It’s a blistering hot day in Johannesburg. Amidst the sea of umbrella’s and glistening torso’s, sweat is seeping through almost every Parklife attendee’s skin. I’ve been at the festival for a good few hours and I’m worried that by the time I finally get to meet American Authors, I’m gonna be one hot mess. Not in a good way.
After witnessing American Authors set, it’s almost surreal that in the next hour, I will have the honour of meeting the band. Both surreal and daunting. In the past I’ve always tried to play it cool around celebrities, but my inner fan girl has always freaked out. Not in the One Direction sense. In the ‘do not excessively blush or forget your name sense.’
When I arrived, three band members were already there, propped upon plastic chairs, ready for the meet and greet. The only member missing was the lead singer. As I waited for him, each member introduced themselves to me. Matt, Dave and James. Shortly after, the singer made an entrance.
Donning a leather jacket and skinny jeans with knee cut outs, he looked like your quintessential rockstar. Call it living in the moment, but upon his arrival, I yelled, “He is here!” To which he laughed and playfully remarked, “I AM HERE!”. We casually hugged and he introduced himself. “Hi. I’m Zac.”
From that moment on I knew that these guys were super down to earth. At some point we even bonded over fashion as James (the guitarist) grabbed my hand to get a look at my puzzle piece ring and Dave (the bassist) complimented me on my ‘cool hat.’ I complimented them on their performance. “You guys were AMAZING!”
Zac and I talked a bit about his vegan, gluten free lifestyle since he tweets quite a bit about it.
“Yeah I’ve been stocking up on some vegan, gluten free snacks for the tour. I managed to get quite a few things from this festival actually. Some quinoa, a kale salad.. oh and I even saw some vegan brownies.” When I mentioned that I am vegan and gluten free too, he smiled and we exchanged high fives. “So did you try the vegan brownie?” I asked. “Oh yeah I did. I even got some to go!”
Talking to American Authors felt like I was catching up with old friends, not musicians. They are laid-back and just all round awesome guys. Every one of them.
“So have you guys been loving South Africa?” I asked. “Yeah, it’s our first time over here and we’re really enjoying it. We loved Cape Town. It’s beautiful. Today’s actually our last day in Johannesburg. We’re flying back to Cape Town tomorrow and we’ll be there for a few days just doing some sightseeing and stuff.”
“So when do you guys get started on your new album?” Possibly the burning question on every fan’s mind. “Well once we’re done with our vacation in Cape Town, we’re gonna head home and work on our new record.”
I thanked them for their time. For being so wonderful and I wished them all the best for their new album.
“Well I hope you guys come back soon, it was great meeting you all.”
“Oh yeah we’ll definitely be back, We love it here!”
*Special thanks to MTV, Melissa, Tammy and Joanna for making this meet and greet possible. Also for allowing me to bring one of my friends along for it too! Big hugs to you all. You are absolute legends.
And thanks to Henry Stock of Timeless Memory Photography for the pretty images.
Except the last image. That one was taken with an iPhone. Tsk.. tsk.
ZoVina 