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909 comes back strong


Comedian Craig Carmean was rocking with his guitar and the onlookers were rolling out of their seats.

The 909 Comedy Series kicked off the new year on Thursday night with the Georgia native, who made his third trip to UTM in his six years of performing.

Carmean now resides in Miami and is a self-proclaimed beach bum who travels to different universities across the country to perform his outlandish act of music mixed with stand-up comedy.

During the summer, he takes a break from the college scene and takes his show to comedy clubs.

Carmean’s act is filled with music parodies that would make a sailor blush. He portrayed a variety of artists from Avril Lavigne to a combination song of Justin Timberlake and Eminem.

One crowd favorite was a paraody of Fountains of Wayne’s Stacy’s Mom.

Another shocking sketch was a mix of the Deliverance and The Brady Bunch theme songs. The racy skits had the majority of the crowd laughing, many with their jaws dropped to the floor. The comedian made comments that were merely for the shock effect and crowd response. His topics of choice included terrorism, alcohol abuse, relationships and celebrity bashing.

His high-energy performance was backed by his ability to say the unthinkable. He was not afraid to venture into topics that could be considered taboo.

“I thought he was funny and different because he was not afraid to say anything and his music was good,” said Drew Babb, a freshman from Union City.

Carmean interacted with the crowd and began to make jokes about local Martin hangouts.

He focused several jokes on the college atmosphere at UTM that received a loud response from his audience.

“I loved how he interacted with the audience and his high energy. If there were more comedians like this, more students would come,” said Jamie Lane, a freshman from Jackson.

With an upcoming appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Carmean’s future looks promising. He enjoys his comedy tour, but has high hopes for the future as a television and movie actor.

For the time being, he says, “I am as happy as Paris Hilton’s father doing a Google search.”

Carmean was the first comedian of the 909 series for this semester.

The Student Activities Council has scheduled three other comedians for the remainder of the academic year.