By: Samantha Declet//
Last week I finally got to meet one of my favorite artists, Daya. My friend and I got tickets for her New York City show a couple of months ago when we got refunded some of our money from not meeting Shawn Mendes (that’s another story for another time.) My friend texted me and asked me if I wanted to meet Daya. Without hesitation, I said yes! Between the time we bought our tickets and the date of the concert I’d grown really close to her music, which made me all the more excited to see her live.
On the day of the concert my friend and I were sure to arrive at the venue early. We wanted to make sure that we would be against the barricade for the show. About 10 minutes before we were supposed to be let inside for our meet-and-greet with Daya, someone from her team came outside to let us know that she was not feeling well and would not be having a soundcheck. My heart sunk into my chest because I was afraid that we weren’t going to meet her, but he reassured us that she was going to have a longer Question-and-Answer session and that we would all be getting a picture with her.
Once we got inside the security had us gather around the area where the Q&A was going to be. Daya came out with her band and sat right in front of us. She was told not to verbally speak and to write down the answers on pieces of paper. After the Q&A was over, we all lined up to meet her. It was awesome getting to tell her how much her music means to me.
On the stage were huge letters that spelt out ‘DAYA’ with a heart. At about 9:30 P.M. the letters lit up and she came out on stage, opening with ‘Dare’ off her ‘Sit Still Look Pretty’ album. As soon as she came on stage she walked right over to where my friend and I were standing. Daya definitely knows how to interact with her crowd and get them hyped up.
My favorite moment of the night was when she sang ‘Back to Me,’ which is my favorite song. For this song they brought out her piano and she played the song by herself. It took a lot for me not to cry during this song because the lyrics mean a lot to me.
After seeing the show that Daya put on at Irving Plaza, I would never have guessed that she was sick. She was skipping and dancing all over the stage and her voice still sounded incredible. Daya put her all into that performance despite being sick, making the money towards the ticket completely worth it. It was most definitely a night I will never forget. Thank you, Daya. I can’t wait to see you again soon.
