When Lady Gaga announced the second leg of her Mayhem Ball Tour, I knew I would do whatever it takes to be there. Unfortunately, I lost the Ticketmaster war. The tickets sold out before I could get through the queue. For months, I checked ticket resellers multiple times a day to try to find a single ticket to see her for under $500. I had no luck and as the concert date approached, I was getting really desperate. I saw that the radio station Z100 was doing a giveaway for two tickets to one of her nights at Madison Square Garden and I knew I had to lock in and win. You had to send a short voice message to Z100 saying why you wanted to win the tickets. In my message, I said that I am a struggling college student in the middle of midterms and I need some motivation. For hours, I listened to the radio, waiting for the radio host to announce the winners. All of a sudden, I heard them play my message on the radio and the host said “Congratulations Jessica Johnson from Nassau County.” I won! This was genuinely the best moment of my life. Somehow, I won 2 free tickets to see Lady Gaga that would have cost around $2,000 to get seats close to those on resale websites.
Lady Gaga is one of the best live performers of all time. The sets, the costumes, the choreography, all of it came together to create the most intricate arena show I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen a lot. From the second the lights went out, I had immediate chills. The energy in the arena was electric. Gaga has been in the industry for over 20 years, but somehow her passion and love for music never dulled. She has performed these songs hundreds of times but the performance doesn’t feel stale. Hearing “Born This Way” live was everything I have ever imagined.
Something that stood out to me was the gratitude Gaga expressed for not only the crowd, but for the city of New York. Gaga was born and raised in Manhattan and the culture she experienced inspired and motivated her songwriting. Before singing “Edge Of Glory,” she recalled times when she would sit on the fire escape of her NYC apartment, write songs and dream about someday making it big. Even though she’s headlined many huge shows, her genuine appreciation for the fans and the city showed through her performance. She said that being back in New York is “being back home.” It was such a cool moment to see Gaga, a huge star, being so down to earth. Being in that crowd was being a part of a full circle moment where she shined in her hometown. Gaga’s fans’ responses to her music is unlike other artists. Gaga’s music represents hope, acceptance and reaches people even in the darkest of places and will continue to reach new heights.