Why I’ll probably never pay for another standing GA ticket again

If you've read my post last week about obsession, then you'll probably know that the long awaited, super-expensive and ultra-hype BTS concert that I said I was going to attend to occurred last Friday. The concert was awesome! I stood outside of Prudential center waiting in the GA line for about 5 minutes, and got a very awesome spot. Like, I could literally reach the stage. And, people were very polite and well-mannered. That day was so perfect! Paying $250 for the concert ticket was worth it! 

God, how I wish that was all true. It felt like any other day, except for that day was perfect. The only redeeming quality of attending that concert was that I was finally able to see BTS perform live. Anytime, except the two-and-a-half-hour concert duration, were pretty much dreadful.

Since I had a GA ticket, I knew I had to come early to queue in line if I wanted a good view of the stage. I woke up at four-thirty in the morning, and left my dorm at 7am And then, I took the train and arrived at Newark Penn Station by 8:30am. I swear, it was unnecessarily cold that day. With wind blowing at the speed of 12 mph, and the sun hiding behind the thick nimbus clouds, the temperature dropped to the early 30's that day. It was the worst condition you can have when queuing up for a Kpop concert line. And, as you can see in the video below, people even camped out overnight outside of Prudential Center just so they can stand closer to the stage.

Video by Prudential Center

On top of the cold weather, waiting outside for too long got me all tired and upset. I had to wait in line for 5 hours to get my wrist band. And, it was only after then that I could leave the line to find something else to do. Together with a friend, I bought food and some merchandises, and ultimately, decided to queue up in line. AGAIN. An hour-and-a-half passed, and they finally opened the entrance doors. However, it wasn’t really until after another hour, at 6:30pm, did I enter in the arena. After entering the arena, and I could get a good spot. I had a very clear view of the stage, so I thought waiting in line was worth it.

However, my satisfaction and relief about my standing location only lasted for about 10 minutes. Unfortunately, other fans started entering the GA section. And, they started pushing their way to a spot closer to the stage. Not caring about the people who they push, and hit. It's rather unfortunate that they forgot to bring manners and common etiquette. Everybody's concert experience would probably have been better, if they did.

Going a bit off topic here. I just wanted to share a unique experience I had during the concert. Whenever, I sang along people around me would stare. I know that the first few instances were because I could sing all the Korean lyrics very well. However, as the concert proceeded, I had a hunch that the blatant staring was due to my overzealousness. But, I chose to ignore them since the concert, by nature, gave me the free reign to sing and cheer as loud as I can.

After the concert, I experienced the delayed feelings of embarrassment and shame. I reviewed all the files I recorded during the concert. And, law and behold, the blatant stares I got during event were definitely because of my hideous voice. Even as I listen to those recordings by myself, I couldn't help but hide my face in embarrassment. I was practically shouting the entire time, that my throat ended up hurting so much. My voice cracked so much that I couldn't even sing a single line without going off pitch. It was terrible. 

You can listen to how terrible my voice was during the concert at the video below:

Nonetheless, by the end of the concert, I realized that buying a standing GA ticket was not how it was cut out to be. I swear, next time, I will only buy seated concert tickets. It took me practically the whole weekend to recuperate and make up for all the fatigue and tiredness I acquired from having to stand for over 12 hours. And, when one recuperates, we usually end up not doing the things we need to do, such as doing homework or projects. So, for the next concert, the ticket I will be buying will definitely be a seated one.

The double-edged swords

Growing up in the Philippines, it really isn’t that surprising that I have developed quite an interest into Kpop and Korean TV shows. For as long as I can remember, local channels there have been broadcasting a lot of dubbed Korean dramas and movies. However, it wasn't until I came to high school that I started gaining interest in Kpop and Kshows, and, that was about 7 years ago. Up to this day, I still find every little thing about Kpop and Kshows enticing.

So, what aspect of Korean music and shows got me hooked?

Adolescence + talented people + great music + heartfelt lyrics = hooked into KPOP

The equation says it all. For the sake of keeping this blog post with 700 words, I'll just talk about one Kpop group to illustrate my obsession. Currently, I am very much in love with the KPOP group, BTS. They create a lot of amazing songs with relatable and inspring messages that appeals to the audience quite well. 

BTS from 2 years ago during one of their dance practice

One of the BTS songs I really like is titled, "Nevermind". BTS member, Suga, raps about his personal struggles about being concerned of others. He is telling the audience, that, whatever you do in your life, you don’t have to care about the things other people are saying. Just focus on doing what you love. And, even if you fail, it’s okay. This song actually resonated to me a lot, and it made me reflect on myself. It , to some extent, gave me the courage to express who I really am.

Anything done in excess has its downsides. So, what are some of the downsides of having an obsession into Kpop and Kshows?

Concert tickets and merchandise + albums (digital and online) + college student = broke

Kpop albums and merchandise I collected in the last 3 years ☺

Unlike my freshman year in college where I worked two jobs during each school year and had the luxury to buy whatever merchandise I wanted, I don’t have the same luxury. I only work one job, now, which only lets me earn enough money to comfortably sustain my daily necessities here in college. So, going with that logic, I certainly shouldn’t be buying a $250 BTS concert ticket, but I did. To be honest, for a college student, that amount is a very big burden. So, I had to take some money out of my savings to purchase the ticket. It created a big dent in my budget and expense list. When I think about it, I know that it's such a waste to spend a large sum of money in one go, especially, since it took me forever to save them. It really is a pity, but I don't I'll ever regret buying that concert ticket one bit.

Watching Korean TV shows (drama and variety shows) + listening to Kpop = time not spent studying or doing homework

Truth to be told, whether I have classes, exams, homework, and other school related stuff that I must prepare and study for, it’s still a usual thing for me to watch a two-hour video related to any Kpop or Kshows throughout the day. I tend to procrastinate a lot, and watching Kshows or listening to Kpop makes it worse. It affects my concentration and motivation to study a lot. I mean, I still do all my responsibilities on time, but I probably would be better off if I didn't wait until the last minute to work on them. I have plans to go to graduate school, so I should be studying for the GREs, but instead of doing that, I often end up being too engrossed in watching TV shows that I become too unproductive and often end up procrastinating.

Happiness > No $ + Procrastination

Maybe you’re wondering why, even though I recognized that there are problems in obsessing over Kpop and Kdramas, I still don’t make much effort to steer them away from my lifestyle. This has been a concern to my parents, for a while now, and should be mine as well, but, the amount of happiness I get from listening to Kpop songs or watching Korean TV shows far outweigh the burden of the problems I get from obsessing over them. I don’t know if I’ll still be this obsessed over it in the future. But for now, since they give me the opportunity to unwind, I want enjoy them as much as I can. The BTS concert I was talking about earlier is actually scheduled this coming Friday. I bought the official concert light stick and even made a poster written in Korean. Kpop concerts are not really held that often in the US, so for once, I wanted to have whole fan girl experience.