As I mentioned in a previous post, one of my favorite things about growing up and going off to college is the amount of experiences I now have, the stories I can tell. It would seem, at this point, that the majority of said stories and experiences are centered around concerts and music. Prior to moving here, I averaged about one concert per year. Now I’m going nearly once a week. Sound expensive? It’s not. I am fortunate enough to live in a city that attracts a lot of great talent, often less exposed. I am also lucky to go to a university which hosts free shows almost every week. Of the many, many musicians I have seen so far, I only had to pay for three shows.

So here are my stories;

Big Sean: He came for our Homecoming Concert. To be completely honest, I only knew one or two of his songs, but I enjoyed it regardless. It was so early in the school year that it was also great to meet new people and bond with the people I’d be living with. And what better a place to do that than a concert?

Smallpools: Opener for Big Sean. I’ve been a fan of them for a long while now. During their song Killer Whales, they tossed giant inflatable whales (like the swimming pool toys) into the crowds and it was hilarious to see it fly and fall while everyone was singing and jumping/ dancing.

Goodnight Gorillas: When the weather was warmer, the U put on these shows in the patio area of the mall called Student Sound featuring student bands. I went as a project for my photography class and I’m so happy I chose to go. First of all, they were really good! Second, they sent me catapulting into the domino effect of music and concerts on and around campus.

Troye Sivan: This show was being held in a venue near campus. I’ve been of fan of his music and YouTube personality for four years, so when I found out the show was sold out, I was devastated. I talked to a friend and she agreed to spend the day hanging out around the venue to see if we can either (A) meet him as he enters and/ or exits the building, (B) see him walk in or out, or (C) buy a ticket off someone who may have an extra. We did (B) see him walk in and out of the building. We did (C) meet a woman with one extra ticket, but neither of us wanted to abandon the other and leave the other ticketless. So with hopes falling, ten hours having past, rainy snow falling on our less-than-winter-ready clothes, and the show about to begin, we did not know what to do. Then a miracle occurred. A woman walks from the alleyway of the building and asks us if we were going to the show. We told her we weren’t able to get tickets before the fifteen-minute sell out. She told us to follow her and gave us two free tickets. What. Will this ever happen again? Probably not. Was this our intention? No. Were we happy? You have no idea. It was the highlight of my year.

So we saw the show, which was of course incredible. We also saw YouTuber Connor Franta who was visiting his family and took them to the show. Anyway, the story gets better. We, in our ten hours of waiting in a tea place across the street, knew generally where they would leave the building. Then Connor and Troye exited the building, walked into the car, Troye saw us, and he walked over to say hi and take pictures. He was so nice and really seemed to care about his fans and our thoughts on the show. 10/10, would do again.

BORNS and Panama Wedding: An exceptionally inexpensive show for how great it was. I mean, they were burning incense. Can it get better than that? After the show we noticed a small line of people waiting to meet Panama Wedding, got in line, took a huge group picture, then stalled to see if BORNS would come out. Sure enough, after about twenty minutes, a security guard told us to line up for a short meet and greet. (Patience does magic, I’m telling you). Funniest part: my friend asked Garrett Borns what his favorite Pokémon was and he responded “Squidward” as a “test”. It was a good time.

 

Carter Hulsey (ft. the Millenium)

Kiernan McMullan, Carter Hulsey, and the Millenium: Where do I even begin with this story? Kiernan McMullan performed and was incredible (had a bit of an Ed Sheeran sound, which was amazing) so naturally I had to go buy his music. When my friend and I went to the table, he was selling the merchandise himself. So we talked for a bit and he signed the t-shirt I was about to buy. Then another friend decided to buy one too and Kiernan remembered he had a mailing list for people to sign up for, but he didn’t have a pen. My friend did. When we finished, he handed the pen back to her and then hesitated and asked to see it again. It was a corn pen. She was from Iowa. All of the jokes were made. He even made a hand signal of appreciation and popcorn.

But then things got interesting. You see, some questionable decisions were made and a friend of mine, prior to the show, did the thing where you spin around on the handles of an escalator (0/10, would NOT recommend, very dangerous). When she did this someone was coming down the escalator and witnessed it all happen. He ran up to us and high fived her in a fit of laughter. Halfway through this show we realized that guy was in the Millenium. And so in speaking with Kiernan, the guy recognized her and ran up and hugged her. Then, of course, Kiernan was confused so I showed him the video and he decided he wanted to try. Long story short, the mission was unsuccessful. He also injured his back and needed a massage (again, do not try this at home). We then decided we caused too much destruction and asked for a picture and left. Some day he is going to be a huge celebrity and I’ll have this story to tell. A great evening for sure.

Goodnight Gorillas, Color Tab, and Whosah: As mentioned before, attending the Goodnight Gorilla’s Student Sound concert, I was sent into a domino effect of concerts. I saw they were coming back and decided to go. Again, so glad I did. This show introduced me to Color Tab and Whosah. Both great music groups and performers. Due to the number of parents in attendance, however, it felt strange to stick around to meet them, so we bought a CD from Color Tab and had them sign it which was nice. I then followed them all on social media to get updates as to when they will be coming back to the area. Through this I found out Color tab was going to be back yesterday.

 

Color Tab

Color Tab: Yesterday I went to see another Color Tab show on campus. Again, it was great. The diversity of their sound was incredibly impressive. It was fast and it was slow. It was rock and it was funk. It was just all around extremely good music. This time we decided to stick around to ask for a picture. (I’m wondering if there is any way to do this without it being awkward). First we couldn’t because they were all split up around the room and busy so we didn’t want to ask for one. Then they were all eating so that would have been rude. Then Eli and Alex were done eating and went to clean up the stage while Kieran finished eating. That’s when we realized how awkward it was that we were just standing there and not doing anything. So we walked over to the stage to ask for a picture when they all finish what they were doing. So he put down his sandwich and we got a picture and they all introduced themselves and asked our names and asked us to send them the pictures. Great people, great music, great show, great Wednesday night.

Those are my concert stories. And I’ve only just begun. There is still so much to do and see. To any of the musicians/ bands/ groups/ people I’ve met, seen, or mentioned, keep doing what you’re doing because it’s great. And thank you for all of the good times and memories.