My So-Called Fangirl Life

New Kids On The Block 1989 & 1991

8/8/1989 Louisville, KY

This was my first ever concert. Tiffany and Tommy Page opened for New Kids On The Block at the Kentucky state fair. My mom took my best friend, Melissa, and me, dropped us off, and waited for us in the car.

I was young, and honestly, I hardly remember the show. I can't even say that there was anything that stood out about it, except they looked like tiny ants way down there at the bottom of the stadium. And I got some crappy quality pictures, as in you can't even tell it's them, because 35mm film and a cheap camera was all I had. It was a really long time ago, okay?

3/27/1991 Louisville, KY

Some of you may remember that we used to have to go to a ticket outlet or the venue itself to purchase tickets for concerts. Seriously, we did. There were random places that sold tickets, such as Kroger, Disc Jockey (a music store that I don't think exists now), and McAlpin's. If you have no idea what McAlpin's is, it was a department store similar to Macy's. That's where we bought tickets to this show. Melissa's mom and my mom took us to the mall probably around 5:00 a.m. to get in line for these tickets. We were about the 6th group of ticket buyers there, so we thought we were going to get good seats. We thought wrong. We still ended up in the nosebleeds. My memory is awful when it comes to my early childhood, but I'm pretty sure my brother was with me for this show as well, because he has teased me about crying afterwards. Or maybe he was waiting in the car with my mom. I don't know.

This seems like an awful lot of opening acts, so I may be making this up. But, as I think I remember it, Dino, Ric Wes, Biscuit, & Perfect Gentlemen opened. This was the show the day after Donnie had been arrested for arson. I remember he wore a shirt that said "Don't Believe the Hype." I have no photos of this show because they confiscated all cameras as we entered, and we had to pick them up after the show. I laugh about that now. I'm not sure how they thought someone about three rows from the back with a camera like mine was going to get remotely decent photos, but whatever.

It didn't matter that we were in the back. We sang and danced our hearts out as though we were in the front row. I have more memories of us dancing than I have of the actual concert.

Unbeknownst to me, this would be the last time I'd see New Kids for 18 years. I had tickets to see them on their next tour, but I had been ill with pneumonia (I was a sickly kid with asthma) and my stepfather at the time wouldn't let me go, even though I was honestly well enough to go by then. I think it really had more to do with the fact that his daughter was staying with us during that time and since she had no ticket, he didn't want me to go either, so he used my recent illness as an excuse. And my mom didn't protest. To be honest, I didn't get over that for many years.

As far as I know, there was never an official breakup announcement. New Kids just kinda faded away after their Face The Music album "flopped." But I remained a devoted fan for much longer than anyone else I knew. I even got made fun of, but I'm glad I never lost the love.

If someone had told me at the time what was to come in the future, no freaking way would I have believed a word of it. I was going to meet them? Whatever. I was going to spend four days a year with them on a cruise ship? Get the heck outta here. And I was going to make some new lifelong friends during my adulthood because of our love for these guys? Yeah, okay.

But dreams do come true.