13 stages of preparing to see your favorite band’s tour

Concerts are no joke. In today’s day and age, you prepare for concerts literally months before you actually go to them. The stressful experience ultimately fades into bliss, but there’s a lot of preparation to get there.

Regardless of how many steps, we all experience them at some point. So here are the stages we all go through to prepare for when our favorite band go on tour.

1. Speculating about dates before there’s even an announcement


Your favorite artist just released their first single in literally two years. There’s rumors of an album, which probably means a tour. Even though there’s no official announcement of either, you’re already thinking about seeing them live.

2. Mentally planning ahead for presale, tickets and merch


We might not lay out a budget out on paper, but in our heads, the cost of buying tickets and inevitably getting the merch is already on our minds.

3. Preordering the album when the link drops


Preordering through the band’s official site will give you presale perks. Obviously, there’s no other choice except preordering this album right here and now.

4. Finding people to go with you


While it’s perfectly acceptable to rock out by yourself, going to concerts is a once-in-a-lifetime experience you want to share with friends. So you scrounge through your contact list to find the perfect friend (or friends) to go with.

5. Ensuring no distractions when tickets go on sale


It’s important that nothing interrupts buying these tickets. You have one shot to get it right, and usually that shot comes at 10 a.m. EST. Who cares if work or school calls? Tickets are
obviously more important.

6. Refreshing the page when 10 a.m. finally hits


It’s 10 a.m. and the tickets aren’t up yet. So we hit refresh. Once, twice, a thousand times until the tickets pop up—but not once after they show up. Until then, we just keep hitting refresh like our lives depend on it.

7. Taking a moment to breathe


At this stage, you have the tickets, and you’re
definitely going to this show. Congratulations. This is your time to celebrate and maybe even relax a little bit.

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8. Spending the next six months daydreaming about the show


You don’t have to lie. It’s the thought of seeing your favorite band live in t-minus six months and 11 days that keeps you going. It’s OK. We feel the same way.

9. Repeatedly looking at your tickets to make sure it’s real


You didn’t hallucinate buying those tickets (and dropping all that money). Seeing your favorite band is an out-of-this-world, surreal experience. So you just keep looking at those tickets to remind yourself that dreams really do come true.

10. Planning with your friends closer to the show


When you buy tickets for a concert that’s six months away, sometimes people forget the urgency of the situation. So in the month or so leading up to the show, you talk to your friends about what you’re going to do on the big day. Maybe you bug them about it a little, or a lot depending on if you’re going to be standing in line for general admission.

11. Setting aside money for merch


You’ve been doing this in your head for months now, but now’s the time to make it concrete. Meanwhile, your head and your heart argue over what’s a reasonable amount to spend on merch. Putting aside a couple hundred is reasonable, right?

12. Making sure your outfit is functional but fabulous


Of course you’ve got to look your best. Above all else, you need to make sure that you’re comfortable in what you’re wearing. Finding that perfect combination of comfort and style will determine how the rest of this experience goes, so we have no choice but to spend hours and get it right the first time.

13. Spending the full 24 hours before the show listening to their “Best Of” playlist on Spotify


Now is when you’re feeling pumped that you’re seeing your absolute favorite band live and in person. It’s like you’re about to jump right out of your skin with excitement. Time to rock out with your socks out and enjoy the show.

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