State Champ Radio Mariah Angeliq
Mariah Angeliq caught up with Billboard News to discuss the criticisms that inspired her latest single “Ricota,” running away from home to pursue music and how she thrives as a woman in reggaeton.
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“I [grew up] listening to music because of my mom. She has a love for music and named me Mariah because Mariah Carey was her favorite artist,” she explains. “When I was like 9, I realized yeah, I wanna be on the screen. That could be me.”
The Miami native has seen much success in a short time, including her breakout single “Perreito,” which she performed at Billboard’s 2022 Latin Music Week and later with the chart-topping “EL MAKINON” alongside Colombian star Karol G.
Mariah recalled meeting producer Nely “El Arma Secreta” at age 16 and was motivated by the Luny Tunes hitmaker to begin singing in Spanish. “For all my teenage years, I was singing in English and thinking to myself that I was going to be like the next fire R&B American artist,“ she tells Billboard.
Around that time, Mariah ran away from home to fully immerse herself in the pursuit of music, something she says her family didn’t take seriously early on. Despite the lack of enthusiasm from her loved ones, she pressed forward. “We always know as artists that we’re going to make it,” she says. “I always believed in myself, and in my music.”
Her most recent single, “Ricota,” came in response to Internet “haters” hurling insults at the 23-year-old singer regarding her weight. “They started saying I was fat and I’m not here looking for validation. I think what that’s what the message of the song is,” Mariah explains. “Society has such a distorted perspective of beauty. But while I was getting all those negative comments, I received a DM saying that I was ‘bien ricota,’ so I got inspired.”
When it comes to navigating reggaeton, which for most of its history has been male-dominated, she draws on inspirations like Ivy Queen and her own “boss” energy. “I feel like I’ve navigated or learned to navigate through it really well because of my attitude and my strong character. You just gotta learn to speak up for yourself and have a voice.”
Mariah will embark on a European tour this summer, and possibly a U.S. tour to follow.
Huge congratulations are in order for Nyla XO, who was crowned winner of this year’s Samsung NXT 2.0 competition. The grand finale took place on Friday, February 17, and saw the three finalists –– Nyla, Julian King, Kyn Rose –– perform in front of a live audience, which included celebrity guest judges Natti Natasha, Eric Nam and Tinashe.
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Fans who tuned in via livestream for the finale got a chance to watch it all go down at the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles. During the event, each of the finalists’ mentorship documents premiered, showing how contenders got a chance to meet with a special mentor –– each of whom was responsible for announcing a new challenge at some point in the competition. Julian King was paired up with Mariah Angeliq, Kyn Rose spoke with BIBI, and Nyla XO flew out to see Flo Milli.
All throughout the competition, the contestants have relied on their Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4, Galaxy Buds2 Pro, and their Galaxy Watch5 to help them complete their challenges, and meeting up with their mentors proved no exception.
Scroll on to check out some highlights from each of the finalists’ mentor sessions.
Nyla XO x Flo Milli
Before flying to Atlanta to meet up with rapper Flo Milli, Nyla XO expressed her concerns about performing as a solo artist, saying, “I’ve performed on some stages, but it’s been in the background playing keys or background vocals, so I think there’s a different element of pressure and also responsibility as an artist to what you are going to give the people.”
But Flo Milli –– who studied her mentee’s video before the two met –– assured Nyla she had nothing to worry about.
“I can already tell, you are a GOAT,” she said. “You’re about to go on the stage and do what you need to do.”
After taking some selfies together with Nyla’s Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4, Flo Milli also told Nyla to never let anyone make her feel small, no matter where she is in her career: “You’re gonna have some cities that don’t know who you are. It’s all about not letting that affect you and keeping the same energy you started with. Never let them see whatever you’re thinking. Don’t let nobody make you feel inferior.”
Congratulations again to Samsung NXT 2.0 winner, Nyla XO, who is going to land on the cover of a special digital issue of Billboard, a meeting with a record label, funding for a music video, and tickets to the 2023 Billboard Music Awards.
Julian King x Mariah Angeliq
Julian King flew down to Miami to get some one-on-one coaching from his mentor, reggaeton star Mariah Angeliq. But before meeting up with her, the Philadelphia-based artist reflected on his journey thus far and the impact he’s made on others.
“I know that me being me has been an inspiration to other people, especially within my communities,” he said. “And now I carry that with pride.”
After shooting a quick video on his Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4, Julian met up with his mentor, and the two hit it off, taking selfies poolside and speaking openly about the upcoming finale.
Angeliq advised the finalist to surround himself with support. “As long as you have the right energy around you, you’re always gonna feel good, and having that support is everything,” she said. “You need to be around those people that make you believe in yourself.”
“Just be you,” she told him. “The rest will fall into place.”
Kyn Rose x BIBI
Before jumping on a video call using his Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4 with Kpop star BIBI, Kyn Rose opened up about the finale, and what he hopes to convey to those watching: “Samsung NXT 2.0 is such a huge opportunity that I mainly just want to send everyone home with the thought of, ‘That Kyn Rose dude is something else, and I’m really interested.’ It’s just a bunch of people in a room that I just want to capture and have a moment with, is really the big thing in my head.”
Moments later, BIBI expressed a similar feeling, telling Kyn she always wants fans to walk away from her performances still buzzing, well into the next morning: “I just go up there and I want to entertain everybody. I want them to wake up happily tomorrow and go to work and just talk about, ‘Oh yeah, I went to her concert. I went to the performance, it was fun, I had a lot of fun, I just want to listen to that.’ That’s my goal.”
BIBI also advised Kyn to give the grand finale performance his all, saying, “If you don’t rock the stage right now, you might have no chance anymore. I always have that in my mind.”
Fresh off her announcement as the first mentor in the Billboard and Samsung Present NXT 2.0 singing competition, Mariah Angeliq brought her dance-ready catalog to her hometown of Miami for a show as part of Billboard Latin Music Week 2022.
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During the recent performance, which preceded a set by Bizarrap, the reggaeton singer took over the 305’s outdoor performance stage at Oasis Wynwood for an evening showcase, which included her hits, “Perreito,” and her colossal Karol G collaboration, “El Makinon.” The affair saw La Princesa de Miami perform alongside four backup dancers in a black leather ensemble to a sold-out crowd. Aside from offering the tunes, the rising singer made sure to show love to the audience, too, when she pulled out a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4 to take a quick selfie with the crowd.
Among the folks in attendance included Ty Dolla $ign, who watched her perform from the side of the stage, and Angeliq’s own family. Prior to hitting the stage, the star told Billboard that the show was going to be a special one as it’d be the first time that her father has ever seen her perform in-concert.
Expect to see more from the singer as part of the NXT 2.0 singing competition, which is gearing up to announce its 12 contestants. The dozen will be armed with Samsung’s new Galaxy Z Flip4, Buds2 Pro and Watch5 to compete in three challenges that’ll put their artistry to the test. Throughout the challenge round, they’ll see their rankings on a specialty Billboard chart until the dozen is narrowed down to just three finalists.
Ahead of a grand finale performance in Los Angeles, the singer and two additional celebrity judges will coach the trio with one-on-one mentorship sessions. With the newly-acquired expertise and advice, they’ll vie for the title in front of a live audience and A-list judges to compete for the crown — and the prizes are massive. The winner of Samsung and Billboard’s NXT 2.0 competition will grace a special digital Billboard cover, land a meeting with a record label, studio time to record their first single, funding for a music video and tickets to the 2023 Billboard Music Awards.
Her strategy to her mentorship duties will fall on her undeniable personality, something seen by her 6 million followers on social media. “My approach as a mentor is going to be very blunt, very straightforward, very black and white because that’s what this industry is about,” she told Billboard in a recent interview. “It’s very coldhearted, it’s challenging and I want people to know that. I want these aspiring artists to know what they’re getting themselves into. Are they ready for this? Are they willing to fight for what they want? Are they willing to stay focused and consistent? This industry is not as easy as it seems and I want them to know that.”
“In addition to the discipline and the confidence, the competing artists need to have the ‘full package.’ For me, this means, stage presence, ambition, and the fire,” she continued.
Looking ahead, her participation in the competition doesn’t stray too far from her priorities in music releases either. In addition to working on her debut studio album, she just released “En La Mía,” a new collaboration with a rising Puerto Rican rapper by the name of YOVNGCHIMI, whom she discovered on social media.
Click here for more details on Billboard and Samsung Present NXT 2.0 singing competition!
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