![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
Music Monday: Applaud the 2021 Video Music Award winners with Aquila
September 12, 2021
Music Monday features a different category of songs on a weekly basis. Each Monday, Harker Aquila will release seven songs, one song for each day of the week.
The MTV 2021 Video Music Awards were hosted on Sunday evening by artist Doja Cat in New York City, featuring performances from a variety of singers and numerous commendations for music videos and songs from this past year. The awards show announced the winners of all 22 categories, with BTS, Lil Nas X and Olivia Rodrigo each taking home the most awards, a total of three each. This playlist compiled by Aquila contains some of the most awarded songs and some of the winning songs from diverse categories as a recap of the 2021 VMAs.
Find the full playlist here:
Monday: “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)” by Lil Nas X, awarded Video of the Year, Best Direction and Best Visual Effects
Tuesday: “Leave The Door Open” by Bruno Mars, Anderson Paak and Silk Sonic, awarded Best R&B and Best Editing
Wednesday: “drivers license” by Olivia Rodrigo, awarded Song of the Year, Best New Artist and Push Performance of the Year
Thursday: “Last Train Home” by John Mayer, awarded Best Rock
Friday: “Butter” by BTS, awarded Best K-Pop, Group of the Year and Song of Summer
Saturday: “Lo Vas A Olvidar” by Billie Eilish and ROSALÍA, awarded Best Latin
Sunday: “BROWN SKIN GIRL” by Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN, Beyoncé and WizKid, awarded Best Cinematography
