This is an All Ears English podcast, episode 2118.
Went to a concert?
How was it?
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Your friend just attended a concert.
What can you say to them to ask them about it so they can share the experience in English?
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Hello, Michelle.
How's it going today?
Good, good.
I am still super excited by this concert that i went to and we are going to talk about it today.
Oh my gosh, i can't wait to hear about it.
I also just booked tickets for the adele concert in vegas.
I'm so excited.
You know i'm not a big concert person, but every once in a while i'll splurge on a big show and it's worth it.
Right being in person with these huge concerts incredible Yeah, I hear Adele is just amazing in concert.
So I would love to see her.
But I went to see pink over the weekend.
Oh, my gosh.
Tell me about it.
Was it incredible?
Oh, my goodness.
Um, I think that it was probably the best concert I've ever been to.
I put I did an Instagram for it.
So you guys may have seen No, just like it was right after the show and I was all sweaty and.
But I just had to share because I was super excited.
So we love that.
We love maybe you saw that.
But yeah, it was it was just I'm still on cloud nine about it.
Cloud9.
That's amazing.
Guys, make sure you go over and follow the All Ears English Instagram, because we are doing real-time live updates.
You're getting a glimpse into our own lives.
That's really cool that you were able to get right on the camera, Michelle, right after the concert.
I'm excited to talk about this today.
And I bet our listeners do go to concerts sometimes.
What do you think?
Yeah, I think so.
I think so.
I mean, there are times where you go to a concert and you feel a little disappointed.
I've did see a concert of someone I don't even want to say who it is, because I really do like this person.
Okay, what's the genre?
What's the genre?
Is it like 90s grunge?
Okay pop okay, Backstreet Boys?
No no no, not Backstreet Boys, although I did see them when I was younger and they were very good.
Um, I did see an artist who I really, really love and I was disappointed live, which was shocking to me, and I realized what made pink so good was that she's so interactive with the audience.
Ah, interesting.
Okay.
Did she do like a sing-along thing?
No, not really a sing-along.
Okay, good.
I don't like that.
No, no, no.
Not a sing-along.
But she... talks to the audience.
You can tell that she loves the audience.
I mean she literally flies up to different levels, because one of the things that she's famous for in her shows is acrobatics.
Sorry, I'm trying to plug in my computer here, which I thought was plugged in.
Oh, okay.
So one of the things that she's really famous for is acrobatics during her show.
So she will literally be flying around on a harness all around the stadium.
I did not know that.
Yes, in her last song she said to the people on top she said oh, i'm gonna come up and see you, and she literally just goes up and then starts flying around the whole place.
Oh wow, that's a trademark okay yeah, interesting it is, and she's so personable like you, just i.
I went.
Oh, I just want to be best friends with her.
You know who else is really good in concert?
Lady Gaga.
I saw Lady Gaga in Boston.
She's kind of like that, too.
She doesn't fly around the stage literally, but she does a lot of like show lighting and smoke and things like that that are kind of cool.
And you can tell she also loves her audience, her fans, because that's what it's all about.
Right.
When you're a singer.
Definitely.
And she so I saw Lady Gaga, too.
And yeah, I felt that as well.
And I think that it felt very, like three dimensional.
The other concert I went to.
Once I was talking to Dan about I said it felt flat, like there was no, I don't know, there wasn't a warmth.
There was just kind of okay, I'm doing the songs and whatever.
But not only is she talented, her voice is just incredible, but she's just seems so cool.
I love her.
Yeah, have you seen that movie?
A star is born.
Oh yeah yeah yeah yeah, she was.
She was in that movie and lady gaga oh, i recommend that about pink, but also lady gaga.
Oh sorry, we're talking about two different people, but this is great.
So this is what we're getting into today, michelle.
Right, but first you want to announce the results of a poll.
Guys, we're doing these amazing polls over on spotify.
If you're listening over there michelle, what episode was this poll related to?
So this was episode 2088.
And that was, are you a bookworm?
How to talk about your reading habits in English.
And that was fun to get into.
What were the results here for this poll, Michelle?
What is the breakdown of our audience?
Who's a bookworm?
Who's not?
Who's a bookworm?
So 52% of you, our listeners, answered yes.
And 48% answered no. not a bookworm.
So just about even.
So I think that's pretty interesting.
That's interesting.
That's good to know.
So some readers, and just reminding us, Michelle a bookworm, is that someone that just reads casually?
Or would you say that's someone that kind of binges on books?
A person who, yes, a lot of reading, a bookworm.
That's so important to know.
So our listeners, guys, go back and listen to that episode again.
2088 check that out love it please yes okay so um yeah we're gonna talk about this concert i wanted to share a little bit about my experience and the skill that we're gonna give you today is how to ask someone about a concert they went to um one of the first things that i brought up when lindsay and i got this recording started was that i went to the pink concert and i we weren't even going to do this episode today but i figured let's do it because um yes and she asked me the first thing that she asked me was the first phrase that i had planned to teach are you serious oh my gosh that's so funny i didn't realize it so that's why i was like okay stop everything let's move things around uh so but why lindsay why do you think asking someone about a concert is such a huge connection skill well i just think concerts definitely as we just said in our conversation, they bring in something that touches you pretty deeply just because you're hearing the music so loud and so fully.
It's like an all body experience, body and mind and heart and soul.
And so we've gone to this concert It's a big deal to us.
Like we want other people to know that we've been moved.
Usually we've been kind of moved, right?
In our minds.
And so that's why it matters.
It's different from saying, oh yeah, I went down the street to a restaurant.
It was kind of average.
It's important.
Concerts matter.
Music matters to us.
Yes, yes, yes, exactly.
It touches our soul.
And I think that, yeah, Lindsay, I think you put it so perfectly.
Like that you kind of, you leave a different person than when you came in.
Yeah.
You do.
It's kind of like travel.
Yeah, exactly.
It's a special experience.
And I think people light up when they talk about a concert that they've enjoyed.
I know that's how I feel.
I feel like you know, i'm like so excited so to be able to ask someone about that and have them share with you, and then you share with them.
It's a special experience that you don't want to miss out on because you're not sure how to ask the questions exactly.
So we want to show you guys, how to give people that forum, that space to share how it touched them and what it was all about.
They'll never totally be able to convey what it was right to you if you weren't there, but you should give them the space to try.
Think that's really important, michelle.
It's kind of unique.
I think traveling and concerts are two of two things that are just like that.
In that sense, it touches us deeply.
We become a different person when we walk out the door.
That's, that's well said.
I like that yeah, i like it, love it um.
So guys, before we give you these expressions, these questions that you can ask, we want to make sure that you hit follow wherever you are listening to the all ears english podcast.
Why should they do that, lindsay?
Oh my gosh guys, the new year is coming.
You want to get ready, get your listening cue ready and fill it up with all ears English, right?
Because we publish four days a week over here and you don't want to miss the.
We have some fantastic guest episodes that we are have already recorded and they're ready to go live in the new year.
And I'm super excited for who's coming on the show and the new year guys you want to hit.
Follow so that it comes right to you.
All right.
Love it.
Love it.
Love it.
Love it. let's get into it so lindsay we'll i'm gonna have you ask the question yes so we'll talk about it and i will answer it all right all right michelle what's the first one all right so you went to the pink concert michelle how was it oh it was amazing her voice is just the best i love her voice um and she's super she seems so nice um so yeah Yeah, she's an inspiring figure.
I think I've seen her on different talk shows before.
She's from the US, right?
Is she American?
Yeah, she's from the Philadelphia area.
Got it.
Okay.
Maybe that's part of why you feel an affinity to her too, that same region.
You're kind of from the mid-Atlantic area, Northeast area.
Yeah, maybe, maybe.
I don't know.
Who knows?
Who knows?
But yeah, so that first question Lindsay asked and that's I mean it sounds like such a simple question, but it I mean it's important to go over it because it's the first question you have to ask, right?
Of course.
Yeah.
So it's how was it?
And that's the first thing Lindsay said to me.
Sorry, I think someone's mowing the lawn out here.
Oh, I can't hear it.
So that's good.
All right.
So then after I've said, how was it?
You've given me a couple of things.
I could ask you some more pointed questions, right?
Like, did she sing the hits or mostly new stuff?
Yeah, so that's a question that a lot of people um, are always interested in.
Like, are they?
Is it mostly their new album?
Because they want to know do?
Would they know these songs?
Or if you're not really a fan and you don't have a new album, would you maybe not know them?
So it's always kind of a interesting questions as well, a question as well.
So i would say she did both um okay, she did do some of her new songs, but she did not disappoint with the classic pink song.
She did not disappoint.
That's a great phrase too for our listeners.
Guys, write that down.
That'll be in the app as a keyword, I'm sure.
Did not disappoint.
It's not she did not disappoint me.
It's she did not disappoint.
So good.
Such a classic phrase, Michelle.
So good.
Yes.
Definitely.
Definitely.
All right.
And then the next one is how was the set?
Now, I don't know if people know what a set is.
I don't know if I know what a set is.
What is a set?
Well, okay.
I just want to clarify something.
So there's a set and then there's the set list.
So the set list is like the list of songs that she performed.
Throughout the whole concert.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So like, but people would be more, I think, curious about what the set is like.
So that's the scenery, the, you know, did she, yeah.
Okay.
Yeah. like the like what did it look like on the stage um okay that's okay okay okay Got it.
I thought that meant like the group of songs she was going to sing.
But you're saying set list is what she's going to sing.
And then the set is the stage, the setting, the background, all those things, right?
That's what I would say.
That's what I would say.
Okay.
So how was it?
How was the set?
Oh, it was cool.
You know, I was kind of on the side so I couldn't quite see the back part of it, but they had also one of her songs.
She has a bunch of men who are just falling onto trampolines and just like getting back up again.
It's, it's really cool.
It sounds funny, but it's really cool to see um, and there were just a lot of lights um, a lot of musicians, a lot.
Then there were a lot of great costumes um, i mean one of the like, just for an example of how personable she is.
I remember you know she comes in, she does the whole song, she comes down from the ceiling um, And she said something like oh everybody, enjoy my makeup for the next two minutes, because it's all going to get messed up.
And then she said, but you can see what potential I have.
And yeah, like really just down to earth.
She's really connecting with the audience, right?
Yeah.
Yeah.
I'm going to insert another one here, Michelle, that goes along with this.
I, i'm not a huge concert goer personally, but i hear i have one friend that goes to tons of concerts and i think she's always talking about the venue.
How was the venue?
Ah, good question, the venue, that's the place, that where it took place.
Yeah yeah, how was it?
This was at madison square garden.
So guys, if you, if you don't know madison square garden, that is the famous, you know stadium, the arena, You could say in New York City.
That is the that's the big famous arena.
That's where all the people come to play.
Everybody wants to play there.
So it's it's a great, great place.
That's where the Knicks play.
The Rangers.
So I thought it was when I think of Madison Square Garden, I think more of basketball.
But yeah, it is a concert venue.
How are the acoustics in Madison Square Garden?
I think that's a lot of what people are asking.
They're asking about how is the venue?
Was it a famous place?
And also they're asking, how are the acoustics?
Yeah, yeah.
It sounded great.
I loved it.
So it was good.
I mean, the venue is it's world famous.
So I, if you can, if you're in New York, try and see a concert, a game.
There's just a lot of history there.
So it really was wonderful.
Oh, very cool.
And then the next thing I could ask Michelle is what was your favorite part?
Ah, what was my favorite part?
So I'm gonna say the end when she I didn't want it to be over.
But That's when I will send I'm Lindsay.
I'm later I'm going to send you the video of like the last song.
Yeah.
When she just started going to the whole audience.
And wow, I remember my jaw was on the floor because I'd never seen anything like that.
So I love that.
And she sings while she's doing it.
So Oh, I love it.
So Michelle, would you see her again?
That is my next question that our listeners could ask.
Would you ever see her again?
Would you go back to another Pink concert?
Well, she was there the next night and I kept on looking online.
I was like, is there any way?
These concert tickets are gonna be like 25 bucks and I'll just run out and go.
That's hilarious.
Literally up until the next, until like the very last minute.
I was just thinking You never know what will happen.
Maybe some cheap ones will pop up, but they didn't.
That goes to show you that, yes, I would see her again.
Now I will make it a point anytime that she comes into my area, I will go see her.
I'm definitely like, I feel like, seeing somebody in concert is a make or break moment, right?
So you could either feel closer to the artist, like I'm going to use the word solidify, right?
It's solidified, you know, how big of a fan I am of hers.
Now it's permanent.
It's never going away.
You're with her forever.
I love it.
I love it.
So good.
Good stuff.
All right.
So in a minute, we're going to get into a nice little role play just to recap all of this.
And so you guys can hear these words one more time.
Yes.
Okay, Michelle, it's time for that role play.
Shall we get into it?
Let's do it.
So here you went to the concert and it's a Lady Gaga concert because I know you've been to one.
And I'm going to ask you about it.
Here we go.
All right.
Here we go.
So how was it?
Oh, Michelle, it was incredible.
She has such an incredible voice.
I love her voice.
Did she sing the hits or mostly new stuff?
Oh, both.
Also, she did some covers.
Amazing.
And how was the set?
So cool.
There were all these lights and the stage moved a ton.
Wow.
Well, so what was your favorite part?
She did a really touching tribute to Tony Bennett.
There was not a dry eye in the entire house.
I'm not kidding.
Wow.
Yeah, I know they had a special bond.
So would you see her again?
Oh, for sure.
This makes me think of the classic.
If we're talking about American culture and concerts, we can't not mention Woodstock, right?
Because that was like the original kind of concert that I think it was in the 60s.
We need more details.
Maybe we'll talk about it on another episode.
But I know for our parents' generation, it was like this breakout concert, like a five-day concert.
So many artists came there.
Everyone was camping.
It was a crazy time.
And it's such an important part of American culture and history.
Right.
Definitely.
Absolutely.
Love it.
So, so let's go through this.
So the first thing I said was, how was it?
Basic and simple story.
Yeah guys, when it's a topic that you can tell matters to the person, you really don't need anything fancy here.
Just open the floor for that person to talk about it.
That's what we're doing here.
And by the way, I used incredible twice.
Maybe we could throw in another adjective there.
Oh, it was incredible.
She has such an unbelievable voice.
Something like that.
Oh, incredible, incredible.
You're right.
Let's say unbelievable voice.
Give our listeners a little variety in those adjectives.
Yes, love it.
And then...
You said, I love her voice.
Did she sing the hits or mostly new stuff?
Yes.
And then I want to highlight something because you said she did some covers.
What's a cover?
Oh, yeah.
So it's a song that she didn't write, doesn't necessarily own the rights to, but she probably had it approved and worked with that artist to sing it.
Right.
So she just that's what I understand.
Maybe I'm wrong.
Well, I don't know if she necessarily I mean, it depends if it was recorded.
Like I think did a uh, cover of an Adele song.
And I don't know what kind of approval she had to go through.
But a cover is, you know, like that.
Maybe maybe somebody records a cover and then maybe they work with the artist, but maybe it's just they do their version at a concert.
No, I'm just cause they like the song.
I'm when I was in uh, when I was in a band in college.
Um, you know, we did a mix, we wrote our own songs, but we also did covers or covers.
Yes.
Yes.
It's good to do a mix.
Um, I just found in my parents' house when I was back in Boston last week, their box of records.
Have you ever owned a record and had a record player, Michelle?
It reminds me so much.
Yeah, my parents.
Yeah, it's so fun.
But it's almost like when you hear it on the record, it's so much better than on Spotify.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Definitely.
And then you asked, amazing, how was the set?
And here you're saying, how was the stage as we said?
Yeah.
Right.
Yeah.
Yep.
Yep.
Um, and then you talked about the set and then I said, what was your favorite part?
Um, and then, yeah, you talked about what your favorite part and yeah.
Then what was the last question?
And then simple question.
Would you see her again?
And I said, for sure.
I would for sure.
Michelle powerful episode today.
Right.
If our listeners can take this out there and talk about concerts, super powerful for connection.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, again, I just think that music and live, I mean, live music, live theater, there's, you know, there's nothing like it.
And people like to talk about it.
If it's an experience like we talked about, you don't walk in feeling the same about that artist as you do when you walk away.
And you do get this.
So you know, there were all these shirts i could have bought, but they were expensive and i'm like that's enough.
And then i, in the moment, i'm looking online, what pink shirts can i buy?
And i'm gonna wear them around town, i'm gonna, you know, and then you kind of get out of it.
You're like i don't think i need a shirt but um, But in the moment you feel so incredibly moved and emotional.
And so you're in it.
You're totally in it.
It's an all immersive experience, these concerts.
So, guys, even if you're not a concert person, the person you're talking to might be that person.
And they may have just had an amazing experience.
So make sure to ask them about it.
And now you have the tools to do it.
Yeah.
Love it.
All right.
Well, this was fun.
All right.
Next time.
All right.
Take care, Michelle.
Bye.
Bye.
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