3.5 Andy "A Glimpse Towards My Wildest Dreams"

I've always dreamed about being a musician and being in a band, going on tour, and playing gigs with my best friends.  Two years ago, that goal became my reality.  I worked towards my goals of playing guitar and joining a band since I was 16 years old.  After years of playing guitar in my bedroom and dreaming about playing the music I love in front of people, that dream came true two years ago on the day we first embarked on our own tour.

When my band went on our first independent tour, we packed our gear in a Ford Econoline van and traveled to Chicago, New York City, and Milwaukee.  On the first day of the tour, we opened up for bands that we looked up to and are currently signed to larger independent labels.

The day we left on that tour will be one that I will always remember.  I'll never forget waking up early and meeting my band mates in Minneapolis before we embarked.  Our van was packed so tight and we became so much closer as friends after the tour was over.  The day we left, we were forced to talk more as friends and not just band mates.  There will always be incredibly nostalgic and memorable moments because I gained a true sense of accomplishing the things I always dreamed of in my teenage years.  Whether or not we are a popular band, that day meant the world to me because it left a mark in me that I accomplished something because I worked hard and focused on it until it became my reality.

Before my band accomplished this goal, we had all met by chance when starting the band.  After spontaneously running into someone at a guitar lesson, who is now my best friend, we bonded over our similar tastes in music and longing to play in a band.  We teamed up to start a band by recording demos, finding a drummer, lead guitarist, and vocalist.  After lots of practice, small gigs, and promoting, we became a band.  After about a year of playing local gigs, we gained attraction from nearby punk bands and punk rock social media publishers and got some small recognition in the community.

At the end of that day, we played our first show of the tour in Chicago in front of about 60 people and opened up for a band we looked up to.  That first day of our tour reminded us that we were all in this as a team.  Whether it was budgeting our money for food and gas, driving the van, giving directions, etc...we become much closer as friends and learned some great lessons as working musicians.