That time that I went on a date with Adam Levine

For as much as I adore almost all types of music, and for as many local concerts and shows as we see, we don't get to headliner type concerts all that often. Mostly because it's hard to rationalize spending that much money on something like that...at least for me it is.

That's why I was a little bit shocked when my husband told me a few months ago that he got tickets to see Maroon 5 and Kelly Clarkson.

And when I say shocked, I mean it in the best way possible. I mean, I don't care if you're young, old, male, female, straight, gay or purple, Adam Levine is one of the hottest men on the planet. You can try and tell me that you don't drool a little bit over the guy, and I'm going to call bullshit.

I mean, seriously.


Everyone has a folder of Adam Levine pictures on their computer, right? That's not weird. No.

Anyhow, he told me he got tickets a while ago when they went on sale. Which was pretty good considering that the concert sold out pretty quickly. And for good reason.

I've seen enough live music performances to know that some people who kick ass in the studio can't hold a damn note in person, that editing makes some people really famous, and that stage presence is totally separate and apart from singing ability for some people.

I was a little leery of both of them, to be honest.

Kelly is a power vocalist, always has been. I sang for a hot second back in the day and I know how hard it can be to maintain range, clarity and tone. Adam tends toward the falsetto a LOT, and that shit is hard to pull off in a studio, let alone live.

So, as a music critic, I was curious what would happen.

Mostly, though, I was hoping he would take off his shirt. Sadly, a breeze picked up about halfway through their set and he never felt compelled to remove it. I know. I'm sad too.

BUT HE HAS A BEARD NOW. DID YOU KNOW THIS????


You guys. It's bearding season. Hot damn.

We got to the concert venue a little bit later than intended, mostly because of traffic and kids who had to be picked up from school and real life stuff. It wouldn't have been such an issue, but our seats were in a general admission portion.


We ended up literally in the back of the place, like that is the wall right behind us, but towards the end of the night I was actually grateful for that because standing on grass for four hours is better than standing on concrete. And you just weren't going to sit down.

Kelly was on stage over an hour, and I have to tell you that she is freaking adorable in person. I've always liked her since way back in the American Idol days. She's humble and grounded and real. I love that about her.

I was pleasantly surprised by her banter on the stage though. She fully makes fun of herself in the most hilarious self deprecating way, and I freaking adore that. She poked fun at herself for being single and crazy, for being engaged and crazy, for being a crazy cat lady, for being really pathetic and sad sometimes, for being ridiculous other times.


That, and girl can sing. Like holy crap. Her voice was a little raspy in the beginning, but as she got further into the set, she was hitting the high notes like you wouldn't believe. Then there is the issue of all her songs that make me cry, and I'm standing there among thousands of people sobbing like a fool. She was awesome.

Which makes sense. I mean, her name is Kelly, so I'm sure it's some kind of prerequisite. Kelly, Kelly, Kelly....

My husband may or may not have yelled I love you, Kelly at the end of every song.

That might have happened.

Then Maroon 5 came on stage. They were up there just about two hours straight, and played songs from their entire career. The lead guitarist James Valentine is pretty damn amazing. I feel for the guy, and for the rest of the band in general, because they really are like an asterisk next to Levine. He's taken front man to a whole new level.

I mean, I guess I wouldn't mind if I got to ride those coattails and all (especially if it meant that I got to stare at his ass all the time), but most of the band has been together since high school. Seems like they're all cool with his insane fame and all since only one of the original members left though, so I'm not asking any questions. Just don't break the band up, please.


Like Kelly, Adam is pretty funny live, and has a bit of a problem with the swears. Which...I'm totally okay with.

Towards the end of the show, a little girl next to the stage gave him a bouquet of roses, which he thanked her for...then shared with the audience. He bent down to give the last rose back to the little girl, and warned everyone around her not to try and steal it from her. Don't you break a little girl's heart. Don't be an asshole. 

Swoon.

They left the stage for a minute in their fake show ending, because everyone knows they are coming back out for an encore. The encore ended up being like five more songs or something. I have to say that I was impressed with the stage production values, the special effects, the entire band, and with him. The Voice.

Man, can he sing. He sounds just as good live as he does on the radio, and I'm not kidding.

He even covered I wanna be your lover by Prince, and sang almost the entire thing in falsetto. That part was hilarious because the couple in front of us was there with their teenage kids, and dad broke out in his falsetto to sing along while dancing quite enthusiastically. Dad. Stop. Oh my god. Daaaad.

As he was taking his last bow, Adam told me he loved me.

Okay, so he loved Denver.

Whatever.

Imma count it.