America may have thought it was seeing the last of Mario Vazquez in 2005 when the young Latin vocalist unexpectedly surrendered his position as one of the top 12 contenders on the fourth season of American Idol, but the day Carrie Underwood took home the title, Vazquez was busy auditioning for a record deal with Arista. Quickly becoming the first young male Latin artist on Arista, Vazquez has spent the next couple years showing America what it really was missing when he prematurely dropped out of the hit TV show.Born and raised in New York City's Bronx to Puerto Rican parents, Vazquez's early experiences with music included singing along to Latin, soul and doo-wop groups like Tito Puente, the Delfonics and the Teenagers. He attended the La Guardia School for Performing Arts before joining the City Kids Repertoire Company, and eventually ended up singing backgrounds on Michael Jackson's Invincible album. A few more small gigs didn't fling Vazquez into the big leagues as he hoped it would, so auditioning for American Idol was his next alternative. Citing the need to control his destiny as an artist, however, Vazquez voluntarily left the TV show mid-season to further pursue a solo career. After finally signing a record deal with Arista, Vazquez has since broken in his new edgier public musical persona.The Latin pop artist released his first single "Gallery" in 2006, accompanied by a Spanglish version for his Latin listeners. The song was an immediate success, reaching number six on the Top 40 Mainstream singles in 2006. Likewise, Vazquez's debut self-titled album was also a hit, making the Billboard charts on his first try. Mario Vazquez showcases the singer's smooth vocals and gentle, confident style, perhaps throwing him into the company of American Idolists here to stay.
