Billboard exclusive
Mario Celebrates 20 Years Since Self-Titled Debut Album & Reflects on His Legacy: ‘I’m Proud of the Man I’m Becoming’
Mario is the independent R&B star and Grammy-nominated artist behind four LPs that hit the top 25 of the Billboard 200 albums chart, including his self-titled breakout debut. Mario reached No. 9 on the Billboard 200, and spawned a top 5 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with the Biz Markie redo “Just a Friend 2002” — which has endured into the streaming era, earning 92.6 million on-demand streams, according to Luminate. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news That set was released on J Records and executive produced by label founder Clive Davis, who the singer/songwriter tells Billboard is “one of the best execs in the game.” Now after launching his independent label, New Citizen LLC, in 2015, Mario is celebrating the 20th anniversary of his deb...
Jason Derulo Talks Feeling ‘Nostalgia’ as International Artist Mentor & How ‘Afrobeats Literally Re-Inspired Me’
Ahead of the May release of his collaborative summer single “Slidin’” with Kodak Black, Jason Derulo partnered with Tuborg Open to give six unsigned international rising artists the mentoring opportunity of a lifetime. For the experience, presented by Danish beer brand Tuborg as part of the annual Tuborg Open campaign (which is in its sixth year), each artist spent one-on-one studio time in Los Angeles with Derulo, learning key pointers about performing, producing, songwriting and what it takes to succeed in the industry. The artists also individually performed for Derulo at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theatre and were given constructive feedback. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In alphabetical order, the six participating artists (who e...
