Mix 93.3’s Red, White & Boom featured talented artists at Starlight Theatre. (Logo courtesy of Mix 93.3)
By: Jacob Elyachar
It was 4:00 p.m. when I arrived at Starlight Theatre for one of Kansas City’s largest summer concert series: Mix 93.3’s Red, White & Boom.
There were hundreds of fans wearing homemade t-shirts and carried signs that showed support for several of the acts including Ariana Grande, Emblem3 and headliner Carly Rae Jepsen.
As music lovers started filing in, they were treated to a performance from local band Rebella Rising, who won this year’s Battle for Red, White and Boom.
Throughout the evening, Mix 93.3 fans had a chance to watch their favorite radio personalities interview the artists as they streamed their interviews into the cyber sphere.
Around 5:20 p.m., Jenny Matthews, Dave-O and Nathan Graham introduced American Idol alum Stefano, who set the standard for the rest of the evening.
Hollywood Records recording artist Stefano kicked off Red, White & Boom in Kansas City. (Photo by Jacob Elyachar)
The Hollywood Records artist showed off his terrific vocal range through songs that included the funky reflective “Suffering in the Sunshine,” the Prince-like “Cherry on Top” and his two hit singles “Yes to Love” and “I’m On A Roll” that had everyone dancing.
By the time, morning host Teresa came up on the Starlight stage, most of the audiences were subsuming to the hot Missouri sun. Luckily, she was able to revive them by introducing rising Californian music duo Malcolm Kelly and Tony Oller, better known to their fans as MKTO.
MKTO were crowd favorites at Mix 93.3’s Red, White and Boom. (Photo by Jacob Elyachar)
Throughout their set, Malcolm dropped some incredible beats including a superb version of Nicki Minaj’s rap on “Beauty and a Beat” and Tony showed off his smooth vocals on “Classic” and “Thank You.” In addition, the duo also teased that they recorded a collaboration with Ne-Yo before they concluded their set.
Nashville rockers Hot Chelle Rae, who is preparing to release their third studio album later this year, transported concertgoers back to their home city with a rousing set. They debuted their new track “Recklessly” and pleased fans by performing hits including “Whatever” and “Honestly.” However, the highlight of their set was when they sang their signature song “Tonight, Tonight,” all of Starlight sang along.
Steve Serrano gave the audience a little surprise before Ariana Grande took the stage: KC rap icon Tech N9Ne. The rapper teased his new album Something Else that will feature collaborations with B.o.B., Systems of A Down, Kendrick Lamar and Wiz Khalifa. Tech N9Ne also confirmed that he will appear at this year’s Boo Bash at the Midland by AMC.
Rising artist Ariana Grande made her Kansas City debut at Mix 93.3’s Red, White & Boom. (Photo by Jacob Elyachar)
One of the most highly anticipated acts of the night was Ariana Grande. She made her Kansas City debut with a stunning performance of her hit song “The Way.” During the first couple measures of the song, Ariana showed off her beautiful upper vocal register as she sang a cappella. I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Grande backstage and she was a delight to talk to. I have a feeling that she has big things ahead of her.
In between the sets, I talked to several fans and they had great things to say about this concert.
“The energy is just amazing!” said Hannah. “It was really great to see these acts perform live.”
“My favorite part of Red, White and Boom is everyone getting together and seeing artists like Ariana Grande perform.” Said Nick Drake.
“I did not know a couple of the artists before the concert,” said Joy. “But I became a fan of their music and I was happy that I was able to see my favorite act: Hot Chelle Rae.”
Emblem3 skated their way onto the Red, White & Boom set that satisfied their screaming fans. (Photo by Jacob Elyachar)
There were numerous fans that were very passionate about their beloved acts but Emblem3’s fans drowned Starlight with their screaming. Throughout the Southern California trio’s set, fans screamed as they skated onto stage and performed some of their new tracks from the upcoming album Nothing to Lose that included the title track, “Just for One Day” and their signature song: “Chloe (You’re the One I Want).”
Finally, headliner Carly Rae Jepsen took the stage and delivered an exciting set that featured some of her Top 40 smashes including “This Kiss,” “Tiny Little Bows” and “Good Time.” Carly sounded amazing live and it was great to have her back in Kansas City.
Overall, this was one of the best concert experiences that I had been to so far this year. Thank you to the artists, fans and of course, Mix 93.3, for an incredible night full of music, fun and amazing talent.
To learn more about Mix 93.3, visit their website: http://www.mix93.com/
You can catch some more photos from the event on my Facebook page:
