It was 5:30 PM, an hour and a half before the doors to Newport Music Hall opened. What I saw surprised me. There was a line wrapping all the way around the south high street Starbucks. That was my first introduction to how “Big” this Big Time Rush Concert would be but it would not be my last.
One thing about this concert that struck me as weird was the lack of merch that I saw in the crowd. Having never listened to Big Time Rush before, I hastily put together a “I <3 BTR” shirt with my moniker, “Big Time Rodgers” inscribed on the back of a white v-neck that was too tight for my body. I felt overdressed for the occasion when I entered Newport, with most people opting for jeans and a graphic tee instead of luxury designer items like I was wearing and had been expecting.
The concert started with their classic song. No, not the theme song or Boyfriend but their classic song. I was hesitant to dance or even bop around at this point as I was unsure of the etiquette that was required at an event like this. My associate and special guest for this event, Maddie, kept having to tell me the names of each member of Big Time Rush as the song went on, all the while accusing me of being a fake fan. All I am saying is that she was not wearing ANY Big Time Rush merch. Luckily, our editor-in-chief, Henry Levenberg, had a helpful diagram of who was who on stage, including their guitarist, Big Time Kevin. There’s a first time for everything, including Henry Levenberg being useful. The boys then followed that up with another classic song. You know the one. And when I thought the night could not get any better, they did another classic BTR song.
There was a specific moment that night when I finally started to understand the appeal of boy bands. The band asked for the house lights to be turned on so they could see all of their beautiful fans in the audience. This was my moment. To show the Big Time Boys my Big Time Merch. And you would never believe it but they saw it. The man who associate and special guest Maddie told me was named Kendall pointed at me and said directly into the microphone “Guy in the white shirt, we see you!” after Carlos mocked the gesture I was making. To say that this was an important moment in my life, would be an understatement.
Everybody in this world has a desire to be seen. To be noticed. To be recognized. To feel like they actually matter. And even though I did not know these men and they did not know me, this moment of connection between us was electric. I felt like I was actually someone. Something more than “Big Time Rodgers”. For the first time in my life, I could surrender any preconceived notions of who I was, who I am or who I am going to be and just live in the moment. It was bliss. Nothing else mattered to me in the world. There were only three people in the world that I could even acknowledge at the time, Kendall, Carlos, and my associate and special guest Maddie because she was freaking out and pulling at my arm. For the first time in my life, I felt like I was actually going Big Time.
The night continued on and it was one for the books. They continued to play songs from their hit catalog, and I continued to have a blast. I even knew songs that were played during the encore! They were called Big Time Rush Theme Song and Boyfriend. But I think one of the highlights of the night had to be when Carlos (from Big Time Rush) waved in the general direction of my associate and special guest, Maddie, and I could see the same transformative experience that I encountered in her eyes and how much that meant to her. I believe this is the power of the boy band. To be greater than a product to most but to provide a moment to their greatest fans. And by the look in associate and special guest Maddie’s eyes, this was her moment.
In my opinion, and I am sure that Logan, Kendall, Carlos, and James would agree with me, experiencing the pure joy of others brings meaning to life. Seeing people be so passionate about who and what they love and sharing that passion with the world is what drives others to pursue their own passions. Not only did I see this passion in associate and special guest Maddie, but also everyone within Newport. It was truly something special.
Many may consider Big Time Rush to be a washed up boy band now, irrelevant to most. But for one night and one night only, everyone in that room was no longer looking for a boyfriend, because we finally found our family.
2 out of 5 Stars: No Gustavo.
Written by Julian “Big Time Rodgers” Rodgers, #1 Big Time Rush Fan