Chances are, this is your first time hearing about School Gyrls, but it certainly won’t be your last. The School Gyrls are an all-girl pop group comprised of 15-year-old Mandy Rain, 15-year-old Jacquelyn Rae Pyles and 16-year-old Monica Parales. When Nick Cannon heard the Gyrls’ debut album, he realized that the songs could tell a story, and so the feature-length film School Gyrls was born. Not only did Mandy, Jacque and Monica get to work with the likes of Justin Bieber, Soulja Boy and Pete Wentz, who all made cameos in the movie, they had the opportunity to become close with Nick Cannnon’s wife, the one and only Mariah Carey. Read on as the Gyrls talk about what it’s like to have their wildest dreams come true.
When did each of you realize you wanted to pursue music?
Jacque: I always knew I wanted to dance and act. I started dancing when I was five, and then I got into acting and dancing when I was in the 5th grade. As for music, I never thought of myself being signed to Def Jam or being in a girl group. When I auditioned for the group, I honestly thought it was a TV show for Nick Cannon. When we all got to his house on that Sunday when they told me I was in the group, he informed me that it was a girl group and we would be going on tour.
Monica: I’ve always wanted to be a singer, dancer and actress. For it to be happening right now is kind of surreal. I still don’t believe everything’s happening so fast. I’m super excited and super nervous at the same time.
Mandy Rain: Ever since I could walk and talk, I’ve wanted to sing and dance. I’ve done that since I was little. I met Nick Cannon through a project called Giggle Club and they held onto me and when they put together the School Gyrls.
How did you guys get along when you first met?
Jacque: When we were in the room at Nick’s house, we could feel the energy was right on point. It was perfect. We’re different, but we have so many things in common.
Are you still working on your debut album?
Jacque: It’s actually done. We just started working on bonus tracks and we’re going to start working on our second album very soon.
Monica: School Gyrls, the movie, was based on the album. Most of the songs are in the movie. Nick realized that most of the songs could be turned into a story so that’s how he got the idea for the movie.
Your song “Something Like a Party” was released earlier this month. What’s the response to it been like so far?
Mandy Rain: It’s been really good. We’re getting a lot of love on Twitter, iTunes and YouTube. I think everybody likes it so much because it’s a party song and it’s for all ages. I have a cousin in New York that listens to it and she’s six. My grandfather listens to it too. Everyone listens to it.
Jacque: Like she said, the music is for all ages. I have sisters in their 30’s and their friends love our music. They’ve heard some of our other songs and love the fact that they can dance to it.
Everyone from Justin Bieber to Reverend Run to Pete Wentz showed up in your movie. Did you get to spend time with any of those people?
Jacque: The people who did cameos were very nice; they wanted to hang out with us and get to know us.
Monica: When we were on break, we all had a jam session. Justin was playing the guitar and we were just singing songs and chilling out. It was really fun for us to work with people our age that have the same goal in life. None of it was really work.
Mandy Rain: It was really cool meeting all those artists. We went bowling with Justin after the movie. He definitely beat all of us, and his mom beat him. That was really fun.
What was it like being directed by Nick Cannon, considering this was his directorial debut?
Jacque: It was incredible being able to work with him because he’s such a big kid. He knew how to get things done but in a fun way. In the movie, he does a cameo where he’s the lunch lady, which was so fun to film.
Monica: Nick Cannon’s very laid back but he also gets the job done. He came to the set early and was very professional. He’s like a big kid, like Jacque said.
Mandy Rain: He’s definitely a big role model of mine because he stays out of trouble, he does all the right things and he gets his work done but he knows how to have fun. In one of my scenes, I had one of the cute boys in the movie sneeze on me and I turned around and freaked out. Nick was the one that actually put the booger on my face. Make-up could’ve done it, but he was having fun.
Did Mariah ever show up on set?
Monica: I was at the food truck and I saw this big, black tinted SUV and I was like, ‘I wonder who could be in there.’ The door opened and I see her four-inch heels come out and I’m like, ‘Oh snap!’ I’m like, ‘What do I do? Do I say hi? Do I nod?’ When she stepped on set, everything stopped. Everyone was like, ‘Oh my God, that’s Mariah Carey!’ I feel so blessed to be working with her and just having an association with her.
Mandy Rain: She came on set and we went to her video set. Whenever we see her, she’s always super sweet to us. She’s always like, ‘Before you leave, come give me a hug!’ When she walks in the room, everyone stops and turns. She just floats. Nick is super sweet to her. When we were in China and they were speaking Chinese, Nick didn’t know what anyone was saying and had a translator. But when he heard Mariah’s name, this huge smile came across his face. It was the sweetest thing in the world.
Do you feel your parts in the movie reflect your personalities?
Jacque: I’m not the bad girl, I’m not the one who doesn’t listen and tag all the buildings and wants to fight everybody. I’m very relaxed, I’m very obedient and I’m always listening to what I’m told. I don’t like to upset anybody. The only thing I have in common with my character is that I’m honest, I stick up for my friends and I really like to dance.
Monica: I’m a lot like my character because I’m very into fashion, makeup and hair. The only thing that’s different is that I’m not into high-fashion. I’m not into Chanel and Prada. I’m more into Forever 21 and Urban Outfitters.
Mandy Rain: My character is who I am in person. She’s very outgoing and energetic and lots of fun. She’s always tripping over stuff. She runs into a teacher with a cake in her hand. My character is a little bit of a groupie. I’m not like that in person, I’m cool around celebrities. Well, I try to be.
You guys are being made into comic book characters for the Archie series. Can you tell us about that?
Monica: They made a little storyline around us and Archie. It’s just so exciting to see us as comics. We actually had a say in what we looked like. It was nice to have our input in it. Just knowing that we’re about to be in the Archie comics is crazy.
Mandy Rain: It’s gonna be really epic. My mom used to read Archie comic books when she was young. We have this huge container with at least 2,000 Archie comic books in our garage, so it’s pretty cool for her daughter to become an Archie character.
Are your friends super star-struck now that you’re hanging out with all these celebrities?
Jacque: I know mine are. They always want me to introduce them to Justin Bieber, which is really funny ‘cause I look at him as just my friend. They’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, he’s so cute! Can you hook me up?’ And I’m just like, ‘Whoa!’
Monica: My friends usually make fun of me, like, ‘Ooh you’re a School Gyrl, can I get your autograph?’ But my cousin is 20-years-old and she’s like, ‘Justin Bieber is gonna be my boyfriend forever!’ It’s the funniest thing. She’s so jealous that I know him, but she’s 20! I guess he has that big of an impact on people.
Mandy Rain: Most of my friends are in the business. Most of my high school friends didn’t stick around because they weren’t very nice. But the few high school friends that I do have are crazily in love with Justin Bieber.
Source: My Yearbook
. So how was the “School Gyrls” premiere on Monday?
Jacque Pyles (character is Jacque Nimble), Monica Parales (Mo-Money/Monica) and Mandy Moseley (Mandy Rain) and they are pint-sized pistols full of energy and charm. We had a great gurl-chat!
