I stared at the list for quite a while. It was your stereotypical clickbait BuzzFeed article; “21 Emo Bangers That Are Turning 10 This Year.” I had gotten home from a double day at my 2 jobs, paid my student loans and finally crawled into bed far too late to see this flash across my tiny Facebook feed from my phone. It wasn’t the first listicle of its type I’ve seen this year, this week even, and yet they hit me every time. ‘Could it really be 10 years now?’ I sat and pondered. You see I was 13 when these songs came out, finishing out 7th and beginning 8th grade. You know exactly what I’m talking about; those awkward angst ridden years where nobody knew what they were doing, who they were, or how they were supposed to deal with the ever-changing world around them. In 2006 My Chemical Romance would release “Welcome to the Black Parade,” Fall Out Boy crooned “A Little Less Sixteen Candles, A Little More Touch Me.” 30 Seconds to Mars would blow the scene right open, marking Jared Leto’s new double life as Rock God and acting extraordinaire.  Hawthorne Heights said “Sorry” and Taking Back Sunday “Madedamnsure” you were listening. What a time to be alive and developing into an awkward, chubby, pimple faced nerd.

The music industry, more than anything else is such a constantly changing entity, 10 years can feel like eons when we look at how songs are written, produced, and distributed compared to 2006. Who would have thought 10 years ago that we’d have SO MUCH fan/band interaction through the increased demand of new and exciting VIP packages, crowdfunding and the expanded festival circuit? Who thought that the 10 year mark of an album would now practically require a tour to encapsulate the days of yesteryear when these artists started out in their parents basements jamming out, still just tiny dreamers? Who thought they would still connect to some of the music that our parents considered “garbage” on that same level they did when they were just “young and misunderstood”? How many of us have treated our current youth the same? Music ages much like fine wine; as time passes the way people interpret a song changes as well. I almost feel like I can understand the meaning behind each track more and more as I grow up with it.

10 years later and I still feel like that kid. 23; graduated from college and faced with an even scarier unknown, I’d give everything to be having panic attacks over bombing my English Vocabulary Bee than trying to figure out just how I was going to make ends meet or create a name for myself in my given career field. I still listen to these songs quite often, the CDs sit in my car and I sing along on my way to work every single day. It’s hard to peg what nostalgia actually feels like. I think it starts out like a childhood blanket. Comforting. Warm. It reminds you of that first time you experienced it. I experienced Rise Against’s “Prayer of The Refugee” at an MCR concert and I swear as I listen I can still feel the energy in that arena. But as you think and sit with that nostalgia it’s jarring. So much has changed since that initial moment. Friends are gone, family has passed, life has moved on. These songs act as little time capsules, reminding people of not only the past, but how far they’ve come. While some may be embarrassed of their childhood music tastes I feel like I’ve only embraced them more. Each lyric has threaded its way into my personal history, and each memory replays in my mind like a CD set to repeat. Here’s to turning 10, and as always, cheers to many more.