While attending Delaware State College in the mid 1980s, the Final Mixx band came of age and attained a name for itself among by touring the residence halls on the DSC campus. After gaining popularity with students, they eventually picked up gigs in the clubs of Dover, broader Delaware and New Jersey. After graduation, the band members decided to stay in Dover in order to have a shot at fortune and fame as a professional band. Their opportunity eventually came in the form of Budweiser Showdown. Watch Final Mixx at Club Illusion in Dover, DE
Throughout the 1980s, Budweiser sponsored regional talent contests to locate up and coming Black music artists. The winners of the five regional competitions were then invited to perform at a national competition with a cash prize and a record label deal. In 1989 Final Mixx entered a regional contest in Philadelphia and won!
It's July 21, 1989 at the Hoosier Dome. There are 10,000 people watching. Spike Lee, Sinbad and El Debarge are in the audience. Standing in front of all of them are the members of Final Mixx, Mark Harris, Tracey Hazzard, Marty Denson, Derrick Williams, Vincent Adkins, Reuben Fountain and Richard Wright ready to give the performance of their lives. The band performed four songs, left the stage and assumed they hadn't won.
In a stunning moment backstage, the band was hanging out and did not initially realize that Final Mixx had been declared the winner. With a little bit of prompting, the band rushed the stage to accept a $10,000 cash prize, musical equipment and a deal with Motown records. Watch a promo for Budweiser Showdown featuring the moment Final Mixx won.
While you can find the LP from the Budweiser Showdown in online marketplaces, unfortunately the band didn't go on to record an album and was all but forgotten by Motown Records. Final Mixx, has not, however, been erased. Their story is forever preserved in the Hornet student newspapers. Next time you are in Professor Denson's music class or chat with Mark Harris at the library front desk, be sure to ask them about the time they performed for 10,000 people!
