Mario is a GRAMMY-nominated, platinum-selling R&B singer, songwriter and hitmaker hailing from Baltimore, MD. A dominant 2000s run, which began after the church-bred singer was signed by Clive Davis to J Records during his teenage years, included Top 5 hit "Just A Friend," and "Let Me Love You," the generation-defining serenade that spent nine weeks at no. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, earning the singer widespread acclaim. Mario's subsequent album, Turning Point, generated a 'Best Contemporary R&B Album' GRAMMY nomination as well as two Billboard Awards, and is part of a robust catalog that includes four debuts inside the Top 5 of Billboard R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart, beginning with his gold-certified debut, Mario.
Mario's hit-making prowess and status as a superior vocal performer led to a spot on Billboard's 'Artist of the Decade' list. His expanded entertainment profile includes an independent label, New Citizen, launched in 2016, and a slew of marquee acting appearances, including major roles in blockbuster films and shows Step Up, Freedom Writers, and Empire. Mario will make his film production debut this holiday season, when his New Citizen-produced Christmas film, Style Me For Christmas, airs on BET.
This December, Mario released his sixth studio album as part of his new deal with Epic Records, marking his first solo LP since 2018. Glad You Came, is executive-produced largely by James Fauntleroy, who worked for over a year on the project in-studio with Mario. "James and I have a similar philosophy when it comes to the love of timeless music. The omnipresence of all of the things that lends itself to the writing process. Our stories, our lives, what we observe and absorb."