“Mayer Hawthorne talks about being Twittered by celebs, recent criticisms, getting panties thrown at him, and a top secret new project.” By David Ma

VIA:URB
After months and months of hype, Mayer Hawthorne’s A Strange Arrangement finally came out a couple weeks ago. It was greeted with massive support from musicians ?uestlove, Alicia Keys, John Mayer and even Justin Timberlake. The release is en route to becoming one of Stones Throw’s best sellers and was a top ten album for itunes the week of its release. All the resulting fervor has catapulted Mayer’s career into a somewhat unexpected realm.
The Detroit native who began as DJ Haircut is now a soul singer who sports thick-rimmed glasses and vintage suits. He croons over tracks that are reminiscent of Motown and Stax; records he grew up listening to. He writes all his own music as well, often planning arrangements and playing the instruments himself. And while his lack of vocal range and somewhat gimmicky persona has been criticized, his songs speak for themselves. You can view Mayer as a faux soul-singer, a flash in the pan, or another opportunist riding the retro-soul trend—but in the end, he’s a very complete songwriter.
URB spoke to Mayer while he was in San Francisco about all his recent success, what his next moves are, and what it’s like being Twittered by famous people. The hype is over and, strangely, A Strange Arrangement, actually lived up to it. Here’s our talk with Mayer while he was gettinng ready to play another sold out show.
Did you think that heart-shaped 45 you released, “Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out”, was gonna lead to all this? We didn’t even know if we’d be able to sell 1000 copies. Those were the first 2 songs I ever wrote. Nobody had heard of Mayer Hawthorne, and nobody, including PB Wolf or myself, ever expected this kind of response.
Was your intention for the whole Mayer Hawthorne persona to be a side-project or was this meant to be your new direction?
Mayer Hawthorne was definitely a side-project; an experiment that I would only play for close friends and family. I never intended for those songs to ever be released, or even heard by the general public.
So is DJ Haircut put on hold for now?
Lookout for Haircut – he’s comin’ back with a vengeance. He’s out for blood.
Did you read what all these celebrities wrote about you? What’s your reaction to that? How does it strike you?
It’s extremely surreal. I mean, how can you really wrap your head around John Mayer calling your album the best of the year? It’s a great feeling, and I think it’s given a lot of people hope for the future of music.
What do you think it is about old soul that is grabbing people’s attention again?
Everything goes in cycles. It’s just like skinny jeans, or the McRib. But good songwriting is timeless – I don’t think it matters what style of music it is.
Speaking of songwriting; were these songs on A Strange Arrangement written before or after “Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out”?
“Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out” was the first song I ever wrote. When it was released last November, I had only ever recorded 2 songs. I had never even thought about recording a full-length album until Peanut Butter Wolf asked me to.
So you wrote all the songs and had musicians play the individual parts?
I actually played the majority of the instruments myself. I had some help here and there from The County (my live band), but I played as much of it myself as I could. That’s half the fun.
How long did it take for you to finish the entire album?
About 6 months. Fortunately, the songs kept coming. I’ve already got songs written for the next album.
What is your song writing process like? You come up with the music or words first? (Besides the New Holidays’ cover) are certain songs heavily influenced by others?
The songs just kinda come to me. I didn’t really sit down and try to write songs for this project. I just hear everything really vividly in my head, and the challenge is always to get it out of my head and on to the tape.
A lot of folks on the Internet are saying that “a white guy singing soul” is what’s turning heads; that it’s a gimmick that’s selling. Address that for us.
Most people that hear my music for the first time don’t know what I look like. My first single didn’t have any artwork. We didn’t even have press photos until recently. So, there goes that theory.
Talk about growing up in Detroit and being exposed to funk and soul music.
Detroit is a magical place. You can really feel the soul of the city just walking through the streets. I’m so fortunate to have grown up there.
What are some of your favorite funk / soul records? What singers do you particularly model your sound after?
I’ve got thousands of funk and soul LPs and 45s and I love them all. I try to sound exactly like Engelbert Humperdinck [laughs].
Who do you most want to collaborate with right now?
Justin Timberlake and Prodigy from Mobb Deep.
If you had to pick one: Motown or Stax?
Ha, do I really need to answer that one? I got love for Stax, but ain’t nuthin’ fuckin’ with the Mo.
What’s the hardest part about performing live? What’s the reaction been like?
I got my first pair of panties thrown at me last week. A lot of the shows are selling out. It’s been really insane. The hardest part for me is talking to the crowd. Sometimes it’s so overwhelming that my brain just goes blank and I forget everything I was gonna say.
Can you address critics who say you’re a good songwriter but a bad singer?
That’s an easy one – if you don’t like it, listen to something else. I’ve never claimed to be a great singer.
Have you been approached to write songs for others? Would you consider doing that ever?
I’ve gotten quite a few requests already. I could probably make way more money writing songs for other artists – sign me up!
Do you have an idea about the next Mayer Hawthorne album? What’s next for you?
Damn! This album just came out 2 weeks ago! I’ll be touring clear into 2010 to support A Strange Arrangement, but I’m always working on new music. I’m recording a New Wave album with producer 14KT. I’ve got a top-secret project in the works with JakeOne as well. Follow me on Twitter for the latest: twitter.com/mayerhawthorne. Check asideworldwide.com for tour dates.
More on Mayer:
Live Review :: A Strange Arrangement Review :: Video Interview for D2S