It still feels surreal. Looking back at the different mindset shifts that I went through during the pandemic, I thought it would take longer for me to become comfortable again going with a crowd in an enclosed venue. Exactly 3 years from the last concert I covered here on the blog, I found myself standing amongst a sea of faces, looking towards a stage, watching an artist perform music live.

That artist that I went to see live is Jacob Collier. He is an artist that I discovered during the pandemic. Saying that he is a musical super genius is still an understatement. He is just beyond any musician that I have experienced. His music brings me, emotionally, to new and foreign places. Most of the time, I just find myself crying whenever I watch one of his performances online. His music really moves me.

One of my favorite YouTube videos of Jacob Collier. I actually cried when I watched this the first time. 😅

I literally squealed with glee when I learned that he'll be stopping by here in Manila for a concert. When I posted this on my Instagram, I learned that I have a college friend that also likes him. Yay. Like wow, what were the chances, right? We arranged to meet and go to the concert together. Yay! The venue was just near home -- The Filinvest Tent. This was exciting because it's my first time to attend a concert in this venue. 💖

On the day of the concert, after finishing my shift at work, I prepared my stuff for the concert. Aside from the fact that this was my first concert in 3 years, I was extra extra excited because I will get to shoot photos again. My concerts IG account had been dormant for years and I was looking forward to posting new content again. Well, spoiler alert: the Universe had other plans. 😅 More on that later on.

I arrived at the venue a few minutes before the gates opened. I was not ready to see the long line into the tent. I had to walk several meters from the entrance before I got to join the end of the line. I was also surprised by the demographics of Jacob's concert attendees. They're all so young and they look so cool. I felt like I was in the midst of the sosyal Gen Z's. In short, I felt old. LOL. I noticed several solo goers also, so it didn't feel awkward for me. I got to meet Sheine, my college friend, inside the venue already. Ah also, the staff asked for a valid ID and the vaccination card at the entrance. So I guess, this is already the protocol in concerts.

There were some food stalls inside the venue. They were serving alcohol too! 😍So, not bringing my car was really the right decision. I also recalled that in my last Karpos Media event, they also served beer. I should have known. 😅

Oh, and the adrenaline that rushed through my veins was beyond me. I missed this kind of energy. 😍✨ I felt goosebumps all over.

Since it was an all-standing concert, Sheine and I decided to just be that "chill crowd" at the back. In between performances, we bought spiked lemonade and coffee as we watched Jacob perform from afar. As expected, he was perfect. I have seen his concert footage wherein he directs the crowd like a choir, but it still hits differently when you are in the actual crowd singing "aaaahhhh" and actually had to gasp for air more than a few times to continue the note. It's magic hearing Jacob play the piano, and it's even more magical hearing his voice. I LOVE HIM!

I also saw my concert photography mentor Kris Rocha in action. I wanted to say hi and greet her, but unfortunately,  I wasn't able to get a chance. Check out some of her wonderful (as always) shots of the concert.

I went home energized both by adrenaline and caffeine. I had to leave the venue during the last song (I wasn't able to catch the encore 😭) but still I had a great time that night (thanks Sheine for the early Christmas gift yay). I was excited to check the footage I got on the camera. But guess what happened, the SD card got corrupted. 😢 I ran some software to recover files, but amongst the 100+ files I was able to recover (thanks to this open-source software by the way), only 6 JPG files were readable by other programs. For sure, these were the thumbnails of the equivalent RAW photos. And those photos are what you are seeing in this post's banner. At first I felt upset, but then again, having no photos won't make that amazing concert comeback experience become any less. I have nothing to post on my Music N Lens IG account, but the memories are alive in my mind. I guess this is the lesson I have to learn from this experience.

So, that's how my first post-pandemic(?) went. I have another one lined up next year, and I'm excited to document them again here on the blog. It's so nice to be back in these live concerts again. 💖 ✨