maroon | daisy jones & the six

01

ELAINE CHANG (biographer, Carmen West: Rise to Fame): Carmen West was a wild child. Everyone on Sunset Strip knew that name before she even started singing. She so desperately clawed her way to the top, and once she was on that stage, you knew that's where she belonged.

Her parents, painfully unaware of the name their daughter was making for herself, were the ones to get her into the music scene. Her father was the one who put a guitar in her hands. He was involved in the industry, having many connections, got her in with Teddy Price. Rod Reyes was a friend of the family, and quite frankly, I think he was more of a father to Carmen than her real father ever was. Her mother was an actress, very beautiful, but never payed much attention to her daughter. Carmen had long blonde hair and these gorgeous big blue eyes. Getting her beauty from her mother, every guy on Sunset Strip had eyes for Carmen West.

At the age of fifteen, after sneaking into the Whiskey A Go-Go for the first time, Carmen knew who she wanted to be.

TEDDY PRICE (producer, Daisy Jones & The Six): Carmen West undeniably had talent, but damn, she did not give me a break.

After Carmen's father requested I give her a chance, I had to give her at least a shot. And she was good. She was really good. But I couldn't give her that big break from the start. One look and you knew she'd be a rockstar, but she was already wasting her life away. She would never last.

When The Six were on their rise to fame, I saw my opportunity. Carmen found her true potential with that band. And for a while, it worked - that is, until it didn't. She found herself again and was putting her life back together.

And, maybe, that was my mistake.

ROD REYES (manager, Daisy Jones & The Six): Seeing Carmen grow up, and then seeing the path she went down, wasn't the easiest. But, hey, everyone to their own, I guess.

She was always stowed away up in her room, just writing. I mean, phenomenal lyrics. And the voice? Even better. I knew she'd be a star.

CARMEN WEST (vocalist, Daisy Jones & The Six): Where do we start?

INTERVIEWER: The beginning. Tell me how you fell in love with music.

CARMEN: I grew up around music. My dad was a session musician, I was always begging for him to take me. My mom wasn't around much, always away filming something. So when my mom was out and my dad was working long hours, I was alone. That's when I started writing, and I loved that feeling. I also very quickly found out that drugs took away that feeling of loneliness. I spent so many nights going from bar to bar on Sunset Strip, watching whoever had a gig going on that night. Seeing all those bands up there, it really opened up my eyes. That's where I wanted to be.

My dad bought me my first guitar, taught me how to play it and everything. I wrote songs, mostly keeping them to myself. My dad found out I could sing very quickly, though. He saw this version of me, a version that could make him money, and he got me a session with Teddy Price.

Teddy didn't make it easy for me either, which I do have to be thankful for now. I recorded a few songs, released them as singles, starting playing small gigs on The Strip. Being up on that stage, I loved it. I wanted my name to be up in lights.