Nothing gets a music lover more excited than hearing that their favorite band/artist is going on tour. Although there are tons of thrilling moments to look forward to, there are also several struggles to face along the way.
1. Working around your schedule.
School, extra curricular activities and work can easily take up all your free time, making it difficult to go to a concert. Weekday concerts have you overloading on coffee and energy drinks the next day, and weekend concerts can have you rushing to finish projects and essays due the following Monday.
2. Buying tickets.
Depending on the popularity of the performer(s), tickets can sell out in a number of days, hours and even seconds, for hundreds of dollars. Some fans may stay up all night in an attempt to get tickets, while others miss work or school.
3. Waiting And waiting. And waiting.
From the moment tickets are purchased, the waiting begins. Months of waiting for the band/artist to arrive to your town leads to waiting at the entrance before the doors open, which leads to even more waiting to get merchandise, food, go to the bathroom, etc.
4. Buying merchandise (and other items).
As if spending loads of money on the tickets wasn't enough, chances are you'll want to buy a few other things along the way. Merchandise can be pricey, as can the food and drinks being provided, taking more money out of your wallet.
5. Finding a seat/a place to stand.
Some places provide reserved seating, others have an open floor for the people to stand on. Assigned seating can be a bit of a hassle when carrying merchandise and snacks and having to squeeze past people more than a few times. Open venues are more problematic; fans race to buy whatever products are being sold then to get as close to the stage as possible before the show starts.
6. Lack of personal space.
With all the jumping and dancing in open venues, people will be shoving and pushing you constantly, which makes it almost impossible to stay in the same spot as where you started. On the other hand, venues filled with seats will give you more space. However, that doesn't diminish the fact that people will still get rather close to you. With all the movement before the concert starts, people will be leaving and returning to their seats, meaning they will probably have to squeeze past you a couple of times.
But despite all the struggles...
Concerts leave you with fun-filled memories and a joyous kind of adrenaline. At the end of the day, all the struggles and problems will have been worth it because nothing beats seeing your favorite bands/artists perform live right before your eyes.
