From chaotic meltdowns to epic fails, concert-goers reveal their most unforgettable and cringe-worthy moments in this jaw-dropping collection of their worst concert experiences.
All stories are edited for clarity.
Some Concert
“In 2006 we went to Lollapalooza to see Queens of the Stone Age and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Now the concert itself was pretty great, but the festival experience was awful. Queens was playing right before the Red Hot Chili Peppers, My friend, his girlfriend, and I decided we wanted to stake out a spot near the front where we would be able to get a good view. The set up for the event had these fences going up to the middle leading to the sound board, so we staked out spots against it to have something to lean our backs against. We tried to bring in a giant jug of water, but security wouldn’t let us, so we each bought one small bottle inside and took turns filling them up at the water fountain.
Most of the day was fine, but it was one of the hottest days of the year and it got brutal. Eventually the crowd around us got so big we couldn’t walk to refill our water. A bunch of us sat around in a circle talking. Then out of nowhere, a security guard with a ponytail and handlebar moustache walked up to us and said if any of us had any weed to trade. All of us just looked at each other thinking, ‘Did he really just say that?’
After seeing our faces, the security guard said would hook everyone up with waters throughout the rest of the day. To be honest, I had weed, but no way in hell was I trusting that guy.
The day went on, but being out under that brutal hot sun was definitely taking its toll on us. We got water sprayed on us occasionally from security people but it was not enough. Then in the middle of a song, my friend’s girlfriend started feeling faint. We had to flag down a security guard for help, who then let us out and separated us from the crowd. Then a couple songs later the guard looked at me and asks if I was alright. I didn’t want to say anything but I felt awful, like I was gonna pass out too. I told him I was fine, but the guard frowned looks at me and said, ‘Dude, no you’re not. You should go too and have the medics look at you.’
I eventually caved and got pulled out as well. The security guard walked me down the path to basically the front of the stage and then off to the right to a patch of grass with a bunch of sick people. He sat me down and told me to wait. About a minute later some lady comes to check on me. She pointed a flashlight in my eyes and asked, ‘Whatcha take?’
I told her nothing because I hadn’t taken anything. But this lady was certain. ‘C’mon, whatcha take?’ I told her again, ‘NOTHING! I’ve been in the freaking sun all day.’
The lady sighed before saying, ‘Uh huh.’ She then signaled someone who then came up and dumped a bucket of ice water on me without any warning. He then gave me a bottle of water before casually walking off.
I just sat there, soaked, for the rest of the concert and then tried to find my friend and his girlfriend after the crowd had cleared. When I finally found them, my friend’s girlfriend asked me why I was wet. Even though we both got taken away for the same thing, I was the only one that had a bucket of ice water dumped on me. She got a bottle of water and was able to peacefully enjoy the rest of the concert from the side. This still pisses me off to this day.”
A Windy Day
“I bought my girlfriend tickets to see Maroon 5 for her birthday at the Gorge in Eastern Washington. We had to drive 3 hours to get there. It was gonna be super fun.
One the day of the concert we went to the Gorge, set up our chairs, and excitedly waited for the show to start. It was a little breezy, but it felt nice considering how hot it was. Some random performer was the opening act. Kelly Clarkson was supposed to be the next act before Maroon 5. The random performer was great, but we were more excited to see Maroon 5 of course.
Then, after she was done, Kelly Clarkson was due to come on. But she didn’t. Several minutes went by and she still didn’t come out. We waited there for over 4 hours, and Kelly Clarkson never went on stage. No one came out to say what was going on. No one explained anything. Finally, after 5 freaking hours, the stage crew started packing up everything. The crowd started losing their minds. Then Adam Levine came on stage with Kelly Clarkson. Seeing them gave us a slight glimmer of hope that the show might go on.
That’s when they made an announcement that made me instantly regret being a ‘fan.’
‘Hey guys,’ Levine said. ‘It’s getting pretty windy up here, so we’re going to cancel the show.’
The crowd went nuts. Levine kept talking, but no one could hear him. He said something about it being too dangerous to perform, but no one was buying it. I had never in my life heard a crowd boo someone that loudly and that voraciously. He and Kelly left the stage, and the crowd just sort of milled around. Eventually we all started leaving, but we were all pissed.
They did offer us a refund for the tickets, but that only covered like a third of the total expenses for the trip. It was honestly one of the most disappointing events I’ve ever attended.”
Is It Over, Yet?
“I went to the Kanye West Glow in the Dark Tour in 2008.
The concert itself was amazing. Everything was really well done and it was truly an amazing experience.
The problem was the person I went with. Before the concert, I mentioned to a mutual friend that I was going to buy my ticket that day. She asked if she could go with me and not thinking, I said ‘sure.’ Then this ‘friend’ asked if I could buy her a ticket as well, with the promise that she would go with me and pay me once she got paid. Like I said, she was more of a mutual friend. I would have declined, but I wanted to get ‘closer’ so I agreed.
I bought the tickets after she assured me she would pay me back the day of the concert. I held onto both of them in case she flaked out or something. When the big day rolls around, the girl said she still doesn’t have the money. I consider uninviting her, but I was feeling nice, so I told her not to sweat it.
When I drove over to her place to pick her up, she didn’t really seemed dressed for the event. I wasn’t expecting her to be dressed to the nines, but she looked like she was wearing pajamas, like she just remembered and rolled out of bed. I asked her if she still wanted to go, and she said, ‘Yes.’
So, I drove out there, trying to ignore the feeling that she didn’t really want to be there. When she quietly scrolled on her phone the entire ride, I found myself drowning in regret. I should have never mentioned the damn concert to her.
When we got to the venue, we found our seats. The show hadn’t even even started yet, before the the girl announced that she wanted to go home. I asked if she was feeling sick then offered to buy her some water.
‘No, I just changed my mind,’ she said, rolling her eyes.
In my mind I thought about the money I dropped on the tickets. I had been wanting to go to the concert for a while. I knew if I left right then. I likely would have never got the chance again. So, I told her she could call for a cab to go home, but I planned on staying. That’s when the girl started complaining in this whiny voice. She pouted like a toddler having a tantrum before she said, ‘Fine!’
For the rest of the night, all I kept hearing from her was, ‘I’m bored. I want to go home. Can we go now? Is it over???’
Meanwhile, I was just trying to enjoy the moment and the hype. But this ‘friend’ of mine did nothing but whine and complain at my side completely bringing me down.
Once the concert was over with, we headed out. That’s when she said she was hungry. So I took her out to eat and ended up paying because she was ‘broke’, and dropped her off at home. Over the next week, I find out she was telling people that I was mean and rude.
I never did get paid back for the ticket, and we’re not friends anymore.”
A Sitting Ovation
“I love Ryan Adams. I found out about him right around the time his 3rd album came out. The one time his tour came to my town I had to work, so I missed out. Then he took a long break from touring because of a disease he has that gives him bad vertigo.
When Adams finally went back on tour, I found out that he was performing a show in a town an hour away from me and on my wedding anniversary. I snagged some tickets online, booked a hotel and went away with my wife for an anniversary trip.
Fast forward, to the concert and I got to hear some of my favorite songs live. My wife and I were standing and holding hands as we watched the performance. I looked around and ninety-eight percent of the crowd was sitting down. We kept getting some dirty looks, but I shrugged it off and tried to focus on the show. Then members of the crowd from other sections start yelling at the people who are standing to sit down, mainly us. It baffled me because we were at a concert after all.
Then to my surprise, Ryan Adams himself stopped playing in the middle of a song and shouts into the mic that he wanted everyone to sit the ‘blank’ down. I almost walked out at that point. I waited fifteen years to finally see my favorite musician perform live and I felt like I got a kick in balls.”