By Anna Billy | 28 March, 2023
Michael Weber of Club 90s has taken his DJ empire from Los Angeles to the national stage - touring the United States to host a multitude of club nights for fans everywhere. Starting out as a fan himself, Weber recognized the lack of fan-centric spaces that allowed for an authentic experience and personal connection that a band or artist can offer. . Upon attending the SOUR Prom night during Olivia Rodrigo’s album release in 2021, he asked to run socials for Club 90s on a whim. Only a few months later, he was asked to DJ a Taylor Swift night and the rest was history. By March, he was touring with the company as a DJ full-time. Since then, he has completed residencies in New York and Los Angeles and has traveled across the nation.
Claiming One Direction as one of his favorite DJ sets to play for fans, I had the pleasure of joining him at The Varsity Theater in Minneapolis, MN on February 25th. Watching fans line up outside of the venue thirty minutes before doors opened in below-freezing temperatures, reminded me why I, myself, was enthusiastic for the evening. When doors opened and attendees began flooding into the theater with child-like excitement. Several girls rushed to the front to secure their spots at the barricade while others wandered. Two young girls, no more than eighteen, commented on my fan-inspired shirt, commenting on my favorite member of One Direction: Harry Styles.
Of the fan events I have attended, I could not help but notice the overwhelming number of female fans, in particular, who wore similar shirts to mine. As attendees filtered into the venue, shirts with “I [love] British Boys” and the union jack inside the heart, the Frat Narry image from a meet and greet in 2013, and several other Etsy-themed shirts commemorating the band were everywhere. At the risk of sounding corny, seeing Gen Z dawn this attire reminded me that fandoms rely on a youthful optimism and a child-like quality of pure authenticity. Without embracing these qualities, Club 90s’ Midnight Memories event would have been significantly less fun.
Forty-five minutes into Weber’s set, the Varsity was packed to the brim. It was difficult to move between friend groups jumping, swaying, and dancing with each new song. The floor shook and the room illustrated how “music can bring people together.” Friends took videos of each other jumping up and down screaming their favorite lyrics. Whether it was from Up All Night or Made in the A.M., everyone relished in the nostalgia of One Direction’s music. The Varsity morphed into a judgment-free space and truly captured the essence of how fandom and friendship are intricately intertwined. In order to bring a level of honesty and truth, a level of trust had to be established between friend groups and between Weber and his captive audience. Without such intimacy and trust, Midnight Memories would not have had such an exuberant engagement, bordering on chaos in the best kind of way.
It is fan spaces that DJs like Weber create which affirm my passion and love for music and working in the music industry. It reminds me that there is no such thing as being fanatic, obsessive, or crazy. There is only passion, love, and joy in the work you do. Music is an expression of oneself and enables a rare form of introspection that frees you from the shackles of embarrassment or shame. I proudly claim the title of a One Direction stan because it reminds me of why I do what I love.
