Kidz Bop Live comes to Westbury
The Kidz Bop Kids' "Dream Big, Sing Loud!" tour stops at The Space at Westbury in Westbury on June 28, 2014. Credit: Kidz Bop
When the five kids who make up the powerhouse pop singing and dance group Kidz Bop aren't on stage, what do they like to do together?
Sing.
Really? More singing?
"Definitely," says Ashlynn Chong, 13, of California, who says that when the group was filming a music video and TV commercial in Alaska, it was "super fun" dreaming up mashups of songs from the movie "Frozen." It seems the ensemble can't get enough of making music together -- they'll share their talents on Saturday during a concert at The Space at Westbury.
The Kidz Bop Kids perform a compilation of sanitized hits, such as "Thrift Shop" by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and "Happy" by Pharrell Williams. Their tagline is "sung by kids for kids."
Since it launched in 2001, Kidz Bop has sold more than 14 million albums. The current members will perform for three years; this tour promotes their "Kidz Bop 26" album, due out July15.
Meet the crew coming to Long Island:
JAYNA BROWN
AGE 12
HOME STATE Maryland
HER EARLY YEARS "I stayed with my grandparents while my mom was away in the military, when she was deployed to Iraq. I would sing into a mirror and pretend to be a pop star, just like everyone who aspires to be an entertainer."
HOW SHE BALANCES SCHOOL AND TOURING "We always have to make sure we get three to four hours of school done every day. We do school in the most awkward places -- in the car, in the airport, in an airplane."
WHAT SHE MIGHT WANT TO BE WHEN SHE GROWS UP "A pediatrician. What I want to do is go to college and major in health sciences."
ASHLYNN CHONG
AGE 13
HOME STATE California
FAVORITE COSTUME "We do the song 'Thrift Shop' to start out the second half of the show. We wear crazy clothes: fur coats, jackets, glasses."
NUMBER OF TIMES SHE AUDITIONED Two. "I really wanted to get the job. I tried again two years later."
BEST PART OF TOURING "Getting to travel to all these places and meet people."
HARDEST PART "It's definitely difficult being away from my family. ... I have two sisters and a brother. I am the oldest."
GRANT KNOCHE
AGE 11
HOME STATE Texas
WHAT HE LOVES When kids in the audience sing along. "It gets us really pumped up."
HARDEST PART OF PERFORMING "It takes a lot of preparation. A lot of hard work."
INTERESTS BESIDES MUSIC He likes soccer, swimming and riding his dirt bike.
BROTHER'S CLAIM TO FAME Grant's older brother, Hunter, was a regular on the "Barney" TV show.
WHAT DAD SEAN HAS TO SAY "We're really, really proud of him. The journey that he's already had in this short amount of time is priceless."
MATT MARTINEZ
AGE 11
HOME STATE New Jersey
HIS ROLE IN THE GROUP Comedian
BEST PART OF PERFORMING "The fans really get me in the heart. They're so supportive. I can hear them when we're backstage getting ready. They're like, 'Kidz Bop! Kidz Bop!'"
WORST PART "We have to get up really early."
WHERE ELSE YOU'VE SEEN MATT In a "Can't Touch This" Eggo waffle commercial. He also was a Brooklyn Nets Kids dancer from 2012 to 2013.
IN THE FUTURE He hopes to work with Marvel Entertainment. He loves superheroes.
BREDIA SANTORO
AGE 12
HOME STATE Illinois
REACTION WHEN CHOSEN "I was totally shocked. My mind was blown. My mom started screaming."
FUN FACT Bredia was on the cover of American Girl magazine in 2012. "I was at dance and one of my friends said, 'Is this you?' I was like, 'Oh, my gosh!' I started freaking out."
ADVICE FOR KIDS WANTING TO PERFORM "Always believe in yourself, no matter what people say."
WHAT Kidz Bop Kids' "Dream Big, Sing Loud!" Tour
WHEN | WHERE 5 p.m. Saturday at The Space At Westbury, 250 Post Ave., Westbury; doors open at 4.
INFO $20 in advance, $25 day of show; 800-745-3000; thespaceatwestbury.com
