Rolling Stone’s Lost Article
By Victoria Centanni

These characters may seem familiar. That’s because they belong to Anne Rice! This is a work of fan fiction, and in now way is intended to infringe upon the rights of Anne Rice, Knopf, or anyone else. This is for fun and not intended for commercial purposes.
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Rolling Stone, 1985,
The Vampire Lestat Bares His Fangs—And His Soul
Written by a freelance reporter
Never published, reasons unknown

Lestat smiles slightly as he stretches out on the black leather couch. He seems almost as eager to do this interview as I am. The band The Vampire Lestat released their first album just a few months ago, and it has already sold over 4 million copies. They’ve released several singles, including "To the Vampire Lestat," and "Those Who Must Be Kept". Since their first single was heard nationwide, their popularity has radically soared. Their first single was at number one for 2 weeks, until their second single replaced it. If you tune in to M-TV or MuchMusic, chances are you’ll see a video from The Vampire Lestat within a half-hour. Also, they recently filmed a commercial for the soft drink Coca-Cola and it involves scenes of Lestat on his Harley and they've done a page add for Sony, which should appear in Rolling Stone, among other magazines. And in just three days, they’ll make their first stage debut in San Francisco, CA, at the Cow Palace. The show has already sold out. Basically, if you haven’t heard of them, you’ve been living under the ground for a while. Which, ironically, is where Lestat says he’s been until a couple months ago, when he was inspired to join a band.

Lestat, the lead singer and songwriter for the band, is as mysterious as their music itself. Lestat claims to be the vampire from Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice, and that The Vampire Lestat is his autobiography. He sticks with his story, but maybe tonight I can convince him to let a detail or two about his real identity slip.

The band itself started as a small New Orleans rock group called "Satan’s Night Out". Now, of course, with the addition of Lestat, the group is bigger than ever with its cult-like following of teenagers and young adults in their 20s and 30s.

The rest of the band members sit around Lestat, who faces me directly. Tough Cookie, the only female in the group, shares the sofa with him. Alex and Larry take up a matching leather loveseat to the right. Alex and Larry wear blue and silver silk shirts with blue jeans. Touch Cookie wears cut up jeans and a black tee that says "Satan’s Whore". Lestat is dressed in black pants, an old-fashion blue shirt with a silk undershirt that spills out the ends of the leaves and at the collar, and a black cape.

Alex gets up and offers everyone a beer. Larry and Tough Cookie accept, Lestat and I decline. I need to be sober for this. And Lestat? He says he doesn’t drink. "At least, not beer," he says with a sinister smile in his hypnotically smooth French accent. Alex gets the beer and sits back down. Time to start.

Rolling Stone: Shall we begin?

Lestat: Anytime you’re ready.

RS: All right. What attracted you to the name "The Vampire Lestat"?

L: For myself or for the band?

RS: Either one. Does that mean you did pick the name Lestat for yourself?

L: No. Did you pick your name?

RS: Of course not.

L: Neither did I. Of course I don’t expect you to believe that. As for the band, I want to make a large impression on the world. Without these people (he signals to the band and hugs Tough Cookie) there would be no band, but I want to be known. My name’s as good as any, I suppose.

RS: I see... but what’s your real name?

L: Lestat de Lioncourt. [He says it with a slightly aggravated tone, so I decide not to pursue the idea any further.]

RS: You don’t think it’s a bit egotistical to name the band after yourself?

L: I suppose. What can I say? I enjoy the spotlight. I thrive in it.

RS: What made you want to join a rock band?

L: Several things. I want fame. I know it sounds bluntly selfish, but I like people to know about me. I want the world to know I exist, that we exist.

RS: Vampires?

L: Oui. I don’t like hiding. Even though these kids here don’t really believe it, and the public thinks I’m pretending to be a fictional character, and even though you certainly don’t believe it. I don’t need to believed in, just known. And loved. I want a million fans to scream my name and to listen to my music; I want them to read my story and love it. But there are other reasons. I’ve always pictured my self as the epitome of evil, and that’s what rock music is today. It frightens the so-called "good" citizens and the religious fanatics because it negatively, at least in their opinion, influences the younger generations. I want to be part of this evil, and next century I want to be part of their evil, as I always have in the past.

RS: When you say you want fame...do you feel you’ve gotten it?

L: Yes, we certainly have! It’s fantastic. I’m truly looking forward to the concert, because I absolutely adore the stage, and going up there as a rock star just seems thrilling.

RS: You have a lot of great songs, and several hits. A compilation of your music videos is selling hugely. In recent years, popular music generally has deep meanings. Do your lyrics have any particular meaning?

L: They do, and most importantly, they tell a story.

RS: Your story?

L: More or less. Rather, it’s the story of the history of vampires, and tales of the powerful supernatural things I’ve seen and experienced.

RS: Do you feel these stories are significant to the band?

L: In a way they are. Essentially, it’s a metaphor for what I’d like to think we stand for. You see, the vampires—

RS: Like yourself?

L: Oui, like me. They have certain...rules that they’ve established. One of them is that we must never reveal our secrets or our history to mortals. (Of course, we also are not supposed to make public proclamations of our existence, which I clearly defy.) I’ve never been one for restrictions.

RS: Do you encourage rebellion?

L: To an extent. I feel a compulsion to do the opposite of what I’m told. If someone hands me a list of rules, I’m bound to go out and break every one of them. It’s simply a natural reaction to me. Usually I’ll want to do something, but the fact that there’s a rule against it increases my determination to do it. I don’t just want to break rules, I want to push it to the limit. I want to take things as far as I can, which is why I often get myself in difficult situations. If others wish to challenge their laws and rules, I cannot think of a good reason to discourage them. [after a pause, he adds] Obviously, each situation is different.

RS: You don’t believe rules are there for a reason?

L: They are, no argument here. But think how dull it would be if no one ever went against authority?

RS: I suppose that’s true. [Pause: Larry gets up to use the restroom, and announces he’ll be right back.] On the album you mention several names—

L: Yes, and I’m inclined to believe that’s upset several people already.

RS: People?

L: Vampires. [He smiles and I see the hint of fangs.]

RS: Who are Akasha and Enkil?

L: [after a short pause, during which Larry returns] Listen to the song again. All I should really say is that they possess great power.

RS: What happened to that rebellious spirit?

L: [laughs] Even I can’t tell you everything. At least not right now. Eventually, I’ll probably talk about it, but I cannot at the moment.

RS: The novel Interview with the Vampire has doubled its sales since your band released its first single. Is there anything you have to say about that novel? Does it inspire you?

L: Inspire me? There’s an interesting thought. No, not really. I pushes me farther.

RS: How so?

L: By allowing his story to be published, my dear friend Louis broke one of the aforementioned rules. I was made famous by it, but only in his shadow. I want to be bigger and better than I was in his story. I want to push the limits even farther than he did and be loved by the public, rather than just read about. His motives, of course, differ from my own.

RS: [this reporter can’t resist] What are his motives?

L: You’d have to ask him, but I think it’s because he just needed to get it out. That, and I believe he wants one of the things I want: for people to know we exist. We pass through day to day life but no one really notices us. It can make one very lonely.

RS: I can’t even imagine. Is there anything the rest of the band would like to say?

Alex: Lestat pretty much pulled us up out of the mud. We weren’t bad, but we weren’t going anywhere either. I’m glad he came along.

Cookie: Me too. [She kisses him on the check.]

RS: Lestat, any parting words for your legions of fans?

L: Sometimes when the truth is obvious but improbable, it doesn’t seem possible. Believe your heart, and love me. I am the Vampire Lestat.

No matter what you believe, the Vampire Lestat is one of the best bands around. Their fourth single, "Theatre des Vampires" is currently number one on the charts and is receiving the highest number of plays allowed on M-TV. The concert is all that’s on this band’s mind and it’s what’s consuming the thoughts of all their fans. Since no other concerts are scheduled, many fans are making the pilgrimage to San Francisco.

Is the Vampire Lestat who he claims to be? Only time will tell.