Earlier today I was thinking about what I want to be when I grow up. No matter how old I get that question will always be on my mind. Ever since my very first concert, Family Values Tour 2007, I knew my heart and soul was in music. I took up drum lessons for a short time, voice lessons, and high school chorus. My passion however did not lie within my own performance but simply in my love for music in general. I remember my first band obsession because still to this day they are my number one band, Thirty Seconds to Mars. Jared and Shannon Leto and Tomo Milicevic are all that is left now but I absolutely love them. I've seen their grunge days, their emo days, and their rebirth. People have asked me why I stared liking them in the first place. My honest answer is always, I saw The Kill music video on my cousins Zune in 2006 and from that day on I was a die hard fan. I pre-ordered albums, owned a 30 STM sketchbook, lined paper, folder, notebook, diary, messenger bag, posters, and tee shirts. Later on would come Jared Letos movies including My So Called Life. So how does this tie into my main point? I realized I didn't want to be a performer, that wasn't what I was good at. I was however good at listening, telling others about band I think they'd like, writing about them, going to concerts, taking pictures. This is what made me truly happy. When I first started reading Alternative Press magazine I was skeptical. Most of my life had been focused on bands like Disturbed, Slipknot, Mushroomhead, Lacuna Coil. During my first year of college that changed and I branched out to post-hardcore bands like Mayday Parade and Chiodos. I discovered Alternative Press and once I gave it a chance I feel in love. It had everything I could ever want in a magazine with upcoming bands, album reviews, special editions, and a wide variety of genres. This was a turning point for me because I realized that my dream job was to share music with others. I find so much excitement in sharing an upcoming band with my friends and on this blog. When I go to a concert, I tell everyone I know about it. I was at one point a journalism major but I hated it, it was not something I could see myself doing. I didn't like how formal most places were. I have never wanted to write for the New York Times or the Wall Street Journal. I changed my major to media studies because that way I had more ground to cover. People look for media/society majors anyway. I could learn what I wanted to learn. I know how to spell, I have an opinion, and I love music. That's enough. I spoke with an editor for Spin magazine who told me that you don't have to be a journalist to write for a magazine. If you can work hard, meet deadlines, and be creative you'll be fine. My dream has never been to be a big shot and certainly to never be a millionaire. I would love to live in a tiny cheap apartment, eat ramen for every meal, work long hours, and have low pay because I know that while I'm doing all of this I'll have a job I'm happy to do. I would rather be poor and happy than rich and snobby. So when I grow up I want to be a writer and as long as I have music I'm happy. This is just a thought I was having and write it out and share because I'm sure I'm not the only person who's been in this type of situation. I hope you get a little something out of it.
