Concerts have always been a part of the music culture. Fans are able to purchase a ticket to a live show to hear the songs that they love listening to on the radio or in their room being performed right in front of their eyes. My first ever concert was probably ten years ago when I went with my Girl Scout troop to a show hosted by a popular radio station in San Diego. Some of the artists included Rhianna, Gwen Stefani, and Aly & AJ. We were in elementary school at the time and our seats were in the lawn section of the venue. I do not remember much from my first concert to be honest, but I do remember a lot of people going and how my mom gave me money to buy any concert merchandise item I wanted. Since then, I have attended about nine concerts so far with some of my closest friends.

I always get a burst of happiness when I see the confirmation email that I just purchased my ticket to go see my favorite artist or group live in concert. I always end up paying the few extra dollars in order to get a physical printed ticket mailed to me by the company instead of just printing them out on a sheet of printer paper. Doing this allows for me to have a little souvenir to keep after the concert is over. Next comes the day by day countdown until the concert. All the excitement builds up right up to when the day actually comes. I get a crazy butterfly feeling whenever my friends and I make the trip over to wherever the venue is. Once you pay the crazy parking fee, it finally comes time to wait in line to get let inside. When you finally get to your seat, reality starts settling in that you are actually at the concert among hundreds sometimes thousands of other fans. The screams, the happiness, the preshow stop to the merchandise booth are the little things that make concerts what they are, a safe place for fans to spread love and support for the music artist(s). All the lights finally shut down and the music starts. This is when the volume of the venue goes from zero to one-hundred in a matter of seconds. Nothing in the next few hours matters. You suddenly forget about the fact that you have school work to do or that you have errands to run as if the music was some sort of magic spell. Concerts allow for you to connect with the music on a whole different level than before. If you have been to a concert, you know exactly what I mean. Some fans get emotional while others just move their bodies to the beat of the music. Everyone has their own unique way of expressing their happiness at concerts. The show finally comes to an end so what happens now? The countdown is over, your voice is gone, your feet probably hurt, and you have to go back to reality. The next day will be a normal day again, but the memories remain forever.

A lot of people do not realize how amazing the concert experience truly is. Yes, I have to admit that some ticket prices can be far too expensive, but for some people, the cost is totally worth it. You pay a certain amount to attend the show of the person or group that you support and for the few hours you are at the show, all that matters in those moments is you and the music.