Why I Attend (most) Concerts Alone

I rarely attend concerts for social reasons. The first concert I went to was Toby Keith; I was ten years old. The only thing I really remember about that concert is wondering what I could do to make it on that stage one day. Every concert I have gone to since then, I've asked myself the same question. 

Sure, concerts are fun, but I almost always view them like a job shadow: they are a necessary part of learning about the career I'm pursuing. I observe how the band communicates with each other. I listen to the mix. I try to catch how they cover up mistakes, and how I could apply similar strategies to my own music. 

Since I'm also pretty introverted, my energy is usually highest at concerts when I'm by myself. I realize this seems backwards, but it's how I'm wired.  If I go with someone who's not a huge fan of the music, I always find myself worried about making sure we're both having a good time.

If I'm going to a concert where I'm a big fan of the artist(s), I prefer to go alone so I can fully immerse myself in the experience. When I'm alone, I find it far easier to be authentic, and then I can try my best to carry that authenticity into other social settings.

Personally, I think we're all a bit too concerned when it comes to caring about others' perceptions of us. We always want to show that we're having the best time, and for some reason that's easier to do (or to fake) when we're with other people. I also think many people have a fear of being alone. Furthermore, people are more afraid of being alone in a crowd (parties, concerts, etc.) than being in solitude. For this reason, I often try to do "alone things" that scare me. I force myself to travel alone. I'll get a table for one. I like to see movies by myself. Somewhere along the line, I started to change my perception -- rather than doing things "by myself," I started doing things "for myself." These experiences are now one of my greatest sources of joy. Being alone makes it easier for me to learn about myself, which in turn makes it easier to grow with others. And at the end of the day, my highest value is the quality of relationships in my life.

There's no "right" way to enjoy a concert, but this is my personal preference. I accidentally led this blog down a rabbit hole, but I guess the moral here is that I try to do what works best for me intrinsically, even if it seems unorthodox.