December 26, 2009. A basement bedroom in a suburban house. Posters of Lady Gaga, The Black Eyed Peas, and Kings of Leon on the walls. A clunky desktop computer with iTunes open. A TV tuned to VH1.
The video was all glitz and drama. Mia’s older sister had just come home from college crying over a breakup. They’d played this song on repeat, eating ice cream straight from the carton. For one night, they weren’t fighting—they were just sisters.
Mia smiled. Of course. The song that started it all. The one that leaked into her friend’s iPod touch at a middle school lock-in, and suddenly everyone was jumping on a hotel bed, shouting “ Just dance! Gonna be okay! ” 2009 vh1 top 20
Mia remembered hearing this on a bus ride to a field trip last spring. The way Caleb Followill’s raspy voice cut through her cheap earbuds—it made her feel less alone in a crowd of classmates she didn’t quite fit in with.
Here’s a good story built around the countdown—focusing on the emotional and cultural moment of that specific year in music. Title: The Last Night of the Decade December 26, 2009
She labeled it with a sharpie:
The countdown began.
It was the Saturday after Christmas. Snow fell outside, but inside, 16-year-old Mia sat cross-legged on her carpet, a bowl of popcorn in her lap, watching the VH1 Top 20 Video Countdown —the year-end special. Host Jim Shearer was hyped, his signature energy bouncing off the screen.