MAYALABEE

MAYALABEE

bio- and discographie

..

(c) The Beyoncé Experience 2007

"Because you have strong knowledge of who you are, you're not going to compromise your integrity for other people in the business."..:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /

Andrea Sharlette Brunner aka. Mayalabee was born on April 18th, 1990 in Bern, Switzerland. She began her music career as a little kid, meeting the big Hip-Hop, R&B, Pop, Punk and Soul significant celebrities. "I had the chance to meet my idols when I was a little kid, but I said I won't miss that anymore. Music is my passion, my life"..Said the soon-to-be seventeen-year-old girl when I asked about her past. In 1999 she joined a dance group,"We danced from Jazz to Streetstyle and from House to Classic partner moves. It was great, we had the chance to bring our own ideas in the group. A few years later, Mayalabee joined a Hip-Hop dance group. "I've loved the moves they had there, but it was way to perfect, you always had to do what the dancing-teacher in front of you did, that was not cool."

In 2002 Mayalabee decided as a 12 year old girl to continue with music but in another way. "I formed a group named Missionitas, we had such a great time and I always loved it to spend my time in our room. We started to do something nobody did here before, the new generation. Funk, Hip-Hop with dirrty R&B beats. We had a 22 year old "brother" he made beats for us and managed us for a while, that was great" It all ended up there where the 22 year old fell in love with mayalabee... " I felt so bad, I liked him.. he was cute but definitely a lil. too old for me. It was hard telling him that, but I did it!" She joined a few other bands and had some good and bad experiences. "All in all.. it was not easy, but I think you learn more from bad experiences then you learn in good situations, it was like a test" .. like Friedrich Nietzsche said: What does not destroy me, makes me stronger. Mayalabee knows how the big stars live, she knows how they act and why they got famous. Right?? "You need a recipe? just mix talent with luck and it's all done, belive me!" Let's say, prudently wise words! Today Mayalabee is independent. She is still involved in some underground projects. She's writing a lot and the next big Project is already there.. ya all will be surprised, "It's like a big baaaaaaaaaaaaang, if you work and still don't forget what you worked for over years. I'll be back soon ya'll.. and I'll start right here... " And the big *flue* will start after she've finished her apprentiship. "I know exactly how hard this business is, don't get me wrong, Today you have to think about tomorrow, that's the only way to survive." I'M A SURVIVOR! what about you?

Mayalabee's not one to test. Just ask the inebriated lamebrain that mouthed off misogynistic drivel just as Mayalabee was walking off the stage following her crowd-rocking performance in Basel. As expected, Mayalabee, hardly agitated, countered with a snappy rebuttal, but in a surprisingly subdued manner as would a teacher reproaching a class clown for his sophomoric romps. A caustic lecture on respect 101 is what he sure needed. "Didn't you see the flyer? Didn't it say Beautiful Queen?" Okay then. Nonchalantly she stepped away from the mic and vanished from the infiltrating spotlight.
This is Mayalabee’s temperament, calm yet triggered by such riling instances. Exhausted, her cool mood has momentarily taken the back seat to a keyed up, more brazen one. Perhaps the day's agenda and basically the one-month nationwide Rappresent Tour (with el Rico, Cali Agents, and Sandra Divenci) that kicked off at Lucerne and ending in her hometown Thun has taken a toll on her a bit. But this is Mayalabee’s denouement. This is her sweet redemption. On her new single, "Super-Mind-Flow," she rhymes, "When I hit mainstream, y'all bitches can bite me." In reference to this line, she explains, "Because you have strong knowledge of who you are, sometimes you're not going to compromise your integrity for other people in the business." She appends, "I may sound a little bitter but that's just because people change your views. You're coming and you got all these different delusions and grandeur and all of that, and once reality hits you and you realize that you're just a commodity and these people that you come in contact with don't care about you one way or another, then you kind of adjust to that. It's a lot to take in."
It's just this kind of attitude that Mayalabee postures in the face of music industry ingratiation which then steers her focus again toward her music. "My knowledge is stronger of the industry now, so the different things that I've learned is filtered through the music a little more. I don't necessarily talk about industry-related topics but the growth is me knowing how to formulate my experiences a little bit better because I'm more mature now. Since I grew up in this business"

One year ago, when Mayalabee released her Mixtape “Breath”, she immediately gained Nationwide pounds for her infectious and unprecedented sound, yet she was still underrated. How so, you ask? Well, let's say that the Mixtape didn't do as well as it deserved. Learning from past experiences, though, Mayalabee is swift to discern that maturity is the chief requisite for growth. "On “Breath”, I was coming more as an open mic, underground emcee who has a strong passion for doing it. I wasn't that serious about the business side. Now I know that I have to be a business woman in order to be successful in the industry."
Putting to work her amassed knowledge of the music industry's ins and outs, she landed a contract with Goodvibe Recordings, the LA-based indie hip-hop label that's home to other such local esteemed artists as Declaime, Medusa, Divine Styler, and the Phil The Agony. In Rappresent, Mayalabee is confident that she has found a label that would foster and support her creative objectives. On her new EP, MLB Queen, Mayalabee had just the right assurance of freedom that she had been seeking after. "I had more to say in the production. I co-produced 75% of the songs on there. Whereas on “Breathe”, I really just accepted whatever I was given. The creative control on MLB Queen is 85%. Whereas on Breathe, it wasn't that strong. I didn't have that strong influence on the whole making of the project except for the writing, because I pen my own lyrics. I just felt more comfortable this time around."

"Special Forces" matches the intensity of the hard-edged backpacker anthem "Total Wreck," especially upon calling on Rasco, Planet Asia, and Chops of the Mountain Brothers. Then there's the otherwise relaxed "One-4-Teen," a reflection of the soothing "Uknowhowedo." Other tracks such as "Rappresent" also reinstates Mayalabee's signature sound, while "Commonwealth" is a track that takes on a whole new handle on penny-pinching female consumers. "'Commonwealth' represents the type of female that I am, an everyday chick, a person who's conscious of operating within the perimeters of a budget, juggling a lot of different things. Everybody's not flossy. It's just dedicated to females like me…It's not to knock anybody that's doing what they choose to, because that's their own personal preference. But as for me, I'm just a cheap chick, not cheap in morals and values but financially. I'm going to be that way even when my money starts to come in. I'm still always going to be conscious and always looking for a bargain because that's how I am."

As Mayalabee breaks down the science behind her lyric writing, she elicits, "I'm more attentive to what I create because I have to research and actually live the experiences and then I can filter, take my time, sit back and write the songs.
Unlike her female peers that saliently brag about donning commercial brand names, Mayalabee spits more substantive words that the average listener can really identify with. Mayalabee knows that every rapper has a reason for saying what he or she says. But she isn’t only a rapper, she beatbox, dance and act. And in regard to underground emcees spitting conscious messages, Mayalabee posits, "It depends on the emcee's background and what your understanding or what your interpretation of the music is and what part you choose to play. As for me, I'm just trying to keep myself under wraps."

With MLB Queen at hand, Mayalabee can again remain calm, as she now knows that she just might have the proper ammunition for all the commercial debaucheries and the music industry artifices. As Mayalabee and el Rico chanted on Soundbombing II's "Drama Rodeo," "We, the rhymesayers, will lead you like a beacon of light out of the chaos," expect one of hip-hop's most talented artists to champion innovation at the same time preserve the music genre's true sense and esteem. "People can always expect quality music. They can expect me to represent the truth on whatever level it takes."

On her way back to HOLLYWOOD!