Back in 1999, Lou Bega got everyone moving to his chart-topping track "Mambo No. 5 (A little bit of…)" as he counted "one, two, three, four, five". It's been 20 years since its launch, but the Munich-born Grammy nominated singer is yet to recreate that commercial success. He says even back then he knew that he wouldn't be able to climb the mountain twice.
He followed up his 1999 debut album "A Little Bit of Mambo" with "Ladies and Gentlemen" in 2001, "Lounatic" in 2005, "Free Again" in 2010 and "A Little Bit of 80s" in 2013. But to many, Lou is still the "Mambo No. 5 (A little bit of…)" hitmaker.
Asked if there is always pressure on him to make a better song, Lou told IANS in a telephonic interview: "It is impossible. It is one of the most played songs in the pop history. It is crazy.
"Even in 1999, I knew I can't climb the mountain twice. The only thing I am able to do is cater to my fans and have fun. There are so many pop stars who commit suicide. They think that they have to climb up the mountain all the time and that success is a measurement for happiness."
Calling himself a spiritual person, he said: "It is a gift of God that I was able to reach all these monumental heights."
"The best thing in life comes unexpectedly. If you put your heart into it, good things can follow. That's the rule I live by. I gave up climbing the mountain."
He is now back with a new single "Scatman & Hatman", which is available across all streaming services exclusively on 9122 Records. The track is a contemporary re-creation of Scatman John's 1994 smash hit "Scatman (ski-ba-bop-ba-dop-bop)".
"I grew up in the 90s. In comparison to 2019, I believe that we had a much more joyful, colourful and lighter kind (of music). The Internet was not mainstream at that time. It was a different time.
"I wanted to somehow grab that atmosphere and inject it in 2019. We can't compare these decades, but there is more darkness in mainstream music these days."
The 44-year-old also wanted to pay a tribute to Scatman, who passed away in 1999.
"I was never able to meet him. He died in 99. I came out in 99. My own daddy died then, so 99 is deep in my heart. This year, I wanted to come out with a song in the 20th year anniversary," said the "Tricky, tricky" singer.
Lou teamed up with German producer Roland Spremberg, and together they re-created Scatman's hit and aptly titled it "Scatman & Hatman". The track mixes the instantly recognisable original hook line with a brand new melody and lyrics.
"Technically, it is not a cover. It is... two songs that match. I wrote a new song to it, so that people can understand in 2019," said the pop singer.
There's more in the pipeline.
"There will be more songs in the next six months. They are going to be on the joyful side," he shared.
After Jimmy Kimmel's spoof Lou Bega biopic, the singer is now interested in letting experts make a movie on his "roller coaster" life.
"My life is a roller coaster. I would love to see it as a movie," he said.
On what he would like included in his "biopic", he shared: "What success does to you as a person. There is always a price tag. Your privacy is gone, friends may change and you have much more responsibilities, so you have to mature differently and quicker, especially now with the Internet, it is very dangerous."
He feels that thanks to the Internet, it is important to be conscious of what you say.
