A Cursive Memory Make Friends With Celebs, Piss Off Paparazzi

(andPOP) - Shaun Profeta is about to drive home. It's 2 a.m. and he's been out all night in L.A. with his friends, searching for celebrities. They've had absolutely no luck.

Then they see a clutter of paparazzi from the window of their Toyota 4Runner. One of the guys jumps out and runs over to the crowd, asking photographers who they're chasing.

He comes back to the SUV, and announces, "I'm not going to tell you who it is, but go out there and do your best."

The guys aren't having it. They press him and he spills the beans.

It's Britney, bitch.

They rush out of the vehicle towards the crowd. Britney Spears appears and the cameras begin to click. The guys, meanwhile, bust out a huge old school boom box and press play.

Out blasts "Everything," the first single from their band, A Cursive Memory.

The guys push through the paparazzi, making sure Britney sees them. They shout at her to listen to their song and she laughs and claps as they sing along.

Success.

"Yeah, we showed Britney Spears what's up," Profeta laughs during an interview with andPOP while discussing "Everything," the first single off of their debut full-length LP, "Changes," which was released last month.

Profeta explains that the band spent five months chasing down tabloid headline-makers like Britney and making them listen to "Everything." They called it Bandarazzi. Their manager caught it all on tap, and the footage was made into a music video, which is becoming a massive viral hit, especially after receiving mention of it on TMZ.com.

The video features Jerry Springer dancing to their song, Lindsay Lohan driving through a crowd of paparazzi with the track blasting in the background, and the boys chasing Paris Hilton into a club.

It's currently on Total Request Live, which shocks Profeta, the band's guitarist and vocalist.

It was only a few years ago that Profeta was in junior high school, listening to Dashboard Confessional's The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most. He had no idea he'd later be on their record label.

Profeta met Colin Baylen at an 8th grade birthday party. The two hit it off and started playing Blink 182 covers together. They enlisted Mark Smith and Brian Bolen and put up some songs on PureVolume.com.

Then one day after a Baseball practice, Profeta got an email from production company Bunim/Murray. They had found A Cursive Memory using PureVolume's random search feature. The powerhouse media company behind shows like The Simple Life and Road Rules liked what they saw and wanted A Cursive Memory to be the first band they managed.

Profeta explains that Bunim/Murray had worked with acts like Yellowcard and John Mayer, but were looking for an act to manage full time.

"They took a leap of faith on us," he says.

A Cursive Memory signed on with Bunim/Murray before reaching the 10th grade. Throughout high school, the band worked on their material but stayed relatively low key.

"We played all of our friends' birthday parties. They watched us grow as a band." Profeta says.

By the time their final year of high school came around, the guys were spending their weekends in Santa Monica recording "Changes." They also skipped class to play shows with BoysLikeGirls and Profeta's brother's band, Hellogoodbye.

Then after graduation they signed to Vagrant, and released "Changes." Bolen, their guitarist, left the band, so Profeta took over guitar duties and had his friend, Dillan Wheeler, fill in on drums. The full LP was more in depth and serious than their EP or the songs they had previously posted online.

"I hate to use the word mature," says Profeta, "but these songs I guess have a deeper meaning. There are songs on the record that people can attach to their lives."

When talking about music, Profeta can get serious. But he prefers to joke around. "We obviously don't take ourselves too seriously," he says.

Any band that comes up with an idea like Bandarazzi has a sense of humour. And that can be heard in the music. The songs are catchy, heart-felt teenage anthems made in the tradition of Southern California pop punk.

"We grew up in Southern California so it's natural for us to listen to this," Profeta says, listing Death Cab for Cutie, Jimmy Eat World and Blink 182 as his inspirations.

"The people around here are laid back and trying to have fun. That's what music," he says, "has always been about."