Legend
As I mentioned in my second book, "Once In A Lifetime: A Song For Sam," Mat Kearney was S.M.'s favorite musician. When she was in the hospital, she did a cover of one of his songs, "On & On," for her mom, Nikki, for Mother's Day. In 2018, Mat Kearney played a private show for Sam's Fans, and in 2020 he played a virtual show. On January 30, 2023, Sam's Fans announced on their social media that Mat was returning on April 20 (last Thursday).
At the 2018 show, there was a VIP ticket that allowed you to meet Mat. Unfortunately, I did not get that ticket and regretted it. So when I saw that the VIP ticket for this show offered the same experience, I bought two tickets. One for me and one for a girl named Paige, who I will go into more detail about in my next three installments (stay tuned).
On Thursday, I parked my car, and Paige and I walked into the Fives, where the event was. We said hi to Nikki, her best friend, Mandy, and S.M.'s oldest brother Finn, and afterward, we were directed upstairs for the meet and greet. We mingled upstairs on the balcony, and I introduced Paige to all of S.M.'s friends and family. Eventually, we got in line to meet Mat. Because he knows who S.M. is, and I listen to his music pretty regularly, when I explained how I knew her, we had a conversation I don't think I was prepared for… but we'll get back to that.
Thursday also happened to be Mandy's 50th birthday. Toward the end of the meet and greet, Nikki, Mat, and the Sam's Fans social media director, Avery, brought a cake out, and we all sang Happy Birthday. The wind came in from the balcony, so Mandy had to blow out the candles while we were still singing. And in a perfect display of slapstick, Mandy's hair caught on fire for a second!
After we sang happy birthday, we started following everyone downstairs for the public show. Paige and I mingled for about another hour while an opener played. Then Nikki got on stage and introduced Mat. The whole show was Greattastic, and about halfway through, a bunch of people got up front and started dancing, and Paige and I joined.
I'm not saying that Mat didn't talk between songs at the 2018 show because he did, but at that show, he didn't say anything before he played "On & On." This time he came back on stage after what, in his own words, was "the easiest encore ever," and as he started playing the On & On strumming pattern, he explained how he met Nikki for the first time and, more importantly, how much being part of S.M.'s story means to him.
Even though he hadn't said it directly when I had talked to him a couple of hours before, it was obvious that he loves how much he touched S.M.'s life. Because of all the good work Sam's Fans does, S.M.'s legacy has outlived her, and her story and spirit have grown so much more than I could have ever imagined. Despite this, I still see her as the girl I met all those years ago on my first day of kindergarten. The only part of her story that is a legend to me is her recording "On & On." All of this to say, to hear the living embodiment of that legend talk about how the story affected him personally was so surreal, and I'm thrilled I got to see it!
Have a Greattastic Day and Be Safe!
J. Mitchie Ulibarri
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