Macklemore was deadly last night, but I felt absolutely ANCIENT
I've been a Macklemore fan for years, ever since he played to a crowd of 200 people in The Twisted Pepper in 2011.
And obviously, he's come a long way since then, and I couldn't be happier for him.
The platinum selling artist played in Dublin last night, to a massive crowd in the 3 Arena, and I went along.
I didn't go with the intention of writing an article, however, it was quite the experience… an experience worth sharing.
So I arrived at around 8.30pm (standard) and was greeting by a very large crowd of teenagers, and a handful of Gardai keeping the peace.
Not an easy job, let me tell you.
Anyway, myself and my pal went in and situated ourselves among the standing crowd, getting reasonably close to the stage.
At 9pm, the show began, and from the very minute Macklemore came on stage, he was incredible.
I'm telling you now, there are very few artists around these days who have the same levels of energy and enthusiasm.
He captivates an audience like no other, despite the fact that the audience was made up of 10,000 17 year olds, pissed as rats.
He performed music from his numerous albums, including Downtown, Glorious and of course, Irish Celebration.
He spoke about his love for Ireland, his Irish heritage, and how Dublin is his favourite place to perform – and I genuinely believed him.
He donned an Irish jersey, waved the tricolour, and put on one hell of a show.
However, as I stood there taking in the greatness, it hit me – I am officially old.
Now listen, I'm 26, and I know I'm not old, old, but the days of tiny shorts, scoring the face of random fellas and getting drunk on a Wednesday are well and truly behind me.
And I'm not sure how to feel.
I genuinely felt like an old fart at the concert, despite the fact that I've been a fan of Macklemore for years (back when the majority of the crowd were making their confirmation).
Anyway, it brought me back to my school days, and despite the fact that they were all HUGELY irritating, I felt very nostalgic.
I don't think I realised how much I missed being young and carefree, no job to worry about, no bills to pay, and no worries about being an adult.
Back when I was a teen, my biggest worries were my boyfriend at the time, what I was going to wear to Wezz (HA) and whether or not I could drink a whole naggin.
Of course, I WAS that annoying girl at concerts who a little bit too drunk, annoying the handful of adults that braved the event.
And that made me think a little, and lessened my desire to flip the lid at all the young ones.
I was 16, too, and I loved every second of it.
It actually seemed fitting when Macklemore launched into Good Old Days – I even welled up a little.
"I wish somebody would have told me babe, some day, these will be the good old days."
"'Cause someday soon, your whole life's gonna change, you'll miss the magic of the good old days."
Too bloody right pal.
My point is, despite the fact that the crowd of drunken teens were killing my buzz, we've all been there.
I kept reminding myself that they're making memories, the stories they'll still be talking about in ten years.
When they're old farts, just like me.
