The current culture of COVID-19 concerts

PHOTO: Metallica performs at Discovery Park on Oct. 10. The outdoor concert caused many attendees to feel safe enough to remove their masks. Courtesy Photo.

By Lily Schroeder,

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

Rainbow lights illuminate the Golden 1 Center, causing fans’ bedazzled masks to sparkle. Amidst the splash of colors, sophomore Grace Smithline raises her phone flashlight while Harry Styles performs “Fine Line.” The arena is full of people dressed up for the occasion, their outfits influenced by Styles’ own fashion.

Smithline wasn’t planning on attending Styles’ “Love On Tour” concert, but when her friend got sick, she was given the extra ticket. On Nov. 11, she and her friends drove to Sacramento and parked in a lot near the arena.

Although many concerts are happening in the current COVID-19 environment, Dean Blumberg, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at UC Davis Children’s Hospital, believes that being in any crowd can risk COVID-19 transmission. “It’s all a matter of how much risk tolerance you have,” he said.

That was on Smithline’s mind as she filed into line with other fans and readied a picture of her vaccination card on her phone. She moved closer to the checkpoint, where security guards were checking if fans were either vaccinated or had a negative COVID-19 test. 

“Everyone seemed to follow the rules,” Smithline said. She did not notice any pushbacks or complaints from other concert attendees.

Inside, Smithline says she saw most everyone wearing masks, but sophomore Jenna Elms, who also attended the concert, disagreed. Elms speculated that people on the floor had most likely taken their masks off. “Literally, I would too,” Elms said.

Sophomore Maria Pickles has also gone to a concert recently, but unlike Smithline and Elm’s, hers was outdoors. In October, Pickles and her mom attended the Aftershock festival in Sacramento, where Metallica was headlining. 

At the venue, security checked for both a vaccination card and a negative COVID-19 test, making sure everyone followed the rules. No one was allowed in unless they had both of the required items.

As the time of Metallica’s performance crept closer, more and more people began to fill the area near the stage. Despite the crowding, Pickles still had space to move around.

“I wasn’t like up against everyone,” Pickles said. She believes it may have been due to the open-air aspect of the festival. 

When it comes to outdoor vs. indoor concerts Blumberg thinks that a venue that allows social distancing is better. “Outdoor concerts, especially if more people are vaccinated, [would be safer],” he said. 

Sophomore Anya DeJong went to an outdoor concert to see the Jonas Brothers in August and is happy with her choice of staying in the open air. “[The concert] felt less compact,” she said.

DeJong and her friends drove about 45 minutes to the Toyota Amphitheatre in Wheatland, a large outdoor venue.

At the time, there were little to no COVID-19 restrictions for large gatherings in Yuba county, and the concert required neither proof of vaccination nor a negative test. To get in, DeJong only had to pass through regular security.

Once they sat down, DeJong and her friends took off their masks, just as most of the other attendees did. DeJong reasoned that going maskless was safe as she was six feet away from other groups, and she “had [her] own area.”

DeJong enjoyed her time watching the Jonas Brothers and did not feel like COVID-19 got in the way of much. “It felt really normal,” she said.