He walked right beside me and my stupid ass camera froze!! Need a retake!!! He is HOT!!

This was the best concert I've ever been to! Please come back to Cleveland ASAP!!!

I left Toledo around 11:30 and drove to Mike's house in Chagrin Falls. It was about a 2.5 hour drive. Thankfully the weather had cleared up and it was warm! It was supposed to rain in Cleveland, but it had passed over! I was really happy about that. When I saw the sunshine and felt the warm weather, I knew this was going to be a good day, and boy was I right.

I got to Mike's house around 1:45. He had just gotten back from Florida. I was so happy to see him! I met his mom and she was really sweet. We got all our things ready for the concert and left his house around 2:15.

On the way to the venue we blasted Daughtry of course!!!! It took about 35 minutes to get to the Grog Shop from his house. We found it with no problem. The buses were parked right on the street and we freaked out. We quickly found a place to park and made our way toward the buses.

There were about 8 people there before us. Most of them were people that I had met at the Detroit American Idol concert over the summer. It was nice to see them again! They said that we just missed Chris walk into the venue and said that he'd be right back out. I was standing by the door talking to Mike, Jen, and Paul, and the door opens and out comes Chris!! The door almost hit me when he walked out, I laughed and was like "HEY there!! How ya doin?" and patted him on the back. He said that he had to go and would be out later.

Joey comes off the bus and comes right to us. He starts taking pictures and signing autographs. Once he was done we all started talking a lot. We asked where the rest of the guys were and he said that they were on the bus and would be out later. I could not stop staring at Joey. His lips, his nose ring, the way he talks… so hot! After talking with him for a bit, I get a call from Terri (cd-rockon) and hand my phone to Joey and told him to answer it because I knew she would freak! He starts talking to her and makes a funny face because I think she was freaking out on the other end. He walked away with my phone and his coffee and came back about 5 minutes later. I then finally had the guts to ask him if he would record a message for my voicemail. I've wanted it for so long and he did! It was the hottest thing ever. He says something like "Hey this is Joey from Daughtry and you've reached Nicole's voicemail. If you leave your name and number she'll be glad to get back to you.. Well that's if you're cool enough, so until then come see Daughtry on the There and Back Again Tour. Thank you for voting us #1... YEAAAAA." I thought that was so cool that he actually did it! Then, a few other girls asked him if he would record theirs too and of course he did. He's such a sweetheart!

After about half an hour of being outside with us, Joey went back on the bus and Brian came out and started smoking. A couple of people approached him for autographs and pictures, but I waited until they were done and no one was over there. I gave him a hug and introduced myself. He was very shy, but sweet. He signed my CD cover and took a picture with me. Right when he was getting ready to get back onto the bus, JP comes walking down the street. I approach him and asked if he's coming over or if he's busy. I kept walking with him toward the bus and he said that he needed to shower but he'll be back out later!

I went back over to Brian and asked him if Josh Steely was back on tour yet and he said no, that he's not going to be back until the Troy, NY date. I was kind of bummed, but it's definitely understandable since he just had his kid! We started talking a bit more about other things and he didn't seem as shy, which was good!

Joey came back out and sat with me and Brian. Joey was playing with Brian's cigarette lighter, it was cute! They asked me if I smoke, and I said no, and asked if it bothered me if they were smoking. I said of course not, but I don't want you guys to get lung cancer! They both laughed. Jess then called me, and I talked to her for a bit. I told her I was standing with Joey and he was all eager to talk to her. I told him that she was the Seattle VIP winner and he remembered her and talked to her for a few minutes.

Mike came back from talking to a few of the girls he knew from other concerts and got Brian's autograph and picture taken. Then, JP walks out, so it was me, Brian, JP, Joey and Mike. I introduce myself to JP, give him a hug, then ask for an autograph. I didn't get a picture because a lot of people were coming up to him and just waited til later. Mike also got an autograph. It was funny, when Mike asked JP if he could have one he's like "f*** no!!" and then snickers. It was so cute!! JP asked me if I wanted to take a walk down the street with him for a second, and of course I went! We only went down to the restaurant that was next door to the venue and we started talking about where I was from and plans for St. Patrick's Day. After we got back JP, Joey and Brian had to leave because they had to go in for sound check.

Chris gets off the bus and goes into the venue about 5 minutes later. Everyone starts to scream and he's escorted in fast with security. The radio station crew members arrived with the winners for the sound check and meet and greet. I approached one of them and asked if it was possible if we could go in if some of their winners didn't show up to give the plaque that we made for Daughtry. They said that there was nothing that we could do, but the band would come out right after the sound check and meet and greet and take pictures and sign autographs. So we waited… and waited…

20 minutes later Chris walks out of the venue. He comes up to Mike and me first and he remembered Mike from the Idol tour last summer!! Chris says "Hey man!! How's it goin? Nice to see you again." I was so jealous that Chris remembered Mike! I told Chris that we had something for him and he's like "a garbage bag?!" (that's what the plaque was in). It was so cute! I told him to take pictures and sign autographs for everyone first and gather up the rest of the guys when he was done. He thanked me and started taking pictures. After he was done, he came back as promised, and everyone was there except for Brian. We handed Chris the bag and he opens it up and his jaw drops and he has this big grin on his face. Then he asks, "is this for me to keep?" We respond with "yes! We made it for you." He was so grateful! "This is amazing. Thank you so much! I want a picture of all of us with this." Chris puts his arm around me and he says "I've got her in the Chris Daughtry choke hold!" everyone started laughing. After we were done he thanked us again and gave us a hug and said that he would see us later.

By that time it was 6:30. More people started showing up. Mike asked the owner of the venue where to stand in line and she said there were going to be 2 different lines. One for people with tickets already and one for will call. We got in the will call line, which was in a hallway of the restaurant next door. The lady working there said that we got "special privileges" since we were in will call so we were really excited. At 7:30 they opened our door, checked our ID's, and let us in. We ran straight to the stage and got a front row spot. The stage was literally a foot away from us. I knew that this was about to get way more amazing.

Around 8:20, Cinder Road opened up. They sang 7 songs. Overall they were pretty good! At the end I got the guitarist's guitar pick and their set list. Next was Eve To Adam. I didn't really care for them. Not my favorite type of rock music. They were done around 9:30. The stage crew took down their set and started setting up for Daughtry. Around 9:50, Daughtry still didn't take the stage. We all started to chant DAUGHTRY, DAUGHTRY, DAUGHTRY!! About 5 minutes later they hit the stage.

Daughtry opened up with "Crashed." I had to get a video of this because it's one of my favorite songs. I was in awe! We were SO close. If I reached my arm out, I could touch Chris, but we were all respectful and only touched him when he came on the speaker or to grab people's hands. They also performed "Used To," "Over You," "What I Want," "Feels Like Tonight," "Gone," "Black," "It's Not Over," "Home," and "There and Back Again." JP threw me his guitar pick, and Chris grabbed my hand. I felt bad because I think I cracked his thumb because I was holding on to his hand tight, too. Awww…

The show went by so fast, but it was so amazing!! The workers tried to get everyone out of the venue, but we took our time because we knew the guys would be coming out to take pictures and chat with people. We wasted some time by going to the merchandise table and buying a Daughtry t-shirt. By that time JP and Joey were already out. I went up to them and told them that the show was phenomenal. They thanked me and each gave me a sweaty hug! JP was drenched and apologized for giving me a "sweaty shower." I asked Joey if they were going to hang out for a bit and he told me they were going to be downstairs in the bar.

It was about midnight at this point and we headed downstairs. I spotted Chris in a dark corner and approached him while no one was there. I told him he did an amazing job and thanked him for all the interactions he had with me throughout the show! He replied with "Yeah, you were cute rockin' out in the front row! Looked like you had a great time" and gave me a hug. I asked him for an autograph and picture, but he didn't give me one. He said "Babe, I would but then I'd have to take pictures and sign autographs for everyone." He was visiting with some old friends and told me to hang on tight and he promised that I would get it by the end of the night. He apologized and pulled me in for another hug. I told him I completely understand and he looked at me in the eyes and said thank you so much.

I went back to where Mike and some of the DO girls were sitting and talked to them for a bit. Brian came downstairs and starting talking to us for a bit. It was getting late at this point. It was probably about 12:30 or so. We started to give up hope of not being able to get our picture with Chris and autograph. Mike and I headed upstairs to see if Chris was up there, and he wasn't. One of the workers for the Grog Shop stopped us and asked us if we were looking for Chris and we said yes. He told us that he left a long time ago and wasn't going to come back. He was so full of crap. A couple minutes later we headed back downstairs to the bar. We spotted Brian and asked him where Chris went and he told us that he had to go on the bus to do an interview and that he would be back in about 40 minutes.

Brian left for a bit and came back about half an hour later. At this point there was nobody in the bar except for me, Mike, people from DO and band members. No sign of Chris. About 10 minutes later we hear the back door open again and there is Chris! He comes straight to us sitting on the couch. "Come here, shorty!!" he says. I went up to him and he pulled me in for the tightest hug ever. He whispered in my ear, "Thank you so much for being patient, sweetheart, and thanks again for the plaque. That was very thoughtful." We posed for a picture and I got my autograph. Mike got his picture and autograph next. Chris gave me one last hug and my eyes started to water and he holds me tighter and again whispers in my ear, "Don't cry babe, don't cry." I told him I wasn't going to, I told him that it was because he gave me the greatest experience ever and I will never forget it. He gave me one last hug and said, "I am so happy I could do that for you. I hope to see you soon again!" and gave me a kiss on the cheek. And… he was gone.

On our way out, we saw Brian standing talking to some guys from Cinder Road. He asked if we were leaving and I said yeah. He pulled me in for a hug and said, "I'm so glad Chris came out for you, Nicole. I knew he would! He cares about everyone so much. You owe me big time!" I thanked him for everything and he said that it wasn't a problem and hopes to hear from me soon. I told him I would message him on myspace and that he's looking forward to talking again!

The whole day seemed like a dream to me. I had to pinch myself a couple of times to make sure I wasn't dreaming. I couldn't have asked for a better experience. This is definitely something that I will never forget.

that last one was from me, just wanted to add that DAUGHTRY delivered cleveland an unbelievably amazing performance, i can only hope we gave them back half as much as they gave us last wednesday! we HAVE to be louder next time! maybe enough to convince them to come back a second time?

WOW. where to start.
To say THE LEAST, this show was by far- the most amazing time i've ever had in my life! The music was unbelievably good, the energy the guys gave us was EXHAUSTINGLY REFRESHING, the grog itself was BS after the show- but the boys made up for EVERYTHING the staff of the grog lacked and more!

Alright, so i met joey before the show. He's 32497239487293807 times hotter in person! When i met him, i couldnt talk, i was in complete shock. All i could do was hand him the sharpie and say "picture?" I felt so dumb! but he was so nice about it, i only wish i couldve had the guts to actually talk to him!

When i was walking into the grog, i saw JP and im like "hey, its JP!" and hes like "heeeey whatsupp!" any other celebrity outside of daughtry wouldve kept walking! My dad and i then moved as close as we could to the stage, i was by the gate going to the bathroom and let me tell you, i've never been touched by so many people in my life. Well as i'm standing there, i'm of course getting pushed into the rail, and one of those people that pushed me into it, was Brian! I stopped him and asked if he could sign my shirt after the show and he's like "you want my autograph? sure! meet me after the show i cant do it in the middle of this!" im like "alright!" and he said "man i really gotta go, i shouldve just went to the bus!" ahhaha.

Then during Eve to Adam- woahhh buddy. I get rammed into the gate and at that point, i was really aggrivated, i turn around to see its Chris's bodyguard! My dad yelled "HE'S COMING!" and sure enough, Chris was on his way! He of course was getting mauled by the crowd and he bumped into me, and stopped real quick to say "sorry! how ya doin!" once again, complete shock. and he had to haull his cute ass through the crowd. hahahah.

FINALLY DAUGHTRY GETS ON STAGE. LET ME TELL YOU- i was um, very...excited?
They opened with crashed, great choice, it got the crowd going! I was a little disappointed, while i was screaming my lungs out, i didnt think we were loud enough! Anyway, their performance was AMAZING. I cant stress that word enough. it really was better than i ever expected it to be! They had such great stage presence, it really did bring the music to life!

After the show, i met JP and Joey again, but as i was tryinggg to talk to Joey this time, the lady from the grog came up and said "joey right? you need to start pushing people to the door" the look on his face clearly said he didnt want to do that. I'm not sure he was exactly happy with her. Anyway- we ended up getting kicked out around 11:35- i never did get to thank Joey for an awesomeee performance.

But, i guess i'll do that the next time they're in Cleveland- which will be soon, right guys?
LETS HOPE SO.
Rock on DAUGHTRY, thanks for a kickassssss time!

----Keep the dream alive guys, your fans love you!

Sorry...I had no idea this post was even over here, my review had been on the tour forum for a few day snow....but here it is....I have about 3 videos on there, lots of slide shows..and a very detailed description of the night! ENJOY! And let me know what you think!

go here:
www.myspace.com/lettinggoisliberating

Then click on the blog called "the concert"

--

visit me at www.myspace.com/lettinggoisliberating

Chris, you could not have been in better voice. The energy you gave off electrafied the whole crowd. It was just sooooo amazing. I didn't want it to end. I kept yelling for you to come back on stage, but no go. I have never been to a show like yours before, the sound was perfect, each and every band sounded great. In the words of Paula, "you NAILED it !!!!!"

I wish I could have stayed after the show to meet you, but securtiy threw my husband out for being drunk right before you came on, so I threw him in the car and locked him in, what an *ss. So I missed the opening song crashed.

What else was so amazing about the show, was the FANS. I can't even begin to count how many people came up to me saying "security just threw out your buddy" and then after how many of them staff/security included, really kept an eye on me becuz they knew I was in there alone and on crutches.

Kudos to all you amazing fans, so glad to know that there are good people in the world.

--
Theresa

Bring him back to Cleveland. Wish there were 2 dates! Too many people missed out! LOVE HIM!

HI, I am a huge fan!! I was one of the lucky ones to get tickets through the post sale. That was a great idea. The concert was great! I loved every second of it. I enjoyed how us the fans were involved. I think Chris and the band are better in person. I was also lucky enough to see Chris up close when he was done with the concert. That was amazing!!! Keep up the good work and hope to see you back soon!!!!!

Thank you so much to Chris and the Daughtry boys!!! It was an absolutely amazing show in Cleveland at the Grog Shop! So much energy and excitement, not to mention emotion exuding from Chris the whole show! His voice is so beautiful and strong. When he sang Pearl Jam's "black" acoustically, I started crying.
I was in the front row for the show. I couldnt get tickets the day they went on sale because they sold out so fast. We ended up paying $300.00 for a pair on ebay...but I must say I wouldve paid $1000.00 to see the show! I know I will never again have that experience (to see Chris that close and personal).....and I am so glad Chris made it so special for me!!
I love you guys!
Rock On!
Chastidy

thank you daughtryofficial for all your help!!! you made alot of daughtry fan's very happy. thank you again......the show was great and daughtry rocked the house!!!!...lindak

Hi! Just wanted to say what a great show this was! It was so cool to see JP wondering around the streets while people wonder (like me) is that really him??? too cool!!! I didn't get there early enough to see Chris for an upclose picture, but i did get in line early enough in the will call line, that when I go in, I was able to be in the front row!! YES, I SAID FRONT ROW!! Right in front of JP!! That boy has got some energy!!!! And muscles to boot! Thank you Daughtryoffical.com for making those post sale tickets avaible... if it weren't for this site, I wouldn't have been able to go! The place was packed! Most people were friendly!!! The staff kept it together! Both opening bands were really good! It was just a great great night! Thanks so much for the memories!! Come back to the Cleveland/Akron area anytime!! You could even do an outdoor thing at my farm!! Later boys!

AWESOME show!! It's great that Daughtry is playing in small venues so you can get up close and personal with the band. Our show only had 400 or so ticket holders and it was GREAT!!! Can't wait until he comes back again!!! The staff at the Grog Shop was the best!! Chris was doing some shopping for his kids and walking around the crowd which was really cool, until a pyscho woman that attached him and had to be pulled off him - not cool!! Don't get me wrong every other woman wanted to do the same thing, but you have to maintain some composure no matter how much you want to JUMP HIM. Daughtry thank you so much for wanting to be with the fans, playing smaller venues and keeping ticket prices so reseaonable - until the scalpers get a hold of them that is. Best wishes on a great tour and will be waiting to see you again this summer.