Twenty One Pilots and Ten Life Lessons

Waiting for the gates to open!

This past weekend I went to a Twenty One Pilots concert in Columbus with my best friend. Twenty One Pilots is one of my favorite bands and I have wanted to see them in concert for a very long time.

For those of you who don’t know much about Twenty One Pilots, I highly recommend you give them a listen. However, for those of you who will choose to remain oblivious, I will give you a short rundown. Twenty One Pilots is a band consisting of two guys from Columbus who create music that is a mash-up of rap, alternative and pop. Their music is very different and it’s not for everyone, but Twenty One Pilots has managed to build a loyal fan base since signing as a band in 2012.

The concert was amazing. The show was everything I hoped it would be, and now I can check the experience off my bucket list. Aside from hearing great music at the concert, I also learned some things about life and people that I would like to share with you. Here is a list of 10 lessons learned from my Twenty One Pilots concert experience.

1. People are crazy- If you want to witness people doing absolutely ridiculous things you should go to a concert. Some people had been standing in line since noon that day and some people had come from out of state all to see one band.

2. Hydrate- The concert was at an outdoor venue and took place during a hot afternoon/evening.  Even before the first band took the stage, people were passing out left and right. About every five minutes you would hear people calling out for security and then see a limp or struggling body being lifted above the crowd into the hands of security and medics.

3. Personal space is not a thing- I cannot stress this point enough. This concert was no place for people who become claustrophobic easily. At certain points in the evening I couldn’t breathe because I was smashed against other people. I hope with all my heart that I am never that close to strange sweaty people again.

4. Strangers can actually be very kind- To my surprise, the majority of the concert-goers were college students like me. They didn’t shy away from starting a friendly conversation or taking pictures with me even though I had just met them. Also, I was impressed by the compassion of strangers whenever someone passed out and needed medical assistance. People were not timid in shouting for security and making sure those who needed out of the crowd got to safety.

5. Concerts are a marathon, not a sprint- We decided to stake out a spot in line at 3:30 p.m. even though the doors for the concert did not open until 6 p.m. Then, after getting into the venue, we had to stand shoulder-to-shoulder crammed in like sardines for another whole hour before the first band came out and another hour and a half until Twenty One Pilots finally took the stage. I was sweaty, tired and sore from standing so long. 

 6. It’s OK to not be hardcore- For awhile my best friend and I claimed a spot on the floor in a mass of hardcore fans close to the stage. However, by the time the second band came out, we moved to the lawn. We could no longer deal with the lack of personal space and the suffocating feeling of being forced too close to complete strangers.

7. There is always someone who is a bigger fan than you- Even if you can rap every song and religiously listen to their music every single day, there is always someone else who is a bigger fan than you. These are the people who not only know about the lives of the band members, but want their picture with band’s media guy because they follow him on his “flawless” Tumblr account.

8. Music is best enjoyed with friends- I am so thankful that I have a friend who will go to concerts with me. Concert experiences aren’t for everyone and it is a blessing to have a friend who shares my love for the same band. Having her there to sing along to every song and hold my hand in the crowd of people so we didn’t get separated made the experience much more memorable.

9. Concerts have community- Even though I didn’t know anyone else at the concert besides by best friend, there was an unspoken connectivity between myself and everyone else at the concert. The commonality of meeting together for great music was enough to make me feel like no one was judging me for jumping up and down to every song because they were doing it too.

10. It’s worth it- Even though I was hot, sweaty, tired and had to exercise the utmost patience and endurance throughout the evening, I am so glad I went. When Twenty One Pilots finally did come on stage every minute was enjoyable, and I have no regrets.