Now that the 11 days of craziness and madness of Summerfest is over, I’ve had time to reflect on what I just experienced these past two weeks. As a music lover, this festival is super important for me. It allows me to see bands I know and love, but also discover new ones . It is an exciting time of the year for Milwaukee as well because Summerfest is a place where you get together with your loved ones, make some of your favorite memories of the summer and enjoy music, which I did just that.

Within the two weeks, I had the pleasure of enjoying nine out of the ten days of Summerfest.  I had quite the experience there, so I decided to put together my favorite memories of those days and share them. Here they are:

Seeing the dancing couple in the audience of the Decemberists

The Decemberists is a band I kind of knew. By that I mean, I knew one song and that they had Nick Offerman in their music video for it. As you could imagine based off of that, I really didn’t know what to expect from their show, which I kind of liked. When I got there, it was already much different than the other concerts I attended. It wasn’t super crowded. It didn’t have tons of super obnoxious drunk people bothering you. There weren’t people pushing and shoving you out of the way to get the spot they wanted. It was chill. The band had folksy tunes that had positive vibes and couldn’t help but put a smile on my face. Everyone in the audience was enjoying it as well. However, what really stood out to me was the couple in the aisle of the bleacher seating. Almost every song, they waltzed around the aisle, dancing and enjoying the music. It was great to see people just genuinely enjoying themselves and taking in the music. It just showed me how happy-go-lucky the band is and how just playing their music they can make people happier.

KT Tunstall singing that hit song you know and love

I was at Summerfest like a crazy madwoman because I intern at two places, OnMilwaukee and Milwaukee Radio Alliance, which is B 93.3 and FM 102.1. When I work for the Milwaukee Radio Alliance, I am pretty much one of their promo street team members. I sit at a tent and help the radio’s audience try to get opportunities to meet the musicians they love or see the shows they want to see. It’s a pretty cool gig. But anyways, one night  I was sitting at the 102.1 FM tent and not a lot of people were coming up to us. Another intern and I decided that we should walk around and check out the shows. We looked at the lineup and thought that it would be super fun to see KT Tunstall sing “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree.” We doubted that she would be singing it the time we got there, but sure enough the second we arrived she started singing it. It was crazy. We got a three-minute concert from her and heard everything we wanted to.

Meeting Fitz and the Tantrums

Like I mentioned before I intern for Milwaukee Radio Alliance, and they do giveaways for meet and greets. This was the first night of Summerfest, and I had no idea what to expect with working it for FM 102.1. As soon as I got there, I got thrown into helping people get registered for the Fitz and the Tantrums‘ meet and greet giveaway. Before I knew it, I was backstage helping people meet them and then met them myself. And to be honest, there is nothing better than meeting a musician love and enjoy. They were nice and friendly, and it was great way to start Summerfest.

Seeing the Passion Pit concert in the pouring rain

My two friends and I decided to see Passion Pit. I was writing a review for it, but I also thought it would be fun to enjoy it with friends. I knew it was going to rain, so I brought my rain coat, and my friend brought her umbrella. We thought we were set, but, boy, were we wrong. The rain poured so much that it didn’t even matter what kind of protection we had from it. I came home soaking wet and with a water damaged phone. However, I didn’t even care because I got to see an amazing show from Passion Pit and have a Summerfest memory I will never forget–that one time I saw a concert in the rain.

Gaining a new girl crush on the one and only, Bishop Briggs

First off, watch this video. It’s a little odd, but isn’t she so cute and perfect? She brings all my 90’s grunge fashion dreams alive. She wears her hair in two little buns, choker necklaces and overalls. Like how can you get more cool than that? Also, she has an amazing voice. It’s soulful, unique and pretty different from what I am used to hearing. Then seeing her perform was the icing on the cake. I was impressed by her coolness and wanted to be her. Basically, after her show she gained a new fan.

Showing off my rap skills at the Nelly Concert

There’s nothing better than listening to some throwbacks. Some of my favorite to listen to is early 2000’s rap. I grew up listening to it and loving it, thanks to my man NOW CD. Nelly was an artist that frequently appeared on this CD collection of mine, so I basically know every hit song he has ever put out. This made the concert super enjoyable. However, what was even better was the I got to show off my rap skills by laying down the rhymes on songs like “Grillz” and “Hot in Here.” Did I impress the whole crowd? No. Did I impress all my friends? No. Did I impress myself? Yes, and that’s all you need.

Paul McCartney moving the crowd and me with his performance of “Blackbird”

(This was not from Summerfest, but still amazing).

Blackbird is one of my favorite songs of The Beatles. I wasn’t really expecting him to play it, so when he hit that first note I was so excited. I love this song because it is just straight up beautiful, but also because of its meaning. I have always loved the message of the song, but then Paul McCartney explained it to the whole crowd, and now I love it even more. He talked about how they wrote this song during the civil rights moment when they had all those problems in Little Rock. They wanted it to give people hope. Honestly, I think we can all use a little of that in our lives especially now, so I appreciated it a lot. It is something I will never forget.

And Uhh… BEING IN THE PRESCENCE OF A FORMER BEATLEa PAUL MCCARTNEY

I grew up listening to The Beatles. Their one of my dad’s favorite musicians, so it was what we were forced to listen to in the car during road trips. I didn’t appreciate it as much then. But, because I was once forced to listen the dreaded “Dad Music,” I have now learn to know and love them. They are truly one of my favorite bands, so I was in shock that I even got to see one of them perform. It’s crazy because everyone will tell you that Paul McCartney is the best concert you will ever go to. I go to so many concerts, so I was very skeptical at first. However, by the end of it, I couldn’t even believe I questioned it. His show was magical he had fireworks, he told stories about him and the other Beatles as well made you fall in love with his music all over again. It is an experience I will never forget, and an experience I will forever be grateful for.

Brendon Urie back-flipping on stage and reminding me how perfect he is

Panic! At the Disco will always be one of my favorite bands. I’ve been seeing in concert since I was in 7th grade. I truly love them more and more every time they perform. This time was no different. Brendon Urie has such amazing stage presence and really knows how to perform. His pipes and high energy keep you excited from beginning of his set to the end. During his set, he did a back-flip, had a “drum off” with his drummer and just looked so damn good that it made you fall in love with pop-punk boys all over again. I am just so happy Summerfest gave me an opportunity to see him perform again.

Weezer singing all the songs I’ve grown to love by them

Weezer has been around for my whole life (I’m a 90’s baby), which has made them a band I have always loved. I have grown up listening to all of their albums and finding some of my favorite songs ever from them. Weezer was not as energetic as its co-headliner, Panic! at the Disco, but that doesn’t mean they were bad by any means. They just did their Weezer thing and, of course, you loved it. They sang their songs, had their witty banter and were their geeky selves. It is so wonderful. You can’t help but just be excited they sing all the songs you have grown up loving like, “Buddy Holly,” “Say It Ain’t So,” “Island in the Sun,” “Beverly Hills” and more. It’s what made seeing them so great.

Blink 182 reminding me that’s okay if you change things up

There is so much drama and stress about the band changing their lead singer to Matt Skiba. In all seriousness, the change is good. Even though Skiba is a new member of the trio, he still rocks just as hard and does his best to keep the Blink 182 sound alive. I had a great time jamming out to these pop-punk classics that we all know and love, and it didn’t even phase me that they had a new singer. The band still sounds great and is still great at doing their thing.

All Time Low proving to me that they will always know how to rock

All Time Low is one of those bands I kind of just always see. They are either openers for bands I like or a headliner of their own tour. No matter what the situation  is they just rock it. Unlike most pop punk bands, All Time Low has stuck to their roots and their sound. They are always their fun selves and just put on a kickass show. They are definitely worth seeing in concert, and it was a joy seeing them again this past week opening for Blink 182.