"Bad news for fans of the one time famous rock band Live Youth - it seems they are splitting up.
The band, who were once famed for their upbeat, three hour long live shows coupled with beautifully crafted lyrics and music, courtesy of the tight and long running friendship between lead singer, Gemma Maddison, and lead guitarist, Dean Keller, have been struggling with their personal lives for a long time, and their music seemed to take a back seat for a long time, replaced by headlines about affairs, murders, children and drugs (as previously reported elsewhere on our newsite
http://www.therockstarga...-Stronger-than-Ever.aspx). Through it all, however, fans had one thing to hold onto: the rock solid relationship between Maddison and Keller, the best friends who stood by each other through everything life threw at them - including their own romantic break up. Friends who, as far as anybody could tell, would never face a problem big enough to make them go their own separate ways. Until now.
Reports have been coming in thick and fast over the weekend that Live Youth are on the verge of separating because Keller is refusing to be in the same room as Maddison, and insists that he can no longer work with her. So far, the reasons for Dean Keller's aversion is unclear, but many are speculating that the years of denying his ongoing love for Gemma, and his remaining difficulty getting over their split three years ago, has finally taken it's toll, whilst other - more cynical reporters - have been suggesting that something must have happened between the two for their solid relationship to suddenly go sour - with some suggesting that the pair have had an AFFAIR, which Gemma has called time on.
Either way, as our timeline below shows, the course has never been smooth for the pair and, whatever happens, the outcome is likely to be explosive. Keep your eyes and ears peeled!
The History:
2004 – Gemma and Dean first meet; Maddison (or Ferns, as she was then), a young, impressionable 14 year old and Keller an 18year old man, who had just emigrated from Johannesburg South Africa. The two meet in London, through mutual friends, and begin to form a friendship based on their love of music and ambitions for the future.
2006 – At 16, the two enter into a romantic relationship, solidifying their bond and begin to form their first succesful band: Rebel Uprising.
2007 – The pair adopt a baby, Caleb, who was left without a carer when his mother died and his father (a close friend of Keller's) was imprisoned. The pair agreed to adopt Caleb, as they couldn't bear the thought of him going into care.
2008 - The pair's busiest year. After three successful albums and worldwide success the seemingly untouchable Rebel Uprising began to unravel. The pair's relationship breaks down after Dean gets into hard drugs and sleeps with a member of GirlSpice. Shortly after there is an accident backstage at a gig. Dean suffers a heavy blow to the head, fracturing his skull and leaving him in a coma. He has to learn to walk and talk again. Gemma stands by him and they consider giving things another go. Rebel Uprising loses one member, Jamie Walsh, and decide to opt for a fresh start by renaming the band Live Youth.
Mid/late 2008 and early 2009 - Gemma meets Billy Maddison, then a 31 year old American superstar, and with their good looks they quickly became the new golden couple. It was not to last, however, and they split up after he cheated on her. After a brief and 'difficult' split, Gemma discovered she was pregnant with Billy's child and the pair reconcile and married.
Late 2009 - Billy is arrested for the murder of Miss Briskett, a fellow musician with whom he had previously had an affair with. After originally being found guilty of murder, he was later released following a high profile campaign run by Gemma, calling on a host of prevalent musicians who performed a gig to raise awareness of Billy's false imprisonment.
During this time Dean (who by then was living a clean life) released solo material, confronting his heartbreak and loss over the mistakes he made, which led to his life 'spiralling out of all control'.
Early 2011 - Gemma gives birth to her youngest child, a son called Ryan.
2012 - Reports start coming in of tension within the ranks at Live Youth."
Gemma Maddison threw the paper down on the kitchen table and laid her head in her hands. She just couldn't believe Dean was actually doing this, after everything they had been through, after all she had done for him and everything he had done for her, he was actually throwing everything away. And, worst of all, he was being so obvious about it that - once again - she had everybody and his dog commenting on her private life and she hadn't even had a chance to think up an excuse. Billy was bound to start asking questions about why they've fallen out - not that he'll be too upset, after the years of insecurity and jealousy he'd suffered over her relationship with Dean - but still, she still didn't have any convincing stories to cover for the truth. Stressed, and scared, she decided to call the only person she could think of. The only person who could change this.
"Hello?" The voice that came through the line sounded just as strained as she felt.
"Please don't hang up on me", Gemma begged.
"Why shouldn't I? I've spent near on the past ten years of my life talking to you, and it's still led us down the same path. I don't have the energy anymore", came Dean's reply. She was glad that he at least sounded miserable about the decision - she wouldn't know what to do if it seemed that he was happy to cut her out of his life after all this time. Over the years, they had been so close that she no longer knew who she was without him, if she was honest. She had never even needed to consider it, unless she counted the two times they broke up and even then, when she knew that she could no longer be his girlfriend, she knew that she would still have him in her life. That was never even a question in her mind. He was for life.
"We can't keep this up, Dean. Us not speaking, it's splitting the band apart, and that's not fair on the others. It's not fair to us, after all the years of hard work that we've put in. I don't know who to be if I'm not the musician, the frontwoman. And you don't know who you are without me, either".
"Something tells me that that's not what you're worried about", Dean replied, seriously. "Cut the bullshit and tell me the truth. If you can remember what it is to speak without lying through your goddamned teeth".
Gemma raised her eyebrows, and her mouth hung in shock for a second. She had never had Dean talk down to her before, and had never heard him speak to her with so much venom in his voice either.
"Look, it's getting out of control. The papers are reporting on it now, and it's not going to be long before Billy wants to know what's going on. It's us, Dean, we don't fall out without people getting pretty damned suspicious. And I don't have an answer for him".
"How about that you slept with me? That I still love you, and can't deal with sitting around any longer watching you play happy families with him? Or how about the fact that you told me that you still love me?"
"Dean, just stop... please! Don't you see that I'm not ready to lose either of you yet, and if Billy finds out it will be the end of us being able to be around each other at all. He will make me cut you out, whether we like it or not", she tried reasoning with him, her best friend, the man she never imagined having this conversation with.
"And where's the problem in that exactly? Sounds just like my idea if you ask me", Dean retorted, coldly.
"No, it's not. Because if you make me do this now, by the time you turn round to come back because you've changed your mind and can't deal with us never having any contact again, it will be too late. So, maybe I can't change your decision. For all I know you could ring up the papers right now and tell them the truth. But before you do anything, I just want you to think about what's really at risk here, and what both you and I have to lose from this".
And, with that, with tears beginning to form in her eyes, Gemma Maddison hung up the phone and prayed that her best friend would do the right thing by her.
