Hot 99.5’s Jingle Ball, the annual concert tour for the local radio music station, returned Dec. 14 to the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. and featured Zedd, Tove Lo, Demi Lovato and many other performers.
The concert first took place in 2000 in Southern California with only a few acts. Over the course of 15 years, Jingle Ball has evolved into a nationwide tour with many of the most popular singers.
Many CHS students attended the concert and enjoyed seeing multiple acts rather than just one performer.
“I [liked being able to see] a lot of good performers in one place and being able to experience it all at one time,” sophomore Della Waldrop said.
At other popular music festivals such as Sweetlife, performances overlap on multiple stages and attendees must choose who they want to see. At Jingle Ball, however, all the performances are in succession on one stage, so students will not miss seeing any of their favorite artists.
“I really like that Jingle Ball has the acts all at different times, so then we don’t have to pick which act we want to go to if they occur at the same time,” sophomore Hannah Cox said. “Jingle Ball is great because it’s like 10 concerts at once.”
However, since the concert was held on a school night this year, many students felt it was a disruption to their daily schedules.
“The downside to having it on a Monday night is that I’m so exhausted the next day,” senior Brie Ritter said. “Jingle Ball is a lot of fun but really draining, so trying to focus the next day is difficult.”
Despite the concert’s inconvenient time, students still felt that Jingle Ball was a great experience.
“More people should go because it’s fun and it’s a good way to relax and enjoy the music and not think about school for a while,” Waldrop said.
The concert proved to be a great bonding experience for siblings and friends.
“[What made the concert good] was the atmosphere and being there with my sister and best friend, though I could have done without the screaming little girls,” Ritter said.
In addition, the Verizon Center made the concert an enjoyable venue for students.
“I love the Verizon center,” Ritter said. “It is easily accessible, there is a Metro nearby and lots of places to eat.”
Overall, students were pleased with the concert and were content with their decision to attend.
“It was good, super energetic and fun,” Waldrop said.“It was a good way to get away from school and relax and sing along.”
Compared to Jingle Ball in past years, students felt that the concert was livelier and that the crowd reacted more.
“I thought it was better than last years,” Cox said. “Overall the concert flowed better and the crowd was a lot more energetic this year.”
The crowd’s favorite performer clearly seemed to be new artist Shawn Mendes.
“He really showed his skill and the crowd was super involved with singing along and overall he was really good,” Waldrop said.