Fellow indie/alternative music listeners, this one is for you. I have personally gone through each of the five grief stages as my favorite songs have been overtaken by KDWB, Cities 97 and KS95. "Riptide" by Vance Joy and "Sweater Weather" by the Neighbourhood were two especially saddening cases. I’m sure you will be able to relate to the general progression of the stages of grief as I have described them to fit this disheartening reality.

1. Denial

The opening bars of the song start playing. Recognition clicks in. No.

This is not happening. This is NOT happening. You frantically tell yourself that this is just a very similar-sounding song, that soon the melody will deviate from the familiar tune, that your favorite indie song has not been taken by the radio. This stage of grief may last for as little as the intro section of the song or as long as two to three plays through on the radio, depending on how strong your conviction is. Overall, denial is a blissful stage to be in -- you are still able to convince yourself that you are part of a small subset of people who have heard this song, thus making you unique and cool. You still think that when you show off your favorite song to all of your friends, they will be wowed by your adventurous, progressive taste in music. My advice is to stay in denial as long as possible, but unfortunately, there does come a point when you just have to face the hard truth.

2. Anger

When the hard truth hits, it's anger. Instead of a resolute “No," there is a sharp “NO!” emitted with flashing eyes and a scowl. You become irritated when the radio is on at all and irrevocably cranky when the song actually plays. You assign certain choice words to the radio station(s) that took over your

song and scoff at anyone who chooses to listen to it. Your pop-oriented friends probably wonder what the heck is up with you. You bitterly brush off their inquiries because they just don’t understand.

3. Bargaining

If you stop playing this song right now, I will… you list off a set of ultimatums to the radio. Never patronize another pop song? Sure. Stop referring to the music they play as “basic?” Deal. The options keep running through your head, getting increasingly outlandish as you become more and more desperate. Sadly, as much as you may beg and plead and make up fake deals (let’s be real, you will definitely patronize a pop song again some day), your bargaining gets you nowhere.

4. Depression

You have nearly come to terms with the fact that your favorite song is now a hit on the major radio stations. You no longer are trying to change this fact…but that doesn’t mean you aren’t sad about it. Your mind wanders back to those blissful, easy days before your song got famous, before it was overplayed, and before it became impersonal. There is no “correct” length of the depression stage and the time periods vary greatly, but generally it concludes upon the discovery of a new indie song, one which the radio has not yet touched. As with break-ups, you know you have fully moved on when you find that new song to capture your attention.

5. Acceptance

Finally, we have reached the last stage of grief: acceptance. You have now fully come to terms with your old indie favorite becoming a widespread hit. It was selfish, really, for you to wish for it to stay away from the public’s eye. Ultimately, the artist producing it will find more success this way allowing them to make more music, which will hopefully take a bit of time to reach the radio. It is time to part ways with your indie favorite and move on -- it is for the best. You may look up an acoustic version of the song for a final listen (it really just fits the mood), then give a soft smile of departure. It is likely that you will pass by this song again in the future, at which time you will greet it like an old friend with whom you drifted apart. And, this is okay. There’s a whole world of indie music out there to explore, of which you are ready to delve into.