Big Time Rush rocks Stanislaus County Fair

Fans of Big Time Rush wore their hearts on their sleeves Wednesday at the Stanislaus County Fair. And on their faces. And arms. Legs. Pretty much any exposed area of skin.

As the crowd — easily 75 percent to 80 percent girls and young women — filled the 3,000-capacity Budweiser Variety Free Stage seating area to capacity, the affection for the four singers of BTR couldn’t have been more clear.

Shirts read, “I Can Be Your Girlfriend” (a nod to the group’s hit “Boyfriend”), “Team Kendall” and “Kendall He’s So Hot.”

A group of girls held a sign reading “Girls in Los Banos Love Big Time Rush.” Another read, “You Can Be My Boyfriend.” And another, “Carlos, I Love You.”

Teens even had “I Love James” and “Kiss Me Logan” boldly written on their arms.

Entry to the seating area opened at 3:30 p.m. — 90 minutes earlier than originally scheduled, and five hours ahead of showtime. Fair security staff opened the gates early because the line had grown so long it was beginning to obstruct fairground walkways.

Not surprising, considering the boy band has a hugely popular show on Nickelodeon, has singles approaching digital sales of 1 million and is enjoying strong sales of its recently released debut album.

Friends Katherine Santacruz and Adriana Valdez, 19-year-olds from Livingston, and Adriana’s sister Allie, 18, sat themselves down at the fairground gates to be first in line — at 3:30 a.m. “We love BTR,” said Adriana, who added that they wiled away the hours just talking with one another.

It was a little eerie sitting alone in the dark outside the fairground for a while, Allie said, “but there were people walking around inside, so it wasn’t too bad.”

Do the three fans have a favorite Big Time Rush member? “Kendall, Logan — we love them all,” Allie Valdez said diplomatically.

As for how they intended to behave during the concert, Allie said, “Dancing, singing, getting crazy. Looking for a boyfriend,” before quickly adding, “That’s one of their songs.”

The Livingston trio had an edge over younger fans: being able to drive themselves to their early-morning destination, rather than being at the mercy of a parent or older sibling.

But 7-year-old Ashley Faison of Modesto got seating just a few rows back by arriving at 1 p.m. “I love their music, just love it,” she said, adding that she has songs, episodes of their show and even concert footage stored on her cell phone.

Firmly planted in her seat in time for BTR’s afternoon sound check, Ashley received a special memento — a black hand towel tossed from the stage by singer Carlos Pena. The singers sounded “so great” during the sound check, she said, and “Carlos blew us all kisses, and he waved goodbye.”

“Carlos is really into the crowd,” chimed in 13-year-old Natalie Guiterrez of Hilmar, who scored front-row seats by getting in line with her sister at at 5:30 a.m. “My favorite song is ‘Boyfriend’ — it has an awesome rhythm and tune. They are my favorite band.”

When she learned BTR was coming to the fair, “me and my sister totally screamed. We HAD to be one of the first ones here.”

Little sister Nicole Guiterrez, 11, insists she’s the bigger fan of the two, and as evidence, she produced a note that she intended to crumple into a ball and toss on the stage to Carlos.

It read: “Carlos, I love you. Pease call me, txt me, e-mail me. I love you. Your #1 fan,” and even included all her contact info for the singer.

To kill time as they waited, the Guiterrez sisters played Uno and other card games. Their mom brought them water and corn dogs.

While those fans cooled their heals in their seats — at least, as best they could in weather that heated up after several mild days — other lucky BTR lovers enjoyed backstage photo opportunities with the quartet.

There were meet-and-greets provided by Sony, by the fair and by concert host KHOP radio.

Cousins Lexie Victoria, 14, and Mariah Vitoria, 18, both of Hilmar, were among the 100 backstage guests who won the opportunity through KHOP contests.

“I’m into Nickelodeon shows even though I’m 18,” said Mariah. “I’d always seen their show, and when I found out they were coming to the fair, I was surprised. But I knew KHOP always gives away meet-and-greet passes for the shows they put on, so I took the time to try to get them.”

As showtime neared and an announcer from KHOP was telling the crowd, “This is the largest crowd the Stanislaus County Fair has ever seen for a show,” it was nearly impossible to move in the walkways around the stage.

There were some frustrated faces and grumblings from people who were just trying to get from Point A to Point B at the fair, but most of those around the seating area clearly were there to hear the show.

The announcer got the fans chanting “Big Time Rush,” and a few times when it appeared BTR was getting set to take the stage, the crowd roared. Well, squealed is a more accurate description.

And when the guys took the stage and opened with “Famous,” followed by their “Big Time Rush” theme song. The fans were in full adulation mode, holding cameras and smartphones high over their heads, singing along, dancing as best they could in their packed space.

And outside the stage area, where there was no way they could see the band, little girls on their dads’ shoulders looked just as thrilled as if they were in the front row. Experiencing a big-time rush indeed.

Bee features editor Deke Farrow can be reached at 578-2327.

This story was originally published July 20, 2011 at 9:15 PM with the headline "Big Time Rush rocks Stanislaus County Fair."