Masuk Free Press

I have been an Olivia Rodrigo fan, also known as a “Livie”, for a while now. Ever since her debut single Drivers License, the world has been obsessed with her and her music and I am no exception. 

I am not the only one who thinks this way about Olivia, there are a few Masuk Students who went to her GUTS World Tour!

“I went to MSG (Madison Square Garden) Night 1 and it was so amazing, she’s awesome,” said freshman Fiona Connolly.   

Olivia Rodrigo’s sophomore album GUTS came out Sept. 8, 2023. Following her debut album SOUR, GUTS was another huge hit with songs like Vampire and Get Him Back! played all over the radio and populating Spotify playlists. 

I had the opportunity to see her first night in Boston on April 1 with opening act Chappel Roan. The night was filled with new friendships, excitement and screams that you could hear from heaven and hell. It was certainly a night to remember as my first concert ever. Now let us debrief the night!

 I have had these tickets since August 2023, so it has been a long time coming. My friend and I arrived at the arena a little bit past 6:00, and were met with a line that you would see in movies. Already wrapped around the block, getting bigger by the minute. They would not let us in until 7:00, and even though we arrived an hour early, it was beyond a tolerable length. However, we had met fellow Olivia fans waiting with us and we all quickly became friends. 

This is what is so special about concerts. You get to connect with strangers and instantly become close friends. You all have one common interest that brings you all here. It allows you to express your emotions through  screams, happiness, sadness and everything else in between with people you just met that day.

As the line let up, everyone was slowly making their way in. We even passed by a street performer on the side of the arena playing Olivia Rodrigo songs with her electric violin! The energy entering this place was immaculate; anticipation, excitement and just pure joy for something that everyone has waited for such a long time.

We made it past security and entered the vestibules of the area. We were met with even more lines for the different merch pop-ups. My friend and I considered getting merch then but the lines were insanely long and we were bugging to get into our seats. 

We were seated in section 13, row 13, seats one and two. I opted for aisle seats because it is very easy to get out and if we needed to leave during the concert or when the concert ended, we could beat the crowds exiting the arena. We sat down and we took it all in. As we looked around  the arena in awe, we saw people starting to sit in their seats, excitement buzzing through the air. The overall vibe was just total girly hopecore, and I was living for it. 

“I love her and her music, she has a really unique sound and I think that goes well with her vibe, she seems really fun and I think she puts on a good show,” said junior Abby Kirburger. 

After some time in our seats, the lights went out and everyone in the arena started screaming their heads off. It was only the opening act, Chappell Roan, but people were losing it as if Olivia herself were coming out. 

Roan is a pop artist with over three million listeners on Spotify. I was not familiar with her music at the time, but I had a great time listening to her! She has a very unique sound and I hope to see her again. Her act was only 30 minutes long, and when she finished, the lights came up again and stage hands started to dismantle Roan’s set and started setting up Olivia’s. 

All of a sudden, the screen on stage lit up and the word GUTS was spelled in a purple wax with burning candles, symbolizing the amount of time until Olivia Rodrigo comes out.

Watching the on-screen candles burn created a buzz of anticipation among the crowd. I took one look around the arena right before she came out, taking in the boiling excitement that was finally about to spill over. Finally, the candles extinguished, and the lights dimmed. It was about this time that the screams reached a new apex of loudness. The big screen lit up with a little pre-show video before her opening song, “Bad Idea, Right?” played. She ran up to the camera and knocked on a door. With that, the beat dropped and everyone lost their minds. Olivia rose from the bottom of the stage, and the concert began.  

“I have seen a lot of different videos of her performing and I think she looks really good and I think her whole stage presence, the backup dancers and everything else looked well put together and well performed,” said junior Sophie Keppler. 

I will save you the gory, beautiful details because it is something you need to be there to fully grasp it. I don’t want to spoil it either. But this show was unimaginable and spectacular in so many ways. I only wish I could go again! 

But I leave you with a few tips. Bring a credit or debit card for food and merchandise (they don’t take cash), bring ear plugs because it can get insanely loud and just have the time of your life. It is during these young years that we experience some of the greatest moments of our lives. So whether it be going to your first concert, meeting new friends or sharing common interests with thousands of other people, we are all living together in this moment here and now. 

So from all of us Livies, we thank you, Olivia, for giving us a concert to remember for a lifetime and we hope that others get to experience it on this tour or the next.