Josh Groban - Part 2

My ultimate concert experience came in November 2013!  I had said for the last 10+ years that the #1 item on my bucket list was to meet Josh Groban.  And up to this point in my life I was not really a contest believer.  I never won anything!  If it was a raffle of 50 prizes and there were 51 people in the room, I would be the one to go home empty-handed.  That all changed with 1 email. 

Let me back up 4-5 months and tell you how I got the tickets for this particular concert.  I've mentioned my BFF Renee helps me with contests, ticket buying, etc.  She’s not as concert crazy as I am but I am converting her over to the dark side.  Tickets for Dallas and Kansas City were going on sale at the exact same time.  They are about the same distance from Tulsa so I didn't care which one I went to. 

So, the day the tickets went on sale, I went to her house with my laptop and she tried for Dallas and I tried for KC.   This is serious business, man!  10:00am hits and we press GO!  Then we frantically try to figure out the seating charts and who has the best seats.  This concert was in the round so seating was a little weird.  She had 3^rd row tickets to the concert in Dallas so I snatched them up all while doing my happy dance.  3^rd row!!!!  This is going to be amazing!

Now back to the week of the show.  The fan club runs contests for members only.  It is a long shot but they pick 10 fan club members every show to meet JG.  I entered but never in a million years thought I would be picked.  Lo and behold, 2 days before the show I get the email of my life.  “CONGRATULATIONS YOU HAVE BEEN PICKED TO MEET JOSH GROBAN.”  I literally screamed!  My husband and kids came running into the room.  I was jumping up and down, pointing at the computer.  They had no idea what to think.  I don’t think I stopped jumping and screaming for at least 5-10 minutes.  My dream had come true!  I was finally going to meet Josh!!!

But wait, there was a second contest for the fan club.  Josh does a question and answer portion of his concert.  The fan club can submit questions for him to read and answer.  I had done this before and my question was never picked.  So I’m talking to Renee about what to ask him – she’s better at that kind of stuff than I am.  And she comes up with the craziest question while driving down the road.  She sees an outhouse on the side of the road and says “If you owned an outhouse company what would your jingle be?”  It’s brilliant!  Just wacky enough that they just might pick it.

So the big day comes.  I get my chance to meet Josh.  I stood in line forever.  They lectured us on the dos and don’ts.  Like, you can put your arm around him but don’t put your hand below his waist.  Hahahaha!!!  He was very nice and signed my ticket.  I told him it was #1 on my bucket list to meet him.  I wanted to tell him that I looked in a music store through all the CDs to find him in 2001 but I forgot.  I was too nervous.  We took our picture and I was up to my 3^rd row seat for what I knew was going to be an amazing show.

Judith Hill (from The Voice) was the opening act.  She was so good.  She had great stage presence and a great voice.  She said she would be in the section right behind me after her set to sign autographs.  So, I thought, what the heck, and I went up.  Stood in line for about 10 minutes and got an autograph and a picture.  She was very sweet and tall!

Now for the big show.  As always, Josh sang beautifully.   It was in the round so he constantly moved around the stage.  The screens were big enough that when he was on the other side you could still see him.  His violin player stayed in front of us a lot.  He was very entertaining.  I loved it!  Singing all the songs and smiling from ear to ear. 

Then came the Q&A.  He answers the first question.  He’s funny as usual.  Then he calls out my name and seat number.  I didn't even realize it.  I wasn't expecting it.  I had almost forgotten I even submitted a question.   I figured they would have let me know that he was going to pick it.  I was completely caught off guard.  So after it hit me that he said my name I screamed really loudly.  “Whoa, Shannon, you've got a good scream” he said.  Am I alive right now?  Is he actually talking to me….again….on stage….in front of thousands of people?!?  He proceeds to read the question which he had not seen yet.  The look on his face was priceless.  I know he was thinking…this chick is nuts!  I found a video on YouTube of the whole thing.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-s7IaJulKM   My question starts at 4:00.  Watch it all the way through to 7:00 because he got stumped for me but then finds the “jingle” while singing happy birthday to someone in the crowd.  It was hilarious!!!

My night was complete!  It was and still is the best concert experience of my life!

And that, my friends, was when all the winning and the real concert addiction started.  Over the next year, Renee and I would become “those girls who win everything” and I would attend 43 shows including music concerts, dance shows, comedians and Broadway musicals.