I grew up in Ann Arbor, about 25 miles west of Detroit. And when you grow up in that area, you get a healthy dose of Motown automatically. Mayer Hawthorne annarborarea Change image and share on social
Barry White, Smokey Robinson and Curtis Mayfield are big influences for me. But I'm also a metal head. I was in a bunch of punk rock bands. The Bee Gees, hip-hop and the Beach Boys are just as much of an influence on me as Smokey. Mayer Hawthorne bandbarrybeach share on social
I didn't appreciate Mick Jagger until I got older, and mainly because of the Mick Jagger swagger. He defined that for the world. He was bold and adventurous with it, too - just the ultimate rock star. Mayer Hawthorne adventurousbolddefine Change image and share on social
When you're a soul singer, I'm singing a lot of songs about love and relationships that I think a lot of girls really relate to. For whatever reason, that seems to get 'em excited. The DJ, everyone always says the DJ gets all the chicks, but that's never been my experience. Mayer Hawthorne chickexciteexperience share on social
Everybody comments that I'm white. I'm surprised I haven't gotten more criticism for it. I'm always expecting any day now it's gonna come. I guess I just attribute the lack of hate to people hearing the music and hearing how much I genuinely love it. Mayer Hawthorne attributecommentcriticism share on social
My singing really seemed to connect with people, and it ended up as my main career, which I love. Mayer Hawthorne careerconnectend Change image and share on social
I think that what happens is that all of my modern influences blend together with the older soul influences and you get Mayer Hawthorne. Mayer Hawthorne blendhawthorneinfluence Change image and share on social
Drums, bass, guitar, keys, I play a little of each of those. Mayer Hawthorne basdrumguitar Change image and share on social
I've always made sure that I tour with bands that people aren't expecting me to tour with. Mayer Hawthorne bandexpecthave Change image and share on social
Even when I was a hip-hop DJ I always kept it classy. The motto is always 'flashy but classy.' You've got to be original and stand out from the crowd and take some chances. But you've always got to keep it classy. Mayer Hawthorne chanceclassycrowd share on social