I was supposed to pick up my tickets and backstage passes before the concert started at the Hard Rock Box Office. so i went over there and the lady said that there weren't any. So i was really frustrated, and the lady was so rude to us. she said that they could show up at any time, even at around 8:00 or 9:00, which wasn't good cause the concert was general admissionand it opened at 6:30. and we would end up in the balcony section. so after much stress and calling around to several people trying to get the tickets, we FINALLY got them, as well as the backstage passes.
Anyways, onto the concert. I was pretty close, at the beginning, about 4th row, if there were rows (it was just a huge floor). and then i moved up to about 3rd row, couldn't move very far because there was this group of people right in front of me who were a bit drunk and they were really loud. but that was ok, since i knew i was going to meet them after. Tonic was good, i made alot of eye contact with the lead singer (sorry, i dont know their names!) and the other guitarist. The Goo's were excellent. they were so good. Johnny commented on how tired they all were but it didn't show, i thought. they were really energetic and looked like they were having a great time. so, as usual, they came to Name. the last concert i went to, Johnny gave us a choice but here he just started talking. this is what he said: "I got alotta sh*t for this song. (starts playing the first few chords of Name; audience goes wild) (John laughs) yeah. well, we didn't really want this song to be a single, you know, it's such a sissy song! (audience screams, and John laughs again.) so we, you know, stuck it in the middle of the album, kinda hoping no one would find it. yeah, so then one day i'm driving around, and i turn on the radio, and i hear this (strums a couple of chords of Name) and i go 'click'. (pretends to turn off radio). and i thought to myself, ah, it's jsut a mistake, it wont happen again, someobody jsut mesed up. but then, like a month or two later, i'm in the grocery store looking for dog food, and i hear (a few chords of Name) 'clean up ilse number six, clean up ilse number six.'(John says this in a nasal, monotone voice) and i go SH*T! oh my god, this is not happening. casue you know when your song is played in a grocery store, it's pretty popular. yeah so then, like a few months later, i was getting mail out of my mailbox, it's weird i mean i never mail! well at least i never get letters to me. so i got this one letter, and i opnened it up and htis is what it said
"Dear Faggit, you suck and your song sucks. you're a sellout." so i read that, and i was really hurt! that's my song, ya know? so i wrote back "Dear Mr. Indie-punk-rock dude......" and i told him what the song meant to me and i explained it. so i licked the envelope (makes werid sounds into mic) and i was just about to put it into the mailbox and i thought 'John, you dont need to explain yourself to some asshole.' so i ripped it up (makes sounds into mic) and i wrote another letter. "Dear Dickhead. (John starts laughing really hard) Eat a bag of shit. ~Rzeznik" then starts playing Name.
Robby was really good. he had so much energy and interacted with the crowd. He was wearing a black shirt and black pants and (suprise!) no shoes. John was wearing a tight black shirt and tight black leather pants, and mike was wearing dark blue i think.
The only thing i would have changed about the actual concert was putting in There You Are and Just The Way You Are. they cut both of those songs from the list. ah well, still a great show. also, i noticed whenver Robby sang John wouldn't really fade into the back and let Robby have his glory. But i love Robby so i screamed/sang twice as loud. oh yeah, in the beginning, there was this little kid who was crying because it was so loud so Johnny was like "Someone get this kid some earplugs." and at the end of the concert when they smash the guitars, Robby smashed his, and then John lifted it, as if he was going to smash it but then turned around and ran to the edge of the stage and gave it to that little boy.
So after that, everyone piled out and i was a nervous wreck. i was shaking. lol. so we had to wait in line against the wall and i was next to this guy and this woman who was his friend or something and they didn't have passes. she was determined to get in though. the guy said he used to be in band and he actualy played at the HRL. so then the guards came and they checked our passes. we got into and elevator and went down, into the backstage area, where they took us to this room with a tiny stage. The guitarist of Tonic was there, as well as the drummer and they were playing twister with these 4 "teeny bopper girls". it was pretty funny. my dad and i went and sat on the stage. about 15 mins later Mike walked in. and no one even looked at him! i was ecstatic, i mean come on, it's MIKE! so i went over there and i was like "hey Mike" and he turned aorund and said "hey" so i asked him if i could sit with him and he said sure. so we were talking and i told him how great they were in concert and then i was goign to go back the were i was sitting to get my camera, and he said i should hang out with them at the buses later. i was like oh my god!!!!! HE asked ME to hang with HIM by THEIR busses!!!!! ahhhhh!!!!!!!!. lol so i went back with my camera, and i was like "hey Mike, can i bug you again?" and he was like "no." and then he smiled and said "sure, what do you want?" and i told him i wanted a picture with him so i got one. then all these girls started noticing him, so i went back to the stage and was talking to my dad admiring my autograph when the door opened and out walked Robby!!!! (with his girlfriend) he walked ontot he stage and right in front of me. so i was like "hey Robby!" and he said "hey how are you". so i asked him if he could sign my cd slips. and as he was signing, he was said "wow, you have all of them!" he was soooooo nice and he treated me really nicely. i was so happy. and he even talked to my dad and they were talking about the upcoming tour overseas and Robby said that they were playing on a certain ship and he couldn't rememeber the name and my dad knew it! (he works for the Foreign Service) so that was cool. my dad was talking to him and Robby said something like "Johnny gets all the kisses and the hugs" or something. so then i asked his girlfriend if i could have a hug with him and they both laughed. they are so cute! so i got a hug and i got a picture. then i told that i was the one who had won the contest and that his parents had told me to say hi to him and he was like "oh, yeah they're great." and he laughed.
so then Robby went over to some other people who wanted autographs. so then we waited, and waited, and waited for John to come out, and somebody said to Robby "where's Johnny?" so Robby went back to check. then like 2 mins later he came back with Johnny, and all these girls just rushed towards him!. he came and sat on the edge of the stage and signed that little boy's guitar. then finally there was a break in all the people so i walked over to him, and he was like "hey!"so i asked him to sign all my cd slips. he did (except he missed one by accident, Jed) and i told him that the show was great. (by the way, the had all changed clothes. Mike was wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt, Robby was wearing a navy blue or black shirt i think, and John was wearing a black shirt and his green drawstring cargo pants. he wasnt wearing any shoes. and i noticed he didn't tie the string in the front.) so then John told me he had to go talk to this guy in a wheelchair. before he left i was like "John, come back cause i need to talk to you" and he said "what?" so said it again and he leaned closer and closer and then he was reeeeeeally close to me and our cheeks were touching and he said really quietly "what?" so i said it again (lol i think he was teasing me) and then he grabbed my wrists and said "dont move, i'll be right back, i promise." so i waited and finally he came back after he had said hello to everyone else. so i told him i had three questions but first i gave him the friendship bracelet that i had made him. he was like "oh cool! that's so cool!" and he asked me tie it on him cause he said "i'm stupid with things like this". so i put it on and i have having a hard time cause i was sooo nervous. so then i asked him my three questions which were, can i have a hug, can i get a kiss, and will you go to prom with me? and he was like "ooh prom, tell me the truth now, when is it?" and i was like "it's in may..." and he goes "hmmmm, may.........aw, i can't make it! i'm so sorry. but i would if i could!" and i was like, "it's ok Johnny, i wasn't really expecting you too!" and then he goes "hey did you know you're the first person who's ever asked me to prom?" and i was like "really? naw..." he was like "yeah! no one asked me, no one wanted to go with me!" and i said i would have gone with him! so we talked for a while and he gave me a hug and i saw his tattoos, but then dave (the manager) said they had to go. So i gave Johnny a hug goodbye, and then he kissed me on the lips! i was so happy, casue i didn't ask where, i woud have been perfectly happy if it was just on the cheek, or if all i got was a hug. it was cool cause all the other girls who asked him he either kissed them on the cheek or not at all, i was the only one who got a kiss on the lips. it was great. then when they walked out of the door, John turned around and smiled at me. ahhhhh!!!!! i'm in heaven! sorry if i'm rambling on but it was a great night!