Pretty much every summer, Kidz Bop, the kids’ music juggernaut, swings through metro Detroit with a live tour. In the high-energy show, talented tweens sing PG-spins on pop hits, all set to on-point cartwheels and choreography. It’s branded as “the ultimate family-friendly concert experience.”
Back on June 30, Kidz Bop Live 2018 made good on that promise at Meadow Brook Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill in Rochester Hills, leaving a legion of local kids hoarse and happy. That is, with one unfortunate exception.
It seems one mom got fed up with all those bouncy inflatable beach balls. You know, the kind that tend to harmlessly fly around at outdoor music concerts? Well, this lady wasn’t having it.
So, after exchanging words with a woman sitting in front of her and a dude in the seat behind her, she did what any reasonable parent would do. She nabbed a ball, pawed her hands into it and popped it.
And, because you’re never far from someone’s smartphone video cam anymore, she wound up the star of a 26-second viral video shot by Lexie Landry Stygar:
“Oh, my gosh. Popping volleyballs,” Landry Stygar says as the video rolls. “This needs to go all over the internet. Not a fun mom. Watch her. … What a nice lady!”
The month-old footage, which recently bubbled up in our Oh Mother newsfeed, feels surreal. There’s peppy music playing and a sea of excited kids tossing oversized beach balls. It’s the backdrop to this mom’s temper tantrum.
“She needs to be banned from any kids concert,” says Landry Stygar in her Facebook post of the video. “She was asked kindly by numerous parents to stop and to please just allow the children to have (the beach balls), and she wouldn’t.”
Was this mom bonked by one beach ball too many? Perhaps the shrieking kids or the summer heat finally got to her? And every parent can hit his or her limit of theatrical kids belting Bruno Mars and Demi Lovato, right?
Of course, none of that excuses raining on little concertgoers’ parades – and otherwise setting a lousy example of grown-up behavior. But really, the thing that bothers me most is the crestfallen look on this lady’s son’s face.
You almost don’t notice him at first. He’s just out of sight, in the seat next to mom. When you do, though, it’s heartbreaking. By the time mom’s done ripping the beach ball and takes a swig from her Modelo tallboy, her own boy looks defeated. He’s totally checked out.
That’s the kind of stuff that can stick with a kid. Right out of the gate, taking kids to concerts is a crapshoot. Kids can get whiny, hungry, tired, overwhelmed. Heck, so can parents. Your view can suck. You could get seated next to a jerk. Someone might slosh beer on you. On and on.
Live music is an experience. And how we react to snafus sets the stage to make it memorable – or miserable. Unfortunately, for this kid, I think it’s the latter.
Yet we’ve all had our moments. It’d be cool if people remember that, too, next time they roll that film, post it and tsk-tsk someone on social. Like the guy in the background of this video who mocks this mom. “I hate children!” he growls. “Only reason I have one is so I can yell at him.”
C’mon. Is that much better?
A little less mom shaming and a little more self-control. Torque down the “pooper” and pump up the party. Or, as a Kidz Bop cover once put it, “Shut Up and Dance.”
Have you ever witnessed bad parent (or kid) behavior at live concerts? What did you, or other parents, do about it? Tell us in the comments.
Facebook video by Lexie Landry Stygar. Photo posted by IconicVideos.biz.
