How much do you love your all-time fave artists...?

On the closing night of teen idol Davy Jones' performance at the RRazz room, I helped co-owner Robert Kotonly by greeting the guests, as they patiently waited to go inside the showroom. I love this part of my job, i.e., connecting with people face to face. I asked everyone the question: "Is this your first time at the RRazz room?" The majority of the people 1) had not been to the RRazz room and 2) were longtime fans of Davy Jones.

One fan in particular was a Japanese woman, who flew in to San Francisco just to see Davy Jones. It took a while for me to understand that her response to my question, "Yes, I have been here before" meant "Yes, I have been here every night for Davy Jones." She reached into her purse and showed me a black-and-white photo she took with Davy in 1970. Priceless!

When I shared this information with one of the band members, he responded, "Oh, yeah, she's one of Davy's biggest fans. She attends every performance when we're in Japan. We were just there a few weeks ago."

Wow.

Robert Kotonly sat this woman and her husband front row, center. Throughout the performance, Davy acknowledged and even dedicated a song to her! Robert and I watched, as these special moments transpired. To me, this is the manifestation of Music = Love = Life.

Earlier this morning, Robert Kotonly received an email from a ConFunkShun fan in Japan. In the email, the fan stated that he planned to attend every performance and wanted clarification on seating. I chucked when I read, "On the website, it says you open at 2PM. There are two shows on Friday and Saturday nights at 7 and 10PM. How many hours do I have to wait in line?"

So I posit the questions:

To fans: How much do you love your all-time fave artists, and to what extent do you support them?

To artists: Do you stay connected to your loyal fans, and how do you make them feel special?