(Not so much a fan account, but more about my personal experience!)
Yesterday was B1A4's concert was in San Francisco ^o^ Myst and I both went as VIP so got to be in the front pit and participate in the hi touch (high five) event!!!
Honestly, I think the concert was the most unreserved fun I've had in a long time. Which is both a testament to how great of a concert it was and how little fun I have in my life.
The boys put on impressive performances, delivering solid dancing and singing (esp Sandeul belting my god!!!!) with incredible endurance. ;u; They were visibly tired but kept going and delivering and were full of energy til the end! But I think what was really special was that they put a lot of care into making sure that the audience had a fun, engaged experience. We weren't just watching them perform; we were constantly interacting and encouraged to respond. For most of the concert, it was a lot of asking us to sing along, scream, put our hands up, wave and pump our arms, jump while they were performing.
Then what confused me was when we got to a song that didn't include much of them singing or dancing? It was.....intense clubby music? The boys were all jumping and hyping us up, and we were all jumping too, AND THEN THEY STARTED EMPTYING THEIR WATER BOTTLES....ONTO THE AUDIENCE. Water! spraying! everywhere!!! It felt like a rave?! (We found out afterwards that it was a song remixed by Jinyoung LOLLLLL)
At that point, it was no longer just a B1A4 performance—it was B1A4 members constructing an environment in which we fans could let loose and have a good time! I really think that they didn't want any of us to just stand or sit idly, didn't want us to just be absorbed in taking pics/videos on our phones, didn't want us to just be observers. I appreciated that a lot ^^
I don't really ever get (or pursue) opportunities to just let go and let my body move and just have unreserved fun... I refuse to dance because I'm bad at it and I don't like how my awkward body looks when moving around, and I just get consumed by self-consciousness and the judging eyes of other people. The dance floor is place of anxiety for my party-poopin' ass.
But at the concert, I felt...safe? An unfamiliar feeling of few inhibitions and not needing to care about what I looked like or what anyone thought of me. All I had to do was jump and wave my arms, all I had to respond to was the beat of the music, and the entire audience was in it together to show our support for B1A4 who wanted to give back to us ;A; It was a great stress relief HAHA.
During their encore, they came out with crates of water bottles and WENT HAM. "San Francisco, are you tired?!?! Are you ready to shower?????!!?!?!!" were the words they'd fill the room with before repeating the chorus of Good Timing over.. and over.. and over.. and DRENCHING us with water and love LOL. Objectively, I know they went overboard and probably shouldn't have, but... I ultimately didn't have any problem with it and just enjoyed it. ;v;! At first, I did my best to avoid the water because of protective reflex—I'd flinch and duck, cover my face, and clean off my glasses as soon as I could. But then I zoned out for a moment and thought about it......... and concluded that I didn't have any reason to avoid the water? Unlike many fans in the front, I didn't have my phone out trying to get recordings. I didn't have a face full of make-up to worry about. My hair doesn't get frizzy. All of my belongings were covered because I was expecting rain. I wasn't sick, wasn't feeling cold. Why be afraid?
So from then on, I kept my head up and just smiled and laughed like what B1A4 would probably have wanted to see from us. Was so soaked!!! It's such a small change, but I was very happy and proud that I chose to let go and embrace the fun, messy, in-the-moment thing, instead of clinging to the pragmatic route as I always do. In the end, I had no personal qualms about the downpour and surprised myself by how much I enjoyed it. ;U;
Oh and they just absolutely spoil us with fanservice. <3 It warms my heart remembering all of their sincere gestures, and how they were constantly waving to fans all over the venue, giving us endless finger hearts, making eye contact if possible (I swear I made eye contact with CNU for a moment), posing with fans' banners and headbands, reminding us that we were loved and appreciated. This is the kind of memory that's going to make me smile each time it crosses my mind.
Here's B1A4's newest song, A Lie, composed by leader and my bias Jinyoung~ On first listen, I was rather lukewarm, but it consistently grew on me and now I'M SO EMOTIONAL OVER THIS SONG. (If you're new to their music, their songs tend to land on very opposite sides of the melancholic-silly spectrum haha. Solo Day is a jam!)
