Friends of Mine
Duran Duran’s Arena – the very first “grown-up” album I ever bought with my very own money. As a nine-year-old kid this left a huge impact on me. I still have that album and on February 12, 2010, I got Simon Le Bon and Nick Rhodes (lead singer and keyboardist) to autograph it, in person. Yes, it is safe to say, I am a true Duranie. The online urban dictionary states that a Duranie is a devoted fan of Duran Duran. (Star) I am and I am proud of it. I have been to concerts, own their albums, CD’s, DVD’s and books. I have T-shirts and concert clips and interviews all saved on a flash drive that is devoted to only Duran Duran. When my husband and I were set up on a blind date, he had been warned about a few things. The most important is my obsession with the music group, Duran Duran. He has learned to accept it and has even taken to being a fan himself.
Some people think of Duranies as groupies and therefore look down on us. We do not think of ourselves as groupies. True Duranies do not look to go out and sleep with members of the band. We will actually “shun” people that attempt that sort of behavior. When we meet a fellow Duranie at a concert, we can form a lifelong friendship in a matter of minutes over which band member is our favorite. We enjoy sharing stories of meeting the band and we will spend hours on end analyzing things that the members do and say. We will have heated debates on who was better, Andy or Warren: and why we think Andy left for the second time and what we think of Dom Brown, his new replacement. We know that the Taylor boys are not brothers. We know who Andy Wickett and Stephen Duffy are and we know that Le Bon was not the first Simon in the group.
Most people that consider themselves a Duranie became a true fan many years ago. When DD formed with Simon, Nick, John, Roger, and Andy, I am sure they never realized what an impact they would have on so many lives. As young teenage and preteen girls, we developed a crush on one or more members of the band. We dreamed of falling in love with Simon or John and living happily ever after. Once we grew up, we joined reality and realized that was not going to happen and started to appreciate the music even more. We now anxiously await every new album and hope that the band gives us little hints or snippets of the music or lyrics as they update us on duranduran.com. Our husbands are subject to listening to their music and our children think that it is normal for one to be Hungry like the wolf. Personally, my three-year-old daughter can pick Mr. Le Bon out of a line up and sing almost every word to Planet Earth. Durandy, who is a major DD fan and collector of Duran memorabilia, chose the moment the band met him to view his collection to propose to his girlfriend. He even had the band help him with the proposal.
For a long time, every two years, a major fan of DD, would put together a huge gathering in New York for Sing Blue Silver, a documentary on Duran Duran that came out in 1984. Shelia would rent a movie theater and fans would get together and watch the movie, after there would be a huge party with drinks that had Duran related names. Chekov’s wig would play Duran Duran cover songs in their awesome Indy music fashion and a good time would be had by all. Sadly, Shelia has passed away, and the Sing Blue NYC is no more. The perfect example of how Duranies are more like family, is the heartfelt sadness and the people that showed up to pay respects to her, after her death. Many people did not know her personally but felt a kinship with her due to DD.
As Duraines, we often make jokes about the members. Some of which, the members themselves joke about. Play the F**cking Bass John is something ALL Duranies know. Knowing that Simon often forgets the lyrics, he wrote, is commonplace. Taking bets on how many times he may trip in concert and wondering why Nick won’t use it, when that time comes in the reflex. We joke about Nick being from another planet. I, personally, wait for a few JOSI moments – moments where John and Simon look all cute together. We often refer to things that will take a long time as Durantime (the band is often late in releasing albums) There seems to be a language that only Duranies know and yes, we will translate what those words and phrases mean to people that aren’t fans. We are willing to convert anyone that is willing to enjoy the band as much as we do. However, we are also quick to correct anyone that thinks they are only an “80’s boy band and that they haven’t had any hits since then.
The band themselves try to show how much they appreciate Duranies. They often joke in interviews that they know the difference between true fans and the people that claim to be “diehard fans.” John has made jokes about people coming up to them and saying things like “I am your biggest fan; my favorite song is ‘True’.” “True” is a song that was sung by a rival band, Spandau Ballet. Before Facebook, Twitter and other types of social media, the band hired, Katy Krasner. She is a liaison between the fans and the band. You could email her and she would forward the emails to whichever band member you were trying to reach and then forward their reply back to you.
With John, Simon and Roger now having Facebook or Twitter accounts, most fans will just try to contact them through that. I emailed Katy last August. I was considering getting a tattoo. I could not decide on exactly what to get. I decided what better way than to ask the guys themselves? So the email was sent and her reply was that the guys really didn’t believe in fans getting tattoos that were Duran Duran related. I still went ahead and did it anyway. I then tweeted a picture of it to Simon Le Bon himself asking what he thought. When Simon replied “I feckin lovzit!” - I thought I was going to die! I would put that up there with one of the few happiest days of my life, right behind, meeting Simon, and Nick, getting married and having my daughter, Evelyn. Who by the way, was born October 28th - one day after Simon’s fifty-second birthday.
During concerts, they try to interact with fans as much as possible, getting to introduce Simon, is every Duranie’s dream. They will, however not put up with the fans that refuse to be respectful or act like the silly, young, girls we once were. I have heard many stories about how the members were rude to fans or refused to acknowledge them. I have also heard stories where members were extremely nice to fans; they have invited them to join them and their families for lunch or spend time with them despite being in a hurry, it all depends on the fans behavior. I can speak from personal experience that Simon and Nick are extremely nice and how Simon went out of his way to talk to me and a few of my friends. There was a contest in a radio station out of Cleveland, Ohio. When a few of my friends and I did not win a contest to meet Nick and Simon, we took it upon ourselves to meet them on our own. We stood outside of the radio station for about an hour before they were due to show up. When the Cadillac Escalade pulled up, the look on Simon’s face was one of shock. After the radio interview, Simon came out and decided to say hi to us. Long story short, we had pictures taken with the guys, they chatted with us and signed autographs and spent more time with us, than the people that won the contest.
Yes, some would say we are obsessed and yes, I will agree. We care about the band members and their family members as if they were our own family. In August 2012, Nick Rhodes, became deathly ill. The band had to cancel the end of their tour and he was forced with bed rest. Many of the fans, were genuinely concerned, flooded every social media, and emailed Katy Krasner with well wishes to pass along to Nick. Cards and gifts were sent to their management company as well. We were all concerned about one of the founding members of our beloved group. We are quick to dismiss anyone that posts on a Duran Duran forum asking about their children or wives. We explain we are there only to talk about the band members and we do not agree with asking personal questions about their lives.
Yes, some people consider this to be juvenile and a huge waste of time but consider how many people go to Star Trek Conventions or are obsessed with Star Wars or anything else for that matter. Some Duranies have used DD as an escape from a boring or hard life. Others just enjoy the band so much they want everyone to understand why. Every one of my friends, fellow Duranies or not, have learned to live with my love of the group and know that they will always be part of my life – the music’s between us.