“Gyrl Crazy!”: When an all-girl band breaks down in Riverdale, it’s music to Archie’s ears… and a sour note for Betty and Veronica! But it’s not long before everyone is jamming together. Will the “School Gyrls” collaboration with the Archies be a chart-topping hit or a resounding dud?
Archie Meets the School Gyrls is currently on sale at comic book shops and will be available on newsstands & online March 23rd, 2010
Source: Archie Comics
Nick stopped by Oregon’s 107.5 KISS FM and chopped it up w/ Gemineye on about Talent, Oregon being featured on “America’s Got Talent” this season and more.
Click the picture to launch the interview.
Source: Oregon’s 107.5 KISS FM
Detention’s a drag, isn’t it? No talking, no eating, no sleeping…no fun! But how do you make it fun? Get stuck in there with your two besties and make a plan to take down the queen bee of the school!
Actually – don’t. Being good tends to pay off, unless you’re in the new Nickelodeon movie School Gyrls – premiering Sunday, February 21!
The movie is based on the new girl group School Gyrls. It features three super-talented chicks: Mandy Rain, Jacque (pronounced “Jackie”) Rae Pyles and Monica Parales. And with such talented vocals from each, we just know you’ll love ‘em.
We managed to catch up with Jacque and Monica, and got them to spill on their past as well as the School Gyrls’ future!
Describe [your] favorite experience from filming the School Gyrls movie.
Jacque: I have a lot of great experiences from filming the movie. I would say probably the fact that I got to make such amazing friends, and being able to work with such amazing people [like] Mandy, Monica and Nick Cannon!
Monica: My favorite experience from filming was the whole process! Meeting great people and just working with people your age. We had soo much fun learning and memorizing dance routines, lyrics and lines.
Have you ever experienced detention in real life?
Jacque: I have experienced detention in real life, actually a couple times! Ha! Because of little things [like] not getting my work in on time, or dress code, but it was never anything serious like back talk or fighting or anything!
Monica: The only time I was in detention was when the whole class had it. That one time was because most of the students forged their parents’ signatures on their own Home Reading Clubs, which was like a log for each time you would read.
What’s your favorite thing to do with the other girls in your down time?
Jacque: My favorite thing to do with the gyrls is probably just chill out and Ustream with fans, or dance, or go shopping!
Monica: My favorite thing to do with the girls on my downtime is just chill, eat and talk with them about anything – and also shopping!
What’s your favorite song on your iPod right now? What about the most embarrassing?
Jacque: Well, I don’t really have a favorite song, but I would have to say my favorite album at the moment is We Are Young Money! As for an embarrassing song? I am not embarrassed of any of the songs on there!
Monica: My favorite song on my iPod right now is “Rude Boy” by Rihanna. The most embarrassing would be “It’s Raining Men.”
If you could collaborate musically with any artist right now, who would it be and why?
Jacque: If I could collab with any artists, I would say Young Money or Trey Songz! I think it would be amazing to have Young Money on a track because their rapping with our singing would just be dope! As for Trey Songz, he is my singer celeb crush!
Monica: Well, I’ve already had the chance to work with the most beautiful and talented Mariah Carey, which I am soo blessed for. If there was anyone else, I would say Alicia Keys. I love her music also.
Growing up, were there any girl groups you totally loved or look towards for inspiration?
Jacque: Um, well of course I looked up to the Spice Girls! I use[d] to watch their movie over and over and over. I think when it came out I knew all the lines of the movie word for word! And their tour bus?! My gosh I always wanted one! Hah, but I really looked up to Destiny’s Child and still do, to this day!
Monica: When I was growing up there were a looot of girl groups that I was into [like] the Spice Girls, Eden’s Crush, SWV, 702, Destiny’s Child and my favorite of all time – TLC.
Source: Girls Life
The School Gyrls latest single Get Like Me is being released from their upcoming debut album School Gyrls on March 16th.
Download it on Amazon.com and iTunes.
The song was co-written by Nick and Mariah and even features Mariah on background vocals!
Source: Nick Cannon Archives
Nick Cannon is aiming to be a pop culture impresario in the manner of Dick Clark or Ryan Seacrest or Diddy. He’s an actor, a comic, and a rap artist; but his ambitions are bigger, more vague, and harder to achieve – to introduce other talent to the world and, in the process, create a distinct imprimatur. He wants to be a solid, dependable host – no easy task in a world where audience trust is fickle.
The 29-year-old Cannon, whose marriage to Mariah Carey hasn’t hurt his visibility, currently hosts “America’s Got Talent’’ on NBC, as well as a New York radio show. He has created a multimedia company, NCredible Entertainment, to develop TV shows, films, and musical acts. And he is the chairman of Nickelodeon’s TeenNick channel (formerly The N), where he’s developing movie projects and hosting the Halo Awards that honor teens in community service. Far from his days on Nickelodeon’s “All That’’ and “The Nick Cannon Show’’ and on MTV’s improv series “Nick Cannon Presents: Wild N Out,’’ Cannon is now poised for ubiquity.
Interestingly, Cannon’s new pursuits represent a kind of resignation about his other careers. His movie roles, including a part in Emilio Estevez’s “Bobby’’ that won him “male revelation’’ honors at Cannes in 2007, haven’t quite lifted him to prominence. Indeed, his latest movie, “The Killing Room,’’ went straight to DVD. Cannon also hasn’t released a full album of material since his self-titled debut in 2003. Instead of making his own music, he has been directing videos for Carey and developing the trio School Gyrls, whose debut album is due next month.
Tomorrow night at 7, Cannon begins his TeenNick takeover in earnest by introducing “School Gyrls’’ in a short feature. Written and directed by Cannon, “School Gyrls’’ is essentially an hourlong video revealing the group and defining the characters, like an episode of “The Monkees.’’ It’s not a movie with a story and plot turns so much as a key step in Cannon’s careful plan to have the group conquer the world. A single, “Something Like a Party,’’ is already out in anticipation of the album and a spring tour; a series of novels based on the “School Gyrls’’ characters begins in the coming weeks; and a comic series from Archie Comics is due next month.
The “School Gyrls’’ setting is predictable and reminiscent of “High School Musical,’’ “Glee,’’ and “Gossip Girl.’’ Mandy Rain (Mandy Moseley), Jacque Nimble (Jacque Pyles), and Monica (Monica Anne Parales) are freshmen at an all-girls prep school. Thrown together repeatedly in detention, they form a friendship and go up against the resident mean girls, led by queen bee cheerleader Bambi (Lindsay Taylor). Mandy is good girlish, Jacque is all (annoying) hip-hop attitude, and Monica is the superficial one who learns to get real.
The three School Gyrls learn that they are natural performers together, as they hop, skip, and jump their way through bland Britney Spears-ish songs. And so they decide to take on Bambi at the annual stunt party – a talent show that features real-life guest stars Justin Bieber, Kristinia DeBarge, and Soulja Boy. Clearly, Cannon knows the best way to find the right audience for his trio and lure them in – a skill any impresario must have. If the School Gyrls take off and become stars, Cannon will obviously deserve much of the credit – or blame.
Along the way in “School Gyrls,’’ the Gyrls have curious adventures with an abusive hall monitor who has bad breath, the hard-nosed headmaster (singer Angie Stone), and her creepy twin daughters, who move and talk in perfect synchronicity. Also, Monica develops a crush on Bambi’s beau, an extremely tall guy with blond hair named Colin. But all the school-hallway activity comes down to nothing much. Nothing much, that is, except inspiring kids to keep an eye out for all the “School Gyrls’’ products to come.
Matthew Gilbert can be reached at gilbert@globe.com. For more on TV, visit www.boston.com/ae/tv/blog.
Source: Boston Globe
Justin Bieber went bowling for his birthday, and he goofed around with Drake and Ludacris at an alley in his music video for “Baby.” Now Nick Cannon wants to throw some strikes and spares with the Canadian teen sensation when he arrives in New York City to promote his new album, My World 2.0.
“Oh yeah! Justin Bieber and I are going bowling courtesy of my morning show,” Cannon told MTV News. Cannon announced the match, which takes place on My World 2.0’s release date of March 23, on Twitter. “His album comes out on March 23 and [so does the album by an] artist that I have signed, the School Gyrls. So we got a little competition, me and Bieber.”
And Cannon is more than willing to tease Bieber about his ability to roll in the run-up to the match. “Justin can’t bowl. I don’t know if you’ve seen his latest video, but his form is off. So I know I’m gonna win. So me and Justin [will go] head to head at the bowling alley.
We’re just bringing out as many people from New York [to] Lucky Strike for a release party. Biebermania!”
Bieber may have his own mania, but Cannon is confident that he has the superior skill. “Of course I’m gonna win,” he said. “I’m athletic.
Justin Bieber, he can sing and dance and all of that, but I think I got him in the blowing department.”
While Cannon may be dismissive of Bieber’s bowling technique, he does have many kind words for the teen sensation’s musical abilities. “I think he’s an amazing talent, and My World 2.0 is gonna be crazy! That dude is the truth,” he said. “I’ll tell you exclusively — the album is fire.”
Source: MTV
Below is the current track list for the School Gyrls self-titled album that drops on March 23, 2010. This tracklist can and may change. You can be pre-order the album on Amazon.com.
1. Something Like A Party
2. Detention
3. What Goes Around
4. Just A Kiss
5. Something About Him
6. I’m Not Just A Girl
7. Extra Extra
8. Get Like Me
BONUS TRACK:
Operator
Source: Nick Cannon Archives
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
Nick’s directorial debut “School Gyrls” premiered on Sunday February 21st on Nickelodeon. The internet was all atwitter with talk about the one hour musical comedy (with a dash of drama).
School Gyrls even reached trending topic status on Twitter. The songs were a blend of pop/r&b/ peppy fun. The dancing definitely wasn’t High School Musical but far more cooler. Soulja Boy, Justin Bieber, Kristinia DeBarge and more made cameos. Even Nick joined the fun making a “special” appearance. (more…)
If you caught Nickelodeon’s mini-movie School Gyrls on Sunday, then you got a proper glimpse of the teenage pop tart trio who were front and center in the Nick Cannon-directed feature. (Mariah’s husband co-wrote and exec-produced, as well.) And rest assured, these young women plan to keep on earning plenty of extra credit once the final bell rings in their movie. In addition to School Gyrls’ dance-jam single “Something Like A Party” (on iTunes now), there is a full album from Island Def Jam on the way, as well as both an Archie Comics series and a set of teen novels based on the group.
After the jump: Jacque, Mandy and Monica give us the low-down on Justin Bieber—who made a cameo in School Gyrls—as well as their upcoming album.
First of all, let’s meet the girls behind School Gyrls:
MANDY MOSELEY (aka Mandy Rain): After a chance meeting with Justin Timberlake backstage at an N Sync conert, Mandy (then age seven) and her family moved to Los Angeles, where she was enrolled in jazz and hip hop dance classes. Nick Cannon first spotted Mandy during the filming of the 2007 Nickelodeon Series Star Camp. And as for her nickname Mandy Rain, Moseley tells Idolator, “Nick gave it to me when I was very young. I was in Star Camp and he was giving us all names and I told him my mom almost named me Rain. So he said, ‘Mandy Rain—that’s fresh!’”
MONICA PARALES (aka Mo Money): Trained in music and dance, the 17-year-old California native was spotted by an agent when she was nine. She soon began dancing with the Team Millennia Juniors from the Team Millennia dance studio, which landed her work with Missy Elliott, Eminem and Mase.
Here’s Monica dancing with the Team Millennia Juniors in 2009:
JACQUE PYLES (aka Jacque Nimble): Fifteen-year-old Jacque began training in jazz and ballet at the age of five before moving on to hip hop dance classes. With acting and dancing on her mind as a career path, Jacque admits she never thought of pursuing singing until she joined School Gyrls. “Since I’ve been in the group, I think I am a lot more comfortable when I have to sing,” she says. “I have (more…)
