Marina City had a different Warped Tour experience than most. Having joining the tour with only a couple weeks left, the boys only had a short amount of time to prove themselves to bands, crew, and fans alike. We had a chance to talk to Ryan about what this whirlwind experience was like.
What was your reaction when you found out that you had gotten Warped?
Ryan: We literally cried. We were playing CMJ Marathon in New York and we just cried. Never did we think we would win this competition. It was always a dream of ours and it didn’t seem real!
Ryan: What was it like joining the tour towards the end? Was it intimidating at all? Did you feel welcomed by the other bands on the tour when you got on?
It was extremely intimidating. All of our favorite bands are on the tour and we had to act like we weren’t fans and we belonged back stage. Thank God for Assuming We Survive, Reckless Serenade, Broadside, Too Close To Touch, Evan Ambrosio of State Champs, and the crew of the Full Sail Stage for welcoming us in with open arms from the minute we got there. They showed us around and introduced us to everyone. We wish we were on longer because right towards the end of the tour we were really starting to get comfortable and made a lot of new friends. Hopefully we will be asked back!
Ryan: What was the first show on the tour like? What thoughts were going through your head right before you played the first show on the tour? How about after?
We were all pretty sick to our stomachs. It was the farthest we ever played from home, we didn’t know many people, everyone knew what we was going on but us, we were like lost puppies. Naturally, we did everything we could to not look like lost puppies and not screw up anything but we are sure people smelled fear on us. Right after our first show then things all made sense. We just needed to get the one show out of the way. The first show went ok! But we played in front of like 30 kids. After that all of our shows had a great turn out, and we were just a lot more comfortable.
Ryan: What were your thoughts before/ after your very last set of the tour?
“This can’t end now!” We just started becoming close with people and we finally got comfortable. Towards the last 4 dates we got bumped up to bigger stages 3 times. Things were really moving smoothly for us. We just wanted to keep going. It was a dream come true and we finally figured out how to do it-haha.
Ryan: What songs got the best crowd reaction? Any songs that the crowd didn’t react to as well?
We were lucky to have a positive reaction to all of our songs. People seemed to really love our show and get really into it. All of our troubles went away once we stepped on stage and played.
Ryan: Thoughts after you played your very last set of the tour?
LET’S DO IT AGAIN!!
Ryan: What was the crowd turn out like? Did it progress throughout the tour?
The first show was like 30 kids but after that we had about 200 kids a day! Sometimes 300! It was an incredible feeling. We couldn’t believe what was happening!
Ryan: What was the best advice that you got on the tour and who was it from?
Adrian from Assuming We Survive gave us tons of great advice but overall the message was “Everyone is just like you. They are going through the same things you are going through. You are like them more than you know.” That made us breathe a lot easier and feel more comfortable with everything.
Ryan: Who was your favorite band to watch in your free time?
There were so many! Too Close To Touch, Broadside, With Confidence, State Champs, were all incredible but Emarosa was just another monster. You have to see them live! IT IS A MUST!
Even though you were only on a short run, was it hard adjusting back to “normal life”?
Ryan: It kind of was. Every day is “go go go” and being super busy! It’s hard to just stop one day.
Was there a day that you played and you got off stage feeling like the show didn’t go as smoothly? How did you deal with these emotions?
Ryan: Probably just the first day. We kind of thought we would be playing in front of hundreds of kids every day so it was definitely a rude awakening but once we figured out how to get kids there it was super smooth. Of course, it was aggravating at first but we knew we had a bunch of dates left so we kept our heads up and inspired to work harder.
Did you ever feel as if you had to prove yourself to anyone (i.e. bands, crew, fans) at any point onthe tour? If so, how did you deal with it?
Ryan: Oh, yeah definitely! We had to prove to everyone at Warped Tour we belonged there. It was definitely nerve wrecking but we believe we work better under pressure and ultimately we feel we came up on top
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ur awesome