"Timing is everything," says multi-talented hip hop/R&B diva Lil’ Mo. She should know, her much anticipated debut album, Based On A True Story, is coming out on the heels of a string of hit projects Lil’ Mo has blessed with her charismatic presence. Most recently she added her searing vocals to Ja Rule’s Put It On Me, making it the first big hit of 2001! Mo’s mesmerizing turn on Missy Elliott’s Hot Boyz (her friend and a mentor) helped make the smash single the longest running #1 on Billboard’s Rap Chart (19 weeks), causing both Spin and the Village Voice to cite the 23-year-old singer as one of the artists to keep your eye on.
A one woman arsenal — producer, arranger, writer, performer - the Queens native has written and/or performed with everyone from Teddy Riley, to Timbaland, Next, 702, Nicole, and Jay Z, to name a few. But the wily Mo has been saving her best for last. Lil’ Mo is more than eager to point out that Based On A True Story is indeed the album that she has always wanted to make. "Doing this album was actually taking a load off," she smiles. "There’s more pressure when you are working with another artist than when you are doing your own solo thing. I have had this album in my head for a long time. Every song is like a chapter in a book. The reason I call it ‘Based On A True Story’ is because it’s all my life. Hopefully there is a chapter there that everyone can relate to. That people will keep going back to."
Based On A True Story feels like Mo’s very own calling card — sensuous, fierce, and funny, each song heightens her artistry without sacrificing any of the raw power she has displayed on previous work. Whether it’s the autobiographical My Story — ‘15 years, still doing my thing’ she spits out on the album’s opener, or the melodramatic Ta Da (written by Shep Crawford and Montell Jordan), or her incredible interpretation of Cyndi Lauper’s Time After Time, Lil’ Mo establishes titillating new ground on the debut effort. Even more amazing, the multi-talented singer wrote every song but one on the disc, as well as going back and adding some new gems in the past few months. "Just updating the story," she laughs.
Like the twin power pack of Superwoman Part 1 and 2. "Part 1 is me being the best I can be," she says. "Part 2 I go off a bit. I talk about the whole hoochie thing. I don’t want to knock anybody’s hustle, but if a girl has got to walk around practically naked to get her man — using your behind instead of your mind — well, I got a problem with that."
The outspoken Mo backs up her bravado with her one-of-a-kind voice. Among her fans is none other than occasional collaborator Missy Elliott’s. "Lil’ Mo can’t be compared to any other singer. She has a gift from God that can make the biggest sinner become saved."
Her production mentors, The Flavahood production team Suga Mike and Big Baby (Gerald Levert, Queen Latifah) guided the recording of the album, with guest appearances Carl Thomas on Player Not The Game, and Fabolous Sport on Superwoman, Pt. 2, and Jamal on Supa Star.
Lil’ Mo achieved her sense of family growing up on Long Island, but because her father was in the military, it was rare for them to stay too long in one place. Hailing from the outer boroughs made young Mo long for the limelight of Manhattan. "Sometimes it was like: ‘why even unpack.’ But I got into music early, I always loved performing, and my family encouraged it. I used to dream of being a star in New York City. I used to enter talent contests wherever we went. If you listen to the interlude before the song My Story, you get an idea of what I mean. When I was little I was always telling everybody I was going to be a superstar. I haven’t changed my goal. I want to be a household name. I want people to say ‘pass the sugar, it’s right next to the Lil’ Mo.’"
Her debut album affords plenty of opportunities to live up to the hype, including the scathing Supa Starr, which points a playful finger at wannabes trying to out-play each other. "It starts out: ‘Everyday in the ghetto…’ because I want to talk about the people living beyond their means," says Mo. "They know who they are. The ones who worry about whose chain is the biggest, whose car has the best rims, whose earrings got the most ice. Then you see them go home and they got a little house in the middle of the projects. They’re not taking care of the real things. The important things. I’m saying you don’t need all that to be a so-called ‘superstar.’ You are a superstar without it. Trust me!"
In just a few short years Lil’ Mo has indeed delivered songs for the music world’s top superstars, guesting on coveted albums, even touring with Missy on 1998’s historic Lilith Tour. Now poised to drop one of the most anticipated R&B albums of the year, Lil’ Mo seems to be taking it all in stride. "Sometimes I can’t believe people are checking for me," she says. "But I’m ready. It seems like every experience has groomed me for this moment. It’s my turn to shine."
