Mario isn’t a fan of handcuffs—at least not when it comes to his music.
The romantic “Just a Friend 2002,” “Let Me Love You,” and “Crying Out for Me” crooner has always understood that R&B works best when it refuses restraint.
For more than two decades, the Grammy-nominated singer has built a catalog rooted in vulnerability—songs that don’t flinch from love, loss, desire, or devotion, even when those emotions get complicated.
“In R&B, you shouldn’t contain your emotions,” he told 48 Hills ahead of his San Francisco show (Mon/8 at August Hall). “You should let them out. You should be vulnerable. You should be free to express the different characters and perspectives of love, loss, and intimacy—without any handcuffs.”
That philosophy sits at the center of Mood Swings, his newly released eight-track EP on New Citizen / EMPIRE.
Executive produced by Dre Moon (The Weeknd, Future, Beyoncé), the project sharpens Mario’s longtime instincts into something distilled, intentional, and unmistakably grown. This isn’t a reinvention so much as a recalibration—classic R&B energy filtered through lived experience.
The title alone suggests emotional breadth. But Mood Swings isn’t about chaos or volatility; it’s about control.
The record moves deliberately between tenderness and sensuality, nostalgia and forward motion, guided by calm assurance rather than impulse.
Even the name arrived late in the process, revealing itself once the emotional throughline had fully taken shape.
“The title came 70 percent through the project,” he says. “It makes me feel like I did when I first started hearing the R&B I loved.”
For Mario, that feeling is tied to a specific cultural moment—an era when R&B wasn’t just a genre, but a cinematic language of romance.
“The title Mood Swings reminds me of the ’90s—when R&B was in your favorite movies,” he says. “You couldn’t have a love story like The Bodyguard, Love Jones, or Boomerang without a star single. So Mood Swings is paying homage to that timeline. And the project itself is a contemporary / ‘90s R&B project.”
That balance—honoring the past while staying firmly planted in the present—runs through every track.
The EP unfolds like a series of emotional chapters, each exploring intimacy from a slightly different angle.
“Home” sets the tone early, framing love as grounding and protective. It’s a song about choosing stillness over noise and commitment over distraction.
“Nobody But Us,” the project’s lead single, reinforces that idea of intentional partnership for the artist, boyfriend, and soon-to-be father, and has already found wide resonance, landing on more than 16 Apple Music playlists. Together, the tracks spotlight Mario’s enduring strengths—warm vocals, layered harmonies, and storytelling that feels personal without turning too inward.
Asked why a love-forward project felt essential at this point in his career, Mario frames it as the natural result of years spent searching—personally and artistically.
“I’ve always been searching for what my meanings of love, commitment, and intimacy are, as an artist since I was 14 years old,” he says. “I’ve had so many ups and downs, failed relationships, and great relationships. When I perform songs on stage, it always goes back to those records that made fans feel connected to me and gave them a soundtrack for their own lives.”
That connection is no accident. Mood Swings is concise by design—what Mario describes as “short, sweet, and intentional.” Rather than an overextended artistic statement, it plays like a warm winter soundtrack, meant to be lived with rather than picked apart.
If “Home” and “Nobody But Us” serve as emotional anchors, “Moan” tastefully explores sensuality. It’s R&B intimacy without theatrics—adult, conversational, and self-assured. Mario attributes that balance to patience and clarity rather than provocation.
“If I take these lyrics and put them down on a piece of paper, does it sound timeless?” he says. “‘Tonight, I wanna hear you different/Focus on your tone while I’m in it./Tonight, I don’t wanna hear you bitchin’/I just wanna hear you moan.’”
That sense of conversation—rather than shock value—defines the track.
“When women hear these records,” he adds, “I want them to feel like, ‘Damn, this is what I want somebody to say to me’.”
The EP’s lone collaboration, “Friends” featuring Ty Dolla $ign, fits neatly into that emotional ecosystem, offering another perspective on blurred boundaries between desire and connection without tipping into excess.
Mood Swings arrives alongside another significant turning point: Mario’s first headlining tour in over a decade. The 13-city Nothing But Us Tour: An Intimate Night with Mario launched in Richmond, VA, last month. Tonight, he appears in San Francisco—a city that holds personal and professional significance for the artist.
“San Francisco has always been supportive of R&B,” he says. “It’s a place where the distribution company that I partner with, Empire, was founded. I’ve got family here, friends here, businesses here. The views of the water remind me of home.”
That sense of closeness isn’t just thematic—it’s built directly into the structure of the tour. Before each show, Mario opens soundcheck to 50 to 100 fans, followed by a Q&A, a meet-and-greet, and finally a toast.
“I speak about celebrating this whole moment—the unity, the full circle,” he says. “This is what the Nothing But Us tour was meant to be. Before the digital crusade, it was albums, tours, and direct connection. No Instagram. So it pays homage to that real connection.”
Returning to the stage also feels different now. With decades of experience behind him—and a new chapter of fatherhood on the horizon—Mario approaches touring with greater awareness and more profound gratitude.
“Understanding how to balance my rest, touring, mental health, it’s just a lot more maturity involved,” he says. “The gratitude I have for it is at a different level.”
Mental health conditioning and healing, he emphasizes, are no longer abstract ideas but daily practices—especially as he prepares to become a parent.
“We should always be on a journey of healing,” he says. “Especially being a dad now, that awareness is something I put more time into. Things don’t disappear, but they become part of your strength.”
That growth extends beyond music. Mario continues to build a parallel career in acting and production, from his acclaimed role on “Empire” to recent film projects and plans with his production company, New Citizen Productions. Psychological thrillers, romantic dramas, and even a scripted series inspired by his own life are all in development.
Still, music remains the emotional center. With Mood Swings, Mario doesn’t chase relevance—he embodies it. The EP bridges past and present, honoring the R&B tradition that shaped him while speaking directly to who he is now: an artist grounded in love, accountability, and connection.
As the tour winds down and the holidays approach, his focus turns inward—to family, reflection, and rest.
“Home,” he says simply about his plans. “Finishing my baby’s nursery, getting a Christmas tree, and reflecting.”
In many ways, that word—home—captures the heart of Mood Swings. It’s not just a lyric or a theme; it’s the destination. A place where vulnerability feels safe, love feels intentional, and R&B still has the power to make people feel something real.
MARIO Mon/8. August Hall, SF. Tickets and more info here.
