Mindless Behavior’s Roc Royal, Prodigy, Princeton & Ray Ray talk new album, movie and tour
Story: Amir Shaw
Images: DeWayne Rogers
The second time around can be scary for many artists in music. There is a fine line to walk between achieving status as a sophomore sensation or falling victim to the sophomore jinx. The biggest issue for many recording artists is that they spill their entire life stories into the first project, and find themselves bewildered and lacking creativity when it’s time to record the second album.
But there’s something different about Mindless Behavior. They aren’t worried about a sophomore jinx because their stories continue to be written every day. And the second time around is another opportunity for their dedicated fans to follow them on their worthwhile journey.
When Roc Royal, Prodigy, Princeton and Ray Ray were discovered by Walter Millsap, Keisha Gamble and Vincent Herbert in 2008, they were ambitious preteens with superior dance skills. Three years after the group was created, Mindless Behavior took the mantle as the newest teen heartthrobs in music. Thanks to an unwavering buzz on social media sites such as Twitter (822,884 followers), Facebook (1.5 million likes) and YouTube (160 million views), the group’s fan base responded by helping their debut album, #1 Girl, reach No. 2 on the R&B charts and peak at No. 7 on the Billboard 200.
They sold out nearly every arena on their 25-city #1 Girl tour and took the show overseas.
Indeed, Mindless Behavior gave new life to the boy band concept in music, while providing a soundtrack for the lives of their teenage fan base.
And just like their fan base, Mindless Behavior is growing before our eyes. Their voices are changing, they’re all a few inches taller, and they have more experience, which broadens their perspective. In turn, they named their new album All Around the World. The album takes a more mature approach, but it continues to build on what they established with their hit debut. The group will also release a documentary, Mindless Behavior: All Around the World, which will debut in most theaters three days after the March 12 release of the album.
This can be considered the second time for Mindless Behavior, but it’s more like the next leg of an ongoing quest. It’s a quest to be the best entertainers, give their fans a piece of their lives and break down the complexities of being a teenager and experiencing love for the first time.
