One Direction
by KATE LEAVER
Perhaps you’ve heard the news. One Direction has moved their 2013 Australian tour from September to October. October. October! When next year’s HSC and VCE exams are scheduled.
Distraught teenagers have taken to twitter to voice their panic. Just a sample of their tweets:
‘OzLovesID’, said: “Did you even think how many lives you’ve ruined as its [sic] during the HSC and VCE exams?!”
@heavenlyharries tweeted: “Two whole years come down to 5 exams. If 1D come and therefore distract us. WHAT IF WE FAIL? No uni, no future.”
Don’t go thinking this disaster ends in a few heartbroken tweets. This concert-education clash has the potential to unhinge thousands of young women. This disaster is, like, a number 10 on the totes devo scale.
Try to imagine the mindset of the average 1D fan. There are few things more precarious than teenage self-esteem. Pop music is an escape, screaming outside concerts is a cherished hobby, and adoring a boy band might be the first evidence of your adolescent sexuality. Teenagers are entitled to their angst – and it’s just like our own, but more raw.
I’ve devised a simple formula for grown-ups to empathize with this 1D disaster.
Just take 1) something you’re looking forward to more than anything, ever and then 2) something you dread but perceive to be enormously significant, that will possibly determine your future.
Put 1) and 2) on the same day in your 2013 calendar, and feel that internal mayhem.
Awesome event x horrendous life-changer = HYSTERIA.
Your wedding day x laser eye surgery = HYSTERIA.
A career-defining meeting x desperately important doctor’s appointment = HYSTERIA.
A rare night out with girls to a Kylie concert x your child’s graduation = HYSTERIA.
One Direction
It hurts me to imagine this scenario, but I’ll take you through it for your sake as much as mine. Say that I’ve secured an interview with my celebrity hero/crush Jennifer Lawrence, and I’m all set. I’ve been practicing my archery skills, I’ve got all my question ready, I’ve chosen my outfit. It’ll be a career-defining interview. The timing of this interview is perfect because – ah! – the next month, I’m going into surgery.
Then, without warning and without care, Jennifer rings to cancel: “Babes, I’m sorry. Can we catch up in October?”. It’s the. same. day. as. my. surgery. This situation very quickly becomes my worst nightmare. It’s my own personal One Direction / HSC clash, and it’s helped me feel their pain.
You have to understand, that when these boys sing “I’m in love with you” every teenage girl dreams that they’re singing it directly to them. That’s what’s at the very heart of 1D’s spectacular success: longing. When the boys – cute and preppy in their button-up shirts – stare down the barrel of a camera and say “That’s what makes you beautiful”, millions of adolescent hearts yearn (and might even believe) they’re being personally serenaded.
All that, and Harry and Zayn didn’t even bother to check when their end-of-school exams were on. They feel betrayed, like they’ve been hit in the face with their own anonymity. IT HURTS. It hurts.
It’s not a new phenomenon. Any hunk or spunk or rockstar you’ve ever fantasised about relies on exactly the same impulse in their fans – that suspension of disbelief, that intimate connection you form without their ever knowing who you are. It’s what fame is, and it perfectly coincides with the fragility of adolescence.
I know a young girl who bought her 2013 1D ticket more than a year in advance. She’s doing her HSC next year, and she’s crushed. The 1D concert was the one fabulous thing on the horizon; the one night she could hold onto as she went into the biggest exams of her young life. And now, what? She has to give up that one special night of wild distraction because she needs to concentrate on her biology or english exam.
Perhaps my own teenage fragility is too fresh in my mind, perhaps my inner child is too loud. But my heart breaks a little bit with the bitter disappointment these girls must feel.
Disclaimer: I’ve just reached my quarter-century, and I dance like nobody’s business to One Direction. I’m not ashamed to say that I think Harry and Zayn are sparkly-eyed babes, and I know all he words to all their singles. AND I still expect you to respect me. I’m glad we cleared that up.
Kate is a radio producer, writer and Goon Show enthusiast. You can follow her on Twitter at @Kateileaver and visit her website here.
What was your worst moment of teenage angst? Who did you lust after as an adolescent?
Comments
40 Comments so far
Girls who like 1D need to get a life. If the concert and your exams fall on the same day, think about which one is more important. A stupid 1D concerned or life defining exams? Think logically people!
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I went to a Violent Femmes concert in the middle of my exams, didn’t do me any harm! Do both girls!
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VCE students are surely not 1D’s demographic? I would think most 17-18yo wouldn’t be seen dead at a 1D concert…even of they think one of the boys cute.
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Wow. Interesting post however one thing i don’t understand- 18 yr olds like 1D??? I completed VCE last year, so I’m not too far behind on the times I think. From what I remember there wasn’t a big fan group of 1D, at least in my school and suburb. Meh maybe it’s just my perception, but from fb pictures most of the fans seem in the year 9 and 8 demographic ( 15 and 14 yr olds).
Maybe it also depends on your school. My private school stressed NOTHING was more important than exams. In fact our September holidays were actually called ‘teacher free study time’, so I wouldn’t have gone on a concert then anyway…
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I must have one strange 11 year old……she’s off to see Regina Spektor next week with her dad, tickets requested by her as a birthday present. She thinks Zayne is cute but I can’t say they’re on her ipod playlist
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This is so fantastic to hear! I wish more young women/girls? would take interest in the many MANY positive role models and talented artists out there and move away from the utter crap of pop!
Oh I have a huge list of female artists to share – perhaps the next music post?!
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I’m just amazed anyone old enough to be doing the HSC actually cares about One Direction. A lot of the kids I teach are into One Direction and they are primary school students.
By the time I was doing my HSC, we had moved well past boy bands. If you hadn’t, you pretty much had to prepare yourself for endless mocking. It was not cool to like boy bands in Year 11 and 12. We definitely still had celebrities we had crushes on but they were men – not pubescent-looking boys, like One Direction.
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I’m not surprised at all. All of the boys in the band are either the same age as girls in year 12, or one or two years older. It is comparable to them having a crush on the guy in their class… except that these guys are all cute, sing pop songs and are famous.
Simon Cowell is certainly no fool… he knew what he was doing putting together that group to appear to the tween masses.
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I don’t get kids these days. When I was in Year 11 and 12 (not that long ago ..) it would have been TOTES UNCOOL to like One Direction. It would have been a total social suicide to go to their concert. Surely girls at HSC age are not the demographic for this band. Wouldn’t it be around the 12-year-old mark?
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I hope this article was tongue in cheek… every teens’ disaster? Really? Based on two tweets… I am so sick of the teenage stereotypes and generalisations, particularly for girls. They are much smarter than portrayed.
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Who are these Year 12 students who are that into One Direction? I know when I was younger all the older girls I knew were well over their Hanson obsessions by 13-14, and my generations beloved N*Sync were declared lame before we hit high school. I tutor a lot of HSC students and I know all of them would rather burst into flames than be caught listening to One Direction or Justin Bieber. I just assumed the fanbase was made up of 8-13yr olds.
Also, if one concert makes you fail your HSC you probably weren’t going to do very well anyway. This idea that you have to be chained to your desk during that last year is so silly. I did far more partying than studying in Year 12 and I ended up getting an almost perfect ENTER , whilst others did nothing but study and got very average scores. Honestly Year 12 isn’t that difficult. I’m of average intelligence, I barely paid attention, and I aced it. I think a lot of people overthink these things.
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Is it just me, or in the photo right at the top, does the blonde one on the far right look like Ellen Degeneres?
It’s only one night, go to the concert.
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I did my HSC this year. I can’t use the 1D example because I really am not that big of a fan, but, say if someone in my important to me had a wedding during HSC, I would’ve gone without a second thought. Can we not neglect the fact that there is almost a month of no school before the HSC to study, one day isn’t going to make much of a difference if you haven’t put in the hours beforehand.
Not to be a killjoy, but whilst I appreciate that these five guys with a delicious british accent mean a lot to some people, there was a girl in my class who developed a neurological disorder at the beginning of the year and lost the ability to walk for a good six months. There are worse things that could happen during the HSC.
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The whole 1D HSC story has a serious flaw. No one old enough to be doing their HSC is actually into this band. My daughter loved them at 12, was totally over them by 13.
The seventeen year olds I know are pretty sophisticated and savvy. They left being heartbroken over boy bands behind a loooong time ago.
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Respectfully, that may be true of the seventeen year olds that you know, but it is certainly not true of all seventeen year olds. I’m twenty-two years old and I still get worked up over boy bands, actors, etc. Maybe I’m still a kid at heart, but there are plenty of others like me (just check out Tumblr for proof). I think that if you are highly emotional and feel things like intense love for boys you have never met, it doesn’t matter what age you are, this is just how you are. My mum still doesn’t understand why I get so emotional about things she considers trivial. I think you have that sort of personality or you don’t.
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Lou. Lovely, lovely Lou. How wrong you are!
Your daughter is far more sophisticated than I, if that’s the case – I love the 1D boys… and I just turned 25. There’re a LOT a lot a lot of fans older than 12. I know a lot of people 17, 18, 27, 29, 52 who love them. KL
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My teen is in one the many 1D flash mob groups. These girls are devoted directioners and the majority are aged over 16. At 15, my daughter was one of the youngest.
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I’m dealing with this now! Have booked tickets to see John Butler Trio at a fantastic winery in the South-West, on the day my 6 yr old starts his swimming lessons!!!! Added to that, my parents are coming to look after the kids, and it is also their wedding anniversary. Here Mum, Dad, have my two ratbags and some sausages for dinner, and don’t wake them up with your anniversary sex!
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Thinking back to how I was with NKOTB, my heart totally goes out to any parent dealing with a 1D obsessed child. Not just the money I’d guilt them into spending but the wailing my poor parents had to listen to when Tiger Beat magazine would suggest Joey might have a girlfriend. And the massive arguments when they dared to gently explain NKOTB weren’t The Beatles and this was just a phase I was going through. How could they not understand that this WAS NOT a phase!!11! Maybe I should’ve become a lawyer because my ability to construct a defence and counter-attack to anything other than pure NKOTB devotion was impeccable. Good luck and many glasses of wine to you all!
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Is the infatuation for One Direction even going to last until the end of next year? I doubt it. By then another pop act will have stolen their crown and the teens who give tickets a miss due to exams will suddenly seems the big winners.
Oh and as a mum the promise of losing “a rare night out with the girls to a Kylie concert” because of a sudden clash with my child’s graduation doesn’t actually sound too bad. I’d just as soon give the overpriced tickets and off-key singing a miss and postpone my rare evening night out with the girls until there’s cocktails and a nice dinner on offer!
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Ok I can get why tweens would like one direction or justin beiber but anyone over 12? Why?
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We went the euphoria of the day before the announcement speculation when my teen thought that maybe they were coming earlier for more concerts (she was hyperventilating at the thought) to the devastation of the actual announcement when she realised they wouldn,t be in the city as long as she had hoped therefore her chances of meeting them was greatly reduced (she was sobbing over this)
Now days later, she is happy again, as she realises that a) she can go to the concert because she’s in Year 11 and b) more importantly because she of the dates changes she is now going to be seated in the front row of the VERY FIRST SYDNEY CONCERT (OMG) rather than one of the last concerts as per previous schedule.
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Sure, the timing sucks but why do the absolutely have to now not attend the concert? While I personally didn’t, I had plenty of friends who had scheduling conflicts wih various events such as concerts in Yr 12 who didn’t miss out and still got fantastic scores. Study more ahead of time, have your text books in the car on the way to the concert. If you really want it, you’ll make it work. Hell, I had friends who scored in the 90′s who went overseas for significant periods of time during Yr 12.
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This must be crushing for so many One Direction fans. I’m not sure why the date has been changed, but I feel that whoever organised this could have been a little more sensitive and aware of the school timetable in Australia and that October is a crucial and important time in terms of exams.
Being a teenager can be extremely tough and one of the ways to escape the drudgery, heartbreak and disappointments of everyday life is to disappear into the escapism that loving a celebrity provides. My chest clenches when I think of all the girls who were so excited and so looking forward to meeting the boys (or boy, because they may love the band but I’m almost certain each fan has a favourite) who give them hope, comfort and joy in their lives. I have been to concerts and the overwhelming awe at *being in the same room* as the boy who you have only ever seen in pictures/videos is an indescribable feeling. I remember gripping my friend’s arm, jumping up and down, screaming ‘oh my god, he’s actually right there’. It is a sensual overload and I was on a high for weeks afterwards.
However, if this concert had taken place during my year twelve exams, I wouldn’t have been able to go. No one would have physically stopped me, but the little voice in my head that told me I wanted to get a perfect ENTER score would have. The disappointment would have been devastating.
Chances to meet your idol don’t come around very often, but then you ‘only get one chance to do your year twelve exams’. Even if I went, I couldn’t allow myself to get lost in the experience because I knew that I had to keep my head in biology, geography etc. My heart goes out to the disappointed fans.
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I wanted to see U2 in 1985 at Festival Hall in Brisvegas until I discovered that it was the night before my Physics exam! I should have gone anyway, I couldn’t concentrate on studying, went and sat outside Festival Hall and listened. I passed my exam anyway….
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I will be eternally greatful to the social media/mobile phone ban my parents enforced my entire way through high school. I read my diaries from the days of my first boyfriend and I want I burn them (and possibly myself) and I am so glad I was never able to vent on facebook. Especially seeing my young cousins doing just that on a daily basis. They will cringe at the thought in a few years. (I cringe now.) Apparently buying them a diary didn’t work and they enjoy public humiliation. You are 17. You dated one week. You will survive.
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Working with teenage girls as I do on a daily basis gets me used to this. It doesn’t make it any less annoying. One student threatened to quit my class because – oh dear lord – I had stated during a discussion with students that I did not care for Justin Bieber. You would have thought i’d murdered someone. “How can you like not love him? He is like a total hero”. When I asked her to explain what about him makes him a hero, “Well, he sings really well and his songs have such meaning”. She did not respond well to my deadpan read of the chorus of ‘Baby’. She skipped school for the 1D Sunrise appearance. She is currently in mourning because she has tickets and now her mother wants her to sell them so she doesn’t stuff up her HSC. Totes devo…
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Oh that’s hilarious. My soon to be teenage daughter has posters of 1D and their perplexing hairstyles plastered all over her wardrobe door (I put my foot down on the walls being covered) and we’ve already told her there will be no concert because we’d have to accompany her at such a young age. I don’t think I could sit through that just quietly.
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I am sacrificing my own sound musical taste to take my 13 year old cherub to her first concert – 1D. I plan to self medicate on the way in…
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A million parental brownie points to you Haven Maven! Well done : )
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My teen has covered all four walls on her room in 1D posters and over 500 photos on a “1D feature wall” – keeping blu tack in business we are.
Every car trip involves the latest album being played at full volumne.
I can understand your reluctance re the concert – its not the music – its the defeaning screaming. Nothing quiet about 1D concerts.
Lastest excitement is the 1D pop-up shop being re-opened in Sydney this weekend.
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Your post hammered home the fact that my (now pretty young) daughters and I are going to headbutt over car stereo choices.
I’d better start brainwashing early.
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So she can’t go because you don’t like them??
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Well, she is 12! Indeed there will be time …
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Dont know where my answers gone, but while I have to pay for it, no she won’t go. I also have hearing problems would make that sitting in a concert hall with screaming kids very uncomfortable.
I think concert tickets are a ridiculous price and haven’t gone to one for years, because I don’t feel like spending 200-300 for a night out. Therefore I’m not spending that amount of money for an unpleasant night out.
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‘Perplexing Hairstyles’. I love it! It’s with every fibre of my being that I try to stop myself asking why they can’t cut their hair or at least put a comb through it. But then I remember that I would sound like every other old person in the history of music!
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Now you’re *my* hero.
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Thanks Talulluah!! After a horrific day with teenagers – your comment has made my day
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You’re too funny, Beckala! Completely agree. My little sister-in-law will be in year 12 next year and I think she’d totes rather, like, shave her head than give up her 1D tickets.
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OMG!
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