"Take a look at how you listened. Because no one else listened exactly like you."

From the song that started your 2018 to the top 100 songs on the soundtrack to your year, Spotify's recap of how we listened this year exemplifies the power of music in our lives, even going so far to say that "much of our year has been defined by what we listened to." Because of Spotify, we know how many minutes we've spent with our music this year and get the chance to reminisce on the year's moments that were celebratory, painful, or even ordinary. We get to celebrate how far we've come and grown this year and that our playlist is unlike any others.

For many of us, the thousands of minutes we've spent listening to music we've also spent working out, showering, crying, driving, worshiping, hanging out with friends, tailgating, studying, or just sitting solely with own thoughts late at night. Music becomes a part of our most memorable and powerful moments. It can trigger memories, get us pumped up, and feel things we cannot explain.

I've found that my highs and lows of my year are seen authentically in my Top 5 and Top 100 songs. They are the summer days when I had the top off my Jeep and my windows rolled down. They are my late-night conversations. They are the tears running down my face and the healing of my broken heart knowing the artist once felt this same way. They are dancing with my roommates in my dorm room. They are my prayers. Now, I can see they are also each a moment of growth.

In the oldest song that I listened to this year, I found that the magic of music and feelings it stirs in our hearts are timeless. I found that those that came before us, even though they might not have had Spotify to "wrap" up their year in music, had their own songs saw them through their own highs and lows of each year.

With each high and with each low this year, there was also a lesson learned. Additionally, the "Tastebreakers" also help us learn that we can always gain a new perspective, that we always have room to grow, and that there's a whole world of new things for us to still explore.

Finally, Spotify encourages us to "Share Your 2018." So, I encourage you to share what you learned from your highs and lows of the year "because if you don't, did it really happen?"

Can't wait to see how we will listen in 2019.