Exclusive Interview - Angelo Garcia Bursts Back Into The Pop World

Angelo Garcia is not new to pop music at all, but what he is new to is doing it alone. After he left Menudo, he took some time off of music, and now that he's ready to do it again, he has to completely reinvent himself, which he did a great job of in his new video "Delusions of Grandeur". Recently I sat down to talk about the struggles of an indie artist and exactly what he's all about in his new musical adventure.

 For those unfamiliar with who you are, can you get us caught up to speed about your experience in music?

I come from a musical background. Music has always come really naturally to me. I started out as young as three. When I started school, the music teachers would notice I had musical abilities. I would always get the solos in school or the main roles and singing leads. Coming from a musical family really gave me the courage when it came to singing in public. When I was ten or eleven, my mom saw a commercial on TV for a boy band called Menudo that was looking for it's newest member. Oh a whim my mom decided to take me to help me get my feet in the water for auditions. I went, did the audition, and needless to say within two weeks, I was being offered a recording contract.

How did you make the transition from teen singer to muscled gay icon?

It was not an overnight process. It was something that was implanted in me even back in middle school. It didn't really come about until I started my first Spanish album with Warner Brothers. I was around my choreographer a lot who was really into fitness and my dancers, too. They taught me the building blocks of what it takes to build a body. I didn't take it seriously at fifteen, but by the time I was an adult, I knew I wanted to make a change and have the body of my dreams. In the beginning it derived from fun and wanting to be able to defend myself if I were bullied, but it evolved into a love for the lifestyle.

Last year, you had a great song called "You Are The Only One". Why didn't we get a video?

When I released that song I didn't have any management. I think I had maybe 20,000 followers at the time. I was in the beginning process of trying to figure out how to get my music out and how to introduce myself. But you know what? I was actually talking to my management and they actually said we should do a video. Right now, I'm focusing on Delusions of Grandeur. I already know what the next single is, so if we do a video for "You Are The Only One" it will be side project for the fans.

Speaking of Delusions of Grandeur, looking at your Facebook page it's been a long time coming. What was the process?

It was so frustrating. Fun, but frustrating. I've only had management for a few months now. Everything before that I did on my own. It was serendipitous that it finally happened. About a year ago I had a photo shoot for The Black Party, and I almost didn't go because I wasn't feeling good. Something in my heart told me I need to go. When I was there I meant this cinematographer who was filming behind the scenes of the photo shoot. We hit it off. She's an artist, I'm an artist. I mentioned I wanted to do a video and she told me she did music videos. I told her I wanted it to be very reflective of me.

How does the video represent you?

 Anyone who knows me knows that I am not shy and I can be scandalous. I wanted it to be reflective of my shameless nature -- be edgy and push the envelope. It took seven days to shoot. If you look at the video, it was shot at the Brooklyn Bridge, at the tattoo shop, and in my bed. All of that stuff is a fantasy day-in-the-life of Angelo of what I would normally do, but with more pizazz. I knew it would rub some people the wrong way because in some scenes I'm dancing really close to men, and for people who are homophobic, it's going to make them feel uncomfortable. But that's great and what I want. Gay people are here to stay whether you want it or not!

What do you have to say to those who say your video is over-sexualized?

I believe that everyone has an opinion and they are entitled to it, but I'm over the top and flamboyant. I think a lot of people don't have the intelligence to realize that it's just art. Just like how Miley Cirus is swinging from the wrecking ball half naked doesn't mean that in real life she walks around like that. It's called artistic expression. It's fantasy; not the real world. Just because I'm in black underwear and combat boots walking around on the Brooklyn Bridge doesn't mean I'm doing that all the time. It's an image.

The lyrics of the song don't really fit up with the video. How do these two pieces sync?

Lyrics and music videos don't always have to match up. It's just creating a visual for the music. It doesn't always have to be literal. My video doesn't really have a story. It's just a lot of images and fun things the represent me.

When you were out in New York in your underwear, what were the reactions?

I lived for it. I live for that type of shock and awe. "You don't really need to be naked to get noticed. It takes away from your music". Anybody with any intelligence knows that if you are going to fight in a war -- and the music industry is a war -- you do not hide any weapons. You win the war with any ammunition you have. Mine are my looks and my body. Why would I hide that when I worked so hard for it?

Do you feel like you have to balance your new LGBT fans with your old Latino based fans?


Yes! I am an American boy, raised in New York. I know a lot of my Latin fans don't understand my terminology, and it's so much easier to express my thoughts in English because it's my first language. I have a fan club for my Spanish fans and the president translates everything I post on Facebook so I can stay in touch with them.

When you first started re-emerging in the pop world, the name of an album, Scandalous came about a lot. Will we see this or are you only doing singles as per the current market?

The album is done, but we are doing singles. That's the way people are doing now. If it was up to me, I would release the whole album. I wrote sixteen songs and they are all as strong as Delusions of Grandeur. When I went to Europe to write this album, I just found out my partner was cheating on me, so it was a really dark time. While I was going through that time, I reconnected with one of the people who wrote the Spanish music I recorded. It was all by accident on Facebook. He asked if I was still doing music, and at the time I hadn't in a long while. I told him about what was happening and he thought it would be the perfect time to write. He was doing an electro-pop act, but they didn't speak English so they needed a writer for.

The next single is one of these tracks you did in Europe, I take it? What is the next single?

The next song I want to release is called "Be Free". It goes along with the foundation of anti bullying I want to create. It is about loving yourself exactly for who you are. This is my whole message in life. People don't have to fit into a mold. Humans were not meant to be put in boxes. We are all unique and we are all special.

A foundation?

 I created a non-profit foundation to go along with it. I want to do PSAs. I all the schools to see them so they know what to do if they are bullied or if they see someone getting bullied. It's to educate kids who don't understand why it's wrong. It's all about educating.