The Word Alive’s Telle Smith recently wrote an op-ed on staying positive while being surrounded by negatives. Check out the full op-ed here and a snippet of it below by clicking “Read More.”

I’m currently a little more than a week into the All Stars Tour, Suicide Silence, I See Stars, Winds Of Plague, Stick To Your Guns and more. If you’ve come out already, you know it’s been a great time.  We’re playing four songs off our new album Life Cycles, and so far the reaction has been great.  Some of the bands on the tour haven’t had it easy, and it is a really big bummer to see some of the negativity coming from fans. I understand not every person is going to appreciate or enjoy all 14 bands. However, I think it is strange how freely people hate these days. What is the purpose behind it? Does it make someone feel better about themselves? I’m not totally sure.

Our friends Memphis May Fire have a song called “Generation: Hate” on their new album, and I think that song title describes this new generation very well. Blunt, but appropriate, in my opinion. There’s a line that says, “Waste your days complaining,” and realistically, that is what is happening. I hope if you’re reading this, [that lyric] it doesn’t apply to you. I believe we can change a lot in this world just by standing up against those who think it’s cool to be the bully. Those people are the minority, so why not prove that?