On Wednesday, August 26, 2015, I stood in a line at the College of Charleston that was wrapping around the Cistern. The funny thing was that I did not know what I was standing in line for. I saw a bunch of people and decided to join. I tapped the shoulder of the man standing in front of me and asked what we were doing and he told me, "You don't know? We are about to get free Darius Rucker tickets!" Once I heard that, I knew that this line was exactly where I was supposed to be in that moment.

After a long wait in the hot sun, I ran into a reporter for CMT who asked me to speak on TV, and if you know me, you know that she didn't have to ask twice. I got to share with her and whoever else was watching my Darius Rucker story and why his talent is so important to me. As I got one of the last tickets left, I knew that the story I just told the reporter was going to change, but in a good way.

I get to the venue, the Windjammer, in Isle of Palms. I was excited to hear my favorite Darius songs with some of my friends, but I didn't expect what happened next. I found a whole new respect for Darius Rucker and realized that as an aspiring artist myself, Darius Rucker is a person I would want to talk to and learn from about the industry. From him reinventing himself as Hootie and The Blow Fish to Darius Rucker the country singer, he is always representing his love for his city (Charleston, SC) and for his job, incorporating his family in what he does, and of course while being an incredible performer, songwriter, and just a genuine human. This was not a concert with a practiced routine, backup dancers, millions of lights, and auto-tune, but it was a concert with the beach, some beers, the band, and just Darius. That was why I will never forget Darius Rucker's concert, and want to thank him for giving a few college students the chance to experience it. So thank you, Darius Rucker; it was a night I will never forget.