Clearly, I was not ready!?! Do, you hear me? I WAS NOT READY...for the kid, her reactions, her singing, her excitement, her everything! The kid was BEYOND excited. I can't quite put her happiness, excitement, and joy into words. Just know she loved every minute of this concert.
The kid's mother; me, she, her, I was not ready. I knew the concert was for the kid but I thought I was a hype, hip, knowledgable, and official then I truly was. This concert proved otherwise. This realization did not register until I knew very few songs, I was tired, I mean sleepy, and I sat more than I expected. This was not due to the concert being bad but simply because I was not ready, prepared, or as youthful as I thought. It dawned on me, the previous concerts that I attended didn't require me to stand, turn my phone light on, wave my phone back and forth, yell and recite words, or do dance moves. The concerts I attended were old school R&B where the audience pretty much remained seated, sang along, and occasionally got it because that ONE song in particular was their jam and a bop was sufficient.
But, BABY THIS CONCERT WAS NOT THE SAME! The young folk stood up for Lizzo's entire 2 hour set. Ummm...no ma'am. All I could think about was that TIK TOK when the older woman told the young lady to find somebody else to do it!
Let me take you back to entering the concert. The kid was hyped and started shrieking after we parked and repeatedly said "OH MY GOD I'M ABOUT TO SEE LIZZO!" Her excitement matched that of the crowd. A nice lady overheard her excitement and told her she was in for a treat and graciously took a few photos of us before we entered the venue. The kids excitement came to a strechting halt when she thought I didn't purchase two tickets. So, what had happen was...I purchased tickets on Ticket Master and leading up to the event they kept sending notifications to save the tickets in my google wallet to avoid any issues when checking in. I stalled on doing so until the day before because I really did not want to because I did not see a point in doing such,. However, I did it anyway or so I thought. We enter the venue and I go to scan the barcode and the elderly man informs me that one ticket scanned now I need to scan the other. I couldn't find the other ticket, he tried for a brief moment to assist me, before asking us to stand to the side. Mikayla isn't saying much and I know she's nervous. I try to calm her and reassure her I purchased two tickets. The elderly gentleman inserts himself in the conversation, "I only see one, I can only go by what I see, I don't know what you did!" I don't reply verbally, I just look up from my device and give him a side eye that let him know silence is best at this moment. I decided just to go back to the Ticketmaster app and there I find the second ticket, scan it, and I reassure Mikayla and the gentleman I knew I purchased two tickets. She lets out a deep sigh of relief.
As we enter the venue the kid reminds me she should have worn something different. (Sis you good, Lizzo nor Latto will see you.) The crowd is dressed down honey...glitter, bright colors, sequins, and much more is popping. Leather, skirts, heels, the whole nine baby the girls and the boys are out to play! The kid declines food and just want to get to the seats. We climb to our seats, yes climb.
And she is pumped just from the DJ. I can tell she's going to be a bit much for the young lady who is seated beside her. I tell her to switch seats with me so she can have the aisle and only has to worry about getting in my space. Latto comes on and the kid is a screaming machine. Like a shrieking machine. I try my best to allow her to enjoy herself but also give redirection for those around her to enjoy the show as well. She complies...momentarily. I let it ride, it's her first concert. I knew NONE of Latto's songs. I thought I knew something. NOPE! I take pictures and allow the kid to be herself. Latto performed for about 45 minutes. She was high energy, she danced a lot, and rap just enough. I was expecting a little more but the kid said Latto did a good job so she did a good job. We had to wait for about 30 minutes so they could adjust the set for Lizzo.
When LIZZO came out , she came out! The entire venue rose to their feet and stayed that way. Baby aint no way. But, anyways the energy was bananas. The people sang the songs, danced, yelled, scream, cheered, and more. Lizzo is a good performing. She sang very well and you know sis played that flute and she clapped them cheeks on the stage for all to see. She gave the people what they wanted, needed and more. I sang along to the two songs I knew. The kid...THE KID...she was on another level. She screamed, hollered, yelled, shrieked, and more. She knocked my phone out my hand, she jumped up and down, and she cried. I didn't know how to take sis. I was like do you need to have a seat, sis reaction threw me. I was acting like it was alter call in the church house, have a seat, get yourself together before you get back up. At one point she was visibly disturbing the guy in front of us. He was there because he brought his lady friend. He was sitting as much as me and he was younger than me. SO, I had to come up with a hand signal so she knew when to take it down. At some point I couldn't stand any longer and I sat and enjoyed the tunes from my seat. I may have dozed off once or twice, but baby I had been at work since 6:30 that morning. I was like when is this over cuz I need food and a bed. Overall the kid enjoyed the concert. She thanked me all the way back to the car and in the AIR BNB.
There was nothing you could tell the kid. She was mumbling words and all but she was getting it!
We sang together for the most part.
Lizzo and her flute.
The remainder of the weekend was just as fulfilling for me as the concert was for the kid. We were able to have open and honest conversations about the past, the future, expectations, high school life, and teen life. It's not alway easy having difficult or uncomfortable conversations but I try my best to make myself available for these types of conversations. It's important that she knows I'm human and I make mistakes. It's imporant for me to be vulnerable to ensure she has an outlet in me. We had girl talk, went to a local fair, colored, listened to music, and ate good at a local soul food place, Jackie's Dream. Overall, we had a great time in Knoxville.
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