Winter Jam is a Christian concert that takes place every Winter. Ten bands travel the nation, playing at many different arenas. General admission is first come, first serve, $10 at the door. Arenas are always packed out the door. There are obviously many different types of people at these events, but here are ten of the types of people you see at Winter Jam.
1. The Super Fan
This person knows every word, to every song, by every band. They passionately sing along to every word and probably bought Jam Nation tickets as soon as they were available. And you know they will be waiting at every table to meet every band possible after the show.
2. The Couple
We all know them. The one that hugs the whole time (seriously, how does one stay connected to another's body for that long?). Their youth leader probably watches them out of the corner of his/her eye the whole time, and you have to wonder if they realize that we're singing about God's amazing love and not their own.
3. The Hostage
This kid is here against his will. Somehow. His mom probably forced him to go, or maybe he was given a free ticket. He doesn't really want to be here, he's not into the music and he anxiously passes the time by playing on his phone.
4. The Fake Fan
They don't really know anything about the bands, or their music, but they're super excited to be there in general. They scream like crazy when Andy Mineo comes near them, but you're pretty sure they've never heard of him before that moment. They probably spend an ton of money on merch, Snapchat a general video of the concert and get as many people to sign autographs as possible. Because, like, those people are pretty much famous.
5. The Enthusiastic Chaperone
They want to be cool, so they rock out to almost every band. They laugh and tell the kids they're crazy for listening to the crazy rock band or the rapper dude. They probably cry during Newsong's set and put their hand in the air a lot.
6. The Metal Head
It's clear that they are only here for Thousand Foot Krutch (or Skillet, or Red, or whatever hard rock band happens to be playing that year). They remain stoic for the other nine bands, but rock out for their favorite. Bonus points for headbanging.
7. The Shutterbug
They are only here to view the concert through their phone camera lens. They are constantly snapping, gramming, streaming, filming and photographing. They have every set saved on their phone, most likely to never be viewed again.
8. The Emotional
Every song is an altar call. They never stop crying. Jesus has changed their life. With every song.
9. The Hipster
Top-nots. Fashion on point. Probably talking about how much they wish Hillsong was here. If you don't know the type, you probably are the type.
10. The Participant
They text every code. They get every free item. They stop at every table, and they cheer for the Liberty University guy. In six months, they'll still be getting messages from the chain numbers they joined on this night.
All of us are different, and some of us have little bits and pieces of these (and others) in us. But all jokes aside, when it all comes down to it, most of us are there for the same reason: to worship our Lord and Savior. And a body of believers coming together like that?
I think it's pretty amazing.
