On October twenty-first, I attended my first concert by myself. At first, I was scared and nervous because I would be in New York City alone an surrounded by a bunch of strangers and their friends. Even though I was a nervous wreck, I can assure you it was probably the best decision I’ve ever made.
The band I saw in concert was Brockhampton. They’re an American boy band founded by creative visionary and artist Kevin Abstract in 2015. The band holds fourteen members that range from rappers to artistic directors. They are a self-sufficient creative powerhouse that I fell in love with during their Saturation era that consisted of three albums (Saturation 1,2, and 3).
When I found out I was able to go see them in concert I was excited and decided to go the extra mile and get an early access pass along with general admission. I waited months for the day to finally come and when it did I was all over the place mentally. It was bad enough that I was extremely nervous but on top of that my early access pass never came in the mail.
Being the person I am, I decided to forget about this one flaw and not let it ruin my night. I was fine with not getting in early until I realized I had to wait outside in the cold for an hour and a half without a coat. Luckily I didn’t die from hypothermia.
As soon as I was close to the door I turned around and started speaking to the group behind me. I thought it was smart to try and make friends here so I wouldn’t feel so alone. We spoke for a while as we went inside the concert venue. They were shocked to find out that I chose Brockhampton as my first concert. I didn’t understand why they were shocked. The place was packed with people and it was kind of overwhelming. The moment the music started I lost my new friends. It was so surreal. One moment we were all together and the next thing you know I was in the middle of it all.
I looked around and saw such eccentric people and it made me feel happy and I slowly stopped being nervous and felt oddly at home. At times, I would be singing and dancing and catch the eyes of the person next to me and we would both start laughing as if we’ve known one another for years.
Now, here’s why the group from earlier was shocked to why I chose Brockhampton as my first concert. The band began to play one of their songs Boogie. The moment everyone heard Kevin Abstract yell “Make a circle!” everyone made the circle and I was right there with them. That’s when I knew a mosh pit was being formed. The moment the beat dropped everyone went crazy and started moshing. It was overwhelming but so much fun and everyone was very aware of each other. At one point someone fell and everyone stopped to help them back up. Not only did I have fun in the mosh pit but I met a certain celebrity in the pit: ANSEL ELGORT
I didn’t freak out when I saw him but our interaction was something I won’t forget. I was standing right next to him as I was singing along with the crowd but then I stopped and turned to him. I asked him if he was Ansel Elgort and he said no. I wasn’t shocked that he would say no cause it’s not uncommon for some celebrities to not want people to know who they are when they’re in a setting where they just want to have fun and not bothered. I kind of laughed and said ” Liar!” and then another mosh pit happened and he joined in on the mosh pit. I remember jumping around in the pit and being next to him the entire time. I was surprised I wasn’t shoved around too much to the point where I ended up away from the center. The rest of the night was fun and I can say it was an incredible night and incredible first concert experience.
What I’ve learned from this experience is don’t be afraid to go to places alone.