Michael Clifford, Guitarist of 5 Seconds of Summer (5SOS), tweeted out “Real bands save fans, real fans save bands” on October 5, 2013. This antimetabole was taken in by the 5SOS fandom and now eight years after that original post it is still relevant through the fandom. Musicians all over the world through their lyrics, music, and presence have saved the lives of many. Have made many feel less alone. Have spoken to many through never meeting them. And without the support of the fans, musicians wouldn’t have any people to save. At the age of nine, I became a fan of 5 Seconds of Summer and can distinctly recall the hot summer day in July when I somehow ended up listening to their song “Amnesia” and instantly falling in love. At that age, I was being picked on by one of the other girls who already made me feel bad for enjoying another artist we both mutually liked. So when sixth grade started up, I kept it hidden I enjoyed 5SOS' music. But that wasn’t the only secret being held deep inside me. That summer, my parents started fighting, and on July 29th, 2015, exactly one week before my tenth birthday, I was given the news my dad was moving out of the house until my parents could situate themselves. It felt like life before then was already tearing apart at the thread slowly until it finally snapped that day. I filled the empty void in my life with music and the way the lyrics were able to calm me down. Even though at this time there was only one full-length studio album and a handful of EPs by 5SOS, the music brought me to a place where I could forget about where I was. With music, life moved forward. With music, I was able to continue life without misery. With music, all the hues of every color in the world are vibrant, life couldn’t be dull, right? Months later, in November of that same year, my father’s life was almost taken. I can still remember that day and the misery that flooded my entire being. My younger self, was at my friend’s birthday party when the call came through from my mother. Almost instantly, my father moved back into the house and hasn’t left since. But at such a hard time when my parents still were arguing back and forth after all that had happened, the music in Sounds Good Feels Good by 5SOS held strong themes of mental health, and I was able to feel less alone in the world. To this day when I hear a small argument start with the two of them, I run to the music of the band and that album to let me know I am not the only one. The music spoke to me louder than any words told to me by someone who knew me. I want other people to see and hear themselves get lost in the lyrics and music of the world. Music has the power to bring people together. Music has the power to make people feel less alone. Music has the power to save people. And without music, there would be no me. There would be no girl who is now surrounded by people she loves and cares about. There would be no girl who continues to see the light in the darkest of days even when she feels like she cannot get out. And without the bands in music, there wouldn’t have been no me to save.

When I was seven, I tried starting a pop band. This may seem like a crazy statement, but when I was seven, this was the rise of the boy band that can still break millions of girls' hearts: One Direction. Many friends and I wanted to be in a group just like them; however, at that age, it was not realistically possible. This is the primary indicator of my passion for the arts, for music. Growing up, I was obsessed with the idea of music, and even when I started playing the violin to learn an instrument, I became fascinated with the idea of playing violin for backing tracks in produced music for the radio. The more I learned about music as I grew up, I learned about the injustice and lack of diversity in the music industry. Through apps like Twitter and Instagram which I am a frequent user of, I learned that there are not many people like me in the industry. There are not many Native American, Latina Women working in the industry. Information and statistics are just plain facts, and people choose to blatantly ignore the truth that is present in front of them. But not me. With many attempts from teachers throughout high school, I was told to do something more "realistic" as a career and to not "waste my brain" on going to school to pursue working in the music industry. What these teachers failed to realize is that since the age of seven, it was always going to be music. Yes, I was great and excelled in other subjects, but they never took the time to realize that it is not something I am passionate about to waste my life away with having a stable career when I was willing to put in the hard work to make a living in music. That I can take the hard work I have learned in school excelling in all the subjects across the board, to focus and put all my time into learning about the craft of music in a business aspect to help others get into the industry. My career and aspirations are something I will never let anyone take away from me. I tell my parents all the time, "I know you are worried about me making a living in music and getting my foot through the door, but it does not matter. Because whether it happens before or after graduation, I will work to increase the number of BIPOC in the music industry." With that, I have made it my goal to educate and encourage all people wanting to go into a similar field to give it their all and learn about it. That they can do it no matter who they are. It is our job to make a change in the world and increase the number of people in the arts. It starts with us. That is my passion and calling, and I want to be a part of that change in the industry.

At the age of nine, I found my love for being a leader. During this time, I started playing the violin and saw the section leaders as someone to look up to, and I wanted to be that person for someone. Since then, I have been able to be section leader and concertmaster (leader of the whole orchestra) numerous times. I have become a person that is captivated by the idea of someone looking at me and wanting to be like me, that I have led a path for other people where they think that is the right way to go. But leadership is ultimately more than that feeling. Leadership is also working hard to make a difference and following a path that is full of rights rather than wrongs. I want to make a difference in the music industry with my future goals. Growing up, I followed my favorite bands fairly frequently and realized a common factor in the way they as artists were treated. Through their experiences I learned that musicians are not paid nearly as much as they should be getting paid, they're being forced into conformity to the "radio" sound to get more hits, and things like interacting with fans are encouraged less and less. In the music industry, I want to be an artist manager. I want to be able to bring my client to success without forcing and pressuring them to do things a certain way. I want to encourage them to interact and engage with fans to make them feel a part of a community they have built. I want the people I manage to always feel safe to do what they please. I want this difference to happen and for people to see the way I treat the artist like any normal human being would want to be treated and not take advantage of them. I want to be this change in the music industry. Through my ambitions, I'm intentionally doing what is right to make the music industry more positive for future people coming into the business. I want to be that leader they want to follow; the person whose actions make them want to do the same for their clients. Making positive decisions is important for everyone in the industry. Making the right decision can be hard, but with careful thinking and knowing what will be best not for my sake, but for my clients, will ensure that what I do makes everything better for both of us since they will be happier and want to continue in their own endeavors. Leadership isn't easy. And although I no longer aspire to be a concertmaster choosing and helping everyone in the orchestra, I still want to be the head of the musical direction of people who want to bring their craft into the world. I want people to continue to look at me and aspire to be like me. By making sure I stay uplifting and follow the path of what I want to do, I am sure in no time I will be able to make the change I aspire to make through my supervision.

Make sure you choose GEs that are most suitable for you! Sometimes GEs can also fulfill major requirements with the particular subject or sometimes the class will just be more interesting for you! Make sure the GEs you will be taking will ensure you have both a successful and happy college life. Instagram @li1yyyyy

Music, seen and heard everywhere we go—from rhythmic bangs on saucepans creating a solid beat to the local radio playing the weekly top ten hits as we grocery shop—impacts us all daily. With my aspirations and goals, I plan on curating, motivating, and working with the next prominent artist to ensure they positively impact society through their choice of lyrics and rhythms to uplift anyone who may stumble upon the music they make. Positivity isn't exactly the easiest thing to achieve in the Music Industry. Quite often clients will be bossed around by their managers, taken advantage of by everyone around them, put to work nineteen-hour days with hardly any breaks, and much more. Through what I want to do, I'm going to change issues where clients feel overworked and aren't getting enough pay for the work they do. I want the people I work with to feel like they are doing what they want with their creation and not what the public wants them to do. To curate my clients, I will need to listen to what they want to achieve while taking into consideration what they will want in their endeavors as well as taking into account the society and culture at the time and what will make them successful. Through listening and empathizing with what everyone will want, I will be able to ensure everything is positive and productive. Especially through social media encouraging the artist to engage practically with their audience to bring connections on a deeper level between fan and artist. To make it known that the artist genuinely cares for their supporters. As well as engagement, I will promote and share what I know with anyone aspiring to follow a similar path. With the competitive nature of the job, it will be essential to help others succeed so they can make identical career paths in supporting artists and helping them grow in ensuring that their fans feel safe in the environment given to them in a fandom. I want there to be a positive impact in the music industry to continue and be available to everyone, and by mentoring others on how to do so, the influence will be even more present. By staying positive in my endeavors, I will be able to ensure everyone feels safe and happy with what is occurring. I want to ensure that people I work with are at the best of their game and to know that I will always put them into consideration. That I want to work with them and not against them.

Math is more than just the number and arithmetic of a problem. Math is problem-solving, close thinking, calculations, and a whole other way to view the world. This computer I am using currently to type these words? Math was involved in mechanics, engineering, programming, and design. These calculations are everywhere and we don't usually take the time to appreciate the way math shapes the world we live in. Math will forever remain consistent and precise to lead to an answer that has answers to all the technology, architecture, and even something as basic as making food. I started to fall in love with math around the time I took trigonometry at my local community college for class credit. Though that was not the first time I was introduced to the concept of it. My first introduction to the subdivision of math that started my attraction to the subject was my freshman year when we were learning SOHCAHTOA and did a project in which we used a real-life application of measuring how high the schools flagpole would be when we take into consideration our heights, the angle at which when we look up to the top of the pole, and how far we stood away from the pole. Seeing how all of us with different heights and different lengths away from the pole were able to get a similar number blew me away. The geometric aspects of the way a triangle can have so much impact intrigued me and the calculations surrounding it were simply fun to do. Something as simple as proofs with trigonometry ideas amazed me as simplifying a problem to ensure it matches with its equivalent was satisfying to solve seeing how identities can lead to different ways to solve one problem, and it all just depends on which way you choose to approach the problem. However, taking trigonometry led me to my ultimate love for math: calculus. Taking AP Calculus as a junior in high school made me fully fall in love with the subject. In my mind, the way the numbers worked together just made perfect sense in my brain with the way the calculations worked and coincided with one another to make more complex equations and answers. Taking calculus is what truly made me realize how much math revolves around us. From doing real-world application problems involving the take-off of a rocket and finding the velocity and acceleration; finding the speed at an instant in which a ladder falls with the knowing how its height from the ground at that instant and the change of the height at that moment; and even the way a graph can transform into a volumized shape to find the volume of odd shapes such as funnels. And even now wanting to primarily focus on music, it's crazy to even how much math is involved there! From the theory aspect of how fast a string needs to be moving in comparison to the other to say whether it is an octave, perfect fifth or fourth, major or minor, you name it and there is some sort of mathematical answer as to how the way our ears interpret the speed of the vibrations and how their ratios of speed compare. Even to something more simple such as reading the music and knowing how to create a fraction out of a beat to stay in rhythm and tempo. Math will be anywhere I step foot, and understanding math makes me understand the world.

Music, seen and heard everywhere we go—from rhythmic bangs on saucepans to the radio playing the weekly top ten hits—impacts us all daily. With my aspirations, I plan on curating, motivating, and working with the next prominent artist to ensure they positively impact society through their choice of lyrics and rhythms to uplift anyone who may stumble upon the music they make.

Michael Clifford, Guitarist of 5 Seconds of Summer (5SOS), tweeted out “Real bands save fans, real fans save bands” on October 5, 2013. This antimetabole was taken in by the 5SOS fandom and now eight years after that original post it is still relevant through the fandom. Musicians all over the world through their lyrics, music, and presence have saved the lives of many. Have made many feel less alone. Have spoken to many through never meeting them. And without the support of the fans, musicians wouldn’t have any people to save. At the age of nine, I became a fan of 5 Seconds of Summer and can distinctly recall the hot summer day in July where I somehow ended up listening to their song “Amnesia” and instantly falling in love. At that age, I was being picked on by one of the other girls who already made me feel bad for enjoying another artist we both mutually liked. So when sixth grade started up, I kept it hidden I enjoyed 5SOS' music. But that wasn’t the only secret being held deep inside me. That summer, my parents started fighting, and on July 29th, 2015, exactly one week before my tenth birthday, I was given the news my dad was moving out of the house until my parents could situate themselves. It felt like life before then was already tearing apart at the thread slowly until it finally snapped that day. I filled the empty void in my life with music and the way lyrics were able to calm me down. Even though at this time there was only one full-length studio album and a handful of EPs by 5SOS, the music brought me to a place where I could forget about where I was. With music, life moved forward. With music, I was able to continue life without misery. With music, all the hues of every color in the world are vibrant, life couldn’t be dull, right? Months later, in November of that same year, my father’s life was almost taken. I can still remember that day and the misery that flooded my entire being. My younger self, was at my friend’s birthday party when the call came through from my mother. Almost instantly, my father moved back into the house and hasn’t left since. But at such a hard time where my parents still were arguing back and forth after all that had happened, the music in Sounds Good Feels Good by 5SOS held strong themes of mental health, and I was able to feel less alone in the world. To this day when I hear a small argument start with the two of them, I run to the music of the band and that album to let me know I am not the only one. The music spoke to me louder than any words told to me by someone who knows me. I want other people to see and hear themselves get lost in the lyrics and music of the world. Music has the power to bring people together. Music has the power to make people feel less alone. Music has the power to save people. And without music, there would be no me. There would be no girl who is now surrounded by people she loves and cares about. There would be no girl who continues to see the light in the darkest of days even when she feels like she cannot get out. And without the bands in music, there wouldn’t have been no me to save.

All my life it was hard for me to make friends. From a young age I was picked on; to say the least, elementary school kids are brutal. My experience at this young age made me insecure. It made me scared of others. It made me feel alone. And going into middle school was honestly really scary. Lucky me, I was able to latch onto my handful of friends I had from elementary school to have them help me make new friends. But the same cannot be said for going into high school. I went to a different school than them. To say the least, I didn’t want to go to class. I just didn’t want to be at the school at all. I felt alone like I couldn’t talk to anyone like no one wanted to talk to me. This took me, someone who previously did not care what they got as long as they passed, to obsess over my grades being perfect. I thought if I can’t control my social life and the loneliness filled inside of me, I might as well try to control something. I knew doing this wouldn’t fix my problem, but I always used emotion-focused coping. Deflecting from one problem started to fix the other for a temporary amount of time. Eventually, though, I was able to start stepping out of my comfort zone and talking to more people. They didn’t get to know much about me quickly, but they got somewhere. I made friends. But I still was obsessing over my grades. Everything needed to be perfect. It became hard to see grades as just a number and not life or death for my future. Although losing my friends I thought would have forever made me work harder, it wasn’t for the best. Still today, it’s hard on me to get anything but an A on a grade. It takes a lot out of me. But, at least now I do have more social skills and have moved past my insecurities and fear of others through the people I met along the way.

Social media has quickly become the easiest and most efficient way of ensuring a voice is heard. As a Native American girl, I've seen and felt sympathy for the events and actions of the world by putting myself in the shoes of the victims and by seeing it firsthand myself. If given the opportunity to influence a prominent social issue, I would use outreach via social media to bring influence and knowledge on issues. To start off, no one (unless they have already done immense amounts of research) can properly and effectively talk about an issue's full impact on the people it is harming. I would start by doing research making sure I am as educated as possible and looking at different perspectives to make sure I am on the right side of justice, all this to create a well-off base of knowledge. Then slowly working to incorporate key details and facts to be more knowledgeable about the situation going on. The occurrences pushing the social issues are important to understand when wanting change since being able to speak effectively and correctly knowing full on that you are not using a facade of an answer brings confidence in the ability to lead and influence other people through the wisdom of words. The impact is important, and knowing how the harm that causes a movement ensures that you can get more people to join in on the cause for the better than ignore the situation altogether through the lack of understanding you can give them. With knowing the full impact and effects that the social movement is founded on, I will then turn to social media where millions of people in a short amount of time will have the opportunity to view and interact with my post. Especially using hashtags and keywords on sites like Twitter during the social movement on the issue will make it easy to ensure my voice is being heard. Educating people on the topic while pushing an agenda is the most effective and useful tool in ensuring there is a prominent influence to bring a rally of people on the side of justice. Bringing equality and a voice to all people alike. Social media can push the words to people outside your city, outside your state, outside your country, outside your entire continent, where an interest group can be formed petitioning and lobbying people that have the bigger voice in government to make a change. Social media is impactful in this way where we can all be connected and work for a better cause pushing the social issue into a movement into something even bigger where people are seen. Through social media, social influence on issues can easily be seen and targeted to collect large masses of groups to ensure that all people alike are given the equality and justice they deserve. Educating people on the issue and its causes gives them ways they can help, connecting a community and bringing light to all my fellow brothers and sisters who couldn't speak for themselves where they will one day see the change.

Music is a voice to reach all people. Through the intensity, emotion, and understanding of not only the lyrics and talented voice behind the singing, but the instrumentals and background vocals as well. Factors like these convey an experience that no other form of voice can. It takes all this and the meaning of the lyrics themselves to create an inspiring song. In "Hold On Till May" by Pierce The Veil featuring Lindsey Stamey through the story the lyrics and the music create, I have been inspired to continue on with life and move forward. The title of the song itself is a way for Pierce The Veil to talk to all their fans and tell them to wait till May, to hold on till then, and when May comes, to continue on for another May. Referencing to not commit suicide and things get better as you wait. With the lyrics, themself in the song, Pierce The Veil is talking directly to their fans about how they know what it is like to be in these situations, how everything can lead up to a moment, how lonely you can feel, but how it'll all be okay in the end. The song has inspired me to keep going, holding on till May, when I'm overwhelmed and feel like I just cannot mentally or physically get through the days. The song has inspired me to talk and get help when I need it, not to keep it all in. The song has inspired me to remind myself that I will be okay.