By Bailey Rankin
Student Reporter
My feet hurt.
Besides the occasional sharp shooting pain in the palm of my foot, I can barely feel them to be honest… The pain is worth it though because they’re just a minor side effect from one of the best nights of my life.
I don’t go to concerts often, so when the opportunity arises to see one of my favorite artists, I work as hard as I can to make sure I can attend. I’ve been very lucky that my family supports my music addiction and mostly covers the ticket fee, but besides that I cover the rest. The driving two and a half or three hours to Oklahoma City or Tulsa I could do without, but you win some and you lose some. I guess that’s the price you have to pay living in a small town in Oklahoma.
As of right now I have attended a One Direction concert when 5 Seconds of Summer was their opening act, don’t judge me please, I was 17 at the time and it was an incredible first concert. I have also seen Ed Sheeran on two separate occasions for his Multiply tour and his Divide tour.
On Tuesday afternoon I picked up my brother and we took the trip down to Oklahoma City to see Hozier preform at The Criterion. This was a different experience for me as I had only ever seen performances in the BOK Center in Tulsa, and I could almost touch the ceiling of the center on those occasions.
The Criterion was a smaller, more intimate venue which fit the atmosphere incredibly well when Hozier started preforming. There was no ceiling to touch this time, I actually had the chance to stand front and center right by the stage. I eventually decided to watch from the balcony considering I am vertically challenged (short) and I couldn’t see over, or through, taller people in attendance with me that night.
The only problem? It was a standing venue, hence the aching feet. But once I really got into the music I almost forgot.
Concerts can have that effect on you. When I was younger, I always used to wonder why people would spend hundreds of dollars on tickets or camp out the night before in front of the venue. That was before I attended my first concert, and now I would gladly call myself one of the “crazy” people my younger self thought concert goers were. I suppose maturing with time and new life experiences can open a persons mind up, even if it’s just over the preconceived notions I had over concerts as a teenager.
I understand now that attending concerts can be an escape. For a few hours, you don’t have to worry about an assignment that’s due the next day. You don’t have to worry about that project deadline at work that’s coming up. And you don’t have to worry about whatever problems in life you have, so long as you let go for a little bit and live life in the moment.
All you have to worry about is your aching feet in the morning.