B96 Summer Bash - Back in Booming Business

by Terra Cooney

The 83 degree weather promised a sweltering day in the sun, peppered with the sounds of familiar faces in popular music, amidst anticipated lengthy delays between acts. But unlike last year, the 2008 B96 Summer Bash, at Toyota Park on June 14, brought something much more pleasant, as the heat was tame, the breeze was just right, and shade from the Chicago Fire Stadium walls was ample for most. Baking at stage right though, B96 fans, filling the stands more as evening hit, didn't seem to mind being shined on during the all-day shindig. The brief breaks between acts, filled with live entertainment and enough dance music to keep concert-goers content, helped them to forget the heat, and get down with the sounds that pumped from the stage.

The five-hour pre-bash stage welcomed acts like Jerzy, Phoenix Phenom, and DJ Spin, among others, and gave the fans time to file into the outdoor amphitheater in Bridgeview, IL. Ben One, R&B crooner of "Never Leave My Girl" featuring Shawnna, was up first for the main acts, just before 5 p.m. He and Atlanta-based threesome, C-Side (of the hit "Boyfriend/Girlfriend" with Keyshia Cole) each performed short sets of about 15 minutes, before the station's own DJ Flipside and his dancers came in to keep the crowd dancing. From new school to old school, the bash made sure there was something for all age groups. Next up, TKA and K7 performed for the 25-and-overs, who were few and far between, but still in the crowd. The Puerto Rican group (formerly known as just TKA) who released the '90s hit "Maria", and later, "Come Baby Come" by spinoff solo singer K7, performed without much recognition among the young crowd. The sound wasn't the greatest, with microphone volumes deafening, foreshadowing possibly something other than a come back in store for these stars.

Read the full review at UnRatedMagazine.com