Charlie Puth

Charles Otto Puth Jr. was born December 2, 1991, in Rumson, New Jersey, to Debra, a music teacher who also wrote commercials for HBO, and Charles Otto Puth Sr., a builder and real estate agent. His father is Catholic, and his mother is Jewish. He has two younger siblings, twins Stephen and Mikaela. As a two-year-old, Puth's right eyebrow was permanently scarred in a nearly fatal dog-bite incident. Puth has perfect pitch. His mother introduced him to classical music and began teaching him the piano at age 4. He started studying jazz at age and participated in a summer youth jazz ensemble at Count Basie Theatre's Cool School in Red Bank, New Jersey at 12. He was hired by The Count Basie Theatre to play in a Charlie Brown production. In grade six, he went door to door selling a Christmas album called Have a Merry Charlie Christmas that he had recorded and produced, making $600 in sales. In September 2009, he started his own YouTube channel, entitled Charlies Vlogs, posting comedy videos and acoustic covers. In 2010, Puth released the music video of his first song, "These Are My Sexy Shades". On December 2010, he released his debut extended play, The Otto Tunes, an independent release. In December 2012 he released a promotional single, "Break Again", with additional vocals by Emily Luther. The music video was released days later. That was just the beginning of something great. In early 2015, Puth signed with Atlantic and his previous records were removed from iTunes and in February that year he released his debut single "Marvin Gaye" which features American singer Meghan Trainor. That was his lead single on first studio album Nine Track Mind, released on January 29, 2016. "One Call Away" was announced by Puth as the second single from the album on August 4, 2015 and was released along with the pre-order of the album on August 20, 2015. On May 11, 2016, Puth announced "We Don't Talk Anymore" as the third single from the album. Selena Gomez provides vocals for the song. It impacted US contemporary hit radio on May 24, 2016. His biggest job was the song "See You Again" for the Furious 7 movie, and it was written for his friend who passed away in a similar accident. The song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed there for twelve weeks, becoming the longest-running rap number one along with Eminem’s “Lose Yourself.”

Do you know Charlie Puth and his album Voicenotes? That will be the question I will ask each of my friends who love music (over forty years old) in the coming weeks. In fact, I will ask that question to anyone who crosses my path, regardless of age or if they like music in one style or another. I think I'll ask this question for more than a year, I do not mind being criticized, and if the answer is: no, but I think it's a millennial boy, is not it? I'll answer: shut up and listen! And if they insist and tell me: I think his style is purely pop, is not it? I'll say shut up and listen! No matter age or style, when quality is in everything you do, it will be recognized, and you will not be able to deny the value you bring to anything you do. I was impressed with each track of Voicenotes he is involved in the composition of eleven from thirteen songs, and all of them print a unique stamp when interpreted with a refinement that is rarely heard. An excellently educated voice, a singer who knows what he has and exploits it perfectly, an artist who forces everyone to follow him and wait for whatever he does to have it on his devices and reproduce it as many times as possible. You dance, you get romantic, you transport yourself to an atmosphere of beauty. The colors of the sounds achieved for this album are mixed with the clarity of his perfectly well-modulated voice, creating images that he had never experienced before. On many occasions I have used the word "exquisite" to describe an arrangement, a song or a way of singing; but today, I can affirm that Charlie Puth and his album Voicenotes is the definition of "exquisite". I can not remove the headphones, I'm listening to each song several times, I stop and return the track to hear that detail again in the voice, the arrangement in some instrument, the depth of the bass sounds, the bright sound of the guitar and the keyboard; in short, I am pleased one hundred percent. If any of the people I recommend (demand?) to listen to this record, ask me what songs I suggest, the answer is simple: all. From beginning to end, without pause and without distractions. I would even say that if you do not want to see the videos it's fine. Sorry for the above, but I am one of those who think that when you want to appreciate music in all its splendor you need to isolate yourself from everything that can make you lose the most brilliant or emotional moments of a work. I have heard many guys of Charlie Puth's age say that they despise everything that has to do with pop because it seems artificial, very commercial and absent of the content and musical quality. I tell them not to be wrong, I accept that sometimes pop worldwide leaves much to be desired, but in the case of Voicenotes things are different. It is worth its weight in gold. As I have said in other Narratives: please, do not despise the fact that there are people at this moment who are facing the risk of composing original songs to enrich the music industry that, in the end, the only thing that is intended is to entertain us. And please, I ask people from other cultures and languages ​​who are reading this: get away from prejudices and value this guy.

In recent time we have seen a lot of examples were a celebrity had started his or her journey from YouTube and later become a famous personality, one of those is Charlie Puth. A 27-year-old boy from New Jersey started his music career as a YouTuber where, he started his own channel called the Charlies Volgs. Initially he uses to post funny videos and acoustic covers. In 2010 Charlie Puth uploaded his first music video for the song called “These are my sexy shades”, with time he started receiving many acknowledgments for his online performances, he was awarded with few of the online awards as well. 2011 was the time when probably he got his first breakthrough when Ellen DeGeneres announced that she had signed Puth to her label, eleveneleven. “Right opportunity can knock you anytime” the major break through Charlie Puth got as he mentioned in one of the interview with Billboard that everything happened very quickly one fine day when he received a mail from one of his friend who asked him to write some songs and he did, he started with the song Marvin Gaye and See you again and rest remains history.

In true me fashion, I have never actually listened to Charlie Puth. This is a recurring problem with me, I see people doing well in the industry, I know a handful of their Singles, I like the singles, but I manage to skip over hearing the things they work hard to put out for everyone to hear… why do I do that? Anyway, today I listened to Charlie Puth’s debut album Nine Track Mind, which was a play on the phrase one track mind. The pop album honestly took me for a little ride as I really enjoyed it and the constant oldie’s vibe, but not the kind that your grandma listens to and it makes you want to die, the kind that you hear sitting in an aesthetic old Diner.

When I first caught wind of Charlie Puth many moons ago, I had pretty much wrote him off as just another studio-pushed Pop act who was surviving more on schtick than on the content of his sonic machinations. He had an undoubtedly phenomenal voice with an incredibly impressive range, but songs like the abysmal Wiz Khalifa-fronted “See You Again” & the absolutely blasphemous Meghan Trainor train-wreck “Marvin Gaye” – seriously, how dare you appropriate his name? – didn’t particularly inspire confidence, tainting my outward view of the budding Pop icon forevermore – That is, until he released Voicenotes, showing me just what he could do when given free reign, not only proving that he had a deep love for R&B music but that he could back it up with actual skill as well.