When I was in eighth grade, I started to branch out a little from the radio pop songs that I heard on the bus on the way to and from school and develop my own taste in music. And when I was in eighth grade, I discovered the band that would carry me through middle school and then high school. I know it might sound cliche, but they were the band that I could always turn to. The music that was there to save me when I felt like I couldn't save myself. I always dreamed of seeing them live, but as the years passed I never thought I would get the opportunity to.

Now I'm a junior in college. My best friend who goes to college 20 minutes away from me texted me last week and said, "I have some good news."

When I asked what was up, she followed up with another text message, "Mayday Parade is coming to my school next weekend."

I screamed.

So I finally got to see the band who changed my life, live and in concert. And to say that they did not disappoint would be an understatement. The experience was better than I could have ever imagined. There I was, standing in the crowd, looking up at the faces of the voices I have sang along with from my iPod speakers for the past eight years. But now, I was singing along with them in real life, and everyone around me was singing along too. One of the greatest parts about finally seeing my favorite band live was that they all played and sang with such absolute sincerity and joy. The lead singer in particular was so incredibly happy. He was smiling almost the whole time, like he was so happy to be up there doing what he loved and because he knew that he was making all of us feel so much.

Before they started the third song, the lead singer asked us if it was okay if they played a little bit of their older music, and of course the crowd screamed yes. And then he said, "This one is called 'Three Cheers for Five Years,'" and they started playing again. That was the moment I had been waiting for since I was a sad, lost teenager trying to get through high school. That was the moment I had been dreaming of. I started sobbing as my favorite band played my absolute favorite song. And I kept crying for the entirety of the rest of the concert. Concerts always make me feel really emotional, but this one took me to an entirely new level. Yes, the atmosphere of a concert is always so exciting, but I have never felt so awed, happy, sad, hyped, nostalgic and exhilarated all at the same time. This one made my heart scream.

Music is so important because it is such a tremendous form of expression across all generations and because it brings people together on such a large scale. There is no greater feeling in the world than standing in a crowd full of strangers, all of you singing the same words to the same songs that you have listened too your entire lives, but knowing that every song is making each of you feel something different from the person standing next to you. Embrace every opportunity for every concert that comes along, especially for bands that you love. Especially for the bands and the music that changed your life. Because seeing my favorite band in concert changed my life all over again.