Dear house in the sand,
It's your 6th birthday.
Six years ago I sat down with the little Internet knowledge I had and created this blog via Google.
You were started out of pure admiration for music and the need to tell stories and share images.
I didn't know what I was doing but you've helped me figure it out.
You've helped me create my own path.
This first version of you looked nothing like you do today - so I guess puberty did you well.
One thing that has never changed though, is the love for music which you present.
And I grew up with you.
I grew up somewhere between the Internet and the music industry.
When I started this, I was 15 and I didn't quite know where I belonged back then.
You became my online home and to this day I feel like I can escape whenever I produce content for you.
There were a few artists and managers who saw potential in this and they've allowed us to take our first steps while guiding us with so much support and teaching us so much about the industry.
And a few became a lot,
PR agencies and (major) labels found us
- and soon we got to do "the big shit".
And I'll admit, some of the big opportunities came before I was ready for them,
but that's never been an issue because of the helping hands and warming words.
The one thing that I would never want to miss again, is the beauty of connecting with like minded people.
There is a sense of community in this part of the entertainment industry and that has helped me so much.
I still can't wrap my head around the fact that some of the artists I've featured over the years are now some of my close friends, are friends who let me stay in their homes, who show my around their home towns.
I couldn't imagine doing this without having such personal connections to so many of the people I get to work with.
Dear house in the sand,
You taught me how to create, develop, fail and start again.
No matter how many times I've hit a wall, you've always opened another door.
I've learned how to write, how to host interviews, how to develop different types of features for different effects, I found my voice, I found my future.
I've learned how to not set my laptop on fire whilst working on HTML and video editing
and I learned that if you're genuine, you'll always be fine.
And from day one we've had music fans on this journey with us who listened to the music we've shared,
who recommended their favourite tracks to us and who have realised the importance in supporting music blogs.
They've allowed us to be the source for music we've wanted to be.
We got to be their friends and got to bring incredible music into their headphones.
Out of all the things we've achieved so far,
the fact that we've featured a big variety of music makes me the happiest.
We found songs that made us laugh, cry and dance, and we heard stories that left us speechless.
And I'm so proud of that.
Dear house in the sand,
Thank you for six years of being my home.
Love,
Credits // Words, Image & Audio: Vanessa Jertschewske