Popping Up: School Gyrls

Popping Up is our recurring look at new artists making noise on the music landscape. Because, hey, Madonna and Britney were once unknown, too.

If you caught Nickelodeon’s mini-movie School Gyrls on Sunday, then you got a proper glimpse of the teenage pop tart trio who were front and center in the Nick Cannon-directed feature. (Mariah’s husband co-wrote and exec-produced, as well.) And rest assured, these young women plan to keep on earning plenty of extra credit once the final bell rings in their movie. In addition to School Gyrls’ dance-jam single “Something Like A Party” (on iTunes now), there is a full album from Island Def Jam on the way, as well as both an Archie Comics series and a set of teen novels based on the group.

After the jump: Jacque, Mandy and Monica give us the low-down on Justin Bieber—who made a cameo in School Gyrls—as well as their upcoming album.

First of all, let’s meet the girls behind School Gyrls:

MANDY MOSELEY (aka Mandy Rain): After a chance meeting with Justin Timberlake backstage at an N Sync conert, Mandy (then age seven) and her family moved to Los Angeles, where she was enrolled in jazz and hip hop dance classes. Nick Cannon first spotted Mandy during the filming of the 2007 Nickelodeon Series Star Camp. And as for her nickname Mandy Rain, Moseley tells Idolator, “Nick gave it to me when I was very young. I was in Star Camp and he was giving us all names and I told him my mom almost named me Rain. So he said, ‘Mandy Rain—that’s fresh!'”

MONICA PARALES (aka Mo Money): Trained in music and dance, the 17-year-old California native was spotted by an agent when she was nine. She soon began dancing with the Team Millennia Juniors from the Team Millennia dance studio, which landed her work with Missy Elliott, Eminem and Mase.

Here’s Monica dancing with the Team Millennia Juniors in 2009:

JACQUE PYLES (aka Jacque Nimble): Fifteen-year-old Jacque began training in jazz and ballet at the age of five before moving on to hip hop dance classes. With acting and dancing on her mind as a career path, Jacque admits she never thought of pursuing singing until she joined School Gyrls. “Since I’ve been in the group, I think I am a lot more comfortable when I have to sing,” she says. “I have taken voice lessons, and am learning how to sing properly—so it makes it a lot easier for when I have to sing on the spot!”

Here’s the cover of the trio’s upcoming album, which is due out March 23. Below that: a Q&A with School Gyrls.

How did Nick Cannon help you all form School Gyrls? MANDY: He first found me through Star Camp, and added Mo Money. Then Jacque auditioned. MONICA: I knew [executive producer] Ray Brown and Nick Cannon from [starring in] Giggle Club in about 2006 or 2007, but then I decided to do this other project called The JammX Kids produced by Merv Adelson. As time passed by, Ray called me and was wondering if I wanted to be in a girl group. We met at Nick’s house it all began. JACQUE: Well Mandy and Monica were already in the group because they knew Nick and [executive producer] Ray Brown from prior projects. They called me in for the audition for the group on a Friday and Sunday in October 2008. Ray had called my mom for me to come meet them somewhere and I thought it was just a callback. We got to his house and saw Mandy and Monica, and I was just thinking that The Gyrls were meeting the future girls, but we got up the stairs and he opens the doors and goes, “Welcome to my house. This is my wife Mariah.” I was just in complete shock and then he just started going on and on about what us girls were going to do! And ever since then we been the School Gyrls!”

Mandy, you’ve been learning to play guitar, haven’t you? MANDY: Well, I’m having some trouble because even on a mini guitar, my fingers are very small and short. So it is complicated for me to mute the top two strings in [our song] “Something About Him.” My favorite songs to play— and the easiest for me—are “Baby” by Justin Bieber or “Love Bug” by The Jonas Brothers.

Speaking of Justin Bieber, did you get to interact with him much on the set? JACQUE: Yes, I did get to interact with him on set—and then after we finished the movie also! He’s just a normal 15-year-old boy. He’s very down to earth, very sweet and fun. We did little things on set like jam sessions, and he was so into getting to know us girls and just playing around with us. Then the one day he invited all of us to go bowling. Too bad Monica couldn’t join us. But since then he has become a good friend. And FYI, he’s a flirt! [Laughs] MONICA: For me personally, I did not get to interact much with Justin, but when I did he was super sweet and fun. I got to set and he was playing football with the cast and crew. He introduced himself to me, and was really down to earth. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to go bowling afterward with him and the rest of the girls. But, yeah—that boy is definitely talented.

[wpaudio url=”//static.idolator.com/uploads/2010/02/SLAPclip.mp3″ text=”School Gyrls – Something Like A Party” dl=”0″]

What kind of music can we expect from the School Gyrls album? Will it all sound like “Something Like A Party”? JACQUE: You can definitely expect something new. Its’ a whole bunch of sounds mixed into one. We have the pop, and the R&B, and then the rapping because I rap. So its definitely something new and fresh—like us! It’s a feel-good album. MONICA: There are a variety of songs, from pop-rock to hip hop. We like to call it the School Gyrls genre.

What was your favorite part of making the movie? MANDY: When I skated right into a teacher who had a cake in her hands, and it went all over her face. JACQUE: Being able to meet and make some of the incredible friends that I met, and to say I did a movie and I was one of the leads—and I am only 15! Also, being able to learn so many things about being in front and behind the camera. MONICA: My favorite part of making the School Gyrls movie would be just waking up bright and early knowing that, “Today I’m going to work!” And the catering truck, of course!

Since you work so closely with Nick, do you get to hang with Mariah Carey at all? MANDY: We actually got to met her for the first time at Nick’s house. When I met her, she was like, “You’re Mandy Rain right?” And i was like, “Uhhhh…” [Laughs] She replied with, “I heard [School Gyrls soundtrack tune] ‘Detention.’ Girl, you are a powerhouse!” I was speechless! MONICA: Miss Mariah Carey has definitely been supportive of the School Gyrls. She actually features on one of our songs called “Get Like Me.” It was written by her and Nick. When we were recording the song, she was very hands-on with the sound—like, for example, if the music changed she would be concerned about it. [Laughs] She also came to visit us on set while [we were] filming the movie. She’s super sweet and we are so very blessed that we got to work with such an amazing, beautiful, singer.