Jando Valdez, a 15-year-old sophomore at Appleton North High School, loves music wholeheartedly. He plays the bass, drums, and guitar. When I asked him what first inspired him to experiment in music, his eyes lit up with excitement. “Initially my brother started playing me music, specifically the All American Rejects. That led him to want to play the guitar. He learned, and then after that he wanted to get Guitar Hero World Tour. He wanted me to play with him, so we got the bundle set, and I played the drums. He suggested that I start taking actual lessons and after a few years of lessons, I could actually play.”

“For a while I got bored with it, but then I started listening to Blink-182. I always daydreamed of playing their songs in front of a huge crowd of people. I took my brother’s old guitar, sat in my room and tried to learn how to play every song. Over a few years, I used multiple resources and learned how to play only by the fact that I was playing my favorite songs.” Jando’s favorite song to play by Blink-182 is Carousel. “Music is a hobby for me. It’s hard to make a living in music too. I actually want to be a software developer.”