Now that I have finished watching the second season of Orange is The New Black, I can devote more of my time to my blog that I have ever so rudely ignored. My apologies.
My birthday has since come and gone once again. The one day that is all about you and your happiness with never ending amounts of food and booze. Well, it's not all about me because I have a twin, but I enjoy sharing my birthday with someone else...sometimes. I had to work this year at the restaurant I work at and it sucked. This is the first time in my 24 years of life that I had to work on my birthday. Instead of waking up with Happy Birthday texts and calls and mimosas at 10 a.m., I had to prepare for my busy Saturday night shift. I found other ways to celebrate, like going to a reggae concert the day before my birthday. So in lieu of being rejected as a contributing writing to a Buzzfeed-like website, I will dedicate this blog post in a similar fashion as those kind of websites.
5 stereotypes only Reggae concert goers would understand
(to be clear, the Reggae concerts I tend to go to are more rock influenced with the addition of horns, which I love, and a heavier emphasis on drums)
1. The Rastas. These are the real deal, dread locks wearing, Jamaican accent sounding individuals who practice the Rastafarian religion. There are usually a handful of these peep towards the back of the venue rocking to their own good vibes.They are real interesting group of people and I enjoy talking to them because their perspective on life is way different than the perspective of an Italian girl from Rhode Island.
2. The mosh-pit anticipaters. Surprisingly, mosh pits do happen every so often during these concerts. With bands like Slightly Stoopid and The Expendables, their heavy rock drum-solo songs result in a head banging, sweaty, aggressive mosh pit that guys seem can't seem to get enough of. Usually these dudes are wearing sleeveless shirts, cargo shorts and maybe even a trucker hat with the band's logo on it. Typically these guys are either super drunk or high resulting in an even more exaggerated most pit reaction. I have seen guys start pushing each other around to the most non-most pit type song. Seriously dude, chill out. I want to enjoy this song before your smelly ass starts causing fights for no reason. I always know when a mosh pit is about to happen, in fact, I can successfully move my friends and I to a secure location to avoid any punches from the drunken idiots.
3. The hipster chicks. They are usually in cut off shorts and wearing flower head bands. There are always the bandwagon jumpers who push their way to the front of the stage so inconsiderately, and trying to mootch a hit off of someone else's joint. These girls, sometimes even guys, probably don't give a shit about the bands rather just trying to get wasted with their buddies. Every concert has these people who ignorantly push their way to the front but not with me, no way. Unless they say excuse me, or are somewhat polite, I link my arms together like I am play Red Rover so none of those bitches can get through me. I have been here way to long to let someone else get a better view then me. Go back to where you came from and learn the band members name, then MAYBE I will let you get in front of me. Bitches.
Check out a video of Rebelution I took from the concert at the House of Blues in Boston (6.12.14) !
4. The genuine band fans. I suppose I can be grouped in this bunch as I have been following a handful of these rock/reggae bands for the last few years. I follow their pages in social media and make sure not to miss a show, especially with Slightly Stoopid, my favorite band. We tend to get as close as we can, without rudely shoving our way to the front, and absorb the vibes from the band while singing along to every song. At the concert I went to before my birthday, Rebelution was head-lining and The Green, Iration and Stick Figure opened the show.. I have a new found enjoyment of these bands because they were all bad ass live. Rebelution was always a good time and the opening bands were insane, especially The Green. Those Hawaiian guys sure can sing your socks off.
5. The stoners. It wouldn't be a reggae concert without the typical burn outs. It is very common at these shows for the band to smoke joints and even pipes right on stage. For whatever reason, they can get away with it but their fans can't, but they always find some way to hide it. The stoners I am talking about, however, get so high they get in the way. I had someone so baked they practically passed out and fell on me. Seriously guys, get a grip. Control yourselves. All of these stereotypes are stoners, by the way, I just can't group them in a bunch of burnouts who can barely function while high. Stay home if you can't hang.
Between these five stereotypes, someone is bound to smell real bad. Like body odor stench that is so bad, I would give up my front row spot to get away. But all of it is part of the experience, ammiright? Something about the push of the crowd, the smell of body odor and marijuana, and the pounding bass tickling my ear drum, I love it all. The whole genre is about passing on good vibes and living life positively. Everyone coming together to enjoy the music and the music's message makes a good time all around.
Everything is irie, especially when you get to meet one of the lead singers of Slightly Stoopid, Kyle McDonald! I got this bad boy last year at their concert at the Klein Auditorium in Connecticut. And check out the girl who photo bombed me. Props to you sistah.
