Coming Of Age
Artist: Omarion
Interviewer: Melanie Cornish
Rhythm and Blues has been a lyrical soapbox for those hurt and pained by love since its inception back in the late 1940's. And raised amongst a family of performers and entertainers, Omarion is still adding his twist to the content that we have sang along with and cried to over the last fifty plus years.
With the Timbaland-produced and assisted track, "Ice Box," this young Inglewood native has definitely touched the hearts of his fans and made a mark on the Billboard charts. The track came from real life experience and in this interview, the former B2K front man talks about his inspiration for the track, we talked movies and we talked how hard fame can actually be for a young guy like himself.
And just for the record we did all this while he was at the 'eye doctor' because, for some, the grind just never stops.
SoundSlam: You have been busy?
Omarion: Yeah just trying to work and trying to grind. God is the greatest.
SoundSlam: When you look back, you came into the game quite young. Do you think that is a good thing or a bad thing?
Omarion: Well it depends. I have had a lot of elements to keep me sane. As truthfully I can be a mess but because I have a cool Mom and a cool group of friends and my family I stay grounded. But fame, I don't know how to explain it. It isn't for everyone.
SoundSlam: It comes with a price?
Omarion: Exactly. I would say it is good if you have a good team around you, but if you don't I wouldn't recommend it.
SoundSlam: Who has helped you along the way from the industry?
[b]Omarion:[/b] I have a lot of entertainer friends who have been helpful and have given me lots of advice, but don't get me wrong, there are a few people that come around when my music is really, really popular or when I have a hit, you know there are the ones that always remain the same and care to be honest with me and keep it real with me. I can see I have a lot of relationships that have nothing to do with the entertainment industry and they are because they love me and who I am and the person outside the music and everything. They try to give me suggestions and all my friends are family. You would go crazy without that though.
SoundSlam: Your single "Ice Box" off the album is everywhere, where was your head at when you wrote that track?
Omarion: It is funny because when that record came about myself and JQ were in the studio and Timbaland sent over the beat and I told my boy, if this ends up happening I know it is meant to be. This record was something that was really important to me. It was there from a situation that I had just got out of; it came from a real place. For the last year and a half, me and my ex have been separated and we had been together for three and a half years and just felt like I wanted to make something that guys can connect with. I don't consider myself a super pretty boy or a soft guy, I consider myself like a man and becoming more mature I have found it is ok to talk about things in your life. I can't deny that I didn't care about hr, I couldn't deny that I could have done some things differently being now that I am matured and able to accept being honest. I know a lot of guys feel that, you know we are stubborn.
SoundSlam: There is a lot of sentimentality there then?
Omarion: Yeah, I mean I am a stubborn dude, and now that I am mature, I can say I really cared about that girl.
SoundSlam: So do you have an 'ice-box?'
Omarion: Nah, I am all melted down now.
SoundSlam: How hard is it to have a functioning relationship, being the age that you are and also with the fame that you have?
Omarion: It is very difficult, I mean even just me being who I am. I mean I am not a regular guy, I am a "one woman" man, I have a real strong spiritual back ground and I am for doing things right. If I meet a normal girl who doesn't love God or know God we are not going to connect and that is on top of trying to figure out if they just want to know because of who I am.
SoundSlam: How hard is it for a female that you are involved with to deal with the groupies and the hangers-on that guys like you obviously attract?
Omarion: I am pretty sure it was really had for my ex as I am private too and she was normal. She went to college, her life was more private than mine and most people who go to college have a different life. She wanted to pursue college and she is a really, really smart girl, yet because we were so young, and we are still very young, I think she has a lot of searching and finding to find herself as a person as well as I do. You know it was a good situation, just the wrong time.
SoundSlam: All good for lyrical content though?
Omarion: Yeah exactly, you know if it was meant to be it will be, you know whoever I am supposed to end up with I will end up with. It is no biggie, you live and you learn.
SoundSlam: Are you happy with the way the album is moving right now?
Omarion: Yeah I am happy with the way everything is going as all I am hearing is good, good feedback. Everyone tells me the album is good and I am so happy about that.
SoundSlam: O went gold, a lot of people worry about numbers, but wouldn't you say going gold on a debut album is pretty satisfying?
Omarion: Well see a lot of people, being that I was in the industry, expect me to do more or be at a different level, but truthfully, being a solo artist it is like I started over again. It is a new identity. I still have the fan base but a lot of people doubt me and I had to prove myself and God gave me the opportunity to just keep proving myself over and over again.
SoundSlam: So you would say it is better to gradually increase sales?
Omarion: Exactly as that will encourage longevity, you know what I am saying.
SoundSlam: You are not just a singer; you have three movies coming out this year that you play a roe in. How hard is scheduling your life?
Omarion: It is really hard, because you have commitments and everyone wants this and everyone wants that. Really, I just try to do it in the best proper way that everyone gets what they need and everyone is accommodated.
SoundSlam: Were you an actor before you were a singer or vice versa?
Omarion: I was actually acting before I was singing yeah. For me it was a natural progression and I always looked at myself like Sammy Davis Junior, Frank Sinatra, those guys, they are the people who I look up to because they had singing, dancing, doing movies. They had it all and that is what I consider myself to be. You know just another extension of the Rat Pack.
SoundSlam: You've Been Served II is coming out this year?
Omarion: Yeah, we are getting prepared for that, I have another film called Reggaeton that Jennifer Lopez produced, and I have another film called Somebody Help Me which is coming out this year, myself Marques Houston, that's a scary movie and that's going to be fun too. That is going to be dope too as the black people don't die first in this scary movie. [laughing]
SoundSlam: In terms of the acting, do you actively seek scripts or are you just sent them by an agent?
Omarion: Let me tell you the secret. Once you do music, because music is so like spontaneous, I could get a call right now and the lable could have 12 interviews for me; but when you are on a movie set, you know what you are doing every day as it is like a 9-5. So when you hit the set, you have to know your lines, you know what you have to do and you get off work like in 12 hours. That is the reason why I find time to do all this and it is so important to my career but even more so for time; you travel throughout the whole year and then you are on a movie set for three months and you are chilling.
SoundSlam: When you do get down time what are you doing then?
Omarion: I like to get a massage, I like to sleep as that is one of my favorite things, just chill with the family when I can.
SoundSlam: What is Omarion doing to lay his own foundations?
Omarion: I want to actually be the first young cat to do a video game and I am not talking about having me in a video game, I am talking about developing a game, like Grand Theft Auto, and then besides that I am part of a clothing line called Christopher Bryant Apparel and I have some eyewear coming out of there. I am just trying to put my hand in everything and I may be very young but I am trying to stay ahead of the game.
SoundSlam: Talking about the vide game how involved will you be in the project?
Omarion: I will be designing, coming up with a concept, making it a big thing.
SoundSlam: If you hadn't been doing what you are doing now, what path do you think you would have taken? Would it have been something in design?
Omarion: I guess I would have been behind the scenes, you know like managing groups; definitely in the entertainment business for sure.
SoundSlam: Beyond you and your brother, are your family entertainers?
Omarion: My Mom was a dancer, when she was pregnant I was in the belly dancing with her. At home, all of my cousins and all my family, entertaining is just something we like to do, that is how we have fun.
SoundSlam: If you had your choice of anyone to work with, in both R&B and Hip-Hop who would you choose?
Omarion: Ciara and 50, the reason why I say 50 is because his flow is crazy. He is going to shut it down with his next album.
SoundSlam: Yeah there has to be a lot of pressure for him with this album. How do you deal with pressure?
Omarion: Me, I keep a nice humble cushion and I am very spiritual and I just leave it to the man upstairs.