I am from Conway and I went to the AI concert tonight. (As of now, last night.) It is 12:56 AM and I am just getting home. I also should note this was my first American Idol Tour concert.
I wasn’t able to get to the show early to see the contestants (can I call them that anymore?) beforehand, but I did stay afterward. I’ll get to that later.
Verizon Arena (formerly Alltel Arena) was PACKED. It was definitely a sold out crowd. While waiting for the show to start David Cook and Carrie Underwood music videos were playing, but occasionally they would play the Kris Allen Disney World commercial. The crowd went NUTS. I was almost deaf before the show even started. And of course, whenever Adam came up on the screen, he got extreme cheers, but this is probably the only concert on the tour where Kris got louder applause.
First up on the stage was Michael, of course. I liked him during the show and was sad to see him leave so soon, and I liked him more tonight. He did great engaging the crowd; he was having a blast. Megan was next. She looked great in the dress, all I could think of was ‘Barbie.’ But in a good way! She was hott. She sounded great too, in my opinion. (It makes me wonder who picked the song list, because most of the lower contestants’ problems were picking the wrong songs on the show.) Next up: Scott! I loved the entrance coming up out of the stage on the piano. He sounded 10x better live than I think he ever did on the show. I LOVED that he played A Thousand Miles. I got some video of it, but some huge security guy came by and threatened to take my camera away if he saw me with it again. :-( Lil Rounds was next. Before the Top 13, I had high hopes for her, but every week she kept disappointing me. She definitely pushed those thoughts out of my mind tonight. “All the Single Ladies” was perfect. The only thing I thought would have been better is if she had a headset microphone so she could have danced more. And now, ANOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!! I really hope that’s what people were saying when he was on stage instead of BOOO. I’m sure it was though, because he was GREAT!!!! I love how smooth his voice is. My Prerogative and You’re Always on My Mind could not have been better. Matt was also AWESOME. I never really got on his bandwagon because I was always supporting Kris and Adam, but man that guy is entertaining. He was a ton of fun. **Let me also note that each singer, including the next three, gave a shout out to Kris somewhere in their set and the crowd went wild. It was great.** The little group medley of the bottom six was great. Matt and Scott tickling the ivories was fantastic. I was excited they put that in the show because I was disappointed when that was left out of the finale, for whatever reason.
INTERMISSION
And we’re back. First up, Allison! The cheers have been gradually getting louder for each singer, but they were starting to reach eardrum-splitting-level when Allison got on stage. That girl has a TON of energy. Honestly, I started to tear up when she sang. I love her to death and I’m so happy she got as far as she did on the show and got a contract. Cry Baby was awesome. No complaints whatsoever. Danny wasted no time getting on stage after Allison got off. Let me say this. This year was the first year I watched AI from tryouts till the end, and I started out as a HUGE Gokey fan. After a couple of weeks of the Top 13, I switched to Adam. (And OF COURSE I was rooting for Kris!!!) Danny was great tonight, made me remember why I liked him so much in the beginning. I loved the red shirt, but I could have done without the chain on his pants. I know Simon teased Danny about his dancing skills on the show, but that man can salsa!!! I think if he had pulled out some more of those moves on the show he may have made it to the finale :-P Also, I think at some point a bra may have made it on stage during his set? I was too far back to tell, but someone threw something at him. Before his last song, he talked a little about the death of his wife, but more of the aspect of telling people not to let the bad keep you down and to focus on the good things in your life. Some people may be getting tired of it, but it’s a good message to spread, so it didn’t bother me in the slightest. I know that if I was married and my husband died suddenly, I wouldn’t be able to function for years, so I applaud Danny for being able to move on. *steps off soapbox* Danny finishes his last song, then MADNESS!!!! There must have been a lot of people from out of state, because they were going wild for Adam. ;-) Of course, he performed flawlessly. I loved loved loved the jacket. I LOVED LOVED LOVED the vest!!! I could see his party side coming out on stage with his moves. Of course, I was melting in my seat. Slow Ride with Allison was great. I love the chemistry between the two. Now hate me if you must, but I do not know a single David Bowie song, so I was sad to say I couldn’t sing along for his medley. I still thoroughly enjoyed it anyway.
And now, drum roll please…
INSANE MADNESS EAR BLEEDING NON STOP APPLAUSE FOR KRIS!!!!! ALLEN!!!!!!!!!!!!
Seriously, the crowd was PSYCHOTIC!!! (This is probably the only show that Kris will get more applause than Adam, and I’m very glad I was able to be a part of it.) People were non stop screaming for at least two full minutes. (Including me, hehe) I thought we’d be there till 11 just waiting for people to calm down. Also, this was the first time the entire crowd was on their feet, which made me happy. (I was on the front row in a far section of the lower level, and I probably pissed some people off because I didn’t sit down the entire concert.) I was sitting too far back to tell facial expressions, but he seemed like he was choking up. But the show must go on, and Kris sang the first line of Heartless. Simon always got onto him about his confidence, but I think he has definitely gained plenty since his run on the show. I can definitely tell a difference in his performances from Man in the Mirror to the homecoming concert to tonight. More insane cheers for another minute or so. Finally he was able to get into the song, and he was perfect. I got to see him when he had his homecoming, but this was obviously much better. :-P I knew about his switch from No Boundaries to All These Things That I’ve Done, but I never actually knew the name of the song, so I was very excited to hear my favorite Killers song sung by Kris. Again, awesome. Before he sang Ain’t No Sunshine, of course being in Arkansas, he had to call the hogs. (If you don’t get it, you don’t matter :-P just kidding. Google it.) That’s all fine and dandy, but I know that he went to UCA so I was a little sad that there was no shout out there. Anyway, of course Ain’t No Sunshine got insane applause, and deservedly so. My favorite from his set was Hey Jude. You just can’t top The Beatles. I was very very happy to hear that the final group number was Don’t Stop Believing, because that was my favorite group song on the show. And I loved the dueling pianos again.
So after an awesome three hours, I decided to join the madness of waiting by the buses to meet the gang. Well, the ones that came out at least. I got autographs from Kris, Adam, Danny, Allison, Matt, and Michael. Scott wandered from cluster to cluster, and I was the next person to get an autograph when he decided to move somewhere else. I don’t know why Anoop Lil and Megan didn’t come out, but I’m sure they were tired so I’m not upset. I wouldn’t be able to do what they do, so more power to them for trying to relax for a minute and avoid the madness.
All in all, a great night. One of the best concerts I’ve been to. I think my favorite part was being able to see and hear (until all that was left was white noise) the appreciation for Kris. I can’t speak for other Idols and their hometowns, but I highly doubt any has gotten as warm a welcome as Kris had tonight. Even if Kris releases his album and the nation decides to drop him (which I certainly hope does not happen!!!), Arkansas will always welcome him back with open arms. Tonight was Kris’s night and I’m glad we were able to show him the appreciation he deserves.
