Three Hours to your fans
A few weeks ago, in a meeting with a group of colleagues, I shared my experience from a recent Burna Boy concert I attended.
A few days prior I got word that Burna Boy was going to be in concert at Madison Square Garden. My schedule was pretty free that evening, so in the 11th hour, I purchased a ticket.
I wouldn’t have considered myself a Burna Boy or AfroBeats fan by any stretch of the imagination. For one I had confused Burna Boy with Stormzy and two, other than the choruses from “Ye” and “Essence” I knew the words to zero Afrobeats songs.
However, there were a few reasons I wanted to go.
In the last 7 months I’ve traveled to Africa 4 times, and quite frankly, everything Africa appeals to me now.
I was on a concert high. Prior to the Burna Boy concert I had gone to 5 concerts in a week's time.
I love “Ye” and was curious how it would sound in a stadium full of 20,000 people all singing along.
Oh, and if that wasn’t enough- I love being a part of history.
1st Nigerian artist to ever sell out MSG.
Ye, I had to be there.
Still, I was not expecting what transpired.
As I shared on Instagram- I’ve been to my fair share of concerts. I’ve seen a plethora of artists that many would consider the G.O.A.T. of their genres.
Yet, this might’ve been the greatest concert I’ve ever attended.
Maybe it was the atmosphere. It felt like I was in Africa.
Maybe it was how proud I was to see an African brother representing and crushing it. Song after song, hit after hit.
Maybe it was how heavily African culture was incorporated in the set. The music and musicians, the backup singers and dancers, and the educational elements.
Maybe it was a culmination of them all.
Whatever it was, it was, and it was for 3 hours.
Burna Boy gave everything he had for 3 hours.
An insane performance, from an incredible performer.
His showmanship and stage presence was among the best I’ve ever seen.
I shared these sentiments with my colleagues, which lead to one colleague asking the group:
What if we gave three hours to our fans?
What would it look like?
What if we gave 3 hours to the people who love and support us?
All out. For three hours.
Everything we have to the people who have subscribed and enrolled on the journey with us.
Three hours to the people who have raised their hands and said “Yes, I am a fan, show me”.
The people who want to see us, who want to hear from us.
What would we give them? How would we show up for them?
Those who are looking to us.
As you might imagine, her questions resonated with me deeply. It’s been a few weeks now and I still think about that conversation often. I don’t think I’ll ever forget.
What if you gave three hours to your fans?
Over and over again.
What about your friend? Or your family member who sometimes gets discouraged, who sometimes struggles with doubts and fears. Tell them this story, and ask them our question.
What would it look like to give three hours to your fans?
Over and over again.
