This sounds trivial but it's such good advice. When you're young you don't want to be seen wearing hearing protection. I was a pop music critic when I was younger, and only wore ear protection a little more than half the time I was at a loud concert, which was often. Now I have tinnitus in my 50s. Don't be afraid to look uncool. The orange, tapered ear plugs are the best. Get them on Amazon. They're often not sold in drug stores.