During pandemic-related business closures, one of the hardest things for Reno resident Lori Perreault was not being able to attend concerts. In an interview for KUNR Youth Media, Lori sat down with her daughter Fiona to share a memory of a wild concert experience from her past.
Fiona Perreault: So, you are a person who has been to a lot of concerts in your life. Do you have any favorite memories?
Lori Perreault: Oh yeah, I think in my early to mid-20s, those were good concert-going years. And I think probably a lot of people would say that, too, but here in town...at Lawlor, well, I got to see George Strait twice there. And one time, the second time, I was feeling rather bold that evening, and during the concert, we got right up close and rushed the stage. And you know how you’ll always have like a bunch of girls up front, and they'll be like reaching up to the artist. And George Strait was reaching down touching hands. And he touched my hand twice.
Fiona: Wow.
Lori: It was “Wow.” And then after that concert, you know, there was no use trying to get out of the parking lot, so we just kind of hung out for a while, letting all the other cars go, and I saw a tour bus. And I’m like, “What do you guys think?” And they’re like, “I don’t know, what do you think?” I said, “I think that’s George Strait’s tour bus.” And they’re like, “You don’t know that.” I said, “It’s somebody’s tour bus. Who else is it gonna be?”
So we went moseying, kind of rapid like, over there and climbed up the front of the tour bus just to peek in the window. And this guy looks out, and he’s like, “What are you doing?” I’m like, “I wanted to see if it’s George Strait’s tour bus.” And I said, “Who are you? And he’s like, “the drummer.” And I said, “Oh, cool. Can I have your autograph?” And back then, they made these, like, fabric stickers that they would give you if you went to a concert. And, so, he signed my fabric sticker, and so I got the autograph of the drummer and that’s how that happened.
Fiona: (Laughs)
Lori: (Laughs) Yeah. So those were fun times.
Fiona Perreault is a senior at Reno High School. KUNR’s youth media program is a special partnership with the Washoe County School District to train the next generation of journalists.