I hopped over the border for this year’s annual Warped Tour stop, a few close friends and I decided we would like to experience something new, and we sure did. My friends and I started driving on July 15th around 4:30 from Massachusetts, got into Montreal late that night and slept peacefully in a hotel room for the night. I woke up the next day and got all my essentials together.

Must haves for WT: Sunscreen, Lots of $1 for Water, Sunglasses, A small camera (DSLR’s are not always welcome at certain venues unless you have a press pass), Something for band members to sign as you will see them walking around casually and frequently, Chap-Stick, Hand Sanitizer and my personal must have was my cell phone to check all the awesome updates from all the tents, bands, etc on Twitter and Facebook.

We arrived at Parc Jean-Drapeau around 10:30, paid for parking and made our way inside. The lines to get in were the most insane I have ever seen at a venue and to my surprise there were no bands out in the lines trying to nag people into buying their stuff (maybe it’s an American thing.) This venue is probably the most gorgeous one I have ever been to, the stages were right on the water, there was huge monuments all around and the day was perfect. The first thing I did once inside was check in at Shut Up and Deal’s tent and got my name on the list for the EIY Meet Up, I couldn’t miss it, such an awesome opportunity, but I didn’t know what to expect. After checking in I went to go see D.R.U.G.S. and Go Radio, I got some amazing pictures of Go Radio, who are from Tallahassee and on one of my favorite labels, their set was unbelievable and the fans were screaming the lyrics so loud. A majority of the crowds spoke French, so I couldn’t really get a grasp on what anyone thought of the bands I chose to see that day. I went back to the tent for my meet up and was greeted by Selena (@selenarox on Twitter) she said I was the only one for the meeting, not until we got back stage did I realize how lucky I had just gotten. The meeting consisted of Selena, Kevin Lyman, Lisa Brownlee and I, I was extremely nervous but very comfortable with them. I didn’t get the full experience with other people asking questions, but I got to express exactly what I want to do, they gave me advice, and overall it made my Warped experience unbelievable. After the meeting, we all exchanged information, and I got to catch a bit of Relient K before I had to interview Go Radio. I had the pleasure of talking with Jason about his home state (where I had just recently moved from) we talked about bands that we both knew, friends, his experiences on tour, and his new record. Jason, his tour manager, my photographer and I all walked back into the mess of people and went our separate ways, the day was getting hotter and the fans were getting more pumped up as the day went on. The next two acts we checked out were A Day To Remember and Big Chocolate, both exceeded my expectations, and I got the pleasure of talking with Big Chocolate later in the day.

I made sure to check out the non-profits, my friends and I gathered all the free stuff we could, one of our biggest reasons for doing so, was for my boyfriend’s little brother who was recently diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor at the age of 17. We met up with the cancer tents, we got him inspirational buttons, shirts, stickers, etc. All the bands we met up with were so gracious about what we were doing, they all offered to sign things and made sure we conveyed the message back to him that he was in their thoughts. I caught a bit of The Wonder Years as we were resting, and bought my first legal beer, it was awful, but I bought it because I could. I left Montreal a little early, as we decided that we were going to road trip back to Massachusetts and go to the Hartford date as well.

As I sat in the car I remembered all the advice and awesome things that the day had provided me, I went over in my head how Lisa and Kevin had told ME that my ideas were fantastic and something they would love to interact with, I looked over my 300 photos and remembered all the cheesy butterflies and strength I felt as I took steps closer to finding my way in the business I love. I may not be a girly girl, but I certainly felt like one as I showered of the dirt, sweat and dust that had consumed my body, my blisters and sunburn reminded me for a week how much fun I had, and continued to have even as I left the venue. There is nothing more rewarding in this world than meeting your idols, working your butt off, and it actually getting somewhere. I vow to follow EIY in all their efforts, to help them grow, to help Warped Tour grow, and to help myself grow, this is an experience that I recommend to anyone.