| Take Note and Tune Up |
 Take Note and Tune UpRising stars in Cincy music Hometown boy Nick Lachey sang his way to fame with 98 Degrees. And now we're featuring two local talents whose voices are paving their way to stardom. Discover these note-sounding, beat-keeping celebrities in the making. Cincinnati has had its share of celebrities, and the music world hasn't been excluded in the Queen City talent pool. From Bootsy Collins and the Isley Brothers to Drew and Nick Lachey, Tri-Staters have voiced their passions to climb the charts. Beyond the funk, doo-wop, soul and pop, Cincinnati has made its mark in the classical  music world. Boasting the Cincinnati Opera (the second oldest opera company in the United States) and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (the fifth oldest orchestra in the United States), Cincinnati's classical talents range from violins to vocal chords.
Today's up-and-coming talent promises that the city's musical talent only will continue on, and Cincy Chic fills you in on two names who are making it big. Singer/Songwriter Mia Carruthers Back in the boy-band days of the Backstreet Boys, 'N Sync and 98 Degrees, the Lachey brothers made Cincinnati proud with their vocal talent and catchy dance moves. Since his own 15 minutes of fame, Nick has worked to help discover new singers and dancers so that they could get their own taste of celebrity.
With shows like NBC's "The Sing-Off" and MTV's "Taking the Stage," Nick hit the reality circuit to showcase his discovered talents on national television. As "Taking the Stage" centered around the life and drama in the School for Creative and Performing Arts
Throughout the show, Carruthers and the other students exposed their lives to the camera, as the lens captured traditional high school drama mixed in with aspiring artist auditions. Carruthers herself added to the mix with a love triangle (or square) with Tyler Nelson and Aaron Breadon (and Tyler's ex/girlfriend Jasmine White-Killins).
Besides the ordinary relationship drama of a teenage girl, Carruthers captivated audiences with her extraordinary musical talents. She belts out chords while strumming the guitar or tickling the ivories. She even met with Jive Records in New York about the possibility of their signing her onto their label.
After graduating from SCPA, Carruthers took on the real world by moving out of her parents' house, starting her own band with a couple guys (including Breadon on drums) and chopping her long locks. With her band, "Mia Carruthers and the Retros," Carruthers is starting out small and waiting to make it big, but with her talent, that break could be any minute.
Countertenor Michael Match
Carruthers' passion for music has a Match, Michael Match, that is. Match grew up with music all around him, including a piano in his house and his grandmother's constant singing (not that that's a bad thing). "I started playing at church when I was 11 and never wanted to be anything but a musician," Match says.
His career dreams came true, as he persisted in the church to achieve his current status as organist and music director at Saint Aloysius Gonzaga. But Match's musical career didn't stop there, in fact he credits the parishioners at "Saint Al's" with helping him achieve something a little bigger.
On June 5, Match turned 31 and auditioned for the second annual Opera Idol competition with the Cincinnati Opera. Along with Match were close to 60 singers, none of whom had sung professionally with a theater company, opera company, or symphony orchestra.
Slowly judges narrowed those 60 singers down to 10 semi-finalists, and those 10 semi-finalists dwindled
"Chris Milligan called me personally to relay the news and congratulate me. The initial feeling was complete relief, since I had really let the anxiety of not knowing really build up," Match says. "I happened to be with my mom when he called, and she provided the exuberant cheering section while I tried to finish our conversation on the phone. It really took a day or two to sink in, but I enjoyed each minute of it! This is the biggest and most public thing that I've ever won, so I have been very overjoyed and thankful."
With the title, Match also received a $3,500 contract with the Cincinnati Opera. And Match and the Cincinnati Opera are still ironing out the specifics of that contract. "My hope is that I'll get to do as much as possible in the community as well as on stage to remind people of what a terrific company we have here in Cincinnati," he says.
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