Marc Anthony is one of my favorite singers. I have been listening and dancing to his music for over 15 years. Marc is known by many English speakers for two things 1) his 1999 English language album Marc Anthony (I Need to Know) and 2) for being married to Jennifer Lopez, but Marc is world famous with Spanish speakers for his Spanish language Salsa music.

When I heard Marc was going to perform in Cancun, I freaked out. Yes, I freaked out like a teenager. I realized my usual press ticket (which I am always extremely grateful for) wasn’t going to be good enough this time. So waited until the exact moment the tickets went on sale on Ticketmaster and I spent a small fortune on one… in the 6th row.

I obsessively listened to his new album, Vivir Mi Vida, in the two months leading up to the concert and got butterflies everytime I saw his face on a billboard or the back of a bus.

And suddenly, it was April 17.

Since I hadn’t been able to convince any of my friends to spring for “diamante” ticket, I went to the concert alone, but ran into a dear friend and her husband who were sitting (Yeah right, who sits down at a concert?) in the same section. We chatted excitedly and slammed a few beers…

And suddenly, the stadium lights went dark, and there he was.

I screamed, I sang, I danced, I never sat down.

And I was CLOSE. So very close.

I waited for Marc to look me in the eye. At one point I yelled and asked for a song,  “I love you Marc! Que Precio Tiene el Cielo!” and it was the next song they played (yes I realize I just got lucky, the set list had been decided beforehand), but he didn’t look at me.

And then, it was over, he was singing the last song, Vivir Mi Vida, and I decided it didn’t matter that he hadn’t looked at me. This was one of the single most memorable evenings of my life.

And then, he looked me right in the eye.

And we sang the line together.

As I left, soaked in sweat, I was filled with the joy of Salsa music, of Marc’s Salsa music, and of connecting with him, for just a moment.

So I bought a t-shirt! Hahaha!

It was simply awesome!

Here’s a taste of the awesomeness…