the chance to show it.

The lights playfully danced on the still figures lined on the stage. All three had Plastic masks on with distinctive figures on them. Marlons had a star on the forehead for obvious reasons. Drew had a dragon who's fire blazed off the top of his mask. J-O's mask had a red sun on the left cheek. DJ Star came up with a beat at the last minute last night that he couldn't shake although the tape for tonight's performance was done and had been for weeks, but it was this mixture of the sounds he thought was sure to put them in the winners circle.

"Thank ya'll..." They said together at the end of their 6 minutes. They got much love from the crowd and other performers. All the love was appreciated and if the scoring was done by crowd response may have gotten them closer to their goal.

"Nice, very nice." Thomas Moore said coming up behind the guys. He shook their hands one by one.

"Thanks" Drew said out of breath, he had been jumping up and down from glee just before the VP of Talent and Production had arrived. "You are?" Asked Drew now whipping his face with a towel he got from one of the stage hands.

"Tom Moore, of MYGD Entertainment. We have been hearing a lot about you fellas, not to mention the countless tapes we've received. We keep our ear to the ground and all I hear is The Planets. So of course I had to hear for myself what you could do."

"Oh man, Mr. T. Moore that I have been sending my tapes too? I mean yeah I have sent a lot of tapes, samples, and little excerpts, I am glad to finally meet you.. we are glad." Marlon says to the man that is definitely behind the Man. He stood over them at 6'6" or so, because Marlon was about 6'2" himself. Good size and height for basketball, but like this man he had other plans.

"You must be Marlon, DJ Star? Well you sure know how to get your name in a brotha's ear, and with much reason. Ya'll were real good out there."

"Please," Drew started, " don't tell me that here is where you will leave us with our tails between our legs, sad from not getting the good chance that we are hoping for?"

"Well it turns out that, no it won't. Here is my card, on the back there is an address for a studio. I would like to put ya'll on the map. Hip Hop is hot right now and starving for somebody to wreck shit, you know what I'm saying? Can you do that?" He asks the boys looking at the card in Drew's hand.

"Damn Right! Yeah, Mr. Moore, we will be there."

"Good, then I will see you then." He shook their hands again and walked out of the building. That made them feel good that he didn't search for others after them but wasn't sure about who he spoke to before them. Well they were sure to find out soon enough. It was going to happen for them regardless of the others.

They stayed back stage only for a few minutes after their encounter with Thomas Moore before they went out to the party. They needed the break from the stress of practice and after practice. Marlon was his usual self, always dedicated to 'The Muzik', Joe always had time and was not that concerned about it. Drew on the other hand had been way more focused than any other project, and neglected Soull more and more as show time approached. They argued constantly and she had even threaten to leave if he hadn't, didn't get it together. She accused him of cheating and would call constantly to check up on him. Drew would tell Marlon or Joe, wherever he was to just say that he wasn't there. Soull showed up at their houses right after practice to catch him in something or with someone.

So it was no surprise that Soull was there the night of the contest. She was going to say that she was sorry for causing all this confusion. She was strange she knew it but didn't want to lose him. She only did all of that because she loved him, she just didn't want to lose him. She searched and searched for him or one of his friends to tell her where he was. She saw Joe and walked toward him, but when somebody hugged him and he moved slightly to the right. Soull could see some girls' arms around Drew. She stopped in her tracks and wanted scream. She didn't even realize that she had started walking toward them. Nor did she realize that she had pulled the gun from her bra that she bought for protection when hitting these club spots. All she knew was that she came to apologize to the man that she loved and instead of him thinking of her, he was all wrapped around someone else. Ready to leave her for some bitch that hasn't been there since day one when he wasn't shit. He didn't have nothing, and that's how she would leave him, with nothing.

"Get him! Get him!! Man Somebody call 911! Get away! Get back! Come on man Drew man Come on!!" Marlon yelled into Drew's ear. The room was spinning from all of the people running and scattering to get away from the girl that had just shot D-Ragon. Marlon was so concerned with Drew that he didn't even see Joseph laying on the floor behind him. He couldn't think or see, he couldn't hear for all the screams. He just sat on the floor holding his friend, best friend. He would have done nothing with out him. He would lay rap tracks for no one nor do any body's music but his. Marlon, formerly known as DJ Star watched his friends die that week, Drew in his arms and Joe latter in the hospitals ICU. Soull ran out that night screaming with the others, stealing the dreams of those three young men. She was never heard from again.