It hasn’t even been a week since I attended the Coldplay concert in Soldier Field Chicago, and it still seems so surreal. The second I heard Chris Martin’s voice echo and fill the air in the arena, there was an inexplicable emotion of feeling blessed, nostalgic, and thrilled all at the same time.

Looking back, I think the reason watching my favorite artists live really impacted me was because, for me, music is situational. I listen to a song and instantly get transported to a time in my life. I build mental associations to songs, tunes, and their lyrics. So when I heard those notes being played, right before my eyes, I couldn't help but tear up. It made me feel like that 'one' thing I believed in, all my high school years was true, and I was indeed part of something bigger.

The entire concert was a rollercoaster of emotions--I would get the chills, followed by an intense feeling of love, and then a feeling of amazement, just to be in a place with a group of such talented and wonderful people. The same lyrics that I would listen to in my teenage bedroom echoed the stadium and made me put all of my worries aside just for a second, to feel the tingling in my veins, the irreplaceable feeling of belonging. I could feel the music pounding in my chest, and the electrifying intensity build up all around me. As the fireworks, confetti, and balloons floated through the sky, I could feel my heartbeat in sync with thousands of people I had never met before. We all had something in common, and that was the most magical part.