In the blink of an eye, it was over. The thousands of once filled seats became empty. One by one, the crowd disappeared, diminishing from over 15,000 people to a few hundred.
“The best way to end Summer was hands down being able to rock out with 5 Seconds of Summer in Dallas,” junior Faith Young said.
5 Seconds of Summer, typically known as 5sos, is a well-known pop-rock band that recently wrapped up their world tour, “Rock Out With Your Socks Out”, with concert dates all over Asia, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and North America.
“My friend and I had been preparing for this [concert] for over eight months.” Young said. “It’s not every day that two girls from Arkansas are able to drive all the way to Dallas and see four amazing Australian babes.”
Dallas, Texas is well-known for its countless bridges that overlap each other, each containing at least three or more exits and the famous Dallas’ five o’clock traffic.
“I have never been so lost in my life,” Young said. “Dallas is nothing like Bryant. We decided to go to a mall in Dallas before the concert, but we didn’t really account for Dallas traffic.”
The race was on.
“It took us about 30 minutes to just get back from the mall to our hotel,” Young said. “I don’t think I’ve ever run faster in my life or gotten ready so fast.”
With any concert, traffic piles together, making it impossible to maneuver around the compacted line of cars.
“I thought five o’clock traffic was bad. It’s nothing compared to 5sos fan traffic,” Young said. “It was basically impossible to get through the traffic, because there were at least three accidents being worked, and along with accidents come police, so speeding was out of the question. We were over 15 minutes from the venue, and the show was scheduled to start in 10 minutes.”
While traveling around a new or unknown place, many people use Google Maps for directions, which gives the fastest possible routes to avoid traffic and accidents.
“I was trying to use Google Maps, but my phone wouldn’t connect to the internet. So we were basically lost for another 20 minutes,” Young said. “By some sort of miracle, we finally reached the venue on time. Thank God for opening acts.”
The anticipation grew in the crowd. With the slightest movement on stage, the crowd cheered, expecting the arrival of the four Australian band members.
“I’d been waiting over eight months for the show, but those 20 minutes of anticipation before the concert were probably the worst.” Young said.
The arena went pitch black. A count down began. The crowd began to scream and count down the final few seconds. Three, two, one. It was time.
“I might’ve cried a few times.” Young said. “Michael Clifford actually shined a light and noticed my friend’s Australian flag she brought along to the concert. Let me just say, you haven’t lived until you’ve heard Luke Hemmings sing the first line in “She’s Kinda Hot”, live.”
In a blink of an eye, it was over. The three and a half hour concert came to an end.
“There’s just something so amazing about being at a 5sos concert,” Young said. “The connection [they] have with their fans is so real. I couldn’t imagine a more perfect ending to my summer. Definitely rocked out with my socks out, even though I wasn’t wearing socks.”
