CAIRO- Inclement weather didn’t prevent residents of Cairo from crowding into the Grady Cultural Center for a show-stopping performance from Cairo native Karisma Brown and power pop band The Producers on Wednesday night in celebration of Independence Day.
Originally planned as Independence Day on Main, Cairo Main Street Director of Tourism Shelly Searcy explained the weather forced the plans to move indoors to the Grady Cultural Center. However, everyone was more than amiable to do so, as hundreds turned out with their pop-up chairs in hand to enjoy vendors and live music.
Guests enjoyed a musical performance by Brown, who shared some of her story with the crowd.
Brown graduated from Cairo High School, before joining the Air Force in 2018. After only six months in the Air Force, Brown was deployed to Afghanistan, where she completed fly-away security missions.
She was then honorably discharged in May 2023. During her time at home, Brown began singing and in December she dropped her first country single, “Made for Me,” which she performed for the crowd.
This was Brown’s first time in front of a live audience, where she also shared her newest debut single, “Perfect Angel,” which was released on May 21.
“This is my first time in front of a live audience tonight singing, but I feel like this was made for me, so I’m excited to share it with you guys,” she told the crowd.
Brown would perform her two singles, before turning the microphone over to hit band, The Producers, who had quite the crowd in attendance for them.
“They were a power pop band in the ’80s,” Searcy said. “They started in Atlanta, Georgia.”
Since their inception as a Beatles cover band, the band has soared to popularity especially in the South with their hit “What She Does to Me” onto the Billboard Magazine singles chart.
For those just looking for a family activity, Searcy promised a fun time for all with numerous local vendors and food trucks, including hand-spun cotton candy, face painting, flavored hand-squeezed lemonade, and homemade pork plates.
“We have a lot of Main Street folks here still supporting us,” she said.
However, Searcy assured that the support will soon be returned to downtown Main Street, as more concerts will come this summer.
“We just wanted everyone to be able to enjoy this concert, even in the rain,” she said.
Searcy thanked all the sponsors and the bands for their flexibility throughout the event and all the people who turned out to make Independence Day on Main possible, despite the weather.
The event concluded with fireworks once the weather calmed, so everyone in attendance could still enjoy a traditional Independence Day celebration.