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How delightful it was that my first concert experience happened to be of an artist whose songs soundtracked my teenhood?

The worst thing about concerts (probably not the best way to open this but bear with me) is how late most of them begin. Maybe it’s just little old anxious me but it's mentally torturing having to wait around through the afternoon for the concert – I was reluctant to move because it felt like my body refused to do anything until it was time to go. 

Time also moves painfully slow when you’re waiting for something to happen but alas, the clock struck 8pm and just like that, those 10 hours of waiting around came crashing down on my shoulders as I struggle to run out the door. 

I grew up in Kuala Lumpur, which is often overlooked by performers and organisers, so I missed a lot of my favourite artists growing up. Not that I could go if they came down anyway, it was always a “no” from my parents when it came to these things. Besides, I didn’t have the money for it. So, when I turned 22 and had some money of my own and lived in a city that also gets a little bit overlooked but not as bad as KL, I knew I had to experience the thrill of a concert. 

How delightful it was that my first concert experience happened to be of an artist whose songs soundtracked my teenhood? Lorde has been praised for her outstanding vocals and aching lyrics – and honestly, for a teen girl, nothing was more appealing than a series of words that cloaked you in the warmth of friendships and heartbreaks – so I knew listening to these songs live would heal my inner teen. 

I took an Uber to the Entertainment Centre and with only 15 minutes until show time, I quickly bought myself a t-shirt to commemorate the event and navigated my way to my seat. Not long after the lights went dim and the silky red curtains dropped, Lorde belted out a song from her older album, Melodrama. The crowd broke into a dance and roared the lyrics back at her. 

She reminisced about the last time she performed in Adelaide and how much she’s grown since then and immediately followed that up with one of my favourite songs (and evidently, the crowd), Ribs. I jumped out of my seat and sang my heart out along with her. I’ll admit I cried a little too.

She sang hit after hit – from the popular ones you’ve heard on the radio to the fan favourites. She blew us away with her out-of-this-world vocal range shifting from her haunting raspy voice to an angelic high pitched one effortlessly, and not to mention her dance moves which made me want to dance and sway along with her.

I would not have expected that I would go alone to my first concert but even then, I wasn’t really alone. Physically, yes, but really 16-year-old me was there too. We danced, cried, and sang together, and we had a blast!