“I still feel like I came in first,” the “Let Me Love You” singer said of coming in second to winners Boyz II Men, before sharing why it was such a special experience for him.
Mario may have placed second on The Masked Singer, but competing against his idols, Boyz II Men, had him feeling like he finished in first.
TooFab spoke to the “Let Me Love You” singer after he was unmasked as The Wasp on Wednesday night’s Season 12 finale, where he spoke about his experience on the show and the “full circle” moment he had taking the stage alongside the Philadelphia-born R&B group.
“When they showed me the wasp costume, I was like, ‘Yo, this is one of the coolest costumes I’ve seen,'” Mario said when asked why he said yes to the show. “Off of the costume alone, I was in.”
He continued, “But once I really learned about the show and how it was shot, just the storytelling behind it… it really took me back to being a big kid again. My inner child was excited about being imaginative and creative and being able to perform and sing and also be a character, and also be myself, unbeknownst to the world.”
As for the costume, while it took some adjusting, Mario said that within a week, he really began feeling like The Wasp.
“I think the hardest part was probably getting used to not being able to expand my jaws when I’m singing or, you know, breathe as as normal normal as I do,” Mario said of the restrictions the costume faced. In addition to a wasp mask, Mario donned large wings and the wasp’s characteristic stinger. “But I think after adopting it for like a week, it just became a part of me. So every time I put the costume on, I really felt like The Wasp. I was really in it.”
“It was really like, kind of like Broadway,” he continued. “I’ve done Broadway before and it was kind of like that in the sense that once I put the costume on, I knew it was time to get to work and really create this character and try to make people fall in love with the song, and the energy and the characteristics of The Wasp.”
Being under the mask of The Wasp and having that anonymity allowed the R&B star to explore different genres of music as he’d take on a new song and new artists each week, some of which even surprised him!
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“Singing Whitney Houston was a surprise to me. That was one of those ones where I was like, ‘OK, am I going to take on this challenge here?'” Mario said of singing Houston’s “I’m Your Baby Tonight” on Wednesday’s finale. “Obviously, Whitney’s voice is incredible and her songs are very, very high key. But with practice, I think it was — I really psyched my mind out, because I’m under this costume to say that, like, ‘You don’t have to sound like Mario. don’t focus on Mario.'”
He added of his mindset during the show “When you think about a wasp, when you think about anything with wings, there’s no limit to where it can go. And so, like, just really take on the characteristics of the wasp and then… the fearlessness of it and attack it.”
As for what he’ll take from the experience, Mario said the show served as a reminder of just how powerful music is.
“I’ve known it all my career, but just singing other people’s music and seeing how it connects people together, but also connects people to your own intention in the moment, right? Music is that perfect medium to communicate how you feel about life and love and loss and just everything,” he gushed. “Even working on this new album, Glad You Came, that I just dropped. It’s the same thing. It’s very similar to reintroducing yourself to people through the medium of music.”
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“So I think it was just how powerful it is, and how powerful the imagination is, right? People are imagining who they pretty much can imagine — I’m whoever they want me to be. I could be their cousin, their brother, their whoever under that mask singing a song to them right there,” Mario continued. “It’s just really allowing people to dive into their own desires and imagination while giving them inspiration through the medium of a costume and a character you’re playing.”
While Mario, who said he’d definitely sign on do something like this again, finished as this season’s runner-up, going head-to-head with The Buffalos a.k.a Boyz II Men, served as a winning moment Grammy-nominated singer.
“I still feel like I came in first,” he gushed. “Boyz II Men to me is like — I grew up listening to them. In fact, in fact, I sung their song, ‘I’ll Make Love to You’ at the meeting that got me signed as an artist when I was 14. So, full circle moment.”
It’s a little known fact the trio were clued in on, with Mario adding, “They know. We talk. Those are my guys.”
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As for whether Mario knew who he was competing against all season, he said that by The Buffalo’s third performance, he knew it was the infamous trio.
“Their third performance? I knew it was them. Wanya [Morris] gave it away. His runs — I’ve been studying those runs since I was 10 years old. So he fully gave it away,” he said. “But it was a pleasure to be sharing a stage with them, sharing costumes with them.”
Off The Masked Singer Stage, Mario has just released his sixth studio album, Glad You Came, which he says really highlights who he is as an artist today.
“I feel like that it really highlights more of who I am as a partner, as a person who longs for love, a person who’s made mistakes in love, a person who is intellectual and also very intimate. I would say it’s really good R&B,” Mario explained.
“It reminds people how important communication is. I think this album, there’s… I write… very metaphorically sometimes, but the communication and the intention is very direct. And I feel like it embodies a timeless approach to having conversations about diving deeper into yourself and your partner, or whoever you’re dating at the time. It just invites people to be more vulnerable and still confident… and accountability,” he added. “I think a lot of the songs on this album speaks metaphorically about accountability, and I feel like that’s something that we all should strive for. So, it’s a little bit of everything on the album. And it’s also fun as well.”
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And he’s bringing it to fans, with a 36-city tour, kicking off in January alongside Mary J. Blige and Ne-Yo.
“Bringing it to the stage and also performing just like timeless records that my fans want to hear and grabbing new fans, and just like really taking all this energy and inspiration behind imagination and love and music and timeless art and bringing it to the stage,” Mario said of what he’s most excited about for the upcoming tour.
“And reminding people and the fans why they fell in love with Mario when they were 15, 16 years old. Now being able to sing these songs, from a place of experience is a lot different than singing, ‘Let Me Love You,’ when I was 18 and knowing nothing about love. So it’s exciting to do.”
The Masked Singer will be back for Season 13 on Wednesday, February 12 at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.
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