I wore my favorite pair of fishnets, smudged eyeliner, and a borrowed hoodie I used from my friend from the band Julie to an acoustic show at a random house in Monterey Park on September 27. 

A couple days before the show, my friend and I saw an Instagram post presenting a list of singers who would perform there. We put on our best outfits and jewelry as we waited for her mom to give us a ride.

My friend’s mom Cheyenne, my glorious hype woman, told us we looked great as we shuffled lower into our seats when we reached the beginning of the block where the party was. 

We made our way through the back gate and confronted a crowd of people who looked way cooler than us. The place was filled with dyed hair, eyebrow piercings, and unique pieces of clothing. I retreated deeper into the neck of my sweater.

The show started at 5:30, but we got there around 6:05. It was packed. It was amazing. The end of summer made itself known as a chilly wind mixed with cigarette smoke brushed our bare legs. Summer was out, and the best time of year was in.

The first performer, Bekah, also known as Swirl Circuit, filled the entire room with a flowy black skirt and an acoustic guitar that sounded like the summer before senior year. She started off with her single “Mar 10” and took every strum of her guitar straight to my heart. Her unreleased songs mesmerized the crowd into silence. 

Her voice was the sun shining on your back as you can see your breath in the cold mornings. It was a cup of piping hot tea burning your fingertips, the same one your grandmother forced you to drink. It was a reminder that a performer has to start somewhere. 

The next artist was your future resentment. The epiphany of who I wanted to look like was right before my eyes: Japanese cigarettes, fashion that was out of this world, and eyes outlined with black. She covered “Scott Pilgrim Vs. My GPA” by Mom Jeans, and the crowd went ballistic. The trumpet part was my favorite. Her friend Gerel Cruz added the cherry on top with his part in the duet.

Jordan Giordano, the third artist that played that night, took the crowd for a ride. He is a photographer, writer, videographer, and (most importantly) a barista. He has created poems, stories, and photographs that made me realize there really is more to life.

If you’re content and happy with what you have and what you’re doing, then no one can tell you that you’re unsuccessful. His work is the embodiment of what I wish to be. The creativity within his art is surrounded by colorful lights.

 His voice reminded me of sitting on my grandma’s bed, wrestling with my uncle who was older than me by a couple of years. The nostalgia flew into my head as I swayed my body back and forth and he sang louder and louder.

Olivia O, in all her glory, slid right next to my friend and I at the beginning of the show. She was setting up while my friend and I fangirled internally. Her aura shined as she made her way around the crowd. 

By the time her turn was up, the sun had begun to set, and fairlights lit on the moment she sat down. She played songs like “Hickory” from her album Everyone is a Light and “One Hit Wonder” from her second album No Bones, Sickly Sweet. 

Her voice is sitting in your bed, room warmly lit by a salt lamp as you reminisce about your day. It’s pictures you took with your friends on a

night out, taking turns on the digital camera and laughing at off-guard photos.

Seeing her in person slowed everything down. My head was full of thoughts about college applications, my future, and overall my life getting overwhelming. The moment she lifted her flute, all of that vanished. That moment that highlighted the beginning of my senior year and the transition of my high school years ending. 

The last artist that played was Dead Calm. All of who I am and who I wanted to be was influenced by Liam McCay. Birthday, Sign Crushes Motorist, Take Care, Hold, Make His Ribs Show, and Miserable Teens Club are just some of the projects he’s made. 

My middle school self spent endless nights listening to his album Agony and doing homework on my bedroom floor. She wouldn’t believe it if I 

told her we saw him play in a backyard with free pizza and 6-dollar matcha. He made up my life along with Salvia Plath, Dandelion Hand, Duster, and I don’t like mirrors. Listening to him in real life was unbelievable.

As I grow older I find myself staying up past curfew, hanging out with people I’ve never met before and doing things my younger self was too scared to do. The music brought me back to a person I thought I had outgrown, but found myself getting warm at the thought of. 

An honorable mention was Aidan and his friend, along with other musicians that played that night.

When the show ended, my friend and I went to take pictures with Olivia O. She was the sweetest and coolest person I ever met. She took a photo with us, and we talked about a bunch of nothing. She noticed the Julie hoodie I had on and complimented it. She didn’t even need to pose and she still looked super cool.

This was my first show, and the beginning of many more. Whether I ended up at the Greek Theater or a random person’s backyard sober and promised free pizza, music has a way of reeling me in. It is a part of who I am. It drives me farther than anything ever can.