Berkeley High School junior Corinna Leaf saw Shawn Mendes in concert, where she got an amazing place in the pit up close to the stage. “We tried to get there as early as possible so we could get close up. And we also got merch which made it super cool,” she said. Leaf generally enjoys the excitement of being at a concert. “I think it’s a cool environment, because you get to talk with other people,” Leaf said.
BHS freshman Emilie Gill began waiting at 8:30 a.m. in the morning outside the venue to see Lorde in October 2025, at the Greek Theatre. “I think with concert culture, it’s interesting to see what time people get there to see how devoted they are to the artist,” Gill said. Gill enjoys Lorde’s new music, but she has a special fondness for her older albums. “She was a really cool performer. She went into the crowd at times and the lights were cool,” she said.
BHS senior Max Kermaninejad saw the band Big Thief at the Greek Theatre in September of 2025. “It was a great crowd, a lot of great songs in the set list,” he said. As an avid fan, Kermaninejad said that they sounded particularly good in person. “I love the emotion they convey in the music. I think it’s really authentic,” he said.
BHS senior Morgan Haskell enjoys going to Stapler Deathmatch concerts, a rock band of which some BHS students are a part of. “I love their music, it’s always a great vibe there,” Haskell said. He appreciates their presence and the loudness of their music, and praises the main guitarist. “It’s beautiful the way he sings and plays, it moves me, you know,” Haskell said.
BHS freshman Penny Burgess enjoyed going to Laufey’s “A Matter of Time” performance with her friends. Burgess especially loved Laufey’s dedication to her fans, all of the stage work in the performance, the costumes, the lights, and her backup dancers. “It was kind of like feminine energy, it was very positive. There were a couple of young girls next to us and we kind of became a little bit of friends with them,” Burgess said.