There are two kinds of questions people ask about rock stars: the ones they pretend are intellectual, and the ones they actually want answered. This column is about the second kind. What are they like in person? Do they tip? Do they cheat? Do they pay for lunch? (No.)

That’s the fun part.

That’s where we should stop.

But no—you people refuse to stay in the shallow end.

Fine, I’ll tell you what rock stars are actually like.

Spoiler: The mythology is the easy part.

1. What surprises people the most when they meet rock stars in person?

—FAN ANTHROPOLOGY, KANSAS CITY

That they’re usually just people. Which is disappointing if you were hoping for thunderbolts.