The Best Weekend of my life:
Day 1:
The weekend had finally come, time to watch Justin in Manchester. I had been waiting since November, it felt like a lifetime away.
Me and my friend Sophie (who is literally obsessed with him) caught the train to Manchester at 2pm on Friday 21st of October. We decided to book a room at the Premier inn which is around a 5 minuet walk from the arena. Heading to the hotel from the train station was no hassle at all, I'd never been before so I didn't know what to expect. The staff were welcoming and the room was lovely. 2 minuets into getting into the room, Sophie went into the bathroom and the door handle fell off, lets just say that wasn't part of the plan haha. I had to go down to reception and inform a member of staff, they were brilliant about it and within 5 minuets, someone was fixing it for us.
Once we had unpacked, we decided to get a Nando's before the concert begun, Manchester is great for food! We then returned to get ready. I was stressing about putting eyelashes on ( I think everyone can relate), I'm useless at applying them! An hour flew by and we were ready, off we went!
The arena was sooo busy, It was flooded with people but I was expecting that. The ticket men scanned our tickets and we entered. As soon as we got inside, we headed straight for the merch, I think everyone did to be honest. A gigantic wall of merchandise, every Beliebers dream! It was really hard to decide what top to get, they were all so unique and individual! I decided to opt with a black top with Purpose across it. £35 down, we decided to take our seats. Our view was amazing, the pictures don't do the stage any justice.
Firstly, Mic Lowry took the stage, they were great and got everyone in the mood by singing songs by the likes of Drake. Then The Knocks came on, I loved them, having never heard their music before I was really impressed. It was upbeat and they really got the crowd dancing, both really good support acts.
Then, it was time, 'Mark My Words' tune began to play and the glass box began to rise up from the stage. The whole arena lit up in a roar of excitement and love. It was epic, a memory I'll never forget! I'd been waiting for so long, it seemed so surreal and yes Sophie began to cry (the first of many). Then Justin performed 'I'll Show You', this was one of my favourite performances of the night. The song really connected with me, the use of the spinning graphics which were transmitted onto the cage were brilliant. It was like the audience were inside of Justin's mind, he really performed his emotions, it was powerful to say the least. The way he sang 'Don't forget that I'm human, don't forget that I'm real' really emphasised with me, he's a human being with real feelings and sometimes people forget that.
Justin also sang 'Where Are U Now', this really got the crowd dancing, everyone was up on their feet dancing, even the 6 year old girl stood in front of me. This was the first song that I heard from Purpose and I fell in love with it, it's modern and has a great rhythmic feel. As well as the audience dancing, Justin was too, but it is one of those songs that no matter how you feel, no matter how old you are you have to dance!
Another performance that I loved was 'No Pressure', I think it's because I love the rap! He was amazing performing that, as soon as the music began to play, I knew the performance was going to be good. It was thrilling to be in an atmosphere where everyone has come to watch and appreciate a performer, were they all know the words to every song! 'Company' was also great. The trampoline segment really added to the astonishing tour, I'd never seen anything like that before, it was truly awesome to watch.
I'm tore between either 'Baby' or 'Purpose' being my favourite performance. I loved Baby because it was old school Bieber, everyone was enjoying the song, every word they sang back to him. I remember the smile on Justin's face, the whole arena was singing one of his greatest hits, it was pretty unforgettable. I loved it so much because you could see him enjoying himself too, I'm glad that he was able to enjoy the performance just as much as his fans were. However, Purpose was astounding. You could feel Justin's raw emotions, the song connects with everyone on different levels. It's a song that he sung with one reason and thousands of people sung back to him for a thousand different reasons. He asked everyone to hold up a flash light, which added to the sensitivity of the song. He completely let himself get lost in the music, the audience felt his vulnerability. And yes Sophie was sat on the floor crying when he performed this, she was balling her eyes out, the song is so special to her. I understood every lyric, it's heartfelt and fragile, the piano and flawless vocals are something that I'll never forget.
After the concert had finished, we walked back to our hotel room and was on the hunt for Sunday tickets...
Thank you Justin for an epic, vulnerable and unique show. It's one I'll never forget!
Love, Chloe X
