Hey hey hey there my fellow 311 fans! Happy August to you all! Time to embrace the new month and week with the new fan spotlight! This week we have not one but TWO people in the spotlight! Now you may be wondering just why these two chose to do their spotlight together. Well it’s because without 311 they wouldn’t have met and fallen in love! Meet Zack & Diane Freeman!
Let’s begin with how the two of them fell in love with the band. Zack first heard 311 when the blue album came out, but really got into them when his friend Ryan told him to listen to Soundsystem. Ryan also told Zack how the band was all about spreading positivity and unity in their music. “I was mindblown and the music just spoke to me like it never had before.” Zack then went and saw the band live on New Years Eve 1999/2000 when they opened for Red Hot Chili Peppers. “This was only my second concert I had been to and we were in the front of the stands and I loved it! So when they were going to play the House of Blues in Los Angeles on 1/30/2000 I was there! That was my first pit show and the show that made me the fan for life that I am today!”
Diane discovered the band in 2000 when her boyfriend at the time played Grassroots for her. Until then she only knew the songs that were played on the radio and she wasn’t really into that style at the time. Grassroots was different for her though and she was drawn to their musicianship, sound, and the change in the songs. “Instant fan drawn by their skill and message. And then I saw them live! Mind blown. That show ended up being a life changer for me.”
It really was a life changer for Diane and inevitably Zack. After that show Diane wore her Grassroots shirt to work the next day, pushing the boundaries of casual Friday because she was just so excitable from the show. It caught a guys attention and he asked her, “You like 311?” She replied, “I LOVE 311!” In case you haven’t figured it out, the guy was Zack. Here is what happened next: “About a year later we started talking at a friend’s new years party. 311 came up and we spent the party talking about what their music means to us. That started our friendship in 2003 we started dating in 2005 and we married in 2013. I love that I have been able to share 311 with my family and friends and turned most into fans by getting their ticket and taking them to shows!”
Diane and Zack got engaged at 311 Day 2012 (see photo below). So naturally, 311 Day events are very special to them! They were at the most recent one in New Orleans and said it was amazing because of the people they met that they know they’ll be lifelong friends with. Zack and Diane both said their all time favorite shows are a toss up between this event and the island show on the second cruise. Neither one have kept an accurate count of exactly how many shows they’ve seen, but Diane knows she is at 50 at least and Zack is somewhere between 60-65.
What song was the lovely couples first dance at their wedding to? Why 311’s “Two Drops in the Ocean” of course! Zack listed that song as one of his top 3 favorites, followed by “Uncalm” (which he loves because of the energy, rhythm, and beat along with the lyrics) and “Let the Cards Fall” (because of the musical structure and message of laying it all down and being real). Diane said “Jupiter” is the song that really speaks to her. “No matter what goes wrong, there is always something in our lives to be grateful for.” She also mentioned that a new favorite is “Tranquility” as it helped her develop a newfound peace in handling the death of her brother who passed away a year and a half ago.
Both Diane and Zack work for a bank, which is where they met and also how they fund their 311 habit! They were both born in California, although Zack spent a brief period as a child in Arizona. Then his parents divorced and he moved back to Cali. Diane credits her brothers for her love of music and she said her niece claims she is a “music encyclopedia.” Zack says that Diane is awesome at going to 311 shows because she has a knack for planning their 311 adventures! When not on one of these fantastic adventures you can find Zack lounging in his recliner listening to vinyl, while Diane watches her guilty pleasure, which is any of the real housewives shows! Zack also loves to play guitar and he is in a band named Secret ‘Stache. He also has a ticket stub from the 311 show in Vegas that was scheduled for September 11, 2001. For obvious reasons, that show never occurred, but he is hoping to one day have the stub signed by the guys.
Each of them have lyrics that mean something special to them. For Zack those are, “It’s alright to feel good, it’s alright for nothing to be wrong, the deepest dream you have could be tomorrows song” and “Can you hear the void I describe, what can I say vacancy sounds like.” Diane’s favorites include, “You gotta keep on climbing the hill cause if you think you’ll make it you will” and “Savor the sun, but when the clouds come make animals.” They also share a favorite quote, that every 311 fan love, “Stay positive and love your life!”
It’s obvious that without 311 these two love birds might not have ever had the connection that made them realize they were meant for each other. They each have a message to the band they’d like to relay.
Diane: “Thank you! For creating the music that has become the soundtrack of my life, and for putting together such epic events. Because of 311 I have had vacations I only dreamed about and have met the most amazing excitable friends!”
Zack: “Thank you for being a band that inspires me every day musically and personally to continue to be real and spread Positivity, Love, Unity, and Respect.”
They also have personal messages for all of the awesome people out in excitable nation:
Zack: “Becoming a part of the 311 familia has been one of the most rewarding and unbelievable experiences of my life. Please continue to be the most peaceful, loving, united, and respectful people I’ve ever met so that we may hopefully bring some joy and positivity to this broken world.”
Diane: “Thank you we are an amazing community/ familia. Lets keep living and rockin!”
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How cute is this couple? Hope you all enjoyed their joint story and learning how 311 brought them love! Leave them some love in the comments if you feel so inclined! Thanks to all for reading another spotlight, it makes me and the featured people feel all warm inside knowing that you do!
Much love! – The Runt