Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Seeing Music Come Alive: Joys of Going to Concerts

What is your favorite part about going to a concert? Why pay a good chunk of money to pretty much stand and watch people yell loudly into microphones when in actuality you can just listen to the song on your phone, tablet, or computer?


Going to a concert is not just about singing its about the performance, getting that live connection with the songs that are loved. Anyone can turn on a device and listen to a song, but when your at a concert fans are not just listening to a song they are also using their sense of sight to engulf their minds and feelings into the song. For example, today for the first time I saw The Fray in concert and loved it. I obviously was going to like the songs because I've had already heard them, I didn't pay $45.50 to listen to music, I paid to see the performance. Seeing how the band and their opening acts were going to use technology and their stage to make their songs come to life and not just be lyrics coming out of a speaker.

They used lights and plenty of movement to bring life to their performance. They had quite a few poles that illuminated with the beat and rhythm of the music. Slower songs had a slower rhythm while more upbeat, fast paced songs had lots of waves and blinking lights.


My first actual major concert was to Katy Perry's California Dreams Tour in 2011. Of course I went to see her in person but I wanted to see the performance. She made her whole concert a story with videos that went with the dance performances. She made her music come to life in a creative way, sort of like a large movie. Fans left the concert with a creative show that they could remember, I know I will never forget it.


Sometimes the best thing about going to concerts is to just let loose and enjoy being treated as an equal. Tonight I'm going to my second Gavin DeGraw concert. The first concert I went to he not once talked down to us as fans and had open conversation with us, it was like being with an old friend. I've been a fan of Gavin DeGraw since his song was used in the opening of a show One Tree Hill back in 2003. His songs give me a few hours of just release which is always good!


Music is a stress reliever to many and a form of release of the day to day. However, going to a concert is like visiting an old friend, reliving the good old days while catching up on the new. Check out your local concerts and go to one, it will be easy to see what I'm talking about.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

The Person Society Tells You To Be

What did you want to be when you got older? When you got older, what did you want to be? For a lot of people those two questions will not have the same answer. As young as before Elementary school people ask children what they want to be when they grow up. The majority of kids will say the common professions like a fireman, police officer, doctor, teacher, lawyer, and veterinarian and of course adults get all excited to get the little ones thinking of their futures in successful professions. The thing is society influences a large portion of what majority of people do for a living, not so much because they are being evil and controlling but because it is the practical thing to do to keep afloat in this fluctuating American economy.


When I was a kid I wanted to be it all, whatever I was around or exposed to that is what I wanted to be. A ballerina when I took 1 ballet class (that was VERY short lived), a cop, veterinarian, paramedic, nurse but with all those ideas of what I wanted to be I ALWAYS had one hobby and that was film. I spent hundreds of dollars buying special edition DVDs just to see the special features on them. The "making of" was the first stop after watching the show/movie. I would spend night after night having the most vivid dreams of working on sets, assisting actors, directors, throwing out ideas and seeing my name appear in the credits right after the project. Once I woke up I would be overcome with sadness because I was so happy in my dreams only to wake up to realize it was a dream. As I grew older I never pursued that dream of film because I was told to get a job and work to pay bills, that was the number one priority.

I graduated high school and joined the air force, discharged after not passing my final run time and went to paramedic school. Didn't pass the EMT exam and instead of re-taking the exam I went straight to a non-vocational school and went to college to get a degree in nursing. All that time I was doing what was I was told, to get a good paying job with job security to make a living. After getting married and having a baby at 21, now at 23 I see why I never really finished anything. It is hard to finish something you are not passionate about. Now, I am finishing my associates to apply to nursing school and starting the film degree I have always wanted. I have finally seen how society itself was making me unhappy by following what it was pushing on to me, doing the practical thing.


The thing is after seeing so many celebs, directors, producers doing their dream job I thought to myself, why can't I do that too? Sure odds are against me especially since I know absolutely no one who works in the profession (which discouraged me in the first place) but nothing you really want will come to you easily.


The purpose of this is hopefully simple. There is no reason why you cannot enjoy the best of both worlds. Even though your dream may seem to be out of reach just remember all it takes is a bit of stretching and you will be able to reach that dream, just keep trying. Society will ALWAYS push you to do other things, but do not get lost in doing exactly what your told, just modify it a bit to get what you want out of life. Working in medicine I have seen lots of loss and come to see first hand that life is WAY too short to let it pass you by. Make a list of all you want you out of this life and DO IT, do not wait forever because the chance just might pass you by.

Friday, July 11, 2014

Is the Autograph Dead?



       Taylor Swift wrote an article in the Wall street Journal about how autographs “are over.” No, I didn’t read it straight from the article at first; The Huffington Post posted an article on the subject and got me thinking about it. 

       Her article was very true! I am not famous and people do not come up to me to get an autograph so I am certainly not highly qualified to say it is true, but think about it, when/where do you see people running up to celebrities asking for an autograph anymore? When you watch award shows most of the time all you see are fans snapping photos and selfies of their favorite celebs. 

       I remember back in the ‘90s and early ‘00s when I would have killed for an autograph of famous boy groups like Backstreet Boys, Nsync, and other popular bands and celebs of the time. I remember getting my magazines of “m” and J-14 to get the printed poster with printed autographs of those same celebs. Having a hand signed signature was all the proof that was needed to prove that someone indeed met that celebrity!
We live in an era right now that is all about capturing the moment, living events is just not enough anymore. There is a demand for photos or videos to hold true that people really did meet and see a celebrity. The autograph of someone is worth nothing in comparison to a selfie. Taylor swift has been quoted stating that she “hasn’t signed an autograph since the front camera was placed on [cellular] devices.” The extinction of the “autograph” has evidence through technology. With every new generation of phone the camera is one of the first thing being perfected; the demand for the best self-taken photo is high. Even the new generation tablets have a front and back camera when at one time they only had a back camera. My only fear is that people are becoming more obsessed with creating that visual memory and living life through a lens instead of actually living and enjoying life as they live and breathe it.

       The fact that the autograph is lost is not some global epidemic, like everything, fans just evolved into yearning something better and more memorable. What do you think, has the autograph been dismissed? If you were to see one of your favorite celebrities, would you ask for an autograph or photo first?