For anyone who knows me, you know I love Justin Bieber like crazy. When he announced a second North American leg of his Believe Tour I went a little crazy…for different reasons than you might think.
Needless to say I was strapped for cash. I’d spent extra money on a hotel room for our show in Auburn Hills in November thinking there was no way he’d be back anytime soon. How wrong was I? Who knew he’d schedule more dates so quickly? It came out of left field but I was determined to go again. Going to Justin’s concerts gives me life so I wouldn’t stand to miss it.
My friend and I discussed it, pooled all the money we could together and bought two tickets for July 28 at Joe Louis Arena. They weren’t great seats but we’d be there and that was the important thing. For a while this was all I had lined up…and then some girls we talk to on Twitter began discussing plans to go to the last stop in Atlanta on August 10.
It wasn’t guaranteed at first; my monetary issues were numerous and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to afford everything. But then came tax time and that settled it; I was going to Atlanta to see Justin’s last North American show!
I bought my ticket to the show, my planet ticket and reserved my hotel room. It was a lot of money but worth every penny. The only snag was changing planes in Charlotte, but again going to Atlanta at all and getting a cheaper price was worth it. I was more excited than I’ve been about anything in my life!
We’d been discussing this trip for months so when the time finally came for me to pack I was freaking the fuck out. I’d already been to our show in Detroit and knowing I’d get to see another cured my post-concert depression from that one. I didn’t have to go to work that Friday either, another plus. Thursday evening I had all my stuff packed and ready to go, I just had to get a good night’s sleep.
I woke up a little before 5:00am to get showered and out the door. I tossed and turned for the last three hours but I got to the airport on time, the flights were smooth and I made it Hartsfield Atlanta Airport by ten after one in the afternoon. My friend picked me up about an hour and a half later (she’d come from four hours away), we picked up the next girl and finally went to the hotel!
It was a snug room but we enjoyed it. After exploring our home for the next two nights we ventured out into the city and grabbed a bite to eat at the Cheesecake Factory. The best part of the night was yet to come though; we got to meet another friend and we ran into Justin’s manager!
Scooter Braun is a pretty important man in the Bieber crew. He found the boy himself and manages his career to this day. So to chop it up with him in person was humbling and an honor. He recognized one of our friends first, having video chatted with her before. Then he hugged the rest of us (twice) just because he’s a sweet guy. We talked for a minute and then bid him and the rest of Justin’s crew that were there (Allison, Ryan Good, Dan Kanter and Kenny Hamilton) good night. It was an incredible experience! When we got back to the room we almost got kicked out of the hotel for talking too loud (it was 5:00am), but that’s another blog post. It was an exhausting night but one I’ll never forget.
Later that day it was time for the big event! We met up with yet another one of our friends from online (see a pattern here?) and got brunch at Subway before heading to the Philips Arena. The entire area was packed; at the back of the arena by the back cargo entrance we joined a huge crowd of people. It looked like a zoo exhibit; people lined all the fences high above the driveway and directly across from it, cameras held high. Everyone looked like they were awaiting a dolphin performance or something. I felt bad this chaos was for a human being but I wanted to catch a glimpse of him too.
We waited for almost three hours and finally it was time to go inside for the show! Ariana Grande was finishing her set when we got to our seats. Thank goodness she has an amazing voice! When Ariana was done and the countdown for Justin finally started my heart skipped several beats…as it usually does at that moment. He put on a hell of a show (like I expected anything else) and even brought Ludacris on board for the finale, “Baby”!
After the show we stood by the buses again for a bit before heading back to the hotel to change for the club! Justin’s official DJ, Tay James, was spinning at a club nearby called Prive and we had to make an appearance. We got a cab and within eight minutes we arrived. It was jumpin’ when we arrived; Justin’s dancers stood right in front of us preparing to go in themselves. They all looked divine and I was ready to dance my ass off.
The bouncer didn’t want to give us the VIP we paid for but we had a good time regardless. We picked a spot right by Tay’s booth and rocked until the place closed! Justin never came through himself since he’d already gone back to LA but the party never stops; we saw his road manager Kenny Hamilton and got pictures with Tay on the way out!
On my return flights I got to do a lot of thinking…and a lot of shivering. It was worth every cent I paid, everything I sacrificed. Life is too short no to seize these kinds of opportunities, the chance to get out and do something fun and crazy. It may not happen again but I was beyond happy I made the most out of this journey. Next stop…only time will tell!
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