Kicking off a week of Round Tables, we asked our writers what their favorite concert experience was!
Lauren McCormick
I went to Panic! At The Disco in 2019 and we ended up having seats right on the floor near the stage. It was so cool to see a person as charismatic and characterful as Brendon Urie up close, and not to mention I went with both of my parents and even my dad (who is quite particular about his concerts) enjoyed it. I just remember singing and screaming the night away with my favorite people and watching Brendon Urie flip off the drum stage. I will probably never recover!
Nina Fichera
The only concert I’ve ever really been to was a drive-in virtual concert for Garth Brooks. My entire family went, since my dad had us grow up listening to country music, and Garth Brooks is one of the best country stars there is! Despite having to be distanced from other cars and wear masks the entire night, it was a lot of fun to sing along to some of my favorite Garth Brooks songs with my family. Not to mention, we also got t-shirts!
Lily Connerton
The best concert I’ve ever been to was my first concert, probably mostly because of the novelty of it. It was P!ATD and Weezer on their 2016 Summer Tour. I received the tickets for it as a Christmas present, and went with my mom (a former rocker, of course). She was most excited for Weezer, and I P!ATD, but both of us were familiar with both of the bands. I’ve probably never screamed harder than at that concert (and never seen more pot haze than when Weezer came on!).
Lucy Laats
The best concert I’ve ever been to was a Twenty One Pilots concert in 2018. It was a little overwhelming, since it was my biggest concert at the time, but it was still really fun! I remember screaming my voice hoarse to the music. I missed a day of school to travel to it, which was my only absence that entire year, I think. It was definitely worth it.
Taylor Bramhall
The best concert that I’ve ever been to by far was when my parents surprised me by taking me to a Billy Joel concert in Feb. 2016. As a Billy Joel fanatic, I had idolized him for years and listened to his discography on repeat. I owned all of his records, collected vintage tour t-shirts and dreamed about the day when I could finally say I saw him — and then I did! The moment he came on stage I started to cry. It was surreal, seeing a man I adored for so long finally in person before me. He sang every song I wanted him to and put on an incredible show. I was with my parents, too, so that was certainly a memory I’ll never forget.
Jess Marinaro
The best concert I’ve ever been to was for the indie rock band The Front Bottoms in Dec. 2018. At the time I was absolutely obsessed with their music (still love them, but less obsessively) and it was a dream to see them live. The venue was standing room only indoors, and fairly small. My friends and I pushed our way to the front and it was amazing—I’d never been so close to a stage before. I lost my voice screaming to all their music and my feet were numb by the end from standing and jumping until one a.m. It was absolutely worth it. In fact, it was honestly one of the best days of my life to date; being surrounded by my friends and strangers alike who all adored the same thing felt so unifying and exhilarating. They were amazing performers and really fed off the energy of the crowd, and I hope to see them again some day!
Julia Clancy
My favorite concert experience was definitely seeing Harry Styles on his North American leg of Love on Tour. I have been a Harry Styles fan since “What Makes You Beautiful” was released, so I was ecstatic that I had the opportunity to see him perform live. As soon as Harry stepped foot on the stage, everyone was on their feet dancing and singing and honestly just having the time of their life. I will admit, I knew his setlist pretty well so I completely lost my shit when he sang “What Makes You Beautiful,” it made my inner child so so happy. The concert was on Sunday, it is Tuesday now and I still barely have a voice!
Olivia De Stio
The best concert I have ever been to was Harry Styles Love on Tour. I have been a fan of him since watching him and the rest of One Direction on the X-factor. I was also waiting a long time to go because it was rescheduled because of Covid. It was great to dress up and see other fans dress up also. The first song he sang was “Golden,” which is my favorite song off of his new album, and “Olivia” was playing earlier, which is my favorite One Direction song. After waiting so long to see Harry and finally going to a concert again was definitely worth the wait.
Madison Centeno
I have been to about five different concerts in my lifetime and the best one hands down was Queen with Adam Lambert. I would die to have seen it with Freddie Mercury but Adam Lambert did an awesome job. I think that concert really solidified my love for all things queer and all things extra. The outfits, the set, the music and the voices were all perfect. It was immaculate and I would love to see it again. I went a few years ago and didn’t have the best seats so if they ever go on tour again I will jump on that. Now that I have a better sense of style and a better sense of self, if I saw them live again I would go in my absolute best outfit just for Adam.