You lift my heart up when the rest of me is down.

SPOILER: THIS BLOG POST CONTAINS MUSIC THAT MIGHT BE TOO AMAZING FOR SOME LISTENERS. HEADPHONES RECOMMENDED.

I first heard about Sam Smith last winter at a dance convention that my dance team and I attended. Chris Jones choreographed us a jazz/hip hop routine to Sam's collaboration with popular British DJ duo Disclosure. In the months that followed the convention, Sam Smith practically exploded into an international phenomenon. 

His debut studio album, In The Lonely Hour, has reached Top Tens charts in several countries and held the #1 spot in England for four consecutive weeks. His powerful and often emotional vocals have captured the hearts of millions, but never the heart he wants. "In The Lonely Hour," he says, "is an album all about unrequited love." 

Let's kick things off with one of the hottest dance tracks of the summer.

1."Latch" by Disclosure ft. Sam Smith

This next song is one of his most famous and loved singles. 

2. "Stay With Me" 

Be careful listening to this one, the chorus will be stuck in your head for the next 24 hours. Don't say I didn't warn you...

3. "Money On My Mind" 

His slower songs are always my favorites. 

4. "I'm Not The Only One" 

This last song is in my Top Five favorite songs of all time. (Fun fact: This song will be my husband's and my First Dance song!)

5. "Lay Me Down" 

In my opinion, Sam Smith is one of the best artists I've come across in my humble sixteen years. I have a different connection to each of his songs. For this reason, I can never get bored of them. I just keep falling in love with them every time I listen to them. 

Here's a bonus song off of his debut EP, Nirvana. 

Bonus: "Nirvana" 

Guess Who's Back

Back again.

Jordyn's back. Tell a friend. 

It feels good to be back! I've missed typing out the random things that pop into my head.

Because it's been a thousand and ten years since I've blogged, I thought I'd help y'all catch up with what's been going on in my life.

• I have fallen in love with so many new (and old) artists over the summer, so I feel like it's my responsibility to share those artists with you in future blogs.
• I went to the beach for the second time, and though I thoroughly enjoyed the company, I still hate the beach.
• I dyed my hair.
• I still don't have enough band tees.
• I learned that it's important to let things break you.
• I decided to let the little things make me just as happy as the big things. 
• I realized just how #blessed I am to have such amazing friends.
• I started caring about football.
• I am now a Chicago Bears fan. 
• And as much as I want the next year and a half to fly by, I'm cherishing every day I have left before I am out of school and have to be an adult. 

This summer was like one big trust fall exercise for me, and I sort of loved it.

The quote I'll close with really resonated with me and my political standpoints. I was touched by the amount of heartfelt thought that went into writing something like that. With the economy the way it is now, I think it's something we all ought to hear and meditate on. To be honest, it changed my life. Without further ado, here it is...

"20 million other white rappers emerge, but no matter how many fish in the sea it'd be so empty without me." -Eminem