I'm told that during the morning of my first Dance Marathon two years ago, members of the production squad gathered around a live feed to watch and make fun of me as I partially danced and partially went in and out of consciousness. Had it not been for some musical intervention, I probably would have spent the rest of the day slumped against a wall and crying in my sleep. But then I heard the familiar guitar chords of a certain pop song and immediately came back to life. "Party in the U.S.A." by Miley Cyrus was all it took to rouse me from slumber and give me the energy I needed for the second half of Dance Marathon. There's always a song dancers want to hear to get them pumped, and so we asked: What song saved your life?
"What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)" by Kelly Clarkson
"It reflects about life in general, but also about this experience staying up 30 hours doesn't kill you but makes you stronger." – Motasem Kalaji, Communication junior, NU in Qatar
"N****s in Paris" by Jay-Z and Kanye West
"They're all just blending together. It's a blur. I wanna say it was at 4 something. I was just standing, and then that song came on and I started to dance." – Lissa Marten, Weinberg freshman
"Piano Man" by Billy Joel
"It went to Piano Man and everyone was linked together. It was more unity than we'd been feeling for hours. It was a subtle energy." – Katie Levin, Weinberg senior and Madelaine Kukanza, Communication senior
"Piano Man" by Billy Joel
"We did the whole 'get in a circle and sway' thing. That's always good for morale." – Grace Bushnell, McCormick junior
"Piano Man" by Billy Joel
"There was a lot of slower songs and it came on and pumped everyone up. It was Block 4, you're hungry, there's no end in sight." – Shannon Forrest, Weinberg sophomore
"Here Comes the Sun" by The Beatles
"It was beautiful, I loved it." – Pascual O'Dogherty, McCormick freshman
"We Didn't Start the Fire" by Billy Joel
"It was in the sunrise block. Yes, [that was a dark time]." – Bridget McNamara, Communication freshman
NU Drumline
"This morning wasn't very good." – Anika Williams, McCormick junior