Can you think of a genre of music that you love listening to? OK, now can you think of your favorite artist or band? Now tell me, why do you listen to that artist or specific genre? You probably answered that you feel that you can relate to the artist and their lyrics. Or you might have answered that you like the beats and sounds. Or maybe you like that artists or genre just because it's catchy and plays on the radio. I’m not going to lie, for some songs I use the same excuse but I found the sound that I fit best in.

However, the genre of music that I tend to listen and that I love isn’t really smiled upon or given much credit. It’s always on the lower end of the music spectrum when it comes to music award shows and radio time. The only time they get a chance to be perceived in the public eye is by having to be this mainstream band or artist that constantly makes music, releases albums, and wins tons of Grammys. They're underappreciated, is what comes to mind, but it’s not even that. It’s the fact that some of these bands and artists in this genre are considered to be connected to the devil and known as devil music. It's something that has always been connected to Satanism and all other evil stuff that people claim it to be.

Rock is my favorite genre of music that I love to listen to. When I tell people this they automatically think the worst. I have to tell people that it’s not what society has claim it to be. It’s a world of wonder and acceptance when I listen to my favorite rock band. It’s not that I’m looking for attention, it just seems that the music connects to me on a level better than any mainstream song on the radio does. The artists in the bands tend to write about songs of their life and the experiences they lived. Most of them write the songs that I can connect to because they lived through the same experiences that I did. They lived what they sing and more often than not you can hear their emotions and soul in the song even if they have to scream it. Those are the parts I try to listen to the most because those are words that they wish to emphasize the most when trying to get their emotions through.

It’s not all just screaming and heavy metal, it’s so much more than that. These people were categorized as different and as outcasts in society. They are seen as people who are never going to make it in life and people criticize us as over exaggerating because of what we wear. We dye our hair, wear dark clothes, and outrageous accessories but they make us unique and stand out because we are different. We are not Satan worshipers who need to go to church, but we are people who just don’t fit into this box of perfection that society has created for us. The only people who get this are the artist who scream and shout in their mic at how the world doesn’t accept those who are different. I learned this quickly and accepted who I was when I attended my very first WARPED TOUR. It was the most exhilarating thing in the world. I never felt so accepted and at home with those who thought and listened to the same things I did.

We all head banged to the beat of the music to our favorite bands, sang along to our favorite songs, and screamed our favorite lyrics. I never felt different or unaccepted throughout the whole festival. I knew once I heard my favorite bands live that I had found my home and my safe haven. This home was among those who felt that they didn’t mean anything to the world but seeing our favorite bands made us feel accepted and loved by those who always lower their head because we don’t fit in. Rock music to many, is a savior and so are their artists. They are their heroes without capes. They are also mine because without them I would be a complete mess trying to figure out how I fit in this society when we are given so little choose from. I feel like I can be myself when I put on my headphones or blast my music through my speakers. I feel loose and relaxed once I start to sing along. I listen to rock for my love of it and the raw emotion that comes out of it. I don’t care what anyone thinks of me when they hear Crown the Empire, Bring Me the Horizon, or Black Veil Brides coming out from my computer or phones. They don’t know their stories and they don’t know mine. Why judge someone on a specific genre of music that they listen to? I’m pretty sure you have your reason as to why you listen to the type of music you listen to but can you really connect with the artist as much? Maybe you do, but so do I.

One thing I've learned is that rock is the music of the unheard and I have definitely have felt unheard and silenced.With this music I feel I can scream at the top of my lungs and I will be heard. I love to listen to rock music and I don’t care what you think.

“Do you know who I am? I’m so afraid you’ll never understand”

Hologram X Crown The Empire