“Do they allow men to this concert?” Adam Levine asked a squealing crowd, mostly of the female persuasion. “There you go. A brave man, actually a smart man because it’s all girls here!”
It was standing room only as throngs of ladies were packed in like sardines at the Red Bull Sound Space at 97.1 AMP Radio.
They had gathered to catch a sneak peek of Maroon 5 before they head out on tour for their critically-acclaimed album, Overexposed.
The band gave fans a little taste of everything, kicking off the webcast with “Payphone,” going old school with “This Love,” and then wrapping things up with “Moves Like Jagger” and one of Levine’s favorite songs on their new album, “One More Night.”
Carson Daly was on hand to host the intimate performance and his bromance with front man Adam Levine goes back much further than their work on The Voice. Daly invited them onto his late night talk show, Last Call with Carson Daly, when the band was just beginning to make waves with their 2002 record, Songs About Jane.
“This guy right here,” Levine gestured to Daly. “I’ve said this a bunch of times, but he was the first person that ever believed in us enough to have us on television, which is an incredible thing. So we will always be thankful to you for that.”
In 2005, Maroon 5 won its first of three Grammys for Best New Artist.
“We were nominated against some amazing artists. One of them was Kanye West for Best New Artist,” Levine explained. “And so I’m thinking, ‘God bless Los Lonely Boys, but Kanye’s got this, you know?’”
Click Here To Watch Watch Maroon 5’s Entire Interview
“So, then we won and I think we were all just so shocked, first of all that we won a Grammy. Secondly, that it was in the category it was in and third, that we beat Kanye because I know as pissed off as he probably was, and I love him. I’ve known him for a long time…He didn’t interrupt us and he didn’t go crazy and say, ‘I deserve this and you don’t!’”
Since their surprise win, Maroon 5 has said the key to their continued success is keeping things fresh.
“We just evolved and changed and grown and I don’t know, it seems like if you’re going to be a band that people are going to be interested [in] for a very long time, you have to make sure you don’t wind up in the same place you were 10 years ago.” Levine said. “So, just changing and growing is important, as corny as that sounds. Growth and change. I feel like I’m running for President.”
With all that growth and change, you wouldn’t think there would be much time to do anything else, but Levine has kept a busy schedule with his coaching role on The Voice. At first, his bandmates weren’t so sure about his decision to join the show.
“We didn’t know whether or not it was going to be a cool thing or good thing for the band and we were kind of apprehensive, but it’s been one of the most amazing things for the band because it’s exposed all these new people to Maroon 5’s music that never would have heard it,” guitarist James Valentine admitted.
“Would you say it Overexposed us?” Levine joked. He just couldn’t help himself.
In addition to The Voice, Adam Levine made his acting debut earlier this month on American Horror Story: Asylum. Believe it or not, but he hasn’t even watched his entire episode!
“I couldn’t watch past the parts that we shot because the rest of it was scary because I didn’t know what was going to happen,” Levine revealed. “So 10 minutes in I’m like, ‘I can’t do this anymore.’ I haven’t watched it since!”
It’s a somewhat surprising revelation, considering Levine’s “favorite holiday on Earth” is Halloween.
“Halloween is basically like Christmas,” he said. “I’m going to be Carson Daly. I’m going to dress exactly like you.”
He later he revised his answer, saying he was going to be one of the characters from Sons Of Anarchy. Guitarist James Valentine will be dressing up as rock and blues musician Gregg Allman and keyboardist PJ Morton plans to celebrate as Gus from Breaking Bad.
It’s a much-needed break for the band before they head out on the North American leg of their Overexposed tour. They recently returned from performing in Asia.
“In Japan, they’re just very polite. It’s very quiet, even between songs,” Levine described. “It’s not like here where everybody’s drinking beer and screaming. There’s a lot of intense clapping and then at the end of a song, you could hear a pin drop in this massive arena and it’s kind of creepy and crazy.”
“In Korea, everyone is crazy and so wild. They have these little neon glow sticks. We’ve got to get that going here and they all do synchronized things. We’ve got to bring that to the States.”
Levine is also enjoying his time off with trips to IHOP and a top secret spot that serves up what he believes are the best vegan breakfast burritos.
“They’re so good. I can’t tell you. It’s a small, little place. It’s really close to my house and I need it for myself! But, I’m about to move in a little bit, so when I move, I’ll tell you what it is.”
Their brief vacation comes to an end next February when the Overexposed North American tour kicks off in Columbus, Ohio. Even though they released their album just a few short months ago, all the fans were dying to know when the band will be heading back into the recording studio again.
“We have not officially begun work on that record,” Levine said. “We will soon, I think, because we want to keep making music, keep doing this. It’s pretty fun and everyone seems to like it. It works for everybody!”
WATCH MAROON 5’S ENTIRE INTERVIEW HERE
-Sarah Carroll, 97.1 AMP Radio/Los Angeles
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