Summertime is known for being a time where music really thrives. There is something a little bit extra special about attending concerts in the summertime. The weather is nice, everyone is outside, surrounded by friends and/or family, throw in some live music and what could be better? There are so many festivals that take place in the summertime, as well as artists who are already on tour in the summertime.
So, in honour of the love of summer concerts, we conducted a Q&A with a few fans to recap their experiences from their summer shows.
Ninna (Twitter/X User @N9nnaDK) is from Denmark and she has attended shows for Louis, Niall and Harry.
Stacy (Twitter/X User @loudloudlove) is from the UK and she has attended shows for both Harry and Louis.
How long have you been a fan of any or all of the boys? How long have you been a One Direction fan?
Ninna: I’m a Covid fan. Fell into the 1D fandom from talking to a fellow fan of Young Royals. She mentioned 1D and Larry and it was a quick drop to the bakery at the bottom of the rabbit hole. I quickly gravitated to Louis, I love his voice and ‘rockier’ sound. The reason I wasn’t a Directioner back in the day is that I listened to death and speed metal, hip hop, grunge and basically anything but pop or jazz. Didn’t get in touch with my inner pop princess until way later in life. I love all 5 of them and their music, but Lou’s the one I keep coming back to and who I listen to the most.
Stacy: I’ve always been a fan of One Direction, but it was definitely more casual in the very beginning. I discovered our side of the fandom in 2012 completely by accident on a random YouTube music spiral. I’ve followed along since then, and been fans of the boys as solo artists and people, but it wasn’t until I joined Stan twitter in 2021 that I realised just how passionate it could get and really found my people.
How long have you been a Larrie? How did you get into the Larry fandom?
Ninna: I fell straight into the Larry-verse (as stated above) and proudly claim to be ‘absolutely no stunts, Larrie, Ziammie & Shiallor.’ I think the very first video I saw had me convinced that Larry was and still is real.
What show(s) did you go to?
Ninna: My first show was Louis in Copenhagen, March 28th, 2022. I saw H there, behind the curtains. I was at H’s show in Copenhagen on July 3rd, 2022 that was cancelled because of a mass shooting across the road. Then I convinced my mother and child that we should go on a family trip to LA, so I could go see H at Harryween on Oct 31, 2022 (bonus; got to see My Policeman at the movies on November 1st). I saw H again in Horsens on May 13th, 2023. Saw Lou again in Copenhagen on Aug 31st and then again in Brighton in November. Saw Niall in Copenhagen on March 12th, this year. I hope I get to see Z and Liam too someday.
Stacy: I went to Love On Tour Manchester N1 in 2022, then Slane Castle in 2023. For Louis, I went to Sheffield for the FITF World Tour.
Can you tell us about a special moment from your show(s)?
Ninna: There are a couple. My first 1D connected show was Lou on March 28th 2022. I already knew that that date was special and I had my eyes peeled for anything ‘out of the ordinary’ from the second I joined the queue. I saw everyone. I was standing right in front of the soundbooth, wearing my very rainbow Stylinson outfit (literally said Stylinson on my back and Larry and 28 on the front) and EVERYONE came and went from the soundbooth (Oli, Helene, Krystle, other friends of theirs, etc). When the curtains hiding the top floor of the upstairs parted and I saw a knee/leg and hat/head of ‘someone’ I was elated. Charlie spent a fair bit of time up there talking to them and they adjusted the curtains a fair bit, to make sure they didn’t let anyone see who it was. I’m certain it was H, from the few seconds of movement I saw. At the cancelled H show in Copenhagen I was the Danish front runner of the ‘As It Was’ project and it really got some traction, but unfortunately it got cancelled. Also in LA I got to hear hopelessly devoted to Lou with my own ears and I was in tears!
My most memorable one was probably Brighton, though. I went for a week, by myself, to check out the area and the town. I wanted to soak in the Brighton atmosphere and I’ll never forget it. The 1D night at a local pub was so much fun! Meeting friends from twitter was the best and standing around waiting for the buses/Lou until well past 2AM talking to strangers was so special. I will never forget that show or Brighton. Even queueing for shows is fun if you let go of inhibitions.
Stacy: My 2023 shows were both unbelievably special. For Slane, I went on a 10 day trip with seven of my friends that I had met purely because of twitter. We met in the same group chat and became firm friends very quickly. Even when that group chat ended, we stayed friends and knew that we all wanted to meet. We came from various US states, the UK, Mexico and Australia to stay in a cabin in Ireland, ironically named the Larry Rose, before flying onto London to make even more memories. That trip truly made me realise that the connections we had made were very very real. Also that I had found friends that would support me and love me just as I am for the rest of my life. I’d be lost without them, and we still talk every day and meet up when we can.
For FITF it was a similar situation, but with a different group of girls. We met up in Sheffield and spent the day and night together watching Louis. It felt really special because it was the first time I’d ever managed to see Louis, and to do it with people who felt everything the same way I did was a real privilege.
Did you get to meet friends at the shows? Were there people trading bracelets?
Ninna: Yes, I have met people from Twitter at many shows. I usually bring loads of bracelets to trade and pride flags to hand out. Some people roll their eyes at me (a loud and very rainbowy, vintage fan, who’s very obviously a Larrie as well) but most people laugh with me and my joy seems to rub off on most. I’m easy to recognise, several people at the Copenhagen shows have come up to me to reminisce about the other shows we’ve been at together and it’s so special to me that people remember me and wanna talk again. I suck at remembering faces, unfortunately.
Is there anything else that happened that you want to include?
Ninna: I love this fandom! I don’t have the best experiences with solo fans, but Larries, Ziammies and Shiallors are so kind and helpful.
Thank you to both of these lovely fans for contributing and sharing their experiences with us, including photos! It’s always so incredible to see the different experiences fans have at these concerts, with the boys, and of course with each other.
