Note: I’ll be talking about my ENTIRE experience starting from the early-morning lineup until the end of the concert. Feel free to skip the Before section if you just want to hear about the actual concert experience! 🙂
Before:
I checked into Hotel Indigo with my sister and her best friend on Thursday night (3/23/2017.) The latter 2 woke up at 7 a.m. the next morning to start lining up for the concert. I met with them around 10 a.m. because I had some school work to finish and submit.
Although my sister and her best friend were in line since 7 a.m., we still ended up in the 400 cluster because there were people that slept in tents outside of the venue the night before. (There were at least 10 tents it was crazy!) While waiting in line, there were so many lovely fansites walking around, giving free banners and stickers.
After we got our wristbands around 12:30 p.m., we left to charge our phones, eat, and buy some merch! THE LINE WAS OUTRAGEOUSLY HUGE.
MERCH:
Let’s just note that police were investigating the area because of the large crowds and the boxes labeled “bombs.” lolol
ANYWAYS, I waited in a separate line with my sister’s best friend in order to get the 3 of us lightsticks while my sister waited with 2 other friends in the regular merchandise line. We were successfully able to get lightsticks but they quickly sold out of hoodies, beanies, and caps! It was only disappointing because a worker told me they only brought out 30 caps and 30 beanies to this merch stand. Since we only wanted hoodies and caps, we just decided to ditch that line and rest before the concert.
Note: I heard the members rehearsing “Spring Day” from outside of the Prudential Center & I started FREAKING out. Also, there was a grown man wearing a tank that read “You Make Me Begin” with a blown-up pic of Jungkook giving a thumbs up. The back also read, “Marry Me, Jungkook.”
CONCERT TIME:
FINALLY, after waiting nearly all day we were let into the venue! My group ended up being 3 rows of people behind the center stage (section P2.) They had a loop of BTS’ MVs playing on the 2 side monitors and everyone was singing along while waiting for our boys to come on stage.
Then the lights dimmed, the curtain dropped, and BTS was ON STAGE, starting off with their recent song “Not Today.” EVERYONE WAS HYYYPE. After “Not Today”, they performed “Dope”- don’t ask me how they performed both of those dances back-to-back while still sounding perfect. I know Jungkook and Jimin were the first 2 to perform the solo stages- leaving fangirls deceased.
However, when “Lost” came on, everyone in my pit surged forward to the front. I didn’t know why until I saw the vocalist line, rising from the stage RIGHT IN FRONT OF US. Everyone kept pushing until the next song, “Save Me.” People around me, including my sister, almost fainted from the heat of the pit & everyone pushing up against each other. This time, it was okay though because people made room if they knew that someone was about to faint. Some fans were even kind enough to fan each other & give each other water. It just kinda sucked because I missed RapMon’s performance and the beginning of J-Hope’s song due to the fact that I was helping people around me who were about to faint. Although, once the pit finally calmed down- I was able to enjoy my concert experience!
Overall:
This has got to be the most touching concert I’ve ever been to. Not a lot of people know this- but BTS’ “Spring Day” comeback is what inspired me to write my Journey to Self-Love post. In the bridge of that song, they sing:
“The morning will come again
Because no darkness,
No season
Can last forever.”
And this just really got to me, ya know? It was a fresh reminder to keep moving forward and to keep hoping and living. Towards the end of the concert, BTS thanked us for being their wings so that they could fly higher and higher. RapMon reminded everyone that, “In this life, you will never walk alone.” The videos played during the short intermissions told the story of 7 boys, 1 soul and this never-ending journey that we all walk on.
I know they’re sometimes ragged on (jokingly, ofc) for being so deep all of the time but I sincerely appreciate it. I joined the fandom when they cameback with “Boy in Luv” and they basically ripped my heart out w/ their dance. From then until now, (3 whole years wow), I’ve seen them grow from young boys testing out the waters into full-blown artists telling stories through their music & MVs.
There was this one moment at the end of the concert: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8e-v9ZW4_c
where I just couldn’t stop crying. I mean, I began crying during the bridge of “Spring Day,” but this moment had me sobbing. Just to hear the crowd singing, while the falling confetti glistens through the stage lights, and to see the look on the boys’ faces. They just had this grateful, whimsical, and wow this is the impact we have on people expression. It was a moment where I thought, “This is why you live, for experiences like this.”
Last but not least, I just want to say how grateful I am for these 7 boys. They’ve impacted my life in a way that’s hard to describe and they inspire me to do more and live.
“In this life, you will NEVER walk alone.” – Kim Namjoon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ySb3l8q4rE
