David Archuleta - Archey Report #2 - Duluth, GA - 08/18/08

(Here's the Archey Report from imaginethat /Becca from Duluth, GA! Thanks!)

Hey Angels! I went to the concert in Duluth last night, and it was simply incredible! I’ll let you know up front that my report may differ from others because I had a very different vantage point. While Alwayz, Tabby, Trahnc, and the others who went had great seats really close to the stage, my friend and I had to go up several flights of stairs and get acclimated to the altitude before we could sit down.

We measured the idols with our fingers when they came out. And they were about 1 ½ inches tall from where we were sitting. Needless to say my pictures didn’t turn out very good.

So we left my house right after school and arrived near the arena around 5:30 (after witnessing 3 wrecks on the interstate) and started seeing signs that said “American Idol Live – Straight” and I started squeeing. We decided to eat at Moe’s. The line was out the door and you could tell that just about everyone in there was going to the concert. So when we were done eating we went to the Arena and they scanned our tickets. This was my first concert and I was SOOO excited!!! We looked at t-shirts and our eyes almost popped out when we saw they were $35. Sorry, can’t spend that much on a shirt.

We made the trek to the top of the arena and found our seats. We ended up sitting next to Kristy and Cook fans, most of whom were old(er) people or toddlers. Which was weird, but oh well! I was just so happy to be there! We looked around and saw that there were a good number of seats empty throughout the arena, which left me wondering why I was stuck way up in the balcony while those seats were just WAITING to be sat in.

Finally the show started. My friend and I were the only ones who stood up, clap, and sang along. We got some weird looks from some people. My friend heard a man behind us say to his 3 or 4 year old daughter, “They can stand if they want to.” Haha I hope we weren’t blocking her view. Everyone else looked kind of dead, especially during the first few sets.

I felt bad because the crowd just wasn’t very receptive. There was decent screaming and applause between songs, but during the songs many of the people were sitting and it was pretty quiet. Chikezie and Ramiele have such powerhouse voices, but it was clear that people just weren’t into it. (They had come to see Jason and Cook (and Archie.)) Michael John’s got the crowd going – I absolutely loved his set! Then there was Kristy. She was actually a lot better live! Carly rose up from the stage and sang the Evanescence song and then told us how she had once lived in Georgia and missed it a lot. You’d think there would have been more screaming, but I guess us Georgians weren’t in the mood to show Georgia pride. Finally Brooke came on!!! She was one of my favorites during the show. She actually got the audience to participate in her 1-2-3-4 song and people were actually snapping/clapping. Her set was one of my favorites! :D

Then there was intermission. We watched two little kids play air guitar. When the audience was asked which one they thought was the winner, they screamed/applauded for one of the little boys louder than they had for some of the idols! hahaha

Then Jason came out and got a LOT of applause. He was really laid back and I loved it! Then Syesha came out and did her thang, though she had to keep prompting the crowd to sing along….AND THEN CAME THE MOMENT I HAD BEEN WAITING FOR!!!!

Before Syesha was off the stage I started freaking out. I kept saying “Omigosh omigosh omigosh!” and squeeing. My friend was laughing so hard and was like “Dang, Becca, you have a serious crush!” I was like duh! It’s DAVID ARCHULETA!

So he rose from the floor on the piano and I was literally shaking. I was smiling so big it hurt! He started singing and suddenly it didn’t matter that everyone looked like ants and that no one around us was an Archie fan! Because he was beautiful and amazing! His voice resonated throughout the arena and I could just feel it pulsing through my body. He literally took my breathe away. Not to mention the big screen gave us a wonderful view of his face :D. Apologize was brilliant!!!! Oh man, there was like an extended hunkerdown in the middle and I started freaking out. Stand By Me was fun, especially his adorable dancing. And then WYSYLM. Oh. My. Gosh. The whole song was spectacular. So much raw emotion. And when he did the whole “I feel like I can flyyyy” part, there wasn’t an explosion of screams like there usually is, and you could just hear his pure, powerful voice so well! My heart felt so full of…I don’t even know. Love, I guess.

Cook got thunderous applause – almost nonstop during Hello. I thought his set was great. It was the most energetic anyone had been all night!

So we left during PDSTM after we heard Archie and went to get in line for autographs. We had great spots, in the front of the barricades and right in front of the door! We wait for them for about 35 minutes, and then my mom called and said we had to leave. I begged for 5 more minutes, but then my friend started complaining and wanted leave. So reluctantly we left and got through the crowd…and literally about 30 seconds later we hear screaming. It was the worst feeling to know that we missed them by 30 seconds. My heart plummeted. I was trying so hard not to get upset. The whole walk to the car we kept hearing waves of screams and I felt horrible. But that’s okay…I’ve accepted it and know now that if I’m supposed to meet any of the idols, especially Archie, it’ll happen!!!!!! Solo tours, people!!!! :D

Overall, it was one of the coolest things ever!! My first concert, my best friend, seeing Archie LIVE!

Man, sorry it’s so long…I ramble, I guess…like someone else we know :P