ASIB filming NYC

[Katie14 4,828]

I forgot to mention some other things. After the performance scene Allie ran off the stage and said "nice to meet you. Thank you so much" to what is supposed to be the producer or some higher up guy at snl. This portion of the scene was filmed a few times and after the last one I'm pretty sure gaga said to the guy, "it is actually nice to meet you" as herself and not as Allie. I thought that was so adorable. 

At another point, Gaga hugged the legs of one of the organizers to show her appreciation. 

Gaga also practiced singing in between takes and it reminded me of the behind the scenes footage from the amas right before she sang DWUW.

[Der Meister 3,000]

Any description of the songs?

[Katie14 4,828]

@jkl @ferretti @Dayman @erincatz so do you know if anyone stayed past 4:45? I was really confused. I didn't even know if we were allowed to stay or not. 

[Kali Lynn 0]

Hey monsters <3 <3 <3 Does anyone know if there will be more filming in new york later this week ,and where that sign up will be?? Thanks y'all love ya <3 <3 <3

[Zilla 13,346]

See these kind of threads I cherish so much because you guys are experiencing this stuff together. Most of the time I read threads where people are arguing or whatever etc and honestly I do have friends from GGD that I've had for like almost 7 years now, I hope ya'll build those friendships too

Hope you all had a great time and were savoring the moment!

[ferretti 5,808]

10 hours ago, Katie14 said:

@jkl @ferretti @Dayman @erincatz so do you know if anyone stayed past 4:45? I was really confused. I didn't even know if we were allowed to stay or not. 

No idea. Didn't even occur to me honestly. Haha

[MarryTheNight91 91]

13 hours ago, Katie14 said:

@jkl @ferretti @Dayman @erincatz so do you know if anyone stayed past 4:45? I was really confused. I didn't even know if we were allowed to stay or not. 

No, everyone had to leave.

[jkl 21]

17 hours ago, Der Meister said:

Any description of the songs?

It's hard to compare songs but in terms of instruments it opens with a xylophone similar to Shape Of You (less tropical sound tho) but then is toned down with some 90s kind of guitar/maybe some strings? It also dips into these awesome, deep muted beats. I have no musical experience so that's the best I could do! 

if I had to guess (knowing little about the movie) this song is more of a ear worm/repetitive pop hit that will get Ally famous rather than something like a bit alternative (but gag-worthy) like bad romance y'know, I really liked it tho and she performs the **** out of if! 😍 At one point she says the chorus lyrics 'Why do you do that-' then in a silent break she drops to her knees and like sweeps the floor with her hand and finishes it with 'TO ME!!'

 It was hot xx

[Katie14 4,828]

20 minutes ago, jkl said:

It's hard to compare songs but in terms of instruments it opens with a xylophone similar to Shape Of You (less tropical sound tho) but then is toned down with some 90s kind of guitar/maybe some strings? It also dips into these awesome, deep muted beats. I have no musical experience so that's the best I could do! 

if I had to guess (knowing little about the movie) this song is more of a ear worm/repetitive pop hit that will get Ally famous rather than something like a bit alternative (but gag-worthy) like bad romance y'know, I really liked it tho and she performs the **** out of if! 😍 At one point she says the chorus lyrics 'Why do you do that-' then in a silent break she drops to her knees and like sweeps the floor with her hand and finishes it with 'TO ME!!'

 It was hot xx

I remember he singing something about dropping to her knees and then she drops a beat after that. 

[Kevind 1]

The lyrics from the beginning went something like The below: although my wording can be a bit off ... 

why do you look so good in thoes jeans ,

why do you come around here with an ass like that! 

you got my thoughts turned all obscene,

why do you do that?

Why do you do that ? 

Why do you do that, do that, do that, do that, do that, to me? 

Why do you do that, do that, do that, do that, do that, to me?

 

 

 

[Katie14 4,828]

Spoiler

I received the exciting news that my ticket request status was changed from waitlist to available on Friday night, hours before my parents were set to arrive in DC to visit me for the weekend. I was all ready to book my bus ticket and hotel room, so I called my mom to find out when they are leaving Sunday night. To my dismay, my Mom told me my Dad and her were staying until Monday. I thought there was no way I would be able to go and I was really upset. After much mental anguish, I decided I would tell my parents I have a date on Sunday night so I would have an excuse to not be with them. I leave for work at 8:30 in the morning so I was in the clear after Sunday night. I felt so bad lying to them and I kept worrying that they would somehow find out or something would happen that would prevent me from being able to go. My biggest concern was that they would want or need to meet up with me for some reason after I left for NYC and I’d have to come up with a reason why I can’t see them. Despite my persistent fears, everything worked out fine with my parents. They dropped me off at my apartment around 2:30 on Sunday and we said our goodbyes. 

I “packed” (really stuffed everything in my jacket pockets because I didn’t want to risk bringing a bag into the studio) up all my ****, put on the same outfit that I would be wearing the next day, and headed out to Union Station. My ride wasn’t until 5:30, so I had about an hour to kill when I got there. I walked around the shops, bought some gummy candies to keep me entertained on the bus, water, and travel deodorant, and then got in line at the bus stop. I assumed the bus would take us to the Port Authority so I specifically booked a hotel that was like a 5-minute walk away. I didn’t want to be outside alone for too long at 10:30 at night. The bus instead left us at a random location that was actually a 25-minute walk away from the Port Authority. I begrudgingly got a LYFT to drop me off at the hotel.

The place I booked, Row NYC, looked really modern and swanky in the online pictures, and it was also the cheapest hotel that was close to the Port Authority. The outside and lobby areas were really nice but everything else was pretty disgusting. The hallway was creepy and the room was very small. Paint was chipping on the walls and doors, the heater/air conditioner was excessively loud, the window curtain was dirty, but worst of all, I just didn’t feel safe. I was on the 27th floor and I had a “beautiful” view of a brick building next door and I kept thinking the hotel was going to burn or a murderer would break in and I wouldn’t be able to jump out the window. I kept the clothes on that I was wearing that day and would be wearing the next day, including my socks, set 4 alarms, kept the light and TV on, and went to sleep. 

I was so happy to be woken up by 3 out of the 4 alarms I set at 5 am the next morning (the tv alarm failed me).  The relief I felt was incredible because I was seriously worried that the alarms wouldn’t work or I would be killed during the night. I turned around and to my surprise, I noticed my socks sitting next to me on the bed. I guess I got hot in the middle of the night!  I shot up from my bed, shut the alarms, quickly brushed my teeth, got the rest of my clothes on, and precariously opened my door with my arm flexed in front of my face in case someone was waiting in the hall to kill me. I kept my arm up as I turned every corner in the hallway and felt a huge weight off my shoulders when I made it safely outside.

I walked the 15 minutes to Rockefeller Plaza, where NBC Studios are located. As soon as I got there, I noticed some people camping outside and wondered if they were extras as well, but I decided to go inside to find out. I showed the security guard my ticket and he told me to head to guest relations. When I got there, I was then told to go up the grand staircase, but I noticed the entrance was blocked off. To my surprise, the security guard told me to walk around the blockade. However, as I was maneuvering myself, the two guys at the top of the steps asked me what I was doing. I told them I had a ticket for “A Star is Born” and one of the guys told me to come back at 7:15. I was literally the first person there and I asked if I could wait at the foot of the stairs. He told me I couldn’t. “You can wait anywhere but here”, he said. With those kind remarks, I decided to wait outside the front entrance, but first I went to a 24 hour McDonald’s to go to the bathroom and put my makeup on. The bathrooms at Rockefeller Plaza were apparently locked until 7 am. I felt my class increase a few notches as I haphazardly drew on my eyeliner and patted on eye shadow in the women’s room in a McDonald’s occupied solely by homeless people. I swiftly left after I was done and found a good spot on the floor outside the building.

After waiting for around 30 minutes, I decided to go back inside because tons of people were walking into the building at this point. When I got to the staircase, I noticed two girls were lined up and then a huge crowd of undoubtedly Gaga fans in a back corner.  This tiny adorable woman (Jenn) wearing an SNL jacket told us that we should leave and come back at 7:15. Paranoia overcame me and I was scared I would get kicked out and lose my opportunity if I didn’t follow the rules. I was the only person who went back outside. My instinct to follow instructions didn’t last long however, and I headed back in about 5 minutes later. By that time, a few other people lined up by the stairs and we started chatting (we hit it off and ended up hanging out together the rest of the day). We realized that all of us had priority tickets and wondered if the group at the corner were relegated to that location because they had general tickets. I walked over to the group and asked a guy if they have priority tickets. They all said that they did and I asked why they aren’t standing by the stairs. They said someone told them to stand there. I got back to my place in line and asked one of the security/organizer (Im going to call them SEs) dudes why that group was in the corner. He was bald and kind of intimidating and responded by telling me,  “We can’t have that over here”. I guess by that he meant noise.

My new friends and I expressed our fears of not being let in and asked one of the SEs if having priority tickets guarantees us a spot inside. He told us that we will go through a screening process and not everyone gets let in. After that guy walked away, I asked another SE and he rudely responded, “why? Do you have anything that would guarantee you a spot?” We all looked t each other and were really distressed at that point, wondering if they would turn us away based on age, look, what we were wearing, ect. All of us traveled to get here and took off from work. I traveled 5 hours and risked my life in a seedy hotel to be here! I would have been devastated if I wasn’t let in. A few minutes later however, a few nice SNL women told us we would definitely be let in. I think those guys were just being assholes. Regardless, I was still really nervous.

At around 7:30, they let us go up the stairs and through security. It was like being at the airport and nobody was turned away as far as I could tell. I had all my **** stuffed in my jacket pockets so It took me awhile to find the metal stuff in there (phone charger and headphones). The bald SE was telling me to hurry up and was getting annoyed with me. I said to him, “you guys said no bags so I had to stuff everything in here.” I immediately regretted saying that because I probably came off as rude, and we were actually allowed bags. It said online that large bags weren’t allowed and I just didn’t bring anything because I didn’t want to risk having to throw my bag away. I was worried he would kick me out for talking back to him, but nothing happened. We had to place our phones in a locked pouch and then were led into a really nice lounge area. We sat there for about half an hour as everyone else went through security. The atmosphere was filled with excitement and Gaga music played continuously over the speakers. Of course, I was still really nervous that something would go wrong. Would I somehow lose the ticket I was handed after going through security? Would the bald SE get his revenge and kick me out? My mind was such an anxious mess! Water was handed out to us and then we were told to go to the bathroom now if we have to because they are going to start letting us in soon. All our tickets had numbers based on our position in line, so I was one of the first to be let inside. We gave in our tickets and showed our wristbands. I sat down inside the studio with relief. I was in.

(what I wrote previously)

The entire two days, I kept thinking that something was going to go wrong and I felt a combination of intense excitement, guilt, and fear. I was worried that my parents would want to meet with me, I’d miss my bus, I wouldn’t be able to access my bus ticket reservation number on my phone, someone would steal my phone with my ID in it, someone would murder me in my sleep at my creepy hotel, my alarm wouldn’t go off in the morning, I wouldn’t get let in to the studio, I would be stuck in a seat on the side of the stage and wouldn’t be able to see anything, my parents would be trying to contact me while my phone was off and would send out a search for me (lol). You name it, I was worried about it. Fortunately for me, everything worked out almost exactly as planned and I could not ask for a better experience in the studio.

It was a strange experience being physically so close to the film crew, Gaga’s team, the dancers, and Gaga herself and seeing a glimpse of their lives. Yet, we knew that we could never actually be part of their lives. All of them are at such a different level from us in terms of the reach of their work, but they seemed like such ordinary people, going about their day to day, feeling cranky at times and cracking jokes like the rest of us. The 4th wall was burst wide open and the glamorous façade of Hollywood immediately disintegrated.  It made me wonder if maybe I could actually be one of them.

It also struck me that this day was so special for all of us. None of us would forget it. I can honestly say that yesterday was probably the most exciting day of my life. But for Gaga and the whole crew, it was just an average day. 

After we left, I checked my phone to dissipate the ever-growing paranoia about there being like 18 missed calls from my parents. To my relief, there were only 2 missed calls from them and a few texts asking why I wasn’t picking up my phone. I promptly called my Dad and told him my phone died and I left my charger at home.  He bought it and proceed to ask me about how my date went….. After getting off the phone with him, I spotted Magnolia Cupcakes next door to NBC Studios. I bought myself to a vanilla cupcake with chocolate frosting to eat on the bus later and then called my friend to share with her my incredible experience. It was really windy though so I only talked for a few minutes.  I walked the 20 or so blocks to the bus stop and couldn’t stop smiling, partially because it felt so good to be walking after sitting all day, but mostly because I felt so incredibly grateful that I had this opportunity and I honestly could not believe everything worked out. I boarded the bus knowing that this would be a day I would remember for the rest of my life. 

I wrote up an extremely long and detailed account from the moment I got off the waitlist to boarding the bus to leave NYC. There isn't anything specifically Gaga related in here because I already wrote about that. I did this for myself because I want to be able to read this again in the future and remember the experience. I figured I would post it here just in case anyone is interested.