Prides DJ Party, April 2015

This post is about the most amazing thing I've ever done...

I hired Prides to DJ at my friend, Tracey Faye's, 25th birthday party!

To be honest, when I first made email inquiries to try to arrange this, I never thought it would be possible. It was actually when I was in the queue to see Prides at Manchester last month that I got email confirmation that they'd agreed to do the party, it was the most incredible moment of my life!

My free time during the rest of the tour was spent getting the contract confirmed, which was not very easy when reliant on a slow hotel computer, and I had to go to an appointment at the bank wearing my tour clothes (a Prides sweater) but I managed to get it all done!

After the tour, the next week and a half of my life was spent planning the party and getting everything organised. I had to hire some very specific DJ equipment which I knew nothing about except what it was called, but a very helpful company got it all booked and arranged for me.

I even got a dress specially for the party. I don't usually wear dresses, but I wanted to fit in with everyone else and look the part, so I bought a plain black dress and had 'I heart Lewis Prides' printed on it.  The people at the printing shop remembered me from when I'd had my Lewis t-shirts made!

Tracey's party was on Saturday 4th April, but I went up to Glasgow on the Thursday beforehand to get everything ready. I wanted to keep Prides DJ'ing a secret from Tracey, so it would be a lovely surprise for her. Of course I had to tell her some things and that I was planning something big, in order for me to get everything in place, but I managed to keep the most important things a surprise.

Thursday was a fun day spent with Tracey and her friends in Glasgow.  I gave Tracey her birthday present, which was a triangle, because a while ago on Twitter, Prides said that she could be their triangle player! She said it was the best present ever!

Then on Friday I spent the day at Tracey's house, getting everything ready.  She was busy cleaning the house, while I was having a last minute panic about things getting stuck in closed depots and other such worries!

That evening we went to Asda to buy essentials for the party, ie lots of alcohol! Also I'd been asked to provide some specific stuff for Prides.

On Saturday, I got up early to go to Tracey's house. I couldn't believe the day was finally here! I was so stressed, expecting everything to go wrong. And in my heart, I already feared the worst, and the worst did happen.  But I was the only person upset by it, and as it was a party for Tracey, not me, the party was not ruined.

Basically, when I first had the plan to hire Prides, the main reason I wanted to do it was to make Tracey happy and to thank her for being there for me when I was at my lowest.  But I am not going to lie and make myself out to be some saintly character that I'm not. I was equally motivated by selfish reasons, I wanted to see Lewis DJ. Also, as I had caused a lot of stress to Prides in February, I thought that by hiring them and obviously paying them, it could maybe be a way to try to make things up to them. I know the money is a small amount to members of a famous band, but it was a lot to me, and I hoped they would see that I was trying to say sorry for what I'd done.

But I found out on the afternoon of the party that Lewis would not be DJ'ing. I had already suspected this would happen, as ten minutes after I arrived in Glasgow he tweeted that he was sick, so it was not a huge surprise, but it just broke me and I burst into tears. It was explained to me that Prides usually only DJ as a pair, so there was no guarantee Lewis would even have been there if he'd been well. But I was so devastated. I had spent several thousand, including the hiring of all the equipment. But I have only myself to blame. I knew the risks and craziness of spending so much money on a couple of hours. I just thought it would be once in a lifetime and would be so worth it.

Also, I am at fault because I did not check with the agency exactly which members of Prides would attend.  It had crossed my mind that I should do this, but I was trying to keep my correspondence with the agency professional sounding, so they wouldn't realise I was just a fan. They probably knew this anyway, and of course Prides knew who I am. I really should have checked and been less concerned about what people thought of me. That is something I can only learn from.

So please, do not think I am in any way criticising Prides or the agency for what happened. And I am certainly not criticising Lewis. It is not his fault he was ill, and I really hope he is ok now.

Once I got the news about Lewis, I had a complete meltdown.  It was then that there was a knock at the door and it was the delivery of all the DJ equipment.  So I had to meet the delivery driver in floods of tears which was really embarrassing, but he was really nice and it was all ok.

After that, the rest of the preparations went really well and everything fell into place. The marquee got assembled, the equipment was set up, people started arriving and everyone was so excited. I was really happy for Tracey and everyone, I just couldn't stop crying and I felt so bad because I didn't want to bring anyone else down.

Tracey and her friends were all so kind to me and tried to make me feel better. They are such lovely people. And I'd invited 3 of my own friends to the party; when they arrived they were all so sweet to me and looked after me. Such lovely kind people, I will never forget what any of them did for me.

We weren't sure what time exactly Prides would arrive, but we knew it would be sometime between 6.30 and 7.15pm. So me and my friends went out into the street to wait for them. And then a car drove round the corner and I could see Stewart and Callum, and it all felt so surreal. They both gave me a hug. Callum's lovely girlfriend, Claire, was with them and she gave me a hug and said she liked my dress. There was also someone else with them, Scott, who used to play bass in Lewis and Stewart's old band, Midnight Lion. I'd met him a couple of times before at gigs and festivals, but I'd never known who he was, although he had taken lovely photos of me with Lewis before!

Anyway, we went inside with Callum and Stewart, and I gave Tracey's friends the code word 'pug' so they knew to get Tracey downstairs. When she came downstairs and saw Stewart in her house, I think she nearly died of shock!! As soon as I saw her happy face, at that moment I knew it was all worthwhile, despite Lewis not being there.

Everyone went out into the garden and to the marquee and the party stated.  I went and hid upstairs and had a bit of a cry, but it was still lovely to look outside and see everyone having so much fun! My friends kept trying to get me to come and join them, nobody wanted me to be left out, but it was difficult for me. I was so happy to see everyone else so happy, and it was so amazing to have 2 members of my favourite band there and to know that it was because of me that they were there! But I just couldn't get past the fact that Lewis wasn't there. Any of you who've read my blog, will know how much he means to me. This should have been the best night of my life, but it was the opposite and I didn't think I'd be able to get over it.

Later, I did go down to the party for a bit, and it was lovely to see Stewart and Callum DJ'ing.

Then they played a song by Foster The People, and my heart broke. The second time I ever met Lewis was when Prides supported Foster The People at Manchester, and it was one of the best times I ever had with Lewis. I had stood with him for most of Foster The People's set, and we'd spent so much time talking. So it was all too much, and I went back upstairs again. The next song that came on was a song that Lewis had tweeted about liking recently, so that made me cry even more.

Then one of my friends came upstairs and she stayed up there with me for like half an hour. I felt so bad that she was missing the party because of me, but she was so kind and just wanted to make sure I was ok. Sophie if you read this, I will never forget you were there for me.

We did go back down eventually and it was fun.  Tracey's friends kept trying to get me to dance, and it was so sweet of them, I just didn't feel like it though. Then Callum's girlfriend, Claire, came over to me and gave me a hug. She asked if I wanted to talk and we went inside and she was so kind to me. I won't repeat a private conversation, but she said some really nice things, and the fact that the girlfriend of a member of my favourite band would take the time to care about me and look after me, it means the world. Then we went back to the marquee and Callum came over to talk to me and he gave me lots of hugs and he said some nice things too.

Shannon and Callum

Claire and Callum

Me with Claire and Callum

Me with Claire and Callum (and Stewart and Scott photobomb!)

Then I was sitting by myself, and Scott came over to talk to me.  He was really kind too and reassured me, and I found it really easy to talk to him about stuff like my mental health problems. He gave me some really good advice and was really nice and understanding and it meant so much to me.

I actually am so overwhelmed by the kindness of so many people at the party, I don't think I have ever felt so loved and appreciated by so many people in all my life.

And most importantly, Tracey was having the time of her life! It made my heart so happy to see her dancing and smiling so much and having the party of her dreams!

And it was so lovely to see everyone there having such a lovely time. So many people said to me it was the best party ever, which it was!

Here are a few short videos I filmed of the party...

When it was time for Prides to finish DJ'ing, Stewart made a speech and wished Tracey a happy birthday. He thanked me too, which was nice. Then Tracey got everyone to chant 'we love Greer' and it was so sweet and meant so much to me.

I videoed this speech too...

I got a photo with Stewart before he left.

And I said goodbye to Callum and thanked him for always being so kind to me. He said 'I always am', which is true, he was really nice to me on the recent tour when I felt so nervous about everything.

I had bought Easter eggs for all of Prides. Tracey had given Callum and Stewart theirs, and I gave Lewis' egg to them to give to him. Unfortunately I was unable to get him his favourite chocolate, but I hope he liked it anyway.

The night didn't end there. Several of us went on to O2 ABC for the club night there, which was good and I enjoyed the music and had fun with Tracey and friends.

We spent most of the evening in the upstairs room, then I noticed a man wearing a certain very distinctive hat and it was Callum! Tracey went and said hi to him and he said we could come and drink with him and Stewart! I thanked him for being so kind to me again and asked if I could be 'Callum Prides Fan' now and he said yes! I'm not really going to be though, I love Callum so much, he really is a genuinely kind person, but Lewis will always be my idol.

So Tracey and I went to the downstairs room, and Stewart was there and so was lovely Emily and Claire, and it was so nice to see them all.

I didn't try to drink with them though or anything. I don't think that would be appropriate. I'm just a fangirl, I'm not trying to be friends with anyone, and I think if you see your favourite band in their private time, it's lovely if they say hi and let you have a photo, but you have to know and respect the boundaries.

I must say, when I heard we were going out in Glasgow, my first thought was, I hope Neil from The Wild Curve is there, and yes he was! Always so lovely to see him, he is the nicest guy ever! He asked me if I was ok and I was like no! I told him what had happened and he was so nice about it all, and gave me a hug.

And much to my happiness, someone else very lovely was there, Alice Bentley who I saw support Prides in Inverness on their February headline tour.  I couldn't believe that she actually recognised me! She gave me a hug and she said it was so nice to actually meet me this time! She is lovely and beautiful and such a sweet kind person, I was so excited to get to talk to her!

And then I couldn't believe it, there was KLOË too! She gave me a hug and I said it made my night to see her and she said it made hers to see me! She is so lovely and so stunning and it was so exciting to meet her again!

So I think everyone I love from the Glasgow music scene was in that room, except Kieran from The WildCurve and of course Lewis!

Tracey had a nice time too. We stayed till nearly the end of the night and I said goodbye to Callum and Stewart and thanked them again for the party.

As we were leaving we saw Neil and Alice again! I had another chat with them, and I thanked Alice for still following me on twitter despite some recent things, and she was so kind and understanding about it all. Neil gave me a big hug and a kiss on the cheek and I asked him to release my favourite Wild Curve song 'Foreverever' and he said they will do. I ask him this every time I see him and I tweet it to Kieran all the time too! I just need those trumpets in my life!

Then me and Tracey left, and waited for a taxi at what we thought was a taxi rank but was actually a disabled parking bay! But we got home eventually, tired and emotional but we'd had an amazing time!

Although the party was not what I'd hoped for, and for me personally, it was the biggest and most expensive disappointment of my life, I am still glad it happened. I am so happy that I made my best friend and other friends and so many Prides fans happy. I also heard that Callum and Stewart enjoyed the party too, and that makes me happy.  The money was a lot, but it's gone now, and it brought a lot of happiness to a lot of people. What more could I hope to achieve? And I do have fond memories and I spoke to so many lovely people, and it was such a big event that I managed to organise, so I do feel quite proud of that.

Glasgow, March 2015

The 32nd time I met Lewis was at the O2 ABC in Glasgow on Saturday 21st March 2015.

This was the third date of Prides' UK tour supporting Kiesza.

I got to the venue at about 3.30pm and was first in the queue.

I saw Kiesza get out of her tour bus, but I felt too shy to say hello! Also her lovely dancer, Ljuba, walked past and smiled at me. I wanted to ask for a photo, but again I was too shy.

I saw Prides' van arrive, but they couldn't get into their parking space because it was blocked by these huge bins from one of the places next to the venue. So Prides and their crew got out of the van and were moving the bins out of the way, which shows what nice down to earth people they all are, but they shouldn't have been in a situation where they had to do that. My idol Lewis should not have to move bins, he's a god!

Then they carried their equipment into the venue and Lewis said hi Greer when he walked past. I was on the phone to Tracey Faye, and when Stewart walked past I said she was on the phone, and Stewart smiled and waved at the phone!

Lewis kept walking past me carrying all this heavy equipment, which was very exciting! He is so strong!

Later, Tracey joined me in the queue and I was so happy to be reunited with her again. I met some of her friends too, who are so lovely!

We got to the front barrier inside the venue and put our glow sticks on.

We really enjoyed Prides! Tracey was a bit drunk (again) and was doing some amazing dancing. I saw Stewart smiling at her while he was singing.

Lewis' drumming was so powerful and I watched him in awe.

After their set, we went to the merchandise stand, but I didn't think Prides would come out, as they hadn't said so, and I knew they had to travel to London overnight.

While we standing there, I saw someone so beautiful and I thought it was KLOË who I am a big fan of, but I wasn't 100% sure and I didn't want to go and say hello in case it wasn't her!

Also, I thought I saw Neil from The Wild Curve and I was looking over to see if it was him and then he saw me and waved and it was him! I was so happy to see him and he gave me a hug and we had a lovely chat. He said he wanted to get on stage and perform and I wish he had done. I love the Wild Curve so much.

Then Prides' lovely photographer and merchandise lady, Emily, said to me that KLOË was there and I was so happy it actually was her! KLOË is even more beautiful in person than she looks on her photos and she is really sweet and lovely. I had a nice chat with her and it was so exciting to actually get to meet her!

Then I asked Emily if Prides were coming to the merchandise stand and she said no because they needed to set off to London straight away. It was really nice of her to tell me this, because then we knew we had to wait outside if we wanted any chance of meeting them.

So we went out and waited and then Prides came out. I didn't see Lewis till he had already got in the van, and I thought it was too late for me to get a photo. I went over and asked him if I could have a photo and he said of course and he got out of the van! I couldn't believe it, it was so kind of him as I know they wanted to get going as soon as possible.

I got a lovely photo and he said see you on Monday! I think it's so nice that he always remembers that I'm going to the next gig.

Stewart came over to meet Tracey and her friends. I told him that Tracey was coming with me to see them in London and Nottingham and he seemed really happy! He gave her a hug and said 'Tracey's on the road!'

Me and Tracey stayed to watch the van leave and then we went back to our hotel feeling so happy, we'd both had such an amazing time! It was definitely one of my favourite times of seeing Prides!

Glasgow, December 2014

The twentieth time I met Lewis was when Prides did a headline gig at The Arches in Glasgow on Saturday December 6th 2014.

I got to the venue in the afternoon to meet up with a couple of friends and we queued for 5 hours! It was nice because we were able to queue inside the venue and we kept seeing members of Prides walk past and we could hear their soundcheck. It was so exciting when I saw Lewis through the glass doors!

Then we saw Ally McCrae and he came to talk to us. He was so friendly and lovely, as always. He introduced us to Prides' other manager Joel Mark. I'd never met Joel before, but he recognised my Lewis Prides t-shirt and knew who I was from twitter. He was so lovely and he asked to have a photo with me, which was a huge honour for me.

It really means a lot to me that both of Prides' managers are so nice to me.

Then the queue started to get very busy, and we were talking to some other Prides fans who were lovely too.

When the doors opened, me and my friends got to the front centre of the barrier and so had the best view of the gig.

Jack Garratt was the support act. I'd seen him before at Leeds festival and really enjoyed him, and he was brilliant again tonight. My favourite song of his is 'Worry' and he did such a lovely performance of it.

Then it was time for Prides and they did the most wonderful show ever. Their lighting was so spectacular, it looked beautiful! It was the best live performance I'd ever seen. They opened with 'I Should Know You Better' and Lewis looked so gorgeous. His drumming was so perfect, and he did his famous 'drumface' and he was so amazing.

After 'Out Of The Blue', Prides went off stage and we were all cheering for them to do an encore and then the whole crowd started singing 'Messiah'. It was such a lovely atmosphere to be there with so many Prides fans.

The final song of the night was Messiah and it was so brilliant! Stewart stage dived into the crowd which was very exciting. At the end Lewis stood up on his drum kit and then he came and stood at the front of the stage. He was right in front of me and it was so wonderful!

Afterwards, my friends and I went to the merchandise stand to meet Prides, and I couldn't believe who I saw! It was Ian of Something Something productions; he is one of the producers of Prides' music videos, and also he starred in 'Messiah' as one of the priests, and 'I Should Know You Better' as the Yeti. I'm a big fan of his work and he's so funny; it was so lovely to get to meet him!

Then I saw Lewis was at the merchandise stand, so I went to meet him and he gave me a hug. He said he saw me at the front during the gig, which made me so happy to think that he'd actually noticed me there! He really is the loveliest person ever and so kind to all us fans. He signed my new t-shirt I'd bought and said I must have a lot of them by now!

Then I met Callum and Stewart who were both really lovely too, as always.

And then I saw Neil from The Wild Curve was there! I was so happy to see him again!

I got another photo with Lewis and I think it's my very favourite photo of me and him.

Then security told everyone to leave the venue, so me and my friends went to say goodbye to Lewis and he gave us each a hug.

We went and stood outside the venue for a bit, and Neil came to talk to us all, which was really nice.

Then I went back to my hotel and I felt like the happiest person alive. It was the best gig I'd ever been to, I'd met so many nice people, and most importantly I got to spend lots of time with my idol Lewis. It had been, I think, the best evening ever of my life!

Bristol, October 2014

The seventeenth time I met Lewis was at The Old Bookshop in Bristol on Friday 24th October 2014.

This was the sixth and final night of Prides' headline UK tour in October. I felt very emotional as I didn't want the tour to end.

The evening got off to a lovely start when The Wild Curve dedicated 'Foreverever' (my favourite song of theirs) to me! They were on stage and their singer, Neil, said how I'd been to every show of the tour. That really meant a lot to me. As this was the sixth time I'd seen The Wild Curve, I now knew and loved all their songs very much. Tonight was my favourite time of seeing them.

Then it was time for Prides and they were so brilliant. The stage was so tiny but that didn't stop them from being their usual energetic selves. Their music sounded even more beautiful than ever, Stewart's voice so gorgeous, and Lewis' drumming was utter perfection.

I loved every minute of the gig so much, I never wanted it to end. When it got to 'Messiah' and Lewis stood on his drum kit and he looked so handsome... it was just the most wonderful moment.

After the gig, Lewis gave me a hug and asked if I was ok and we had a nice chat.

Then I went outside the venue to spend time with The Wild Curve. Kieran was teaching me about a drum rudiment in the street, and then Lewis came outside and he and Kieran were talking drumming again and I felt so in awe of them!

Then Lewis signed all my t-shirts and CD's I'd brought with me. He stayed to chat with me for a bit, and we were talking about band vests and him going to the gym, and other stuff, and it was really lovely to have such a long chat with him. He said he liked my t-shirt again, which meant so much to me. I told him that it was my birthday on Halloween and he said he'd send me a birthday tweet (which he did)! Then he said goodbye.

After that, The Wild Curve very kindly invited me for some end of tour drinks with them, which was lots of fun! Callum from Prides joined us for a bit too, which was lovely.

It was such an amazing end to the tour and I had the best time. I have the most lovely memories that will stay with me forever.

Birmingham, October 2014

The fifteenth time I met Lewis was at the Sunflower Lounge in Birmingham on Wednesday 22nd October 2014.

This was the fourth night of Prides' headline UK tour.

I really liked the Sunflower Lounge, it had a nice bar area and was a very intimate venue - I was so close to Lewis' drum kit! The gig was brilliant, definitely one of my very favourite times I've ever seen Prides.

Afterwards, Prides came up to the bar area to meet all us fans. Lewis gave me a hug and I asked if I could have a photo with him doing his 'drumface' and he actually did it! This was a dream come true for me as I love Lewis' drumface so much.

I went outside for a bit to talk to The Wild Curve, and Lewis came and stood outside with us. I asked for a photo of both Lewis and Kieran (the drummer of The Wild Curve) and it was lovely to get a picture of them both. Then they started talking about drumming stuff which I didn't really understand, but it was very exciting listening to them talking!

I think this was my very favourite night of the whole tour, it was so much fun!

Liverpool, October 2014

The twelfth time I met Lewis was at the Kazimier in Liverpool on Friday 17th October 2014.

This was a very exciting night as it was the first date of Prides' headline UK tour.

The support band for the tour were The Wild Curve, who were absolutely amazing. It was only the second gig they'd ever done, but you wouldn't have known it, they were so good. I'd never heard of them before, but they are now one of my very favourite bands!

Prides had an impressive set up on stage, the lighting looked great, especially their logo.

It was so lovely to get to see Prides do their own headline show, they were so brilliant. They played every song I knew of theirs, and also did a cover of 'Roar' by Katy Perry, which was the best version I'd heard of the song. When they played 'Little Danger', Stewart got us all to sing the line 'I wanna be'. Their set ended with 'Messiah' and at the end of the song Lewis stood up on his drum kit! It was very exciting!

Straight after they'd come off stage, Prides went to the merchandise stand so everyone could get to meet them.

I bought a new Prides t-shirt and asked Lewis to sign it. He signed it 'To Greer Lx' and I was so happy that he wrote my name on it without me even asking! That made my evening!

It was such a brilliant first night of the tour and I couldn't wait for the rest of the dates!