Mixing it up between the country and Christian artists at the Fair is Mario, the R&B singing/dancing sensation that you may know of from the show Dancing with the Stars. Above is a great interview from Go! TV (a play off of his last album Go!) with the singer and behind-the-scenes footage of his dance rehearsals. Mario has been around the music scene for awhile now, as his first album came out when he was only 15 years old. (When I was 15, I was Glenda the Good Witch in our high school version of the Wizard of Oz. Needless to say, his talents have garnered him a few more million than mine have.) From his Web site:
At age 15, when his 2002 debut album Mario garnered 700,000 copies in sales, sparked by the lead single “Just A Friend (2002),” young Mario set the stage for his 2005 sophomore set aptly titled Turning Point. Worldwide, the album reaped 2 million units in sales as “Let Me Love You” propelled him to the number one spot for nine consecutive weeks. The single holds the honor of being one of the highest selling ringtones to date with 1.6 million downloads [Deep Fried note: You know you have made it when your song breaks ringtones records] and Mario himself was bestowed with accolades including 2005’s Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Award for Top R&B/Hip-Hop Single, a Billboard Music Award for Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Single of the Year and a slew of nominations from the Grammys, BET Awards, Vibe Awards, MOBO Awards and the Soul Train Music Awards.
Mario will take over the stage at Dorton Arena on Thursday, Oct. 23, during the Fair. For you thrifty fans out there, this is also Food Lion Hunger Relief Day, when you can get in free with four cans of food. The singer still has great seats left for his show, so hurry over to our Web site to snatch yours up.
I am so thrilled about seeing Mario! I am a huge fan! The NC State Fair has done a tremendous job, getting great artist, and some even local to the area, to come out and support the fair!
We are going to break huge records this year!