Mike Jones sent the world of mobile technology in a spin when he disclosed his cell phone number to his extensive fan base. Having had to change carriers numerous times in order to find a plan to suit him, it looks like his bills might be on the increase once again as he readies up to release his new project. His second album The American Dream is set to hit shelves in May this year and here Mike Jones has a lot to say about how he approached this album; titles, production and just how much of a gimmick he really is, its all here.

Your new album is called the American Dream, why did you opt to go with that title
It’s basically showing a guy, and that is why I came out with the movie to explain it, it is showing a guy who went from zero to a hero with the help of my Grandmother, God and with a strong team around me and how I can live the American Dream. Once you watch the movie and see what I’ve been through it will encourage you to live the same dream of your own, no matter what barriers and hurdles you come your way. Some people get rejected one or two times and they want to give in and they think ‘Mike Jones, he never got rejected.’ But watch the movie you’ll see what I gone through; people dissing me, girls not wanting to holla, people looking at my CD and throwing it on the ground in my face. I wanted to give up myself but in the DVD I am showing them that I had faith, I got someone who had faith in me, these people around me weren’t just there because I blew up we been cool before the rap game. In the DVD you will see about the new artists coming out, you will know about his situation, you will know about my situation and be able to look and say ‘Damn Mike Jones did all that. You know if he went through all that I know I can make it through mine.’ It will allow people to live their dream too.
Do you believe that you are living the American Dream now then
Yeah I am living it. I don’t have to want for nothing, I’m able to help out people, provide for people in need. In Houston I took some kids and gave them a thousand dollars and took them to the mall so they could go buy clothes and stuff. A thousand dollars is a lot of money for kids to go school shopping. Thanksgiving came and me and Lil Flip bought loads of turkeys and handed them out in the parking lot so people could come and get free food. I am living the American Dream and blessing everyone else the way I was blessed. Around Xmas time when the ‘Grinch’ stole all the kids toys, me and Flip came out and gave a truck load of toys to kids as we didn’t want their holidays to be ruined by the thief who stole their toys.
Would you rather work with just one producer on a project
I mean I like to work with everybody, but for the record when I did Who is Mike Jones, that was my first release and I had to prove something to the world that I meant something to the game and I wanted to do songs with this celebrity and then that celebrity, but because I wasn’t platinum or gold, they wouldn’t do songs with me. I faced a lot of rejection from celebrities, so I had to start from scratch again and now I am talking about what I know. People always ask me why I am talking about the lean, the grillz, the candy paint, making out that that is all I know which isn’t the case, but when I try to invite people on songs, and those celebrities and people you wanted to feature on the song turn you down, you have to play with the cards you were dealt with. Once when I blew up, people came back around asking if I wanted them to do the songs, but I was good then.
So the second album is like your first album then
Yes because now I am able to do the songs that I really wanted to do in the first place. On the first album I didn’t really have an R&B jam on there, it was strictly street and it was a male album.
You have Trey Songz on there and Lil Mo adding some R&B flavor is there any other notables on the project
I have Pimp C, I have a song called tender Loving wit Bobby Brown and TI. Now the first album was strictly a street album as when I did try to explore the people I wanted to do songs with turned me down. It was hard, you know I was thinking ‘damn this is my first album’ but now I can work with whoever I want to as I went platinum as obviously you had to sell a certain amount of records for this person to work with you or that person to work with you. So I went back to Salih, he did Still Tipping, he did Sideways, because when all the producers wouldn’t mess with us because we weren’t known, we had to go with who we knew and we went to him and that is why he did the majority of the album to get back to your question. So once all this took off, all the other producers wanted to come along and submit beats, but I was like ‘nah I am just going to mess with my same people.’ You know Amadeus did the Grandma track on the first album, Salih did the Still Tipping and Back Then and now I have Six Four with me, Slim Thug and Snoop Dog on there. I have a song called Like What I Got which he did and a song called Turning Heads that he also did. Those songs are crazy. Now I have more freedom with the album.
So after you blew up and people saw what you were actually capable of, what did you tell those who had doubted you before, ‘hell no
That is exactly what I said. I wanted to go against the grain on the first album, but since the celebrities didn’t want to do it I had to go back to the street and now I have both; songs for the streets, songs for the ladies.

So do you think people will be shocked with this album
? Man they gonna be shocked. People are telling me now, Bryan Michael Cox said to me ‘I didn’t know you were a song writer, I thought you were strictly a rapper,’ people just don’t know. I was judged on my first album which had a lot of songs that satisfied my core, but I got songs too that are going to open the eyes of women.

Are you content with where you are at in your career
I mean if things were to stop today I would be good for life, but I have to strive to be better as there are people counting on me and I am trying to open up this and open up that and trying to stay busy and prove to people that I can come back and be Mr. Jones and sell another mill and go platinum. I stayed away from the game so people wouldn’t be tired of hearing Mike Jones.

What do you think is the one thing people get wrong about Mike Jones
People think that everything I do is a gimmick; you know the name, ‘the who.’

You really think that people look at it as being a gimmick, as me personally I think it is more marketing and branding and there is nothing wrong with that
. It is a brand but my whole message is, if people take the time to listen to people and what they say then they could be where I am today as, like I said, I listened to my grandmother. I know what time it is. My Grandmother has been the key to everything to do. That is why I am still humble, no matter what I have done or have, no matter how many records I may have sold, I still keep it cool with my people. If they see me I don’t want them being afraid to hug me, you know people will tell you I am the coolest guy they know and all I want to do is show people that what I did, they can do too. If I can do for the world what my Grandmother did for me, it would be a means to a means in the industry

Melanie J Cornish