Jingle Ball Makes Many Merry This Holiday Season

Thousands rushed to pack the BB&T center on December 20 to watch their favorite performers at this year’s incarnation of Y100s Jingle Ball. The audience consisted of teenage girls, chaperoning parents, ticket winners, and a few tough guys who went to win some brownie points with their girlfriends.  

The concert had an impressive lineup including a few of the most controversial artists of 2013, Miley Cyrus, Robin Thicke, Demi Lovato, Fall Out Boy, Ariana Grande, etc.

The opening act was the talented Demi Lovato who impressed with her vocals and shocked with her vibrant blue hair.   

Y100s radio personalities Nina Alicia, Mack, Nick, Froggy, Valentine, and Elvis Duran, all took turns introducing acts; one name constantly being mentioned throughout the show: Miley Cyrus.  Of course, the word twerk immediately followed.

Where there is a Miley there is also a Robin Thicke who began with the most popular song of the year “Blurred Lines” causing all the moms in the audience to drool a bit.  However, Robin Thicke was quickly forgotten once Enrique Iglesias took the stage. Although dressed in jeans and a v-neck his casual attire was overlooked once he began to sing hits like “Baby I Like it”. A highlight of his performance was when he threw himself into the crowd as balloons scribed with the initials “EI” fell from the ceiling and even took a selfie with one of the audience member’s phone.

Live tweets with the hashtag #Y100JINGLEBALL were also a big part of the show as they were broadcasted on a screen throughout the night.

An unmemorable act of the night was Austin Mahone who, quite frankly, was repetitive and unoriginal as he sang his renditions of Mario’s “Just a Friend” and “Let Me Love You”. Equally as disappointing was Fifth Harmony, who performed their single “Miss Moving On” in a screechy manner and the audiences facial expressions said it all and not in a good way.  

South Florida’s very own Ariana Grande and Flo Rida definitely entertained. Grande was everything you wanted and more: sweet, cute, sassy, and with a voice larger than life. “The last time I was here I sang the National Anthem at a Panthers’ game when I was 8,” she confessed. She left her heart on the stage with songs like “Honeymoon Avenue” off her current album Yours Truly. Flo Rida was the complete opposite: loud, arrogant, and wild, yet still entertaining. He sang his club hits like “Whistle” and “Good feeling” and allowed a lucky few to go on stage to sing and dance along.

A nice surprise followed when Fall Out Boy took stage and amazed with their pyrotechnics and talent. They shook the BB&T center to its core while performing both new and old work like “Thanks For The Memories.”

Armin Van Buuren brought the techno craze to life after having technical difficulties with his equipment which he managed to surpass; flashing lights and enough bass to make your whole body vibrate eventually took over.

Finally, Miley Cyrus took the stage and shockingly didn’t disappoint. She wore a barely-there leotard and a plaid shirt around her hips. Of course, she was bound to have an on-stage Santa drinking booze and some midgets in provocative attire on stage as she sang “We Can’t Stop.” But what really made her performance one of the most memorable was when she took it a few years back and sang “Party in the USA”. The crowd sang along loudly and the BB&T center seemed to be made up of “Smilers.” However, Cyrus wanted to keep the shock going and did her own version of Lana Del Ray’s summer anthem “Summertime Sadness.” She surpassed everyone’s expectations and proved herself to be a great performer and a genuine artist. It was no surprise why she was the headliner of the tour.

The four-hour long Jingle Ball 2013 was an overall entertaining experience and well worth the earache caused by screaming fans.