The second I stepped out of the car that night, my heart fell from my chest to the dirty asphalt floor. I surveyed my surroundings and knew that I wasn’t in Tempe anymore. The excitement intoxicated my brain and I was drunk with the promise of the night. I knew what I came here for, and I knew who I’d be seeing, and yet it all felt surreal. Everything awed me, the close proximity of the surrounding nightclubs, how many shops where in walking distance, and this adorable halloween shop on the corner of the street adorned with some of Tim Burton's creations. Everything up to this exact moment had lost all meaning. I knew that my life was going to change as I waited for the doors to open at the Whisky A Go-Go venue on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. I was going to be standing in a place where iconic bands such as Led Zeppelin, The Doors, Janis Joplin, The Ramones, Oasis and so many other legendary bands have played in. My heart was racing faster and faster as the time elapsed, surrounded by all these fascinating people posted up against the venue’s crimson red brick wall filling their lungs with nicotine as they too awaited for the night to start. I was startled when the security gaurd’s voice crept up behind me to inform us that they will be letting people in soon. I looked up at my friend, Denisse, and let two words leave my lips, “I’m nervous.” She laughed at me and I smiled. She knew how much tonight meant to me. It had been all I had been able to talk about since I found out about the show in August.
The sun was saying it’s final goodbyes as it painted the city with beautiful rays of grey and orange and I walked up to the man cooped up in the tiny box office. He looked up at me like I knew what I was supposed to do, I didn’t. My friend spoke for me and told him we bought our tickets online and then he asked me what the name was, and I said my name. Anxiety took me over as I waited for him to find my name on the list of the other will calls. I had this scenario playing in my head that somehow my name wouldn’t be on that list, and all the promises of the night would vanish into thin air, but I was relieved when he finally said, “Ok, you girls can go in.” We were greeted by a man wearing your typical plain black tee with big bold white letters reading “security” but his face was kind and lighthearted. “Do you have any drugs on you? Did you bring weed?” were the questions he asked us as he searched our bags. I couldn’t help but laugh, as I replied with a simple, “no.” I was not accustomed to security guards blatantly asking for such information. He gestured us to the venue and my jaw dropped. This venue was nothing like any of the other venues I have ever been in.
From the outside, the venue looked small, but on the inside it was bigger than you'd ever believe. There were two floors and as soon as you walked in, you had to walk past these cute red lit booths that resemble the ones you would see at an Applebee's. They even had a tiny red shaded lamp hovering above each table covered with the drunken stories of past beer stains scattered across it. The top floor had an arrangement of restaurant tables and what looked like another bar. I knew that we were restricted to the bottom floor, looking at the ‘x’ marked on my hand, so I turned my attention to the stage. It stood about four feet off the ground, dark with a tint of blue lights shining down on the first band opening for the show. Crossing the divider between concrete to the wooden dance floor in front of the stage, we decided to stand in the middle as the frontman for the opening band looked at us and smiled before he pulled the microphone to his lips and thanked the room for coming. I was a bit confused as he addressed areas of the venue where there was no one standing in. There were only four others besides Denisse and I in the venue at that time, but I felt bad and started clapping with a stupid childlike grin plastered on my face. The man looked at us and winked as if to say thank you for playing along. Their set was short, and their music sounded something you would hear at a garage show in your neighborhood. Just another band with big dreams.
The quality in music progressed as the night went on and the diversity of music changed with every set. As each band played, more people were standing on the dance floor and some positioned themselves near the bars to ensure that they could refill their glasses as soon as it emptied. After the first four bands played, you could feel the atmosphere change as Slant set up for their time slot. Drunken men and women poured down from the second floor staircase and lined up in front of the stage. Screaming with excitement while holding their liquor high in the sky as the band awaited their cue to start. The lights dimmed, and mist filled up the room like a balloon as the scent of alcohol surfed along. Green and blue lasers pierced the air, dancing as the drummer started slowly banging on their drums. The screaming heightened as the anticipation in the crowd grew. I never heard of any of these bands before that night, but judging from the aurora coming off my surrounding peers, I was in for a treat and I was. The performance of Slant surpassed that of the bands that played before them. Now, don’t get me wrong, the other bands were fantastic but nothing beats the performance of a band that actually gets lost in the music. I mean, you have to do things with passion, or not at all, right? The high that was produced from their set alleviated some of the pain I was starting to feel in the heels of my feet. Five bands down, and two more until the one I came for would be playing. The nights promise began to solidify as the clock ticked away.
Throughout the show, I would look around and see if I could catch a glimpse of them before they walked up on the stage, but what I found was more than I expected. Dean Collins, an actor that I also love, was walking around the back, pacing from the entrance to the second floor multiple times. I immediately turned to Denisse and told her what I saw and at first she didn't believe me until I showed her his picture I pulled up via a google search on my iPhone. I could see the excitement in her eyes grow as I looked through more of the pictures on my phone. I scrolled upon a photo of him singing, and I grabbed her arm and said, "oh my god, he's going to be singing on stage!" I looked up to the stage and there he was. Tiny, he stood shaking hands with some people that knew him. I had to remind myself that this is LA and they are surrounded by the famous all the time, so it doesn't phase them as much as it did me. I told Denisse that I wanted to ask him for a picture, but couldn't pluck up the courage to bother him. I know how much some people in the limelight hate being recognized. He walked towards us and moved a speaker and smiled as he said, "hello, ladies." I could feel my knees melt as I smiled back and said hello. His messy blonde hair had rays of fluorescent light peaking through making him seem almost angelic. Denisse asked him if we could take a picture and he laughed and said, "of course, lemme hop down," and he jumped of the stage in front of us and hugged my waist and pulled me closer to him. After my picture was taken, his friends walked up to us, and asked if Denisse wanted to be in the photo and she joined as he decorated her shoulder with his arm. I looked at her and we exchanged a smile as they took a photo using their phone. Their cologne was pungent, but not in a negative way, the good kind, like the kind of scent that soothes your anxiety. He smiled at us again, and said told us he was thankful that we came tonight, and made his way back on stage. His scent and those of his peers lingered on my clothes and intoxicated me even more. His band, Pacific, had a wildly different set of people their for their show. What once was filled with people wearing leather and denim jackets and biker boots stained with the scent of alcohol suddenly disappeared as a new wave of people swarmed around the stage. The scent of girls perfume fused with the guys cologne, as more drunken people dressed in comfy casual clothing, tilted their head, raised their hand and screamed with excitement as the drums signaled the start of their set. Their music reminded me of a boy version of Best Coast. Upbeat, uptempo, and the chill vibes filled the room. There was one more band before the start of the band I wanted to see and as they finished and was clearing off their instruments, my heart started beating faster. I felt like I was going to explode. Finally, after seven hours of driving, three hours of getting ready, and getting stuck in LA traffic was going to pay off. It was time to see The Young Rapscallions, and time for me to meet the guy that I admire most in the media world.
I looked up at the balcony once more just for good measure but no luck. Where were they? I must have asked that question out loud because a girl tapped my shoulder and pointed him out. Christopher Mintz-Plasse (most of you know him as McLovin from Superbad), the person that I look up to the most, walking through the crowd in a hurry because he just got done filming on his new tv show, Friend Me. I walked up to him with such courage I never knew I had and said hi. He looked at me and said hello back and I asked him if I could take a picture with him. “Yeah, sure,” he laughed as he placed his thumb in the air as an ok and I smiled and the flash went off. He walked off and I could feel the tears collecting in my eyes. I couldn’t believe that I met the one actor that I love with everything I have. Most people don't understand how much he actually means to me. Not only do I find him to be the most attractive human on this planet, he inspires me in so many ways. I look up to him more than any other in the media industry. He's the most down to earth celebrity that I follow. He has fun and he does what he does with passion, not for the fame. That's a rare quality to see in today's world. I couldn’t believe he took a picture with me and I couldn’t believe that this night has gone better than I ever expected and his band hadn't even started yet. My heart was beating so fast I wasn’t sure it was going to stay in my chest. I started to laugh at myself and I wiped the remaining tears from my eyes and turned my attention to the stage where Jon, the lead singer, was fixing the microphone wires. He looked down at us, nodded his head and asked how we were, "great, we just got here from Arizona!" I said eagerly. He smiled, he knew who I was. I had previously written on their facebook wall a week prior telling them how excited I was to see them and I commented on his photo he posted of the title of the venue they were playing at, “thanks so much for being here!” and he walked off to finish setting up. The look on his face amplified my happiness out the roof, and it ended up in space when the band started playing.
Opening with two new songs I hadn't heard yet and I was numb with happiness. I was so high in the sky I felt like nothing could bring me down. I danced like no one was watching, singing along as they played my favorite songs, and watched Chris play his drums with such enjoyment on his face. Jon, the lead singer, just let go and gave his all. Dancing like a goof, smiling wide at each pause, and then closing his eyes to sing the next words. Nick and Taylor losing themselves in the music. I've seen many bands live and no one got lost in the music like The Young Raps did. These boys mean so much to me, and to be able to stand there and listen to them play my favorite songs? I was in heaven. Nothing else mattered. It seriously felt like none of the rest of the people standing around me were there any more. That it was just the band and I in our own little world for those 40 mins of their set. The sound of their instruments and vocals pulsing through my veins, the music connected us. That's the best thing about live music, that no matter what, you feel like they made the music for you and you alone. Reality crept it’s way through my little world and started unzipping the veil as Jon announced their last song. He informed us to go to their merch table on the second floor and say hi and as soon as the last note was played, Denisse and I rushed through the pool of sweaty people up to their merch table. 
As we reached the table, I saw what they had to offer and I knew that my wallet was going to lose some weight. I bought everything on their table, two shirts, and their two c.d.’s even though I already owned them via itunes. Nothing beats owning the hard copy of the music you love. The merch guy asked us if I enjoyed the show, as he counted the money we gave him. It didn't take long until he realized he already knew the answer to the question. I was grinning like an idiot and told him how far we drove. He, too was shocked, and he asked us if we'd like to meet the band. "YES!" I replied without thinking as he told the manager our story. He told us to wait and so we did. Before you knew it, Christopher was on the second floor, taking pictures with the others that liked him and he walked back downstairs. Jon came up through the sea of people, walked directly towards us and thanked us again for coming. "We should take a picture!" he said in the cutest voice and he grabbed my waist and pulled me closer and the flash went off. I was so happy when he promised us he'd try to come to Arizona for us and he wanted us at their next show. I told him I wouldn't miss it for the world and said our goodbyes. I walked down the steps, dreading leaving the venue. I knew the second I walked out, I would be thrown back into the reality that I didn't like. Thankfully, Chris was downstairs. I knew I couldn't leave until he knew how much he and his band meant to me. Bravery took over as I walked up to him and introduced myself and told him , “I just wanted to say thank you for being an amazing person, and I appreciate your music so much, I mean, I drove all the way from Arizona just to see you guys.” The look on his face was priceless. He couldn’t believe that someone would do that for him and his band. He thanked me and I asked him for a hug and he hugged me so tight. I told him I would be at his next show, and he replied “I can't wait to see you again,” and walked off. I was so happy I thought I was going to die. The night surpassed every expectation I ever dreamed of. Nothing really could compare to the night I had that night. I reluctantly walked out of the venue because I had five missed calls from my father. I got into the car, and closed my eyes, replaying every moment in my head as I drove back home.
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