One time, in the fall of 2016 my friend Bailey and I had our first interaction. We had both just moved to Missoula, Montana to start our freshman year of college. As most know, freshman year of college is full of interactions and self exploration. Not fully understanding life without your parents, not knowing who you are- but full of ideas of who you want to be. For both Bailey and I, music was one of the ways we knew how to express ourselves. The night we met, there was a themed party at one of the fraternities. We were both young women with no idea what we were doing in the world. Obviously, we were attending frat parties. We were sitting on a couch in the basement, getting to know each other. We were on a first name basis and my phone rang. The ringtone at the time was “1979” off of MCIS Bailey looked up at me, and just yelled “Smashing Pumpkins? I love that song!” From there, we started one of the most beautiful friendships I could dream of. When you’re young- especially your late teens/early 20’s life can seem so cruel and confusing. Having friends to be there for you, friends that will pick you up when you’re down, friends to tell you to give up on something when it is no longer serving you, are so important. That is what Bailey and I are to each other. Wherever we go in life, we will always have a strong connection. We will always remember our bond through the matching “1979” tattoos we gave each other. 

I thank the brains of the Smashing Pumpkins band members for composing this song, and for forever being a band to hold near to our hearts.