Five years.

Today’s video not only marks the end of LoadingReadyRun’s fifth season, but it also happens to have been posted five years to the day after this site went live back in 2003 (or it would have been, if not for some unfortunate delays). If, on that day, you had asked any of the crew what they thought they would be doing five years down the road, I don’t expect that any of us would have described where we are today, or what a major part of our lives this site has become. I know I wouldn’t have, but I couldn’t be happier with how things turned out. I’d like to describe some of my experiences over the last five years, and I’m hoping that maybe some of the other guys will follow suit, and post their own.

I really don’t remember a whole lot about the early days of the website. At the time this site went up, I had only lived in Victoria for a couple years, and I didn’t really know Graham especially well, and I had met Paul probably only a couple of times. Between university and work, I kept myself pretty busy, but I still found time to hang out with the guys occasionally. Bill, Morgan, James, Jer, and Allen, mostly. I think, in those days, I was drifting away from the group a little, in the typical post-high school, moving on with your life kind of way. I happened to be hanging out with them on Halloween 2003, and thus was included in the very first Halloween special, but I wasn’t really involved in the site in any major way for a couple of years. I remember feeling pretty jealous, though. I followed the site pretty much from the get-go, and every week, I’d see my friends involved in this really cool thing. Having fun, being creative, and publishing it themselves. I constantly thought “Why can’t I do that?” and I remember wishing that maybe sometime Graham would need me for a bit, and I could be a real part of this thing all my friends were doing. The debut of 64K really floored me. I’ve been envious of Graham, Jer, and Morgan for their roles in those videos ever since the LoadingReadyRap hit the internet. I’ll admit it, hazMatt is a pretty direct result of my love for those characters, and my desire to “be that cool”. Looking back on things, I don’t know why I didn’t ask to be involved sooner. For the most Part, my contribution to the first few seasons was limited to situations that called for a large video game collection (see: Uwe Boll: PSA, Uwe Boll: An Apology) or a car (see: Jangles & Jones, Nanaimo Road Trip).

Then came Live!. I had been helping with gear and transportation for a while, when the idea of Live! was proposed. I really liked the idea, and I knew they were going to need people, and cars, so I told Graham one day that I really wanted to be involved. He agreed, seemingly surprised that I was expressing interest, and over the following several weeks, I was aggressive about playing roles in videos (see: Rejected Mac Ads, RapidFire series 1, Now in HD, Small Time, CCYD. [actually, don’t see CCYD.]). I needed some practice if I was going to be involved in Live!, and it was convenient, because we were all meeting up anyhow. Live! was one of the best experiences of my life, and it’s an accomplishment I think all of us are very proud of. We came together, worked hard, and put on a great show. In the end, we broke even, and not only did we not hate each other afterwards, but we were as close as we had ever been. Putting on that show cemented us as lifelong friends, and proved that we could do anything we put our minds to. It was also the crucial moment for the website, as it locked down our core crew, and helped us to realize that what we were doing was no longer just a hobby, it was something more. It’s also one of the most prized accomplishments of my life – I proved to myself that I could be a part of this cool thing all my friends were doing – that, in fact, I already was. I remember Graham telling me after the show closed, “Y’now Matt, I have to admit that when we had the idea for the show I didn’t think of you as someone who would be in it, but I’m glad you were. The show was stronger for it.” That statement meant a lot to me.

Ever since Live! I’ve been a regular member of the cast, attending meetings, giving input on scripts, manning the camera or boom mic when necessary. As of today though, I also have some writing experience to my name. The RapStar 64k video has been a baby of mine for the last couple of months, and has undergone several re-writes and revisions since I first planned out the basic plot. There’s no way I could have written this on my own, Graham and Paul were crucial to the completion of the script we performed for today’s update, and everyone provided a lot of great suggestions and input along the way. It’s one of the things I like about producing content for this site, when I brought out the very first version of the script, unpolished and unfinished, no one said it sucked, or dismissed it as a write-off. We put our heads together, proposed ideas, and pieced together a finale I’m really proud of. I think it’s a fantastic video, and it’s a step in my own creative development.

I have really high hopes for season six. There are going to be some changes to how we do things, with the intent of building our audience, and establishing a more notable place on the internet. Regardless of the reasons though, I think you’ll really like what we have in store. The crew spent a lot of time planning, and we’re taking everything we’ve learned over the last five seasons, and using it to put together some of the highest quality, strongest material yet. We’re all immensely proud of what’s come out of everything we’ve done so far, but this year we’re raising the bar. I’m calling it now; season six is going to be an epic year.

Before I sign off, I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you to Graham, Paul, Jer, James, Morgan, Bill, and Kathleen. Twenty-five years from now, I hope we really do find ourselves gathered around a couch trying to remember all the things we’ve done. This site has been a monumental accomplishment, and has enriched my life immeasurably. I don’t know where I’d be without you guys or this website, but I wouldn’t give it up for the world. You guys are my best friends. I love you all. Secondly, I want to thank our viewers. You guys amaze me. I realize that I sometimes come off a bit rough, but seriously, guys, you’re all awesome. I don’t know what drew you to the site originally, but I’m glad you’re here. Your support keeps us going, and your feedback is has been invaluable in improving the content we produce. You are as much a part of making this site what it is as any member of the cast. Again, thank you all, and we’ll see you in season six!