Music News, Reviews, and Gossip on Idolator.com » Mario

Chynna Phillips Joins The Long History Of Pop Stars On ‘Dancing With The Stars’ (PHOTOS)

Erika Brooks Adickman — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 23:41:00 +0000

Wilson Phillips' Chynna Phillips will cha-cha her way onto Season 13 of Dancing With The Stars, and the "Hold On" singer expressed her excitement to put her former ballet training to work with the Venetian Waltz. (She also hopes her recent movie cameo in Bridesmaids will encourage viewers pick up the phone to vote this Fall.) We're stoked to see the 43-year-old join the ranks of 12 seasons worth of pop star contestants when the competition kicks off September 19. Dance down memory lane as we remember some of our favorite music acts to tango onto DWTS. More »

Mario Arrested For Allegedly Assaulting His Mother

Becky Bain — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 22:44:19 +0000

R&B singer Mario was arrested early Friday morning and charged with second-degree assault after allegedly hitting his mother. His mom, Shawntia Hardaway, told Baltimore police that her son “started yelling at her and he used his hands and forearms and pushed her in the chest and shoulder area causing minor pain and discomfort,” and added that this was not the first time he had assaulted her.

The relationship between the butter-smooth “Ooh Baby” singer and his mother was previously explored in the 2007 MTV documentary, I Won’t Love You To Death: The Story Of Mario And His Mom, in which the performer confronts his mother’s heroin addiction. [MTV]

Mario Picks Up The Ladies In The “Ooh Baby” Vid—And Real Life

Becky Bain — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 20:22:26 +0000

Mario’s adventurous D.N.A. hasn’t gained much traction, but that may change with his third single, the sexy slowjam “Ooh Baby.” (In fact, the Baltimore R&B singer sounds pretty confident of it, starting off the track by saying “I think this one’s for the radio.”) In the brand-new video for the song, Mario hangs at the club, enjoys a little champagne, and seduces two women at once—and graphically so. The best part? Music video director Mickey Finnegan hardly needed to hire a cast: he tells us that the video is more or less a reality TV-style segment about Mario’s typical day. Hear his take on Mario’s fame, and maybe catch a glimpse of that (possibly NSFW) threesome after the jump.

“Ooh Baby” certainly brings to mind both the music and video fro The-Dream’s “Falsetto“, but this is obviously different because, where The-Dream got busy in a Las Vegas hotel room with one lady, Mario brings his multiple ladyfriends in a D.C. hotel room.

Mario – “Ooh Baby”

Should have been the video for Britney Spears’ “3,” no?

We chatted with the “Ooh Baby” vid’s director, Mickey Finnegan, who disclosed that the idea of throwing a big ol’ superhot sex scene at the end of the clip was all “Mario’s manager and Mario’s idea. [They wanted] this taking two girls home kind of thing, and having this sexual scene. In real life, if Mario goes to a club, [this is] literally how you see it happen. We tried to make it as real as possible. Mario could probably pull two girls. He does alright.”

Mario does so well, in fact, he was picking up girls during the music video shoot without even trying. “Girls would come up to me while we’re filming, in tears,” remembers Finnegan of shooting in a nightclub during open hours. “They were so, so dying to meet him. ‘I love Mario so much! Can you just introduce me? Please?’”

He didn’t—sorry ladies. If you want to get close to Mario, your best bet is starring in a music video with him.

Tapemasters’ “Future Of R & B 28″ Will Bring You Joy

Maura — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 17:00:40 +0000

Regular readers of this site know that I’m a big fan of the Future Of R&B series of mixes put forth by the mix-happy outfit Tapemasters. The set’s 28th installment hit file-sharing sites over the weekend, and it’s a pretty fantastic collection, programmed like the all-new-tracks R & B station in some alternate universe where things are a lot better than this one. It kicks off with a new track by Beyoncé—the ProToolsy ode to making whoopee “Slow Love”—and kicks into overdrive from there, with contributions by Amerie, Lloyd, Ne-Yo, and Mary J. Blige, among others. My five favorite tracks after the jump.

R. Kelly – “I Had A Dream”

I can sort of hear the vocal “enhancing” going on here, but I can’t help but wonder if the “I Believe I Can Fly, Part Two: I Flew” vibe of the track will make people start to embrace Kells again.

Amerie ft. Nas, Jadakiss, Cain & Rick Ross – “Why R U (One Love Remix)”

Ne-Yo – “I Don’t Care”

Not a Fall Out Boy cover, alas. But it’s pretty smooth.

Mario – “Who Do U Love”

His fourth album DNA just got pushed back.

Lloyd – “Like Me”

This track is also on Lloyd’s new two-disc mix that is based off his 2008 album Lessons In Love; the mix site DatPiff.com has helpfully tagged it with “sex” and “baby making,” so you know what you’re in for.

There’s also a new Usher song that’s sort of meh; in it, he talks about being “a married man.” I thought that was no longer the case?

Tapemasters Inc. – The Future Of R&B 28 [MixTapeKings]

Maura — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 02:15:34 +0000

Among the “celebrities” who will be hoofing it up during the sixth season of Dancing With The Stars: R & B singer Mario, who’s apparently going the “any port in a storm” route as far as promoting his long-pushed-back album Go!, which has sold about 200,000 copies in the two months since its release. (”Look, everybody! You can tango to this track!”) [EW / Photo: AP]

Maura — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 02:30:56 +0000

Just when you think Kelly Rowland’s year–which was so bad, her Clash Of The Choirs appearance might actually be one of its highlights–can’t get any worse, it does: She’s now giving away tickets to her upcoming show at the House Of Blues in Atlantic City. [Ticketmaster via ONTD]

Today In Shifting Release Dates: Make Sure To Use A Pencil

Maura — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 07:10:56 +0000

It’s time for another look at upcoming albums that have had their release dates pushed back, a condition that’s growing ever more chronic as the bottom seemingly falls out of the music industry. Today, we look at albums by Mariah Carey, Mario, and Ashlee Simpson that are allegedly coming soon, although not as soon as originally thought.

Mariah Carey, Untitled
Old date: Dec. 4.
New date: February 2008.
Official reason: None given, although Roger Friedman sounds a bit too excited by the phrase “diva logjam.” (Madonna and Janet Jackson’s forthcoming albums are being released around the same time.)
Real reason: How do you top “We Belong Together”? Here’s hoping that whatever Mariah and Jermaine Dupri come up with, it doesn’t involve her using the “Genius Of Love” sample for the 8,485th time.

Mario, Go
Old date: Oct. 30.
New date: Nov. 27.
Official reason: Dude’s label is really trying hard to set a record for longest pre-release-date delay.
Real reason: Re-re-re-retooling thanks to it leaking a week ago. Here’s hoping one of Mario’s “people” has T-Pain’s number!

Ashlee Simpson, Untitled
Old date: November 2007.
New date: Q1 of 2008.
Rumored reason: She’s scared of … Blake Lewis? Seriously? Wasn’t his album pushed back from November anyway? Does anyone fact-check anything anymore?
Real reason: She just figured out that the line “OJ is my favorite Simpson” may not be the best thing to put on a record right now. (Also, the song said line is in is kind of unspeakably awful. Just saying.)

[Photo: Getty]

Leak Of The Day, Part II: Mario Has A Pocket Full Of Kryptonite

Brian Raftery — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 05:35:18 +0000

“Kryptonite,” the first single from R&B singer Mario’s upcoming Go album, is absolutely coconuts: Much like Omarion’s “Ice Box”, it’s a girl-i’m-so-sorry plea with zero restraint and a sputtering backing track that’s all but begging for multiple remixies. And just when you think it’s going to be a pleasant, American Idol-ready love song, Rich Boy shows up and complains about getting too much head. Song of the year? No. But maybe!

~~Mario feat. Rich Boy – Kryptonite~~ [MP3, link expired]
Mario [MySpace]