Rhett & Link headed to NC State Fair; here's why your kids can't get enough of them
Of all of the concerts headed to the NC State Fair later this month, Rhett & Link Live is the one that's probably generating the most buzz so far.
Already, the VIP tickets to the event, which offer a meet and greet, have sold out. The fair also has requested to have a sign language interpreter there as well because of the interest.
And, it's likely there will be a long line to get in to Dorton Arena when the doors open for the show at 6 p.m., Oct. 12. Tickets are free for first-come, first-served general admission seats as long as you have a ticket to get into the fair. The concert will start at 7:30 p.m.
So who are these guys? For the uninitiated (AKA, parents who aren't glued to YouTube like their kids are), here's the rundown.
They're YouTube stars
But they're not your average YouTube stars. Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal's YouTube show Good Mythical Morning has more than 14 million subscribers and has featured a varying cast of actors and other notables, including Daniel Radcliffe, Amy Schumer and John Green, who writes wildly popular young adult novels.
Their concert at the NC State Fair, however, will feature their comedic music, which is featured on a YouTube channel that boasts more than 800 million channel views.
Oh ... and they're featured in things like the New York Times crossword puzzle and hang out with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show.
They're from here
Yep! That's right. These YouTube superstars grew up in the Triangle. They met in first grade, according to a profile of them for the NC State Fair, in Buies Creek when their first grade teacher punished them for writing curse words on their desk. That sealed the deal for this comic duo, who eventually graduated from NC State with engineering degrees.
Their videos go viral
It might have started with Rhett's video of his preschool son crying because Carolina beat NC State in basketball way back in 2007. Then it grew.
Today, their Good Mythical Morning YouTube channel has 14 million subscribers. There, they do things like eat weird or gross things such as the the world's hottest chili pepper - the Carolina Reaper, for instance. Or they take the nasty smell challenge, like the time they smelled rotten clams. Or they put weird things in toaster ovens or coffee makers like hot sauce or Pop Rocks.
Over on their comedic music channel, hits include My OCD with nearly 44 million views so far; Epic Rap Battle: Nerd vs. Geek, which has racked up nearly 41 views; and Epic Rap Battle of Manliness with 24 million views.
Yep, Weird Al is among their idols
Their music reminds me a bit of Weird Al Yankovic, my own tween favorite back in the day. And, apparently, Rhett and Link are big fans too. When the two had Weird Al on their show last November, they shared that the first album either of them purchased was by Weird Al.
"If the middle school versions of us saw us doing this right now, they'd be freaking out," Link told Weird Al.
They love the State Fair
At least, that's what the profile of them on the fair's website says. They went to the fair as kids and remember seeing Merle Haggard play on the Dorton Arena stage many years ago.
According to the profile, in their 2017 book, "Rhett & Link's Book of Mythicality," "they marked school yearbooks with lyrics from Haggard’s songs and seeing him perform on the Dorton Arena stage was transformative. In fact, Haggard performed on the first Friday during the fair in 1999, and Rhett and Link will follow in his footsteps with their Friday performance."
It is family friendly
The consensus on Common Sense Media is that Rhett & Link's Good Mythical Morning is best for kids 11 and up (9 and up, if you ask the kids).
"There's no profanity, and most of the humor is generally clean, with the exception of a few anatomical-based jokes," writes the reviewer. And that's my own experience, watching episodes, from time to time, with my own kids.
