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I turn 39 today. ✨🪩

I HAD THIS MOMENT YESTERDAY WHEN I WAS WORKING ON THIS PLAYLIST (BOTH THE ARTWORK AND THE MIX ITSELF) WHERE I WAS THINKING ABOUT ALL OF THE VERSIONS OF ME THAT CAME BEFORE THIS CURRENT ONE, SPECIFICALLY THAT SWEET YOUNG THING THAT STARTED BARFING HER FEELINGS ONTO THE INTERNET ABOUT MUSIC AND COMMUNITY ON 😮‍💨GEOCITIES 😮‍💨 before shit like Napster even existed.

That version of me used to light up at the end of Spaceship Earth at EPCOT when we would go on class field trips, taking in all of the projections for what the future could look like with technological advancements. I distinctly remembering it feeling like a big deal that we were gonna be able to video chat from all over the world one day. Like that was gonna be a monumental moment in the history of humanity.

…Meanwhile these days I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had people accidentally video call me on Instagram. 😂

I thought about all the things I would tell that version of me if I were ever granted the opportunity. That girl would be so excited about all the cool ways we get to connect and share music with each other.

She would also be so proud of how we’ve overcome all of the obstacles that life’s thrown at us and, most importantly, our determination to keep our heart wide open no matter how hurtful experiencing life can be at times.

And that….feels really fucking good. 😎

You know, speaking of video chatting and birthdays, it wasn’t too long ago that we were all forced to have zoom birthday parties. In about 2 weeks it’ll have been officially a year since I had COVID after dodging it for as long as I could. knowing how many people we’ve lost since my first lockdown birthday, I am especially grateful for the ability to be sentimental on the internet with y’all today.

Oh! Ways you can celebrate my life with me today if you feel so inclined:

🙏🏻 take a moment or three to be grateful to be above ground
🪩 throw yourself a little dance party to my cutie bday playlist
🎂 do something nice for yourself
💰 donate to Alzheimer’s Association in honor of #mamakibbe since today was her birthday, too
🤩 all of the above simultaneously (it is possible, we have the technology, and you wouldn’t wanna let little kibbe down, now would you?)

And with that, to quote the incomparable Mike Skinner,

💿“Play the playlist! Play the playlist!” 💿

Love y’all so so so much!