"You had thought I forgot, huh?" - guy from SickAnimation's "Sean Jared"

OH BUDDY I NEVER FORGET MY FAVORITE TIME OF THE YEAR...

ദ്ദി๑>؂•̀๑) JAMUARY 2025 ദ്ദി๑>؂•̀๑)

THATS RIGHT LADIES AND GERMS! JAMUARY 2025 IS OFFICALLY ON THIS COMING YEAR

But, as always, I'm sure some of you might have some questions....SO LETS GET TO ANSWERING!

WHAT THE FLIP IS JAMUARY???

Jamuary is a month-long celebration of the music creation process! Over the course of the month of January, musicians are challenged to create AN ORIGINAL SONG EACH AND EVERY SINGLE DAY!

THAT SOUNDS DIFFICULT!

IT IS!

However, the purpose of Jamuary isn't to make you feel bad that you can't complete the challenge. Instead, it's a self-imposed challenge to push yourself to your limits and hone your skill in the craft of musicianship! Been meaning to get better at mixing? Wanting to get better at song structure? Just trying to hop in and teach yourself how to create music from the ground up? JAMUARY is the time to do it!

SO WHAT DO I WIN

Jamuary isn't about winning or losing, it's about improving your craft and letting yourself go from any sort of inhibitions when it comes to music! It's the time for you to take those strides you otherwise wouldn't have or discover what you're capable of when you remove all other things holding you back in favor of creating literally AS MUCH MUSIC AS YOU ARE HUMANLY CAPABLE OF CREATING!

The overall goal is that, by the end of Jamuary, you will have at least ONE new song that you can look back on! Even if you don't complete a song every single day, don't feel bad! If you were able to exercise your creative muscle in some way, shape or form, gain newfound confidence in your abilities, or even just jump onto the music train for the first time, THAT IS SOMETHING THAT YOU SHOULD BE IMMENSELY PROUD OF!

This event is open to ANYONE who wants to participate! There is no prize, ranking, or end goal other than to CREATE!

i did a copy and paste from last year because im lazy and im typing this on my

📱͜ (ᵔ ̮ ᵔ)› CELL PHONE 📱͜ (ᵔ ̮ ᵔ)›

ANYWAYS

Be sure to try your best and, as usual, try to push yourself to do the things you've been putting off! Experiment, play, enjoy, whatever you want to do, JAMUARY IS THE TIME TO DO IT!

JAMUARY 2025 will begin promptly at 12am on January 1st and end just as promptly after January 31st!

Be sure to tag your posts with "jamuary2025" to make things easier to track! I'll be setting up a BBS post where people can discuss, ask questions, and share the tracks they've made each day! Also make sure you check out the submissions each day and support your fellow "Jamuariers" :)

Anyways, I'm in south East Asia and it's WARM and I'm SWEATING my darn TUCKUS OFF!!!!!

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! EXCITED TO SEE WHAT WE ALL COOK UP THIS YEAR!

"teach a man to fish a man can eat feed a fish for a day" - Ancient Mesopotamian Bullshit

I'm back home now after a quick trip out to the NYC/NJ nexus that is North Jersey. I haven't really gathered my thoughts yet, so please excuse any rambling that might pop up in here.

First things first, @brandybuizel I am insanely proud of you for putting together what is now the largest Newgrounds event to have happened thus far. 350 attendees is no small feat, and the fact you and your team of pals (all of whom I am just proud of, though I do NOT have a list of all of you) made things happen almost FLAWLESSLY blows my mind. Very very very excited to see what you come up with in the future, and not just in terms of meetups!

This whole event was, as most are these days for me, completely surreal. This one in particular, though, had tons of little moments that really helped it to stand out from ones previous that I'll talk about a bit more later. But it all sort of hit me when I was standing outside of the venue with @jack, @goodboyethan, @stormydew, and a few other folks that I now realize I never asked to get the usernames of. I remember standing there and suddenly realizing that in my excitement to have seen these 12 or so people, I had only just met a fraction of those that would later be in attendance.

Soon, it was time for setup and I was running around, slowly watching the crowd outside grow as time went on until the clock finally hit 3pm.

SO much was going on and it was hard for me to keep track of everything. I remember doing a couple sketches, trading cards with people, drawing my lil robot guy in books and on objects, among other things. The entire venue was abuzz with life and, despite my nerves, I did my best to talk to as many folks as I could.

While a lot of this is still a blur in my head (and I'm sure looking at pictures will help me sort everything out), there were several moments that stood out.

First was having @geokureli approach me and say "I still listen to BURY". If you've ever heard me talk about my creative process or my music, you'll know that I tend not to think about things once I put them out. But for some reason, that project has had a very weird way of popping back up in my life every so often and always seems to catch me a bit off-guard. George, I want you to know that I very very very much appreciate you and I'm insanely glad that BURY has had enough impact on you that you still go back and listen to it, specifically New Tones. Also, you're a very talented developer!!!! I don't recall if I had said that to you but I wanted to tell you after seeing and hearing about all your work on Tankmas and other projects I've seen your name pop up on around here!! I'm excited to see what you'll crank out in the future! Keep up the great work pal and I hope we run into each other again! (Maybe I'll know more about gamedev by then too!)

The next had to have been when I finally got a chance to talk with @milkypossum about music after running into her at other meetups and only ever saying "Hi" as we were both heading somewhere. Her, @connorgrail, and I all talked shop about music and production and creativity and it was so so so so so so so so refreshing to level with folks like that again. It's been such a long time since I've talked about music production instead of music and I appreciated every single minute of that interaction. Connor, Milky, you guys are LOVELY and TALENTED and I am very excited to see what you two have in store!

Last, the biggest moments were probably from the screening portion of the event. I don't know who chose the animations to get shown (I'm assuming it was you Brandon), but seeing the "At The Docks" music video by @staggernight was pretty wild to see (especially getting to see @heyopc 's big bald head jumpscare at the end of it). Though, as great as that was, it was when the Summer Loving Collab started and I heard my song "summer breeze" start to play that I was a bit speechless to say the least. Up until this meetup, I can't really say I've ever seen anything I've made on that sort of scale. Yes, the Summer Loving Collab was huge, don't get me wrong, but there's something mystical about getting to see something you worked on being screened in front of a crowd in a theater.

I ran up and sat behind @brolyng, @jack, @owen, @leroyalmess, @magibauble, and a few other people that I couldn't see in the dark and all I could say to them is "My song is playing". I don't really know how to describe the feeling, but it was somewhere between excitement, fear, and appreciation. Brandon had mentioned he would be playing a couple of my tracks, too, but I guess that kind of made it more real to hear.

I love Newgrounds. I love this community. I love getting to be unabashedly creative and being able to do the things I love without the pressure of success. I love that I can share my passions with people who just get it and are just as passionate for what they do. With everyone I talked to at the meetup (as usual, too many for me to properly remember but I'll do my best), I could feel and see the joy and excitement they had to create and show off their creations. From the folks showcasing games (@pukebomb, @bill, @spinalpalm, @squidly, @dungeonation), to the people talking, sketching, wandering, and enjoying, it's events and communities like these that only make me want to create MORE. It's meeting people I've known but only just met in person (@DrEojPuerte, @Cheetoh, @GoodBoyEthan, @GeoKureli, @nicksenny, @milkypossum, @captainstevie, @tamag0), getting to see some old faces (@brandybuizel, @coby, @jack, @owen, @linethickness, @broly, @hekdiggity, @luis, @mindchamber, @tomfulp, @playblast, @houndkids, @ant, @cartersterling, @connorgrail, @karlestonchew, @anislug, @cortat-g, @jaster, @sirlenward, @kolani, @girziggler, @teravex, @ninjamuffin99, @thedyingsun, @nihaho), and getting to meet new ones (@mrschmoods, @leroyalmess, @emperorkatuunuxvi, @caustic, @stormydew (and her BF!), @indigo-bluez, @srpelo, @krinkels, @yendorng and a few non-NG folks!).

If I don't have you listed, please let me know in the comments if we talked or met, even if it was briefly, and I can update the list!

Excited to continue watching this community grow and for the meet ups to grow along with it! Hope to see and meet more of you in the future!

Anyways, I say all this because i think we should stop being creative. im never making anything funny or good again. im oinyl going to make bad art from now on and im never leaving my house to meet anyone eever again, even if theres a fire.

Long Live Newgrounds!

Hey everyone! Did my write up in the Jamuary 2024 thread so check it out here!

Big thanks to everyone who participated and big proud too! I don't wanna repeat myself here too much, but I love seeing people embrace music and grow their skills. Hope to see some of you next year alongside some new faces!

Have a great year everyone!

Hello again

Yesterday was a strange Christmas for me. I had just gotten back from a long drive at around 3am, and was rushing to finish wrapping the gifts that had arrived while I was out of town. I rushed to where my family was meeting with the rest of the gifts and we were finally able to get things started. Seeing my family together along with my nieces and nephews was such a sight to behold; lots of people all getting together and exchanging gifts big and small (I got a kick ass new espresso machine....thanks Mom & Dad!)

Compared to last year, I'm doing so much better. My head is clearer, I feel calmer, and I'm generally in a better state and place (granted, a bit burnt out from the latter end of the year. But for good reason!); I was just doing a bit more reflecting and future thinking I suppose.

I am incredibly thankful and honored to be in the position I am now. I'm hosting NGP with my buds @Shal, @Owen, and @Cortat-G, entering my second year of living on my own with my lovely cats and my freaking RAD roommate, and just generally doing a lot better. I have all my fantastic, lovely friends around me (I would list them all but there are LOTS of you), and I'm part of a community that I genuinely love with every fiber of my being. While things ain't perfect, I'm probably in the best state I've been in a good long while and I can't express just how thankful I am to be here!

I know I'm gushing but I just gotta get this all out there haha

I'm pretty beat after spending essentially a week driving all over the place, so I this post won't be too much longer, but thank you to my friends, family, and all the people in the NG community who have helped to make this year great and special! Between the meetups and FINALLY GETTING TO SEE THE OFFICE (shout out @TomFulp, @JohnnyUtah, @SpazKid), I'm really feeling like myself again after a good long while.

I am absolutely stoked for JAMUARY and to hear all the amazing music that's gonna come out of that. I'm also excited for all the potential meetups that might be going on next year too! Beyond that, I'm just happy to be more engaged with everything again and to see what that'll lead to in 2024!

Shout out NG, shout out everyone. Much love as always.

Here's to an amazing 2024!

-Droid

"A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it."

-Jean de La Fontaine

OH WE ARE SO FREAKING READY THIS YEaR

FOLKS WE ARE SOON TO CROSS THE EVENT HORIZON INTO............

!!JAMUARY 2024!!

THAT'S RIGHT BABYS AND GERMS ITS ALMOST TIME FOR EVERYONES ONLY FAVORITE MONTH OF FUN JOY AND LAUGHTER....JAMUARY!

STOP YELLING

!NO!

WHAT THE FLIP IS JAMUARY???

Jamuary is a month-long celebration of the music creation process! Over the course of the month of January, musicians are challenged to create AN ORIGINAL SONG EACH AND EVERY SINGLE DAY!

THAT SOUNDS DIFFICULT!

IT IS!

However, the purpose of Jamuary isn't to make you feel bad that you can't complete the challenge. Instead, it's a self-imposed challenge to push yourself to your limits and hone your skill in the craft of musicianship! Been meaning to get better at mixing? Wanting to get better at song structure? Just trying to hop in and teach yourself how to create music from the ground up? JAMUARY is the time to do it!

SO WHAT DO I WIN

Jamuary isn't about winning or losing, it's about improving your craft and letting yourself go from any sort of inhibitions when it comes to music! It's the time for you to take those strides you otherwise wouldn't have or discover what you're capable of when you remove all other things holding you back in favor of creating literally AS MUCH MUSIC AS YOU ARE HUMANLY CAPABLE OF CREATING!

The overall goal is that, by the end of Jamuary, you will have at least ONE new song that you can look back on! Even if you don't complete a song every single day, don't feel bad! If you were able to exercise your creative muscle in some way, shape or form, gain newfound confidence in your abilities, or even just jump onto the music train for the first time, THAT IS SOMETHING THAT YOU SHOULD BE IMMENSELY PROUD OF!

This event is open to ANYONE who wants to participate! There is no prize, ranking, or end goal other than to CREATE!

JAMUARY 2024 will promptly begin on the 1st of January and will run all the way until the end of the month! To participate, make ANY MUSIC AT ALL! Experience, quality, and skill level DO NOT MATTER. As long as you are indulging in the joy of creativity....

!!!!YOU ARE DOING JAMUARY RIGHT!!!!

SO MARK THOSE CALENDARS AND PREPARE YOURSELVES! AND TO PARTICIPATE, MAKE A SONG AND TAG IT WITH "JAMUARY2024"!! (oh and also post anything you make in our Jamuary thread ((RIGHT HERE)) so that we have a little place to chat and see each others work :) )

So tell your friends! Tell your family! I'm extremely excited to see what we will all create this year! Best of luck to everyone and most importantly....

!!HAVE FUN!!

oh and also if you have any questions please feel free to ask in the thread below or shoot me a message and i WILL do my darndest to get back to you (unless someone else gets back to you first!)

LONG LIVE NEWGROUNDS AND THE INDOMITABLE HUMAN SPIRIT

I think new grounds should implmement a new social credit system. it will let you buy nice apartments and cars if it is high but you will be a pariah and everyone will shun you if it is low. what do you guys think? let me know your thoughts in the comments below and have ablessed day :)

edit: If I missed you in this post, let me know below and I'll add you!

It's crazy how much things have changed in a year.

Around this time in 2022, I was going through a lot of things when I first went to Toronto. I didn't really know what to expect aside from meeting tons of folks I had never met before and hoping that I would enjoy myself.

Well everyone, to say I enjoyed myself would be an understatement.

Long story short, hearing that I'd get to go back and see all those lovely, fantastic people again I absolutely could not pass up the opportunity.

And so, that brings us to Toronto 2023!

Man, this year was even better than the last. More people, more fun, and I had been waiting for so long to see all my Toronto buds again.

@Luis, @Crashtroid, @Teravex, and I all stayed at the same hotel this year; right next door to where we met up last year, College Park. Later, I ended up finding out that @BrandyBuizel was staying at the same place too because he texted me the address of his hotel. The first couple days were full of meandering and exploring the streets of Downtown Toronto, interspliced with getting to see some folks like @spicycoffee, @octopus58, @demifrog, @wandaboy, @ninjamuffin99, @aza210, @arkoirisangel, @connorgrail, @funpix, @snackers, @drype, and @cadaver, among others! I don't exactly remember who all I saw the days before the meet, but it was a pleasure regardless!

I also got the chance to see my pal @manlypotato aka Pot again after him, @RickSteubens, and their other friend Quinn stopped by my place a couple weeks before the meetup :) I really missed having Rick around but he was too busy moving appliances around his house for fun.

I also got to see @pollyanoid who I MISSED and was OVERJOYED to see again !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Day of the meet was absolutely ridiculous! We showed up to Christie Pits park and saw that there was another group of art school students who had set up shop and were setting up some fashion stuff right next to the meetup. They were bumping some sweet music that really added to the ambiance, so I allowed it.

There were so many folks haha. I can't even begin to tell you how many there were, but there were at least 10 there. Here are some of the names I remember running into in no particular order:

@Alexmigo, @Thell1, @Coby, @vhsdreamland (who makes SICK art), @gachakoi, @JacksonTime, @Ryychii, @goberryyogurt (who I distinctly remember as being the first person I ran into), @aaron-long, @punkape, @wailer, @nothanytpm, @postboy, @bobbyburt, @elikapika and others!

I know for a fact there were tons others I talked to but my memory is bad and I was frankly overwhelmed but it was amazing getting to see so many people and even better getting to talk to them all!

After this, it was time for the theater screening where we got to see tons of NG animations! It's always nice seeing animations, but it was even better seeing them on a huge screen!

Mister Muffin doing a big talking

Hell

Here's a playlist of the animations that were screened:

After the screening it was bar takeover (a recurring staple of the Newgrounds meetup) where this time we did NOT get kicked out :) More mingling was done and I got a ton of folks to doodle in my Nespresso-Machine-Manual-Turned-Sketchbook. Lots of fun was had and lots of neat little memories made :)

he pour da syurp

Really, the last couple days were for recovery and resting. I got to hang out more with my buddies @luis, @brandybuizel, @Crashtroid, and @TeraVex, not to mention lots of the same folks I saw the days before the meetup. Getting to explore Toronto a bit more has only made me want to move there even more (though I would have to figure out the whole housing thing. Or maybe not.)

I don't want to keep gushing every time I make one of these posts, but I really do love this community so much! I've made so many amazing friendships and gotten to hang out and rub shoulders with even more amazing people. I hope that meetups like this only continue to grow and that the community keeps getting bigger and better. It's so full of incredible and amazing people and I WILL get to know EACH AND EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM! Some day!!!!!

Miss everyone from the meetup and really hope to see you all again at the next one!

Long Live Newgrounds!

I finally have a second to sit down and write this!

Every time I go to a Newgrounds meetup, I'm always blown away at the number of people that show up to support. The love for art and creativity this community has never ceases to make my tiny frail heart smile, especially since I get to keep meeting more and more of you :)

I wish I had the foresight to write down the names of everyone I met, but I did not and I suck with names, so if you see this post and we met up please feel free to comment!

First off, shout out to the worms. I love you all and it's always awesome getting to meet up with you guys!

@JohnnyUtah, @IvanAlmighty, @SpazKid thanks for hosting us at the office and awesome to finally meet some of the people who helped build this site and community into what it is now! Visiting the office and talking to the OGs was such an unreal experience and a huge dream fulfilled! Also, I'm very excited to see Nightmare Cops when it's finished because the WIP version is insanely fun!

@mindchamber Super great meeting you even if it was pretty brief!!! I had no idea you'd even be around but I hope to see you again sometime!

@phantomarcade, @elitemastereric, @moawling this was my first time meeting all of you and it was super cool to finally say hi! I know youre all working hard and I'm excited to see what you've all been cooking up!!

@kawaiisprite I was completely geeked seeing you! I've always been impressed with your music and it was nice getting to shoot the shit about production, life, etc. Very excited to see what else you have cooking up!

@ninjamuffin99 I am stealing your identity!!!

@luis man it's always great getting to hang out and shoot the shit. Excited for Toronto where I'm sure we will no doubts be making our usual backup plans and finding random bars from relatively niche tv shows!

@cortat-g absolute madman for putting this meetup together! I will only ever have respect for people who will voluntarily spend their time making sure things go off without a hitch. I hope you got all the rest you needed and hoping to see more of you in the future!!

@drewpballs I know we didn't talk much but awesome meeting you and thanks for all the work you put in to the meetup and bowling! Hoping to see you at future meetups!

@emizip, @ant, @Eugenedoesart Thank you for helping me complete the scavenger hunt! I loved talking about the NG community and your experiences within it! Im hoping we can meet up again and talk a bit more about whatever!

Emi, you had an amazing Ena cosplay!

Ant, I am waiting for Eat Laganya to drop :)

@PKettles, @Hibachi ABSOLUTELY AMAZING WORK ON THE POSTERS AND STICKERS!!!! It was great getting to talk with you and get to know you both more! Keep in touch!!!

@Broly Wanda had talked so much about you and finally meeting you was like meeting an urban legend :)

@Kekiiro It was great meeting you! Like with Cory, it's always cool meeting people who are putting time into organizing community events and you were no exception! Wish we could have talked more but also there were a lot of people haha. Excited to see ya around!

@Jonathan Holy shit, man it was surreal seeing you again. 2016 seems like an eternity ago now and I had absolutely no idea that I'd even run into you again. Reconnecting absolutely made the meetup for me and I'm so happy to hear that you're doing well after all this time. We absolutely need to meet up again and please keep me updated on your progress with the NG thing you were thinking of setting up!

@nihaho Wild meeting you! Bridge Kids rocks and I'm excited to see what else yo make going forward. Was also nice getting yo talk about creative philosophies and whatnot. Thanks for the stickers!!!

@mkmaffo MAF!!!!!! Hanging at the Airbnb and chatting about life was a change in energy that I needed haha. I'm always the oldest around all these NG whippersnappers and sometimes forget that there actually are people who have a similar perspective on things that I do. Really hoping we can hang out more and that I can get over to Italy sometime soon! I'm honored that my ragu and spaghetti lived up to your standards :)

@raviolibox Super great finally getting to meet you!!!!!! We didn't have a ton of time to chat, but glad to finally put a face to the name! Hope we can meet at another meetup in the future and I hope the NGP guys were as grotesque as you hoped!

@the-swain Thank you for organizing karaoke!!!! Wish we had a chance to talk a bit more but awesome getting to meet you IRL regardless! Your version of Under the Sea id ingrained in my brain :)

@thedyingsun It was great seeing you again!!!! I know we didnt talk much this time around but it's always great running into ya. No doubts I'll see you again!

@girziggler Charlie it was so good to finally meet you, I'm a huge fan :)

@sirlenward It was sick seeing you!!!!! You're one of the first people I got a chance to interact with when I got back into NG, so getting to see you was awesome!! Please keep up the amazing work and hope to see you again!

@Bacun I knew you were coming but it was still a surprise getting to see you lol. You kept it so low key that when I saw your nametag I had to do a double take! You are cool and chill and I'm looking forward to continuing to post "Bacun :)" on motr of your art :)

@Spinalpalm, @bill Your game rocks and you both rock amd we WILL see each other again :)

@vividlance IT WAS GREAT MEETING YOU!!!!! I was so happy to hear that #Jamuary helped you get more confident with posting your music! Please please please keep at it!!!!

@ForgeFrog Wish we could have talked more haha. We kept running into one another but I was either on the move or ended up getting distracted lol. I'm glad you enjoy what I do and honestly I'm really bad at responding when people tell me stuff like that!!!

@d-slick, @sageisreal, @K1D, @evil-sora, @slimygoo, @docng, @anislug, @msghero, @dungeonation, @tamag0, @nattosumi AND SO MANY MORE PEOPLE I CAN'T REMEMBER THE NAMES OF BECAUSE I SUCK AT REMEMBERING NAMES SO PLEASE LMK IF WE MET BECAUSE CHANCES ARE WE DID

Finally, @TomFulp I know I've said it a million times, but thanks for not losing your roots in NG. It's insane that you've kept this place going and continue to be involved when you just as easily could have called it quits. Thanks for everything you do and I can't even describe how cool it was getting to meet you in person and getting to see the office!!!!! Hope to see you in Toronto and grab a beer with Luis or something!

I love this community so much. Never could I have ever imagined I'd meet so many genuine folks who have the same passion for creating things for the sake of creating things. It never ceases to blow my mind seeing the talent that continues to come out of it and I have no doubts that there will continue to be more and more people that continue to make this place thrive.

Anyhow, see you all again soon! Come say hi if you're in Toronto!!!!

LONG LIVE NEWGROUNDS!!!

And just like that, another year gone.

Coming off the initial impact of the pandemic and into what I thought was going to be the start of a "recovery" period ended up being one of the most difficult times in my life. It's been a wild time. Lots happened that I wasn't expecting. I moved out, started a new job, dealt with a lot of difficult emotions, among the usual day-to-day life happenings.

I wish I had some kind of lesson I could be leaving this year with but to be honest there is still a lack of resolution that is keeping that from happening. The reality is that I will be coming into 2023 with the mindset of what feels truly like an adult and leaving whatever version of me was there before behind. It's strange to be honest. Feeling like I am really starting to get older. Not in the "man I'm so old" sort of way, but more of the "I have so many more things I have to be responsible for" sort of way. I think my brain is just trying to get on with things while there's another part of me that is still having a hard time letting go. Either way, life goes on.

Even with the strangeness of all that, I still have so so many people to thank for the good that's happened throughout all last year. Starting off, I got to meet a ton of cool folks in Denver, CO, along with finally getting to stay with a ton of long time pals. Poptaffy made a really freaking sweet piece of art to commemorate it here, but here it is if you're lazy:

The whole event even inspired me to write a song that you can listen to here.

After that, I got the chance to go up to New York and meet up with Taterman, Ninjamuffin, PlayBlast, and their roommates. We skulked around downtown and did a whole lot of walking along with getting to see the battleship that was sinking in the lake. From what I know they've since fixed it and all is right with the world. Amen.

Soon after, it was up to Toronto where I again got to see Taterman, Ninjamuffin, and PlayBlast, along with a whole cast of whacky fun NG folks for the Toronto 2022 Meet. Luis and I stayed at a hostel with was pretty freaking rad and we also did a lot of walking and subway riding. It was awesome finally getting to meet him irl and let me tell you he is a blast to be around. I had a great time chatting and hearing about all the other meets he's been to, along with some forbidden Newgrounds knowledge I cannot share, lest Tom boots me from the website. There was a lot of drinking to be done and many a bar to be kicked out of that Cam did a great job recounting here. All in all, I am very thankful for all the folks I got to meet there and I so badly want to get back to Toronto ASAP. Miss u Canadians </3

The rest of the year was a bit slow but eventually I got to meet back up with Poptaffy. We had a cool little roadtrip and now he won't leave my house. It's been two months and he insists on eating my food, drinking my wine, and even bought some furniture. When I told him "Make yourself at home" I didn't think he would take it so literally. I will continue playing along for now, but I cannot help but feel that my life may be in danger. Perhaps there is a plot I am wholly unaware of that is unfolding in the background. Perhaps I am overthinking. In either case, further observation is required.

And lest I forget, the music of the year.

Despite my lack of production and releases, I do think this was one of the more important years for me in terms of music. Yes, I have not really released much, but what I did release I wholeheartedly think is some of the best work I have ever done. Not because it's going to be winning me any awards any time soon, but because I was able to channel a lot into what I created. A lot of the music I created this year was full of very raw and real emotions that I don't think I am able to revisit even if I wanted to. Not without the right catalyst anyways. It all culminated in me releasing my first full length album BURY, of which I am incredibly proud. The fact that it has resonated on some level with so many people means the world to me. As many of you who were in Toronto or Denver know, I am insanely passionate about music and art and the work that goes into it. I won't share all my thoughts on that here, but if you were unfortunate enough to be around me once I got started talking about it all then you know what I'm talking about. Maybe one of these days I'll do a write up on it. Maybe not.

Anyways I feel like I've said too much so I'll end it here. Much love to all the amazing and talented folks I've gotten to meet this year. Much love to all the folks who have decided to give me a follow too. I've never seen myself as particularly remarkable, but if what I am doing has brought any sort of meaning to your life then I am more than happy to keep doing it. The fact any of you even care enough to follow what I do means the absolute world to me and every day I am thankful for the position I have found myself in.

So friends, family, followers, thank you all so so much for your support and love. Younger me would be losing his head right now if he could know where things were headed. Older me can't find the words to describe just how much I appreciate everything. I hope to keep the ball going and to keep making more for you all, so stick around if you'd like.

See you all in 2023!

-Droid

HEY THERE PARTY PEOPLE! IT'S ALMOST THAT TIME AGAIN!

TIME FOR JAMUARY 2023!!!

That's right! It's time for all you musicianfolk to put your skills to the test and see if you can spend a whole month creating a new song....

every....

single...

DAY!!

How do I join?

It's easy! Starting on January 1st, all you have to do is set some time aside and try to create a new song every day for the month of January! For every day you create a song, post it on Newgrounds and tag with JAMUARY2023! Also, support others taking part and be sure to check out the tag every day!

Is that really all?

Yeah! Being that it's a personal challenge, it's entirely on you to see if you can keep up! If you do it, then awesome! If not, then still awesome! All that matters is you put time into improving yourself!

So what's the point if I can't win anything?

Jamuary is all about self development and pushing yourself to your limits! It's a fantastic way to up your music skills and really push to better yourself! The fun is in seeing what you come up with in a time crunch and, as I have personally found, the excitement of seeing what you can come up with!

I hope that you all decide to come along on this journey for self improvement with me!

Happy Jamuary 2023! Best of luck and see you again in a couple weeks!