Hannah Britt answered the millennial call to see 90s heartthrobs the Backstreet Boys at their 10-night residency in Dusseldorf, and found it was the very best tonic.
A pilgrimage to Dusseldorf
The new trend among some of the world's biggest artists is turning concert-going into a musical pilgrimage. From Celine Dion's 26 nights in Paris to Harry Styles' 12 at London's Wembley Stadium, for many fans a gig ticket now comes with a city break.
Music residencies, once the preserve of Las Vegas mega hotels, have hit the mainstream. More acts are opting to stay put and have fans come to them instead of touring. Harry Styles explained that playing in one place would improve performance quality and support his personal wellbeing.
Mania in the city
After sold-out shows at The Sphere in Las Vegas, the Backstreet Boys announced 10 nights at the Merkur Spiel-Arena in Dusseldorf, chosen as the first place the band cracked outside America. A homecoming, they told fans. Wear white.
The millennial in me couldn't resist. I used to kiss a picture of Nick Carter before retiring to my bunk bed each night aged eight. This was my chance to see him in the flesh. Compared to Vegas, Dusseldorf was practically next door.
I booked my flight, enlisting my best friend Emily. I saw my first Backstreet Boys T-shirt on the plane. Millennial white and baby blue adorned many passengers before they'd even left Manchester airport. In the passport control queue, the singing began.
A city transformed
Checking into the chic 25hours Hotel Das Tour, life-size cardboard cutouts of Nick, Kevin, Brian, AJ and Howie greeted us, along with a cocktail list inspired by the band. In the foyer, an excited throng of diamanté-bedazzled women in their 30s buzzed. A huge crowd gathered outside the band's hotel, Briedenbacher. In the old town, bars blasted out hits from Larger Than Life to Incomplete.
White and blue balloons decorated the banks of the Rhine. In the Marktplatz square, a Backstreet Boys experience and merch shop drew huge queues. The mania was endearing, exciting, intoxicating. It reminded me of Manchester before Oasis' comeback shows last year, only less guitars and more earnest key changes.
The show itself
We explored Dusseldorf: lunch was mussels and chips at the chic Robert restaurant on the riverbank, and views came courtesy of a boat trip down the Rhine. We then partook in the city's main occupation - drinking beer. Dusseldorf's Altstadt is famously known as the "longest bar in the world" because it packs around 260 to 300 bars into just half a square km.
Producing bobbles, we put our hair in 90s bunches. Back home we'd have drawn stares. In Dusseldorf, at a rough estimate 96% Backstreet Boys fans, we looked like we belonged. That evening, before heading to the arena, we went to The Paris Bar on the 17th floor of 25hr. I had a Brian, Emily a Nick.
As the Backstreet Boys took the stage, the mania came to a head, but so did the joy. A setlist stuffed with nostalgia, dance routines, and all their biggest hits was like an injection of pure serotonin. The ticket may have come with a city break attached, but it turned out to be the very best therapy. As everyone's favourite key change came in the closing bars of Drowning, you could feel 60,000 millennials healing their inner child all at once.
