You’re in the car on the way to work, school, a friend’s house, and you hear that song. The one you’ve already added to your playlist, the one that inspired you to check out the other music that the artist has put out to see if you like it as well. 

What would it be like, you wonder, to be screaming the artist’s songs at the top of your lungs in a stadium with 80,000 people also while decked out in every piece of clothing that you could find at the merchandise store.

Concerts are an entirely different experience than listening to music through a speaker in your room while your mom is calling you to set the dinner table. There is no one calling you to do chores while in a stadium, arena, or small theater, and you sure aren’t listening to music through a $50 Bluetooth speaker. 

That feeling is what makes going to concerts so popular amongst teenagers. Whether the artist is Taylor Swift, The Jonas Brothers, Harry Styles, or Ed Sheeran, each person attending their concerts would describe the feeling in a similar way. 

“I was so overwhelmed with joy and adoration for the concert and the people around me. Everyone in the venue was so nice and fun to be around, from my friends to the other viewers, to the workers, everyone was excited so it was great to be in such a happy environment,” said Juliette Fernicola, a VHS sophomore. Juliette had been to two Harry Styles’ concerts in one month, both with seats pretty close to the stage. She was thrilled to finally be able to see Styles in person and not just in photos and videos on her phone. 

 Megan McGrath who is also a sophomore described her Ed Sheeran concert as very energetic and upbeat (minus the slower sad songs) and said it was fun to be able to sing along with all the fans at the venue. Megan specifically liked Sheeran’s “friendly banter” when he interacted with the crowd. 

The connection between the artist on stage to the fans in the crowd is another key factor that makes the concert experience so special to be a part of. 

“I have never felt that connected to an artist and be in a room of so many people who also love that artist,” said sophomore Cara DeMars referencing her Taylor Swift concert back in 2017. Although Cara had nosebleed seats at MetLife Stadium, the experience was still very interactive and just as fun as the people who had front row seats. 

Sophomore Keira Dolan had also gone to a Harry Styles concert and raved about how communal and bonded the crowd felt before Styles even went on stage. 

“He was able to make such a loving community and a safe gathering place… it was a sense that everyone attending the concert was a big family,” said Keira Dolan. She had recalled one particular moment before the concert even started when everyone was waiting on line to get in and One Direction’s What Makes You Beautiful started playing over the speakers and how everyone started singing along with each other in the lobby of Madison Square Garden. 

Live music provides a sense of what the world is like outside of computers, phones, and social media. It brings people together into one room where you all are there for the same purpose; to find joy and happiness and support the artist on stage. Everyone has been stuck inside for the past two years and it is good to see that many musicians are bringing back concerts in a safe manner. More people now get to have the chance to experience live music from their favorite artists. 

If a friend or family member asks you to go to a concert with them, buy that ticket, go to the concert, and sing your lungs out because right there at that moment, nothing else matters to you. Sure you may have a math test tomorrow that you should be studying for but that test is not gonna matter in a week or a month or five years, but you will still remember the feeling, the rush, the adrenaline of seeing that artist on stage.