Mario, Ready to Go

By: Starrene Rhett

      Mario captured hearts, young and old, as the cute 16-year-old kid crooning, “you got what I need” and ever since then, we all noticed. Now, four years older, with more facial hair, and double the sex appeal, he’s back and ready to release his third album, Go, in August.

      Having made his acting debut in Freedom Writers, and ready to capture more hearts with his more evolved, mature sound, his star is just beginning to rise. It seems as though things are starting to fall into place and he’s got his on take on why we love him.

Hiphopcrack: Your new album, Go is coming out this summer. What can people expect?

Mario: I got a lot of different producers that I worked with on the project. A lot of the album is definitely more aggressive than my last album – more up-tempo records on this album, but the slow records that I do have feel like up-tempo records so when you’re listening to them, you’re not being bored or drowned out by slow music or whatever…the first single is called “How Do I Breathe.” It’s a mid-tempo record, but I’d say it’s an intro type of record because it’s not like anything else on the album. It only grows from there.

Hiphopcrack: Did you work with Ne-Yo on this album?

Mario: I did. I worked with Ne-Yo on a song called “What’s it Gonna Be” on this project. We’re still panning out songs on what we’re going to keep and what we’re not going to keep so this song may or may not make it but as of right now it’s on my album and it’s called “What is it Gonna Be.” It’s a lot different from “Let me Love You.” It’s a more up-tempo record and it has a harder beat. He’s a very versatile writer so when we get together we always do something different. We did about three records but only one is making it.

Hiphopcrack:  What other producers do you have on there?

Mario: Scott Storch, Dre and Vidal, Pharell, Timbaland, Nightridaz, which is my production company, we got three joints on my album; Akon and the Stargate — who have the first single.

Hiphopcrack: How old are you if you don’t mind me asking?

Mario: I’m 20.

Hiphopcrack: Ok, you’re 20 now. How does it feel to have matured from being a teen singer to an adult?

Mario: Some people still look at me like the little Mario until they meet me and they talk to me and realize that I have grown and there’s a difference. But for me, it’s natural. I don’t realize how young I am until somebody says, “Oh, he’s only 20.” I’m doing my thing; I have a lot of responsibilities so I don’t feel like that young Mario anymore – personal and business, so it’s been natural growth for me.

Hiphopcrack: Speaking of growth, don’t you have a beard now?

Mario: [laughs] Sometimes I keep it on, sometimes I cut it off but as of right now, I got it off.

Hiphopcrack: How does the new album reflect your growth from when you first came out?

Mario: Wow…vocally, it does just what I’m talking about — The conviction, how I’m saying it, the swagger on the record – I would definitely say the look of the album, when you see the pictures, there’s a lot of growth there and confidence. I think all of that has to do with the other. So that’s definitely what I’m talking about; the songs and how I express them on the album…how they feel more than anything. It feels more mature, it feels sexier, it feels more confident.

Hiphopcrack: We know that in the industry that women feel a certain pressure to be thin or to look a certain way but I’ve noticed lately with other singers in the game that it’s been more about being able to dance and poplocking, but you’re more of a hardcore singer, so do you ever feel pressure to be up on stage dancing more than anything?

Mario: I do, but it has to be controlled. When it comes to choreography, that’s when we get ready for it and I do it, but I was a singer first. I was a singer before I was a dancer. When I go to the club, I definitely dance but I feel the pressure. I don’t feel like when you listen to my music, that’s what you see or hear, I feel like I can do it if I want to but I don’t have to. But of course when you do a show, you have to add the dancing and the choreography but that’s not what makes me.

Hiphopcrack: So, what does make you unique from the other dudes out there?

Mario: I think it has a lot to do with the songs and the concept of the record.

Hiphopcrack: Do you also write?

Mario: Yep. I wrote four songs on this album.

Hiphopcrack: Cool. How did you come up with the track “How Do I Breathe,” you mentioned it a little bit earlier?

Mario: “How do I Breathe” came about with me and Stargate, producers from over seas who are here now. They work with pretty much everybody now. When you hear the record, it feels sort of like “Let Me Love You,” but I’d definitely say it’s more mature and the conviction is different. The track is a little more up beat and it’s fresher. When we did the record it was pretty much just me, being in my vulnerable state talking about a situation where…I had a girl at the time and we were going in between being together and out of a relationship and so on so it was like “”How can I breathe without you by my side?” “How can I see when your love brought me to the light?” It’ one of them vulnerable joints but other songs on the album are more aggressive like “Go.” It’s definitely an aggressive club joint where I’m talking to a girl about taking her home. There are definitely different personalities on this album.

Hiphopcrack: So what’s your situation like with the ladies right now?

Mario: It’s lovely [laughs]. I’m meeting a lot of different young ladies –

Hiphopcrack:  Young and old, I bet.

Mario: [laughs] Both. It’s interesting. It’s really cool, man, It’s fun, but at the same time, it’s more about working right now, I’m very busy right now it’s very hard to meet one person when I’m going around meeting all these different people. I gotta keep my options open.

Hiphopcrack: Speaking of you being busy, you’ve transitioned into being an actor, so do you have any new acting projects on the horizon or is it just about music right now?

Mario: Actually, the DVD for “Freedom Writers” is out but I’m reading a lot of different scripts right now. A lot of different scripts are in the works. We have about 5 different scripts that I’m reading for, however, I don’t know what’s gonna come out of that so right now, I’m just looking to shoot my next film after the summer and see what comes out of it.

Hiphopcrack: Would you say you’re more passionate about music?

Mario: Absolutely.

Hiphopcrack: Speaking of your passion, for music, what do you expect your impact to be as an artist as far as your singing and your style –

Mario: Setting the bar, bringing out classic music. I think artists have been doing that but we’ve just been pushing a little further, and we’re going to set the bar and create my lane.

Hiphopcrack: That was my last question but do you have anything you want to add?

Mario:  The album comes out in August. The first single is called “How Do I Breathe,” it’s hittin’ your radio stations right now so you can call and request it. It’s about to go down.