Bruno Mars in Manila! (Day 1)

 I know it's been over a month late but heyyyy, I just can't go on with my life without making everyone aware that I WAS BREATHING THE SAME AIR AND WAS IN THE VERY SAME ROOM AS BRUNO MARS! 

So here's how it went down. My Bestie, Gail, asked me if I wanted to see Bruno Mars live, and like the FOMO in me, I said yes, without knowing she would actually snatch some tix lol 

I like his songs. They're addicting and I knew even before that the guy had some mad talent in singing and songwriting but not the super fan who would binge-listen to his whole album. But all of that changed after seeing him live. It's just really different. 

On the day of the concert, June 24, 2023, we rented a shuttle service to take us to the venue, the Philippine Arena in Bulacan. The show will start at 7pm and since we have another pick-up location, the meet-up time was set to 12pm. A bit early but it saved us from the traffic. We would've missed the show if it wasn't for the early call time!

We had a brief stopover where I met up with Gail and Stevie. 

We arrived around 2pm and just when we were about to hop off the van, the rain started pouring sooo hard! There was a pile of people lined-up and everyone was getting soaked. Since we were already around the area, we took our time inside the van. And by the time we got off, the rain had stopped and there was barely a line outside the arena. 

Then proceeded to enter the venue.

I-WAS-HERE-PHOTO

Had to get some food and the line was no joke! The worst thing, the lasagna I got had already gone bad. Ughhhh! Ate Shawarma last minute to compensate. 😭

Huli ka balbon!

It was around 6pm when we entered the hall. Had to separate from my cousin since he got a different seat number. Bummer. No one told me there'd be a gazillion flights of stairs we had to climb to get into our seats! 

The concert hall was soooo huge! I rarely go to concerts, matter of fact, this is my first time attending an international artist's show. 

The traffic was so bad a lot of people were still not inside the concert hall. Bruno even had to adjust the start time for almost an hour. 

Angas ng pwesto ko. Bilibid realness shuta but this became my mini dance floor. 

This lightstick kind of makes me want to chant, "Bruno, oppa!" lakas maka K-pop lol

He started the show with 24k Magic!!!! Everyone was jumping around and dancing! He danced with so much energy too! It was surreal!

The first thing I realized, he looked so much more attractive. It's really different seeing him on Youtube and getting to see him live. 

He greeted us in Tagalog jusko lol then said "You look beautiful Philippines" and my thirsty ass said, "THANK YOUUU!!!"LOL  ukinams. A really important lesson I learned when attending concerts: SHUT MY MOUTH. Wag ka ng sumabat Grasya, magrecord ka na lang!

He sang some of his popular hits like "Finesse", "Treasure". 

And the cool thing about concerts is when the artists do adlibs live. I got high when Bruno sang "Billionaire". It was nostalgic!! We performed it when I was in high school on a birthday. And if you're thinking about the rap part. GHORL. I had it memorized by heart lolol Ganda ng version nya ng "Billionaire" dito! Look it up on YT guys, I'm sure someone uploaded the full concert. 

It was also my first time hearing, "Calling All My Lovelies", I instantly fell in love with it, I had it on repeat after the concert. The harmonies, the lyrics, ughh to die for! Istg he can make a song about pooping and would still be a bomb. 

 

Followed by "Miss na Kita, Mahal", which was a made-up acapella to make all the women in the audience kilig! I, later on, found out that he would change the language depending on the country he was going to perform. I wasn't aware of this skit prior to this concert so my kilig was def up in the roof!!!! TEKA LANG BHE IKALMA MO!

But on the other hand, it was really an incredible experience getting to see such an icon. I.WAS.THERE.!!!!

and I was today years old when I found out that he was the one who wrote, "Fuck You", by Celo Green, coz man that was my jam lol he played with just his piano. 

He also performed his old hits from the previous album, like "Talking to the Moon", "Grenade" and "When I Was Your Man" which he said was the hardest song to sing even to this day. He nailed it though. Belted those high notes smoother than a baby's butt. 

So after his piano session, he went on a short break and came back stronger with "Locked Out of Heaven" probably my favorite part of all. Everyone was just jumping, and the lights were literally blinding! So much fun. I almost lost my voice screaming!!!

The dude didn't seem to run out of energy. Considering he was also dancing, and singing. I LIVE FOR THE STAMINA!

Towards the end of the show, he serenaded us with "Just The Way You Are", which made all the girlies in the crowd so kilig!A very heartwarming song to remind everyone that we're all perfect just the way we all are. No bullshit wtvr.

He returned for Encore with "Uptown Funk", a very goofy and happy song to end the concert. I'm telling you, he is not just a singer, he's a complete package.  yall I'm lucky to be living in the same generation as him. 

It was sad when it ended. Parang ayaw kong umuwi. The feeling of realizing that this might never happen again, and going back to your life after having so much fun. Potaena sarap sugudin sa backstage si Bruno Mars legit! Sepanx agad malala!

I kid you not, I have his albums on repeat even after a month. Sobrang solid. 10000000000000/100

It would probably take him years before he comes back, but I hope I'll still be able to watch him again. Ibebenta ko pamagkin ko kapag bumalik yan makanood lang ako ng concert ulit lolol

Going home took us so much time though. Imagine being stuck in the parking for fuxking 3 hours juskoooo. The traffic was soo bad. Well, it was worth it. Just dead tired when I got home. 

That's all for today. Thanks for sticking around till the end. I have to have this documented in case I breed in the future, my kids will know I once saw a legend. 

xoxo

Grace