Nothing in life is more powerful than the hearts of teenage girls. It's just a fact. And if Justin Bieber hasn't proved that enough, enter his arguably more talented and adorable Aussie counterpart -- Cody Simpson.
The darling, blonde 14-year-old singer started out like a lot of young stars these days –- he posted YouTube videos of himself playing guitar on his couch and belting out haunting covers of big-name artists like Michael Jackson, Bon Jovi and Justin Timberlake. It was because of those videos (and his obvious talent) that he was contacted by Grammy-nominated producer Shawn Campbell and ultimately landed a record deal with Atlantic Records.
Two years later, Cody is living in L.A. with his family and just recently finished up a co-headlining "Waiting 4U" tour with fellow YouTube star, Greyson Chance. He's currently on the road in a cross-country promotional tour for his much-anticipated, upcoming EP, appropriately titled Coast to Coast, which drops Sept. 20. Oh, and his videos now have more than 75 million views.
I admit. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I met Cody at his recent tour stop at a Long Island mall. As a self-described teenybopper who can't help but rock out to Biebs and Miley more than I'd like to admit, I was convinced I would not let this kid win me over. I can withstand the craze and charm. Right?
When I say there was a big crowd, I mean there was a big effin crowd. After talking to some die-hard fans (and their seemingly patient parents), I quickly realized I was witnessing the beginning of something huge. "Someone told me how many people are outside, waiting, and it’s really got me hyped," Cody later tells me when I sit down with him for our interview.
"Cody Simpson cured my Bieber Fever," girls scream as they point to their homemade shirts. Others are littered with hearts, lyrics and the numbers 143, which apparently means "I love you" in text code. Who knew? Not me. Geez, I am getting old.
It was all for the first show of this tour and not a bad way to start. At all. "We’re on this ten-day mall tour and it’s pretty much just going around the country, performing at different malls here and there and promoting my six-song EP, coming out September 20th," Cody says. "So it’ll pretty much be coming out near the end of the mall tour; that’s what I’m really excited about at the moment."
At only 14, Cody admits to being a bit of a tour junkie already. "I love it," he says. "It gets busy. It gets tiring but every day is different, so it’s a new experience." And when he's trying to pass time in between cities, he takes comfort in his laptop. And why shouldn't he? He has well over one million followers on Twitter and Facebook.
As for his upcoming EP, fans are already buzzing over the first single, "On My Mind," which currently boasts over 4 million views on YouTube. So which song is the most personal to Cody? "There’s this song called 'Angel' that I wrote with the guy who did my single, 'On My Mind.' It’s about, like most of my songs, the opposite gender... girls," he says with a smirk before transitioning into his surely serious face. "It’s the song on the EP that I had the most contribution to, in terms of the creative process, so it means the most to me."
On his first EP, 4U, Cody recorded his super catchy hit "iYiYi" with well-known rapper Flo Rida, but this time it's all him and he seems to be cool with that. "I’d love to do something with Bruno Mars, JT [Justin Timberlake], or Jack Johnson," Cody says. "They’re all inspirations of mine. My EP is all solo stuff but hopefully there’ll be some collaborations [when I record] my album next year."
It's no surprise that after meeting and working with some of music's finest, Cody isn't the starstruck kind… for the most part. "Obama," he admits. "He just has the craziest presence. I really hadn’t been totally star struck until I met him, you know? He’s got so much mystery to him, I guess."
When I try to get Cody to own up to any embarrassing music on his ipod, he thinks long and hard before starting to sing, much to my surprise: "Who lives in a pineapple under the sea..." I laugh at the unquestionable adorableness and then silently squawk at myself for letting him charm me so quickly. "My little brother loaded his Spongebob CD into my computer," he says.
Well, since Cody brings up the topic of girls, I have to ask. And I am quickly taken aback by his mature and cordial response to the obvious question -- which kind of girl does he prefer, American or Australian? "It depends," he says. "There isn’t really any difference except for an accent. People are different. People from different countries aren’t necessarily different."
Fair enough. But I know I have to get to the bottom of his style -- something else girls can't stop swooning over. "His hair! His eyes! His accent!" fans yell enthusiastically when I ask what they love about Cody Simpson. He sits comfortably across from me with a black Lacoste polo, skinny jeans and sneakers and I don't second-guess him when he says his fashion sense is "pretty relaxed" and "kind of laid back."
Really though? That hair? "I don’t really have to brush it or anything," he says as I raise an eyebrow. It only takes him "half an hour" to get ready and most of that time is admittedly spent in the shower. "I just like showers," he tells me. "I spend 15 minutes to half an hour in the shower."
His mom chuckles from the back of the room, echoing those statements and adding that he likes to sing in there. "I don’t sing my own stuff," he assures me. "I sing enough of it!"
But back to the topic. "I love fashion," he adds. But one look he would never rock? "I’d never wear socks and sandals. My dad does that sometimes and I’m like, 'Dude, cover your feet up!'"
I have to agree with him on that one. We chat a bit longer about his favorite things -- place in America (Miami since it reminds him of home), TV show (The Mentalist) -- and whether he's ever watched Jersey Shore (he hasn't, but his friends do). But it isn't until I ask him about "Defeat the Label," one of his tour sponsors and something close to his heart, that he perks up and spends a great deal time discussing with me.
"I wasn’t necessarily bullied in school, but so many kids today are and that has to change," he explains. "And the whole social network at school isn’t the best thing. You’ve got these groups -- like there’s the 'cool group' and there are the so-called 'nerds' and everything. I really don’t see the point in all that stuff. Everyone can be friends with everyone. The amount of bullying that is happening now has grown over the years and I think kids really shouldn’t have to go through that. It’s definitely close to my heart."
I look at him and can't help but smile. To end, I ask Cody about his favorite ologies (or passions) in life. He sits pensively before responding with "ketchup, the beach and music." So I guess that ketchup thing really wasn't a weird rumor. He likes it on everything. Hm.
And by the time I get up, gather my belongings, shake his hand and leave, I smile at myself and think, "He got me."
Cue the Cody Simpson playlist.
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