Thank you 5 Seconds of Summer: I remember the first time I heard you guys play- I think it was on your first tour. You were FANTASTIC live, especially for being a relatively new band on their first major world tour. The fact that you toured with One Direction (a world famous band) was a testament to your talent, hard work, and dedication. After the concert, I remember thinking that I should listen to more of your music. As excited as I was, somehow that had slipped my mind until recently and I hadn't gotten a chance to fully appreciate your music. When you guys first became popular, for some reason I thought it was because you were just another One Direction (just because you had toured with them and seemed to have the same fans). I had completely forgotten that while you had toured with them, the two of you have totally different music styles. What makes it worse is that your style is pretty close to (if not the same as) what I listened to at the time. I regret judging without thinking because I missed out on some pretty stellar music just because I listened to what everyone else was saying about you. You guys taught me that I shouldn’t judge something before I’ve tried it and that it’s okay to like things that other people don’t. The only thing I regret about listening to 5 Seconds of Summer’s music is that I didn’t do it sooner- I love the music, your lyrics are more than just simply love songs & they’re relatable to the everyday teenager, and I think it’s fantastic that you write your own material. Your story is one of overcoming obstacles and other people’s perceptions, and I can’t thank you enough for being a positive role model in my life.

For a long time, my perception of what songs could and couldn’t be written about was very skewed. As a musician who wanted to write her own material, this left me frustrated as I didn’t feel like I had the “right” experiences, feelings, etc. to be translated into a song of good quality and that I was just “too weird” & could never have all of the experiences that everyone else seemed to be having. It got to the point that I had given up entirely on songwriting and eventually I had even given up on my dream of being a musician (both as a whole and one who could land a record deal). I couldn’t even look at my guitar without a sense of defeat washing over me. Thanks to you and your delightfully quirky music, I have picked up both my songwriting and my guitar. I had forgotten how much joy they brought to my life, thanks to you I have a newfound love for all things music. I had always loved listening to music, but there were times where I couldn’t fully enjoy what I listened to because I wished that I could have taken the same path as my favorite bands/artists. Now that I have been writing more, I have an outlet to blow off steam, a place to be happy, and a safe place to go when I’m upset. I just want to thank you as much as I can for impacting my life in such a drastically positive way, I can honestly say that I am glad that I will never be the same.