finding the meaning of life in music

Daisy Jones & The Six is a drama series based on the book of the same name written by Taylor Jenkins Reid. The plot revolves around a famous rock band of the 70’s, from their meteoric rise in the Los Angeles music scene to their unexpected breakup at the height of their popularity. Daisy (Riley Keough) is an 18-year-old girl who has always dreamed of being a rock star. In parallel, The Six, a band led by Billy Dunne (Sam Claflin), begins to find its place in the midst of music. When their paths cross, a producer realizes the potential both artists could have if they joined forces. The series is produced by actress Reese Witherspoon and has the author of the book as one of the producers.

Daisy Jones & The Six is ​​not a story about romantic love, it’s a story about people finding meaning in life in music, even if they are broken and looking for the meaning they think they haven’t found.

That said, after watching the first 3 episodes of a miniseries inspired by a book by an author I love and am a fan of (Taylor Jenkins Reid, you’re awesome), I have to say that Riley Keough, who is playing the protagonist Daisy Jones, is flawless. The fragility, loneliness, insecurity, sarcastic humor and anger, everything is there, directly from the pages of the book, where the viewer can feel the vulnerability of the characters.

About the actress’s voice, the beauty and technique are unquestionable, which at times reminded me of the singer Florence Welch (I think the character’s red hair helped with this comparison as well). Another detail about Keough’s voice, and which deserves mention, is that the actress is simply Elvis Presley’s granddaughter so, coincidentally or not, the woman has genetics in her favor.

In addition to Riley Keough’s singing and charm, Sam Claflin also demonstrates great vocal skills along with delivering on character. Clafin manages to convey to the viewer the anger that the character Billy carries: having been abandoned by his father, the loneliness, the voice and his uncertainty about who he really wants to be, even with the immense gift of music running through his veins.

There’s no way not to watch all the scenes of the characters still separated and not fall in love, so you can get ready because the meeting of both is something that makes you not want to stop watching, however, Prime Video has only made 3 episodes available so far.

Like any adaptation, not everything is perfect. As a fan of the book, I think the first episode very subtly explained that there is a documentary in the making. Also, the order of events was changed in the series, a fact that doesn’t bother me but needs to be said for anyone who hasn’t read the book. Another point that made me strange is that in the book there is the sixth member, even after moving to Los Angeles. In the adaptation, the solution was to place Camila, Billy’s girlfriend and the band’s photographer, as the “sixth” participant. This, for me, was the biggest change, so far, from the book to the adaptation.

Despite all the problems present in all adaptations, Daisy Jones & The Six has a good production, good performances, charming songs and everything works, even the makeup to age the characters in their scenes 20 years older. It’s not all productions that captivate the viewer and make him want to know more about the characters, delve deeper into the plot and marathon the entire series (unfortunately this is only on Netflix).

The first 3 episodes are available on Prime Video. After watching them, I indicate reading the book and not just the series, but also “The seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo”, by the same author, and which is being produced by Netflix to be a film.