Music: a special language that speaks to my heart and soul. My entire life I have never had a specific genre that I gravitate towards, I enjoy all music. I could not imagine my life without it. I listen to music every chance I get, in the car, on walks, and my favorite way: concerts. Concerts have a way of creating a unique connection to the music you love whether it be screaming your heart out or just being in the room with your favorite artist. However, to have this joyous experience, you need to prepare, which for many (including me) can be stressful. Through experiencing three of the most popular artists right now in concert, I have learned a thing or two and I want to share what I’ve learned along the way.
Taylor Swift
The first big concert I ever went to was Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour back in April of last year. As you can imagine, this was a dream come true. I have been a fan of Taylor since the 1989 era and have never had the chance to attend one of her concerts. For this specific concert my seats were in the lower bowl, and I had VIP, which was very hard to get. Obtaining tickets for events like this is not easy in the slightest, especially since we left it up to our moms to get the tickets while we were at school. Ticketmaster is always a pain, but in my case, there were no seats left to buy that weren’t VIP. Although I am grateful for the tickets we got and wouldn’t trade my experience for the world, Ticketmaster is still difficult. Having gotten the tickets, I attended the concert with my best friends (Ally and Mariah) in addition to all our moms. Being able to experience the concert from a close view was a surreal experience, as I did not know what to expect. My heart was full, and I lost my voice due to my incessant, excited screaming.
Despite all the fun I had, so much preparation went into getting to walk through the venue gates. The first thing we did was plan how we were going to get to the venue as there were six of us going to the concert in total. Due to Raymond James Stadium being decently far away, our group opted to hire a car to take us to and from the concert, eliminating the crazy parking chaos. Getting to a concert venue can be a nightmare as normally there is a lot of traffic on the interstates, let alone just trying to find a spot. Hiring a car to drive allowed us to relax on the way up and just hop out of the vehicle when we arrived at the stadium making the arrival process seamless.
But one of the most beneficial (and fun) things to prep for was planning my outfit and what I was going to bring! Outfits were a major part of this concert. Everyone dressed up as their favorite Taylor era, purple outfits for Speak Now, red for Red (Taylor’s Version), and even some silly niche outfits representing characters in her music videos such as the running man from her The Man music video. Dressing up allowed for everyone to be creative while also showing off their favorite album or song. Something that helped me to plan my outfit was Pinterest which I used primarily for outfit ideas then narrowed it down to a sparkly silver dress, a disco ball headband, and disco ball earrings, representing Taylor’s song “Mirrorball.” In addition to outfit prep, I found it very helpful to know the stadium’s bag policy because if you had a bag too big, you were not allowed in, and in my situation, I had no car to bring it back to.
Friendship bracelets are also a huge part of the whole Taylor concert experience. It is a way for people of all generations to bond and trade their personally made bracelets, being creative with the colors and phrases, generally in relation to Taylor herself and her music. Before I attended the concert, I made bracelets saying things like Folklore and #1 Swiftie. I loved getting to be creative in choosing everything about the look of them down to the color of the beads. However, trading them was my favorite part as I got to swap bracelets with Swifties of all ages, even as young as elementary school which I loved and made my concert experience all the more special.
Noah Kahan
In October 2023, I got to see Noah Kahan live at his Stick Season Fall Tour. However, this concert experience was very different than Taylor Swift because this time I was in the pit and with my boyfriend. Seeing Noah in concert was truly one of the best moments of my life as his music and undeniable lyrical talent brought me through the lowest lows in my life. Being in the pit is amazing, but it also comes with some more preparation that needs to be prioritized.
When in the pit, there is a vast amount of people around you, pressed up against you from every side with no easy way out. Due to this, the environment gets warm and overheated quickly. As a result, I ended up passing out due to overheating and was escorted out of the pit to get water. I had never been so parched in my life. From this moment I realized how important it was for me to have water before, during, and even after the concert. Water is very crucial to have, despite how overpriced it is at a concert. Hydrating ensures your body is properly nourished to have a great concert experience. Even though I learned the hard way, to this day it is one of my favorite concerts I’ve ever been to, but next time I will buy water!
Olivia Rodrigo
Olivia Rodrigo’s GUTS World Tour was the most recent concert I’ve been to. I attended the Orlando show two weeks ago and this time, my friends and I (Ally, Brylee, and Danica) were seated in the nosebleeds. I would say that this concert was the most fun of the ones I had been to just because of the atmosphere and nostalgia that Olivia brings me. I have been a fan of her since her acting days, specifically Grace Stirs Up Success (a must watch in my opinion), and it made me happy to see how much she’s grown while screaming some of my favorite songs.
Preparing for this day was different from all the rest because somehow, we had to get to Orlando on a random Tuesday afternoon. In this specific circumstance I drove because I have the most experience driving on highways, and it was important to get to the venue safe and sound. Ensuring I knew who was driving was a huge help in making sure we got to our destination in a timely manner with the least amount of stress possible. When we got to the venue it was still early, so we had to eat somewhere beforehand. My friends and I planned on going to Tijuana Flats, which filled our stomachs and gave us the energy to head to the best concert of our lives!
Overall, all three of these concerts were special in a lot of ways and taught me a lot of things about what can help to ensure I have the best experience. Planning allows me to have everything set and reduce overall stress. Although preparation for a concert can sound easy, it is never that simple, which is why I wanted to share with you some things that helped me have the most fun and stress-free concert experience.
What to wear.
Deciding what to wear is one of my favorite things about concert planning. Talking to my friends and scrolling on Pinterest for endless hours helps me come up with the perfect outfit. Planning my outfit in advance helps me be less stressed the day of, and have full creative control. I can look good and feel good the day of the concert.
Who is driving?
Knowing who was driving was a big help for me because sometimes the venues are hours away. For example, for the Olivia concert, the venue was around three hours away with traffic, requiring someone to drive on highways. In addition to knowing the driver, it is also important to think about carpooling. In my scenario, I drove my two friends with me just because it was easier. Planning the driver helped ease my mind and prepare accordingly to who I was driving, and mentally prepare myself for the long drive ahead.
What to bring.
This is one of the most important things to consider when planning for a concert. The first thing I do is look at the bag policy of the venue to ensure I can get my bag in. For example, Raymond James Stadium policy was strict as you could only bring one small clutch of 4.5” by 6.5”. Any smaller or bigger and you could not bring it in. Knowing this, I could accurately plan for what I would bring. For me, this included my ID, debit card, my favorite lip gloss, and bracelets to trade.
Merch: Do you want it?
For the Olivia concert I found it very helpful to know what merch I was going to purchase ahead of time. I would watch TikTok videos of people that had already attended the concert to see all the pieces and prices. As most of us know, merch can be expensive, and knowing exactly what I wanted helped me plan how much I was going to spend.
Water and food.
Now, the MOST important thing for me was to ensure I had water and ate before the concert. Due to my passing out at the Noah concert I now always buy a water bottle no matter how expensive they are. This way I won’t become dehydrated, and I have something to soothe my throat after screaming. Also, knowing where I was eating before the concert eased my mind and gave me the energy to sing my heart out. Food and water are essential to my concert experience. They keeping my body going!