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MDO- Five Little Pieces of Heaven
(July 2001)
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Sexy, cool, dashing, shy, huggable… the 5 gorgeous Latin American hunks are all these and more. With 3 Spanish albums under their belt to date, MDO is launching their first English album, ‘Little Piece of Heaven’. Ariel and Alicia snag an exclusive interview with them and find out about the guys’ music and lifestyle, and discover that the guys drool over Miss Universe- Puerto Rico!- Arial Tung and Alicia Ying
Give us a brief introduction to MDO.
Abel: Mdo is an abbreviation of our original name ‘Menudo’, which we used in our 1991 debut. The 3 of us, Alex, Didier and me were teenagers then. We made many Latin albums and did countless performances. Then we changed our name to MDO in 1997 ‘cos our fans, who were mostly between 12- 15 years old, grew and matured along with us. So Mdo indicates a new outlook and image.
What are some of the changes you have undergone since the days of ‘Menudo’?
Alexis: We are more involved in everything now, from choosing our songs, our style and dressing to writing our songs. We also have more freedom in styling our band’s image.
What makes you want to launch an English album?
Alexis: It has always been our dream to do that. Now that we have a record company who is very supportive, it’s the perfect opportunity to launch our English album.
Will you give up Latin music now that you have entered the English market?
Didier: We’ll definitely continue with Latin music. We come from Latin America, and we’ll never forget that or the public who supports us there. We want to show the whole world where we’re from!
Alexis: Yeah! We will do both Latin and English.
Who is the babe magnet of the group?
All: The what? (The guys exchanged confused looks. We explained that a babe magnet is someone who attracts babes and fans…)
Alexis and Abel (at the same time): That has to be me!
Pablo: Whoa! All of us attract gals in our different ways, man! We’re all babe magnets! (laughs)
Let’s talk about individual lifestyles… who’s the most untidy among you, always leaving stuff around? And who’s the neatest?
Caleb: I think I may be one of the neatest…
Alexis: Pablo is the messiest!
Pablo: Hey, that’s unfair! Abel is weird. He’s like both the neatest and the most untidy! He may seem to be messing things up or something, but he is extremely neat when it comes to his personal appearance… (Everyone laughs)
What do you guys do when you’re free?
Pablo: We go shopping. A lot!
Didier: Yeah! We’ve been to the malls here near our hotels, and we just went to this computer and electronics shop to check out stuff!
Pablo: We like to go around and tour the city, explore the food and places…
Miss Puerto Rico is the reigning Miss Universe 2001. Are you guys proud?
Abel: Yeah! We are! We consider ourselves to be Puerto Ricans even though we are not from Puerto Rico, except Caleb.
Alexis: And we know her… she used to dance for us in our shows. We are very happy for Denise!
Oh you guys actually know her? Tell us what’s so sexy about Miss Universe!
Abel: I love her smile! She’s a very sweet gal.
Didier: She’s incredibly smart and beautiful. We are so proud of Denise! We were there when they picked her as Miss Puerto Rico, and then as Miss Universe. We sang a few songs for the pageant contestants during the party!
Sexy soul Abel
Do you think you are sexy? In what ways?
Abel: Yes! I love to dance and shake my booty. (Alexis and Caleb snigger)
Do you usually have the most say when it comes to the band’s singing direction?
Abel: Well, when it comes to the singing stuff, we all share in the decision making process. I’m basically an outspoken person, so that might be the reason that I’m always been heard.
Are you always quick to say what’s on your mind then?
Abel: Pretty much. I speak straight to the point. I don’t like ‘decorating things’.
But surely there are times when you offended people with you straightforward remarks?
Alexis: Always!
Abel (hurt): Hey, I’m just a frank person! In my heart and mind, I know that I’ve the best intentions, never evil ones! Remember, I’m the innocent Abel in the bible! (Laughter all around)
Your star sign says that Librans are very conscious about looking good. So are you a vain guy?
Abel (looking as if his eyes were going to pop out of the sockets): Vain? Huh! I think I like to take care of myself, my appearance and personal hygiene, which matter a lot to me. Well, maybe I’m more vain when it comes to my hair. I’m very particular about how it looks. I like to take time on each strand- lots of hair spray and blow- drying. I don’t like anyone else to style my hair. The only thing I trust my hairstylist to do is to cut my hair.
Who’s your ‘little piece of heaven’?
Abel: My daughter, Juliet, who is 3 and a half years old. She’s definitely an angel!
Cool Cat Caleb
Tell us about your interest in martial arts.
Caleb: I started learning ‘Kapoeira’- Brazilian martial arts- when I was 20 years old.
Since you are the newest member of the group, did you find it hard to get along with the guys?
Caleb: On the contrary, we hit off very well! n I have many things in common with them and we share the same dreams, although we still have our differences. But we always look at the positive side of things. The most important thing is that we have loads of fun!
If you hadn’t been spotted by the music company to join MDO, what would you be doing right now?
Caleb: I would be living out my other dreams- either as an actor or a veterinarian!
Will you become a veterinarian when you retire from singing?
Caleb: That’s very unlikely, ‘cos you need to undergo 10 years of training to become a veterinarian! I think I would be too old to be a doctor by then!
How cool do you think you are?
Caleb: I think this is for others to say, not me! But I would like to think of myself as cool though…
They say you have a good temperament, is that true?
Caleb: Yes, I’m easy- going, nut I do get mad if people drive me beyond a certain limit. So far, the 4 of them haven’t seen me explode yet. I hope they won’t ever! (laughs)
So who’s your ‘little piece of heaven’?
Caleb (brightens up): My soon- to- be- born son, who is arriving in August!
Shy Guy Alexis
You must be the shy one in the group.
Alexis (looks doubtful): Shy? I don’t know; maybe I’m a little reserved…
If you get a chance to go out with Sharon Stone, where would you bring her and what would you do with her?
Alexis: I would bring her to my room, and I will… (looks shocked when we scribbled that down. Hey no, I was just kidding!
(Caleb teased, ‘Why Sharon Stone’? Alexis shot back, ‘’Cos she’s my favourite actress!’)
What’s so fascinating about Sharon Stone?
Alexis: I like her ‘cos she’s natural. She’s beautiful and she looks in movies.
Who’s your ‘little piece of heaven’?
Alexis: My family, nephews and nieces. And my god- daughters and god- sons.
Cute Chap Pablo
You love to log on a great deal. What do you normally surf?
Pablo: I don’t do so much of surfing; I reply to emails from fans and send emails to my family and friends. I also enjoy chatting on the ICQ with friends and other people.
Do you ever reveal yourself as a singer in the chatrooms?
Pablo: Well, I usually chat with people I know!
How do you find time off your busy schedule to reply emails to your fans?
Pablo: When we get back to our hotel at night, I get online a lot if I can get connected from my hotel room… that’s when I answer my emails, chat online…
Didier: Yeah, he’s the one who’s always on the computer. (Everyone laughs)
Any bad experiences online before?
(We’re talking about getting swamped by email and stuff here…)
Pablo (matter- of- factly): When I get disconnected. (Everyone laughs)
Didier: And that counts as a bad experience for him!
Since you think that the eyes are the sexiest features of a gal, who do you think had the sexiest pair of eyes?
Pablo: Jennifer Lopez!
Tell us why ‘The Alchemist’ is your favourite book.
Pablo: It’s a really special book, really motivating, and it helped me to learn to fight for my dreams, and to realize that what I really want is to be here in MDO.
We know you love sushi, but do you know how to make it?
Pablo (eyes light up): Sushi! I love sushi, but I don’t know how to make them… (listen up girls!)
And how do you define your ‘little piece of heaven’?
Pablo: For me, it’s true love…
Dashing Dude Didier
You’re a sentimental guy, so you must have gotten your heart broken before.
Didier: Heartbroken? Yeah. Well, it’s (relationships) hard, you know, being in the music business and all; you’ve gotta travel a lot, and you feel lonely sometimes, ‘cos you don’t have that special someone near you. And when you get back home, you realise that that person didn’t really care about you, and just wants to go on living her own life… But it’s about finding the right person, you know! I’d like to know my woman deep inside, and know her real well.
Aww… and you like ‘Romeo and Juliet’ too…
Didier: Yeah, I’m a romantic kinda guy, and I like stories with unusual endings.
Do you believe in net romances?
Didier: No, doesn’t really work that way!
(After a while, he ‘fess up.) Ok, ok… I once exchanged email addresses with someone I met, and after that, we dated for a short while…
Other than Italian pasta, what do you like?
Didier: I love vegetable lasagne, especially those from Columbia; really nice!
As the most wanted single of the group, what do you think is your most appealing factor?
Didier (genuinely surprised): I am? Wow! I didn’t know that! Maybe ‘cos I’m friendly and really out-going. It’s not pretence; I like being nice to everybody! (Laughs) I guess people see nice things in other people, and I’m sure our fans see something nice in each and every one of us!
And your ‘little piece of heaven’ is…?
Didier: Hmmm… there’s a song I like very much- about what a guy would do just to have a little piece of his beloved’s heart… it’s happened to some of us before. And a little piece would be like that, love.
