Young Musician Mixes ‘‘Old School’ R&B with Hip Hop(Dallas,
Marcos J. Perez, a former suburban Dallas high school football player, released his debut CD – MJP – on Sunday – his 18th birthday. The CD, released on an independent label, Toro Records, is available on iTunes. MJP showcases the future Grammy Award winner’s talent as a song writer, composer, musician and singer.
“I love listening to Prince, Earth Wind & Fire, Al Green – even The Beatles, Lenny Williams and Heat Wave,” he says. “I want to bring back that Old School feel.” Last month, Perez released his first single on iTunes, “Don’t Test”, a soulful combination of Old School R & B and Hip Hop.
“Marcos’s music has a great pop/soul appeal, and he definitely has the superstar look,” says Big Bink, program director for 97.9 The Beat, one of the top hip-hop radio stations in the Dallas/
“Marcos has the talent and drive to be the next great pop superstar.”Kenny “FLAV” Dickerson, who is a multi-platinum producer who has worked with 50 Cents, Mary J. Blige, Queen Latifah and Snoop Dog, says Marcos has a bright future, particularly since he he plays multiple instruments.
“The future is limitless,” Dickerson says.Dave Deberry also sees Marcos’ potential. Deberry has worked as a producer with Dickerson on several projects that have gone multi-platinum, and he counts Russell Simmons as one of his mentors. Additionally, he’s worked with Run
Popular New York deejay “DJ Rob E Rob”, known for his hot mixes, says, “Marcos has the potential to be the new standard of the hot pop soul movement.”
Marcos’ father, Tony, was a soul singer in the 1980s and 1990s who has appeared on “It’s Showtime at the Apollo!” The elder Perez says he didn’t want to push his son too fast. “You know, music has always been a part of our lives,” the father says. “And we’ve done everything – as a family – we could do to get to this point. We even worked as janitors in an office building every night for nearly two years to save enough money to buy Marcos instruments and to get studio time for him to practice. We’re doing this the right way.”
Even older brother Nathan, who accompanies him on vocals, guitar and other instruments, is driven to make sure they’re successful. “Look, I’ve worked in steel factories and even worked as a porter cleaning rental cars,” he says. “I don’t want to do any of those jobs again … We’re going to make it.” Perez is now being home schooled so that he can work fulltime on his music. He’s practicing daily in his Dallas studios.
To interview Perez and learn more about his music or get a copy of his CD, contact Neil Foote, Foote Communications LLC,
