One day I was searching through Premier Productions and I saw the Love Riot Tour was coming to North Carolina. Which means I was finally going to be able to see Newsboys in concert ─ if you’re a fan of Christian music, you know how big this moment is. I’ve been a fan of Micheal Tait since he was with DC Talk. I love me some Newsboys music! Then I found out that The Afters, Ryan Stevenson & Graham Saber were going to be there as well. Ryan Stevenson who sings, “Eye of the Storm” that song is one of the many that got me through 2016.
There’s something about going to a Christian concert – when you leave the concert, you’re never the same again. It’s being in a safe place where you can worship Jesus with fellow Christians while listening to great music. You honestly can’t beat it. But, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I’ve been prepping for this concert for a few months before, making sure I listen to all the artist, so I will know the words if I didn’t already. Some of the songs move you more than others did.
When I first got there, there just happened to be a High School marching band competition going on. So there was bands everywhere, which makes me happy inside and it also makes me really miss that part of High School. I walked up to the back of venue. I was the first person there. What I later find out, we were suppose to be on the OTHER side of the building, lol. There was a group of us who were on the wrong side, but we got to see the band members come in and out. So that was a nice bonus.
Later a lady and her son showed up, we all waited there. They walked to the bathroom in that small time frame. Here walks out drummer of Newsboys!! Yep so the security guy walked over and asked where the mom and son was at, I told him the bathroom. He says, “darn, I was gonna get them a picture with the drummer!” he pauses and says, “Do you want to take a selfie?” I was like shocked and with a quick reply, “YES, PLEASE!” So this happened..
Yea that was pretty surreal if you ask me. Then he left, soon after that the son and mom came back and I told them what happened. Then roughly a hour went by and another guy showed up. Then he went to the bathroom, we joked about Dunken coming back out for a picture & he would miss his chance. Sure enough, it happened again, they were able to get a picture and I was able to take it for them. At this point, it’s a hour til the Q&A with the Newsboys. That’s when we find out we’re on the wrong side and go to the other, where there’s roughly 100 people already, lol.
Fast forward to finding our seats, I learned from WinterJam earlier in the year that if there’s a chance for VIP floor tickets to pay the extra money. This time you paid for floor seats but we didn’t have assigned seats. So best believe I sat in the 2nd row. Best seats honestly, the first row took all the extra noise from the speakers, lol. The group of people I was sitting around were totally awesome. Everyone was from across the state of North Carolina, one couple was from Virginia!
Following a highly successful water polo career, San Diego-based Graham Saber is a Christian Rap artist. He didn’t sing a lot of songs, he was pretty good. Then after him, Ryan Stevenson came out! Let me tell you real quick, I am just in love with, Eye of the Storm! That song has got me through so much over the last year to be honest. It’s one of the few songs that I can listen to when I am going through some struggles.
The Afters were up next, they have a new album called, Live On Forever. Every one of the songs are anthems to remind you that God is in control of our lives. They’re songs for people who are battling with hardships, struggles and seasons that are rough to get through. Half way through their songs, there was a powerful speech. I personally love when they do these speeches during Christian concerts, because it’s always something relatable or something you need to hear. Everyone is having a battle and it’s a reminder that God is fighting our battles with us. A few of my favorite songs from The Afters are Battles, Light Up The Sky & Time of My Life. The lead singer had a short chat that was totally relatable and it’s always something you need to hear.
Lastly NEWSBOYS!!!!! Dude, dude dude.. If you can see any Christian concert live, this one is the one you want to see. They’re hands down one of my favorites! At one point in the middle, we thought they were done and walked off the stage. Then in the video below, you can hear everyone chant, “God’s Not Dead, God’s Not Dead..” Talk about a moving moment. Then they came back out and sung some more songs. So amazing!! My favorite songs they did were God’s Not Dead, We Believe, Crazy. Before they sung, “We Believe”. Micheal had a speech and it was worth listening to, keep in mind this was right before the election.
Then they said, the first 300 people who sponsored a child with Child Fund gets to meet Newsboys. So I was one of the first people to get up there, got a wristband, then found out you get TWO wristbands. I was like, “oh snap, I came alone..” So I gave it to the couple in front of me. We waited in the longest line possible, but I was able to say hey, thank you & get a poster signed. So it was still amazing, a picture with them, would of been AMAZING, but its all good.
I’ve already gotten a letter from the family I support with $33 a month. I’ll make a post about ChildFund, I would totally recommend you checking out their site!
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