If anyone knows anything about me… It is that I have always been a huge JT/NSYNC fan. It is one of those things that has also stuck with me since I saw them (NSYNC) in elementary school. That probably won’t change much to my mother’s chagrin. Lucky for me… Summer 2024 has bought out the man I have always loved.
He was about due for another album and I always think that it is odd that people use the term (comeback) as if he was retired and went somewhere… He always takes years in between albums… and that is nothing new. Justified (2002) FSLS (2007) 20/20 (2012/2013) MOTW (2018) and now EITIW (2024) but I digress.
I knew I had to get tickets… since the last time I saw him I was 24 and it was the Legends of Summer Stadium tour. My friend and I traveled all the way to Baltimore to see JT… and we thought nothing of it. It is still one of my favorite concerts but I did not get half of the pictures to remember it by that I wanted. And I had hoped for another opportunity… especially after feeling down since Covid.
The only thing I have been able to enjoy on social media recently is letting me know about upcoming things that are up my alley. Thank goodness for other millennials. There were rumors since 2023 that JT6 is coming out… and that one should be ready. Justin for his part had been doing a lot of cryptic social media posts. People were all over the place decoding things. But they were right. Justin announced not only an album (Everything I Thought It Was ) to be on March 15th but that he would also start a tour… and those tickets would be going on sale in a week. They gave everyone a week to get the funds together it was totally unfair.
That however did not stop me from setting an alarm for hopping in the cue for presales when the tour dates and cities came out. I was sad that there was not a show in my city right away. But luckily there was shows in a city with my family. The waiting cue is a place where people duke it out for position. The funny thing is that the album hadn’t been released yet. I figured it would mean less people in the cue. It didn’t especially because it had been a few years since Justin’s last album release… and tour… so everyone including myself was chomping at the bit. All I can say was thank you for Verizon Up. They gave me priority (a least a bit) so that I could go in and grab tickets during the presale. I got my tickets for a reasonable price of $325 and when I saw him at the Legends of Summer tour those floor seats were about $285 so relative. And I like that. Were there some astronomical prices? Absolutely. But there were also great seats with reasonable prices.
The way my heart sank when the number I was in the cue for 5244. I was thinking… I will never get to see him again. I am a bit dramatic though. I was able to score tickets in section 118 in the Amalie Arena. My sister was coming along whether she liked it or not. Luckily, she liked it. And then… I was able to sit back and let the anticipation start building.
One thing that made me laugh was all the show commentary from people on both tiktok and twitter who were attending the shows as the tour started… I was both jealous and living vicariously through them. I both needed the interaction with other long time fans and wanted to see nothing. The ONO (One Night Only)shows took a lot out of me especially since NSYNC came out at one of the shows. I was soooo jealous of those people but in the end, you could buy tickets to those shows… you had to win the raffle. I wasn’t in the cards for me… But I enjoyed it nonetheless.
We fast forward 4 months of me watching other people have their moments… and thinking when is it going to be my turn. The only thing I hated was actually having to pack my bags. Maybe next time I will bribe my niece into helping me pack…. I boarded the plane to Tampa. I managed to rest my bones before concert day. I knew from watching concert footage… that he would come out at about 9:15pm. (SN: There are thousands of people that swore because the doors 7 pm that it meant that was when the show started. I assume this must have been their first ever concert. No headliner comes out first thing.) So, I wasn’t rushing. I had time. I was more worried about all the storms across FL. There was flooding in Miami… and JT had a show there shortly after his time in Tampa. Thank God… The storms passed and we were able to get to Amalie Arena. Thank Goodness Amalie Arena knows what they are doing when it came to parking… I have seen some crappy set ups.
I was able to get in get food and head to the merch table. Luckily I put some money to the side for this occasion. I had my stuff before he even stepped out on stage. I knew I was not going to head back out to the merch tables once the show started lol. After being in lockdown, I wanted to commemorate being there, luckily I spent less than I brought lol.
JT showed up onstage at about 9:15 pm. The visuals were the truth. They usually are.. so no surprise there. It started with Memphis… The Visual was fanstastic. Thank goodness my sister was there to capture the moment.
He started out with No Angels and while that hadnt started out as a favorite of mine…. It is growing on me. I enjoyed watching him take the stage and see the choreography up close. I have to say… I managed to get pretty great seats. He took the stage with his sunglasses and black trench coat. I wondered how long that was going to last with how hot it was.
Next up… LoveStoned… And I am so glad I got to see him do it in person and not on a concert show. Some of the shows I have seen doesn’t do it justice in person. I am glad that this song made the cut… His dancers are so good. Shoutout to the Tennessee Kids. He kept the Trenchcoat on… And even with the amount of time it was between this show and the last show I went to… I could see that he hasn’t lost it no matter what tabloids would have you believe… (Come on… Let’s leave the ageism shit at home. He still knows what it takes to put on a great show.)
I was taken and couldn’t wait for the next one. Like I Love you and My Love is up next and I loved every minute of it. Sitting on the side was great until all the lights start flashing… Made it hard to video but I could still see everything. Love it.
He came right out the gate dancing and singing… He knows how to put on a show and that hasn’t changed over the years. I think for me, it is fun to watch someone who is passionate about what they do and they do it well. There is nothing but smiles on stage. It is a nice contrast in dealing with everyone online where it is cool to be so negative and dislike everything. JT is having fun… He loves it and you can feel it when he puts on a show and performs.
There is something about his background singers and dancers (The Tennessee Kids) that always brings their A game. They are always a pleasure to watch. It was fun watching them with their smiles on their face as well. It was nonstop fun and energy all night.
I could not wait to see him do Sanctified. I love this song… and its lyrics…. they really speak to me. Shoutout the the guitarist… How do they play doing all that moving? I could never… but then again… No one is paying to see me play lol. So there is that. They all put the foot in this. It didn’t even sound bad without Tobe. If you want to see him and Tobe, check out his SNL performance below.
Next was Infinity Sex. And I have to say that one of my favorite tracks when the album dropped and it was fun to see it live. The dancers are always great. I think my sister really enjoyed it… That is her in the video.
My sister could not wait for Fuckin’ Up the Disco.. and he did not disappoint. It has to be one of her favorite songs off the album… We were both singing along the whole time. It was a fun time. We loved it obviously.
There was a lot of talk online about the My Favorite Drug/Señorita medley… Even before the tour… we knew there had to be one and we were right. Pays off to be nosy… at least sometimes right? But they mesh well together.
That block that he had was versatile… I have to give it up… It was involved in most of the songs… and the way JT used it had me guessing. But I have to say by far the best use of it is when he performed Drown. I wasn’t sure that song was on my favorites list but it kept coming up in the shuffle and it took on a new meaning for me.
I loved being in the house while the crowd loved up on him. And he loves to love us right back. There were a lot of classics that he played on the main stage. And we were here for them….
I can’t leave out Summer Love and Let the Groove Get In… I got my two step ready…I mean he said it was easy…
It was a lot of fun when he left the main stage and ventured down to Stage B or the VIP section. If I get a chance to do another show… I will definitely be sitting or standing there… (Although, I am not sure I can stand that long.) My brother asked me about Suit & Tie… and yes he performed that on Stage B. And even my jam Flame. But what I enjoyed was when he was talking to the crowd.
I think over the years… I have often wondered what I would say to JT if I was given the chance… I found out through his speech that I am not all that original. I would love to say that I was 9 when I saw NSYNC on the Disney channel and I felt they have always been there for me during all stages of my life. And we kind of grew up together… Check out his speech.
The grand finale was when he hit Mirrors as the last song.
I loved everything about the show. I recommend if anyone has never seen him perform in person… then you are missing out. He knows how to use all of the stage and make sure he is able to interact with as many fans as possible. He is still the master of his craft… And I am glad I got to see it again.
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