Over spring break, I attended my sixth concert, Journey. Out of the concerts I’ve attended, three of them have been record-breaking or momentous in some way. With that being said, here is my ranking of the concerts I’ve been to over the years. 

As a disclaimer, I’m extremely grateful to have seen any of these concerts. These are just my personal rankings and a good way to remember them all.

#6: Maroon 5: Red Pill Blues Tour

On September 23, 2018 in Nashville, I saw Maroon 5 as my second concert but it ranks as the worst. Being a fan of their “older” songs, their music from the album they were touring with, was not up my alley. The concert atmosphere was also not the best as people had beer and came in smelling like smoke. 

That being said, the production was great, the light shows for each song were extremely fun and placed really well. “Animals,” “Payphone” and other songs from their album “V” are my favorites from the band, and of course, they played those.

During “Girls Like You,” their most popular song from their touring album, Millie Bobbie Brown came out to sing Cardi B’s parts. During that time, I had no clue who she was but now, looking back, it was definitely an amazing experience.

While Maroon 5 does rank at the bottom, it wasn’t an awful concert. It’s just one I may not remember as well or stick with me as much seeing as I was only 12 at the time.

#5: OneRepublic: 2017 Honda Civic Tour

My first concert was in St. Louis on July 8, 2017 and ranks fifth in my concert ranking. It was an outdoor venue which I may like a little bit more than indoor. While I also don’t remember too much of this concert, there’s not a song of OneRepublic’s that I don’t dislike. Every song was welcome, especially their opener “Stop and Stare” and their closer, and most popular song, “Counting Stars” 

Plus, their opener, Fitz and the Tantrums was at their highest point in 2017 so it was basically a 2-for-1 special concert. My mom and I were able to get on the jumbotron so, of course, that added a few points. 

The concert felt very connected with the audience. While the band wasn’t jumping around during the show, their movements were purposeful, much like the feel of their light show. While I’m usually all for making it “fun” as in moving around more than just sticking to a mic stand, it worked for this show. 

#4: Train + Goo Goo Dolls: Summer Tour

These two bands rocked the 2010s and luckily, on June 3, 2019 in an amphitheater in Southaven, Missouri, I was able to watch both with my three favorite family members. 

While the concerts can be great, it’s who you go with that really matters. However, with this concert, it was both. This concert was just a step above OneRepublic because it was the “Hey Soul Sister” band and the “Iris” band. Both of these bands, and their mid-2010s songs, are still extremely popular today and people got to witness both at the same time. 

While it did rain at the concert, the slight drizzle helped stave off the heat at the beginning of the summer in the south. 

There may not be anything to diss when it comes to this concert but the next three are some once in a lifetime opportunities and history makers.

#3: Journey: Final Frontier Tour

The most recent tour came to Memphis on March 21 and was my second chance at seeing the 80s band Journey. The first half of the show felt like the opening act, since they had no opening act. They played their not as well known or popular songs. Really the only songs I recognized were “Only the Young”, “Be Good to Yourself” and “Lights.”

To me, the show didn’t start until the 13th song, not including the unnecessarily long instrumental solos that were spread throughout. “Wheel in the Sky” was the first big song I knew every part of and yes, that’s my fault for not knowing all the songs from Journey’s 50 years as a band and just knowing their more popular stuff. 

For it being old dudes on a stage, they didn’t break a sweat. Their lead singer who’s been with the band since 2007, Arnel Pineda, walked through the crowd twice during the show and the pianist and “Don’t Stop Believin’” writer, Jonathan Cain even threw on a Memphis Grizzlies jersey towards the end of the show. 

While I didn’t know all of the songs, I still had fun and realized that if this was truly the last tour of one of the most well known and influential bands of all time, there was no way to pass it up and is the reason it’s number three on my list.

#2: Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour

Do you really want to know where I was April 30th? The Eras Tour in Atlanta, the first leg of the tour before “Speak Now TV” was announced, before Taylor Swift started surprise song mashups and before the concert movie was announced, or maybe even thought up. 

The fact that there’s a concert film is what put the Eras Tour from being first place since now, anyone can watch the show if you have Disney+. 

If you’ve seen The Eras Tour or been to it, you know it’s an entire spectacle. From the costumes, to the transitions to the whole experience, The Eras Tour was perfect in all aspects and felt personal. Swift really made everyone in that sold out stadium feel like she was performing just for them. 

By playing through the eras, her most popular songs were spread out. Although, more songs from Speak Now would have been greatly appreciated, especially when all she played from that album was “Enchanted” ; however, it did get its own tour. 

Breaking 18 records, The Eras Tour truly deserved all of those records and truly deserves to be high up on this list.

#1: Coldplay: Music of the Spheres Tour

Everyone knows the Coldplay concert scandal between Astronomer CEO Andy Byron and HR executive Kristin Cabot that happened during the summer of ‘25. However, that was not my show. My show happened after, on probably the hottest day in Nashville that year. 

However, Coldplay is Coldplay and as they sang “Paradise” and “Viva La Vida,” I got misty eyed and the heat didn’t seem to bother me anymore. It’s Coldplay and two extremely good and powerful songs that I got to witness live. 

The production and, of course, the light show during the concert was amazing. “Clocks” has always held one of my favorite song intros of all time and the green lights coming off the show-provided bracelets was perfect for it. 

The sound engineering and the timing of everything was amazing as “The Scientist” played and songs that were previously sung played out as a time rewind for the intro. 

But, of course, Nashville is where guests get brought out and the Titans’ stadium was presented with Keith Urban in the middle of the arena. Together, Urban and Coldplay lead singer, Chris Martin performed two songs: “Till Kingdom Come,” a great song written for Johnny Cash and performed in his honor and “Changes” by Black Sabbath in honor of Ozzy Osborn who died that morning. 

Getting to see special guests surprise the audience, no matter at what concert or who it is, is always a special moment because it’s something not every audience gets to have or gets to see. 

Categories: Arts & Entertainment, Life