Last week we learned that the average person hears their all-time favorite band around the ripe old age of 13 years old. According to the study they’re most influenced by siblings, parents and radio! [full story & podcast]

As the people who work at the radio station now, who were we listening to in 8th grade? Or, what you’ll learn as you scroll down, how did those bands effect who we were and what we wore?

• Jaxon

  AC/DC right around age 12 or 13. I was mesmerized by Angus Young and his energy on stage. Although not at the top of my list any longer, I still have a soft spot for them.

• Nick McIlwain

  When I was 13, my favorite band was Guns N Roses and even though Pearl Jam is my favorite band now, Guns N Roses was definitely the first hard rocking band that I felt like I could call my own. Appetite for Destruction was one of the first 2 CD’s I ever bought (the other was the Rolling Stones’ “Hot Rocks”). Of course, there were other cool bands my parents and radio stations like WMMR introduced me to, but GNR was “for me and MY generation of friends”. They’re no longer in my top 5, but when I was that age, they were the best!

• Kevin ‘Lockdown’ Reardon

  Green Day was my favorite band all through middle and high school. They were the voice of frustrated teens. I would always attempt to copy Billie Joe Armstrong’s haircuts. They are still one of my favorites. Top 2. I will forever and always love the American Idiot album and seeing them at the Spectrum in 2009 was eye opening.
• Casey Boy

  I remember vividly where I heard Guns & Roses for the first time. So much of my musical influences came from my parents and older brother and sister early on...but the first time I ever heard Guns and Roses was inside my classroom at OLPH. Dan Loughry brought in Appetite for Destruction on cassette and let me listen to it on his Walkman. I was hooked...instantly. From Appetite to Lies to the Spaghetti Incident to Use Your Illusion 1 & 2...for the next few years...G&R was my favorite band...until I heard Phish for the first time...

• Marisa Magnatta

  Around 13 is when I stole the "Dookie" album from my brother and it blew my mind. My dad caught me singing along to Hurricane from the Dazed & Confused soundtrack and ushered me into the world of Bob Dylan. And it was love-at-first-listen the first time I heard Preston & Steve play Goldfinger on Y100. All of those bands – and the people too - are still ranked Top 5 in my life today!

• Chuck Damico

  Van Halen. I had started in middle school – 7th grade age 12. I got into the album Diver Down then 1984 then the Sammy stuff not long after that. Love Kiss and Triumph and The Beatles but VH still probably my all-time favorite yes!
• Nick Murphy

  My favorite band as a teenager was Pixies. I got into them after hearing my other favorite band, The Bloodhound Gang, mention them in “Fire, Water, Burn.” I also read in Rolling Stone that Kurt Cobain was influenced by Pixies and that hooked me. Pixies is still my all-time favorite band.

• Robin Lee

  I started playing instruments in the 4th grade, and enjoyed taking apart the music and learning the parts so by the time I was 13 I had many favorite bands. Aerosmith, Chicago, Jethro Tull, Elton John and Bad Company music is great to learn on guitar, piano and flute. I still like them all today although I prefer to listen to new music like Dirty Honey, Shinedown and Greta Van Fleet.

• Pancake

  Sublime was my favorite band at 13, their self-titled album was my first CD purchase and I have purchased and listened to it more than any other album in my life! I had a CD Player that broke with it stuck in there for years so that was the only thing I listened to and I was 100% happy with that! The music takes me back to an amazing time with my childhood friends and seeing Sublime with Rome is still one of my favorite shows every year!
• Jacky Bam Bam

  My favorites at 13 are still my favorites!!! KISS, AEROSMITH, ROD STEWART, STONES!!!

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