"So guys this is gonna be my last video for a while. I've been invited to go on tour with my boyfriend and his band as they tour through the U.K. with some other awesome bands. I decided that since I won't be posting a new video for quite some time that I should pick a classic song to cover this week, so here's my rendition of Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin."
I double checked that my camera was still recording and my guitar amp was set just how I wanted it to be before pressing play on the song. I had downloaded a version of the song that had no guitar in it so my guitar would really shine through in the video.
The name's NatalieAndy89...well that's my YouTube username anyways. My real name is Natalie Anderson and I've been playing guitar ever since I was just a little girl. I was a 6 year old with a dream of being as good as Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix one day, and it was that year that my parents bought me my first guitar. I pretty much haven't set it down in its case for the past 20 years. Sure there's been upgrades and fancier guitars since then, but I'll always have my first one with me as a reminder of being young and having huge dreams.
And boy, did some of my wildest dreams come true. In the past 7 years since becoming a bit of a famous Youtube guitarist, I've had the opportunity of being invited to play with Metallica, Of Mice & Men and even Asking Alexandria for a few songs as well! And that's not even the whole list! And it's all because I started up my YouTube page and posted myself playing guitar covers sometimes as frequently as once a week. Hard work certainly can pay off.
Led Zeppelin sure had a huge fan base worldwide so I hoped that I was honoring their song just right. Once I was finished playing, I said a quick goodbye message then stopped the recording.
"Hey, are you all done packing?" My boyfriend Jack appeared beside me, bringing along a cup of coffee to me. Yes, my boyfriend is Jack Barakat from All Time Low. And yes, us both having a huge passion for playing guitar was the reason we met in the first place about 2 and a half years ago. Essentially, I posted a guitar cover of their song The Reckless and the Brave and somehow the band came across it online, Jack apparently freaked out about how good I was, then all of a sudden I had an email from them saying that when they were in town I was on their guest list. How we ended up friends, then dating, then sharing an apartment in New York City? It's all part of our history.
"Yep! I'm all set, I'm just going to post this video and I'll be all ready!" I replied, happiness clear in my voice that I was able to tag along on their tour. "Are you feeling the nerves yet?" I asked as he sat down on the chair beside me.
"Not quite. I'm sure they'll hit all of us a few minutes before we go on stage for the first night of tour. We've never played a headlining stadium show before, it'll be a thrill though. I'm stoked...and I'm happy that you'll be there too" he added with a wink at the end.
A few minutes later, I got a notification that my video was uploaded completely. Once I put my laptop in my suitcase, Jack and I waited patiently (Jack more impatient than me) by our door for when our taxi would arrive to take us to the airport.
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A few days into the All Time Low stadium tour and things were going great for the first handful of shows. Sure there were slight technical difficulties occasionally but the band always made a joke of it and the fans didn't seem to mind.
Tonight's show was at the O2 Academy in Birmingham. Just about 3000 people would be packed into the venue watching the band play.
"Hey Nat, come help me stretch" Jack got my attention less than 5 minutes before they were set to go on.
"Stretches? Like what?" I inquired.
"For example, I gotta do squats to strengthen my legs, and I don't wanna do them alone." He said confidently.
