It was December 2008, and Alex’s entire world had been reduced to a 160-gigabyte iPod Classic and a folding chair in the basement of his parents’ house.
The hours melted. The basement grew dark. #22: "Disturbia" by Rihanna. #18: "Love in This Club" by Usher. Each song wasn't just a track; it was a time-stamped photograph. The sticky floors of the club. The smell of cheap vodka. The feeling of a flip phone buzzing in his pocket. The absolute, terrifying, beautiful uncertainty of being young before the economy collapsed. top 100 songs of 2008
He hit 'publish' at 11:47 PM.
He scrolled higher. The middle of the chart was a warzone. #72: "Low" by Flo Rida (feat. T-Pain). He’d heard that song at every single stoplight, every house party, every sad trip to the grocery store. The "Apple Bottom jeans" had become the universal background noise of his senior year. He wrote: This song isn't music. It's a cultural event horizon. It was December 2008, and Alex’s entire world
