I hail from the boyband era. NSYNC was not my first concert but my second, following the Spice Girls. However, the allure of the pop group seems to fade with age. By the time One Direction came around, I had graduated from college, and my musical tastes had shifted to bands like Vampire Weekend, The 1975, and Chvrches. Now, a decade since the quintet dismantled, the concept of an ensemble seems nearly obsolete in the age of Gen Z and Gen Alpha. So, perhaps Justin Timberlake and Harry Styles had the right idea to branch out on their own, become solo artists, and evolve not just musically but in other forms of self-expression.

Circling back to first concerts, I recently took my 10-year-old niece to hers at Harry Styles’ Madison Square Garden residency. Like any good watch nerd, I immediately noticed a timepiece on his wrist during the show and could vaguely ID the model – something simple, classic, and square, perhaps a Cartier.…