Last week, I had the extremely last minute opportunity to be able to go see one of my favorite artists, Milky Chance, in concert. After dismissing the idea of going after I saw tickets hit more than a hundred dollars a week ago, a peer posted on the class facebook page that she was selling hers for the concert (about two hours before it was going to start). While extremely nervous about attending solo, I jumped at the opportunity to see one of my favorite bands for a huge discount.

Did you know there’s literally an actual plethora of articles online telling you simultaneously to attend concerts solo but to never go to concerts solo? Which advice are you supposed to take? The pros are that you really get to focus on the music, it’s easier to move towards the front when it’s just you, and the cons were all along the lines of yup, you’re by yourself. Waiting in line by yourself, standing by yourself during the transition from opener to main act, and walking home by yourself were all part of my night. However, while it was a lot of time by myself, it was still one of the best concerts I’ve been to. When they said it was super easy to move forward as one person, they weren’t kidding, and I ended the night two people from the front, just in time for my all time favorite song and an impromptu jam session to close.

Not to mention, instead of turning to whoever came with me with my commentary or thoughts, I really got to think about it on my own. Without having someone else to share the experience with, I really got to think about what I was hearing and what I was seeing. Without any influence, I got to experience the concert on a much different level than I would have had I gone with a friend. I also got to really lose myself in the music without fear of being judged, as the only people I were surrounded by were strangers. Even then, I was moving around enough that I wasn’t even around consistent strangers. I got to terribly dance and terribly sing and have an all around good time, with no thought as to who was seeing me like this.

In the end, while there were parts where I thought to myself that I was insane for wanting to go this concert by myself, I had a great time. I got to see one of my favorite bands (cheaply, too) and got to have a fun night out burning off some steam while dancing.

So, if you ever get the chance to do something like I did, grab the chance, because everything that’s fun with friends can also be fun solo, especially if you give it the chance.