Seeing your favorite music artists live and in-person is one of the coolest experiences a human being can have. I’ve been lucky to go to a handful of concerts (and I plan to go to many more). Almost all of them are fairly well known musicians (Lady Gaga, Panic at the Disco) but others are more niche or from a time where I liked country music (Carrie Underwood, Switchfoot).

Going to a concert is a near-religious event. The atmosphere is exciting, you’re around people who love this musician just as much as you do, and it’s so much fun. You don’t necessarily interact with other people, but screaming the lyrics to songs you’ve previously only sung in your car is so freeing.

Here are all the concerts I’ve been to, ranked worst to best:

Switchfoot
I didn’t actually know the band before we went to the concert, but I knew it was a Christian band that I really didn’t want to go to beforehand. Not being able to sing along to their songs really sucked the fun out of it and to this day, I only like one album of theirs. I don’t have a picture for this because I was like 10 or 11 at the time. They’re a rock band, I would say, but they don’t go very hard. I’d rather see Metallica.

Backstreet Boys - In A World Like This tour
Coincidentally, it was six years ago today (2013) that I went and saw the Backstreet Boys. I loved them and still love them, but they are getting old. They didn’t have the same amount of energy that they did back in the 90s, and while they have really good voices, I wonder how much they actually lipsynced at this concert.

Also, I had my mullet at the time, which really puts a damper on the pictures we have of it.

Carrie Underwood - Play On tour
I don’t know why I was such a big fan of Carrie Underwood, considering I hate country music now. But honestly, she was SO GOOD. She is a strong vocalist and wore these amazing outfits on stage. She even floated around the room on a pick up truck. I mean, it was cool! If I liked country music, she might rank higher, but the rest of the concerts I’ve been to were better. I genuinely haven’t listened to any newer albums than these ones, but the Play On album does have a place in my heart.

Jonas Brothers and Demi Lovato - The Camp Rock 2 tour
I was a HUGE Jonas Brothers fan back in the day, and this was the first concert I had been to that I could act like a screaming teenage girl fan. I went with two of my best friends at the time. We made signs for the car that said “Honk if you love the Jonas Brothers”. Nobody honked, but we had a great time. However, they mostly sang Camp Rock songs, and I really wanted to hear all of their own songs. Oh well.

Fall Out Boy - M a n i a tour



This was the latest Fall Out Boy concert I’ve gone to, but I’m sure I will go to another one next time they stop by Michigan. Most of the openers for these concerts, I’ve either forgotten or they just didn’t have an opener, but I think the openers for this concert kind of ruined the experience for me. Jaden Smith and Blackbear were the openers and they were just kind of okay. I like Jaden Smith’s sister’s music and his own philanthropic actions, but his music felt like uninspired rap music. Same with Blackbear’s music.
Fall Out Boy themselves did not put on as good of a show as the two of previously been to (they’re on this list!) but I have a feeling that this is just going to be what happens as they get older. The lead singer (Patrick Stump) did not sound like he was hitting the right notes all the time or having an easy time doing his yelling-singing, but I know he had just been at the doctors the week or so before. I’ll give them a pass this time.

Heart - Love Alive tour



This was a concert I went to two weeks ago! Heart has been a band since the late 60s, and while they didn’t go as hard as they used to, but they were so awesome and are so lovable that I forgive them. While you can tell their voices aren’t as good as they once were, they put on a damn good show and made it worth it. Plus, we only spent $20 on the tickets, which was an awesome deal, and I went with my mom, aunt, and best friend. So it was so worth it! They played all of their greatest hits (Barracuda, What About Love?, etc) and it was neat to see all of the different age groups there. It was really a concert for all ages: current generation fans, middle aged fans, and the older fans who are their age. Something else that kinda tainted this experience was that an older guy behind us dumped beer on me and my friend, and yelled at us when we got mad about it. I yelled back. It didn’t help. But all in all, good show.

Fall Out Boy - Random gig at the Allegan County Fair
Yes, Fall Out Boy again. Considering the theme of the M a n i a tour (purple, anthropomorphic llamas?), it wasn’t as good as this concert. This was also the first Fall Out Boy concert I’d been to. There was no opener, no fancy flashing lights (we were outside, it was a county fair), just the crowd and the band playing their music. We were in the grandstands and not general standing room, which turned out to be a REAL plus because it was raining hard for most of the show. We were lucky enough to have the roof over our heads, but we’re still close enough that we could see the faces of the band. If it wasn’t so cold, it’d probably rank higher.

Panic! At The Disco - Pray for the Wicked tour



My best friend and I went to this concert earlier this year. P!ATD was one of the bands we bonded over through college, through heartbreak and drunken party nights, it is probably our favorite band as a relationship (you know what I mean? Not my favorite band and not her favorite band, but the band that defines our entire relationship). Nine in the Afternoon is OUR song so when that started playing, we got so excited. Brendon Urie is an AMAZING singer, and the guy has so much energy that he kept up with the crowd through the whole show. It was wild. There was a jazz band?! I mean, how many people can say they went to a pop/rock show but they also had a jazz band there? He also floated around the room, but played the piano and sang while he did it. Top that, Carrie Underwood.

Fall Out Boy - Random gig at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids



This was THE BEST Fall Out Boy concert I’ve been to. Remember how I mentioned openers? AWOLNATION and Pvris were the openers. Here’s a fun fact: I’d been wanting to see AWOLNATION live since like 2011 or 10, whenever they first became popular. So imagine how much I peed my pants when I found out I was going to see them live and Fall Out Boy. Also, I had heard about Pvris and heard they were really good (they were!) so I was just all around excited. The bands all played their own music and performed nicely, there was really cool lighting but not too much that it took away from the show, and all of them had great lead singers. If I could relive this concert over and over again, I would.

Lady Gaga - Joanne tour



I went to this concert for my 21st birthday. This was, by far, the BEST CONCERT I’ve ever been too. It was a SPECTACLE. The whole package - amazing vocalist, ridiculous dance moves, a MOVING STAGE AND FLOATING PIECES ABOVE THE AUDIENCE. And she had so many costume changes, that she just did in the middle of the show! Lady Gaga never ceases to amaze me. Somehow, even having had hip replacement surgery before she turned 30, she kept up the same energy through the whole concert. This woman is amazing. I could not believe the performance. She had a crystal clear piano that had lights shone through it which created rainbows. Pieces of stage tilted while she and her background dancers were dancing on it. This was truly a treat of a concert. It will be difficult for anyone in the future to top this for me.

In the future, I hope to go to another Gaga concert. I desperately want to see Elton John on his three-year goodbye tour, but the next concert I’m looking for tickets to is Miley Cyrus. I’ve been a fan of her for over a decade and never went to a single concert. It’s time to break that streak.

I may add to this list as I do attend more performances, especially if I go see local bands that need more listeners. One that I’m hoping for is Lipstick Jodi, a band from Grand Rapids.

Anyway, has anyone else been to cool concerts? Or really crappy concerts? I want to hear your concert stories!