We’re Flipping Out Over Benson Boone

When our editor-in-chief Mel Ottenberg got on the phone with Benson Boone earlier this week, he had one request: could he do a backflip for us? Of course, the 22-year-old singer and self-proclaimed “stunt king” obliged, right there on Zoom. Boone, who catapulted from TikTok heartthrob to full-blown pop star seemingly overnight, called us ahead of his visit to New York, where he’ll be headlining Governor’s Ball this weekend. “I kind of grew up in the mountains and I backpacked a lot and I was just doing random stuff all the time,” Boone told us. “So cities are a little overwhelming for me sometimes.” But Boone seemed right at home on Friday afternoon, when hundreds of screaming fans appeared on Canal Street to watch him backflip off the hood of a firetruck red vintage sports car. “A lot of people will pull stunts,” says the singer, “but I will pull stunts.” Boone’s just as much a gentleman as he is a showman, though—afterwards, he passed out pairs of his favorite JBL Flip 7 speakers before giving fans a tour of the audio brand’s store in SoHo. And for Benson Boone, speakers are no laughing matter. “A couple of years ago, I couldn’t afford the bigger ones,” he told Ottenberg. “But now, I don’t even have to afford the bigger ones because we’re in a deal together.” Below, music’s newest full-fledged pop star talks to us about audiophilia, his beauty regimen, and tailoring his jumpsuits to be slightly less, uh, restrictive.

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MEL OTTENBERG: Hey, Benson Boone.

BENSON BOONE: What’s up?

OTTENBERG: Where are you?

BOONE: I am at my manager’s house right now, in his kitchen.

OTTENBERG: Which is where?

BOONE: Which is in Utah.

OTTENBERG: Benson, what does your hat say?

BOONE: Emporio Armani.

OTTENBERG: Okay, wow. How’s it going today?

BOONE: It’s going pretty good. It’s a nice warm day. So after this, I’m just going to get some planning done and then rip the dirt bike. How are you doing? Where are you at? What is behind you?

OTTENBERG: I’m great. I’m in my office in New York City, which is, I guess, where you’re coming next, right?

BOONE: Who’s behind you? Who’s this woman?

OTTENBERG: This is an Interview cover from the 70s, one of the more obscure ones. This is Isabella Rossellini and that’s Isabella Adjani, and that is Paloma Picasso, Pablo Picasso’s daughter.

BOONE: Hell yeah.

OTTENBERG: When are you coming to New York?

BOONE: I come to New York tomorrow, I think. I hope it’s tomorrow, because otherwise I’m missing a flight today.

OTTENBERG: Any hot takes on New York City?

BOONE: Do you want to know something? I’m not a super city guy. I grew up in a very small town and I loved it. I kind of grew up in the mountains and I backpacked a lot and I was just doing random stuff all the time. Cities are a little overwhelming for me sometimes. If I’m in a city for too long, I feel like I’m losing my mind. If I can’t open my door and see the mountains or any form of nature, then I start to get… However, a couple days is no problem. That’s totally fine. And 7th Street Burger, dude, absolutely unreal. I discovered that place. [Laughs] I say that like I’m the first to discover it. I found out that that place existed last time I was there. Absolutely unstoppable burgers. They’re so good. And if you have never been there—

OTTENBERG: I haven’t.

BOONE: Are you a burger guy?

OTTENBERG: I love a burger. Deeply.

BOONE: Well, next time you’re just feeling a burger, 7th Street Burger has got your back. They will not let you down.

OTTENBERG: And you’re coming here to do a stunt on Friday?

BOONE: Yep.

OTTENBERG: What’s that all about?

BOONE: The usual, just coming in and doing a stunt. With me, you never know what “stunt” means. A lot of people will pull stunts, but I will pull stunts.

OTTENBERG: Like, stunts?

BOONE: There’s a difference between stunt and stunt.

OTTENBERG: You’ve always been a stunt king, I’m assuming?

BOONE: I’ve been absolutely trying my best. There’s better ones out there, but maybe not ones that are as loud.

OTTENBERG: Is the goal to be America’s preeminent stunt king?

BOONE: Yeah, that’s the goal. I don’t even care about music. I’m just here to be a stunt king.

OTTENBERG: Well, the voice is there, babe. The hits are there. We all know that. And what are you doing with JBL?

BOONE: Okay, it started out that I was a big speaker guy because I’ve got a group of friends that I just do everything with. When we go somewhere, when we go play Spikeball on the beach or when we go hiking or when we go literally anywhere, we’ve always got to have music. You can’t just listen to music on your own when you’re with a group of people. If you put in headphones while we’re all hiking, it’s like you’re just choosing to be excluded from the group. So I’ve been using JBL’s speakers for quite a while. We just had the small ones because a couple of years ago, I couldn’t afford the bigger ones. But now, I don’t even have to afford the bigger ones because we’re in a deal together and they can just send me a bigger one.

OTTENBERG: Fuck yeah. Do you have a fave? What do I need, Benson?

BOONE: The new ones that they’re pushing are the JBL Flip 7s, and they’re smaller, but they’re really loud. They’re actually surprisingly loud, but they’ve also got these boombox speakers that if you’re looking for something to really just shake your core and make you want to vomit a little bit, get one of those. They’re humongous and they’re great.

OTTENBERG: I’m very into full dad’s stereo maximum vibes right now. You’re selling me on the JBL summer hike and the beach.

BOONE: I promise you. They didn’t just tell me to just market their stuff. I’m being so serious. Some of their speakers are completely waterproof too. They can literally be anywhere. They can be thrown in the sand. They can be underwater for like, 30 minutes. It’s actually crazy. So get one of those if you’re trying to do some outdoor activities.

OTTENBERG: Will you be flipping at this event?

BOONE: That feels like an indefinite yes.

OTTENBERG: I’m pissed because I want to get a fucking video of you flipping on my own personal phone but I’m going to be in L.A.

BOONE: Get your phone out.

OTTENBERG: Get my phone out?

BOONE: Ready?

OTTENBERG: Oh my god. I’m ready.

BOONE: Are you ready?

OTTENBERG: I’m fucking ready, Benson.

BOONE: This one’s for you. [Boone does a backflip]

OTTENBERG: Yes. Thank you, Benson.

 

BOONE: You’re welcome.

OTTENBERG: Who else would do that for me? No one.

BOONE: Nobody. I can guarantee you. Unless you’re calling Simone Biles, no one else will do that for you.

OTTENBERG: I love Simone Biles, but I’m calling you, Benson.

BOONE: She’s amazing. But yeah, no one’s going to do that for you.

OTTENBERG: Pose for me. I want to take a picture of you.

BOONE: [Poses]

OTTENBERG: They were calling me a “Booner” in the office. Is “Booners” real?

BOONE: Honestly, it is real. It’s a real thing. There’s a lot of people that just call themselves “The Booners,” which is close to something different… Nevermind.

OTTENBERG: I thought about that. But you know what it is, Benson? It’s modern.

BOONE: Yeah.

OTTENBERG: Booners is now. What’s your generation?

BOONE: I’m born in 2002, so whatever that is.

OTTENBERG: You’re Gen Z.

BOONE: Gen Z.

OTTENBERG: On a serious note, are you America’s most sensitive man now?

BOONE: Definitely not. Wait, who said that?

OTTENBERG: I did. I asked. It’s a question.

BOONE: Well, I know.

OTTENBERG: Because, the new song. It pulled on my personal heartstrings.

BOONE: Oh, that’s what you’re talking about. I’m definitely America’s most sensitive guy, for sure.

OTTENBERG: What’s your workout split?

BOONE: I haven’t worked out in a couple months.

OTTENBERG: Seriously?

BOONE: This is all natural.

OTTENBERG: Okay, sick. You look great.

BOONE: Thank you. But actually, I really do need to get into the gym before tour.

OTTENBERG: So you don’t need to work out because you’re 22.

BOONE: You’ve just got to be in the right mindset. You’ve got to be ready for it. You’ve got to know who you are.

OTTENBERG: Do you know when you have a song that’s going to hit or do you not?

BOONE: Absolutely not.

OTTENBERG: For real?

BOONE: I’m being so serious. I can write a song that I feel so good about that. “A hundred percent, this is money. This is an absolute smash.” And then I’ll put it out or I’ll post a video of it. It tanks. Absolutely terrible. Nobody cares. Nobody even thinks twice about it. And then Janice from Denmark and Bob from Kentucky are like, “Oh, this is the best thing I’ve ever heard.” It’s so shocking to me that I can fully believe in something, and then it just…

OTTENBERG: But with “Mystical Magical,” you knew, right?

BOONE: I had a feeling. I had just a little itch, a little itch in my brain. But even after I put it out, it wasn’t doing that well. And then I was like, “All right, it needs something.” So I’m like, “Hey, what the hell is Moonbeam Ice Cream?” And I started posting a bunch of videos and having people post videos about Moonbeam Ice Cream. “He has no idea what he’s talking about. This is crazy.” And then I didn’t think it would really do anything. But then everyone was like, “What is Moonbeam Ice Cream? Who is Benson Boone? He’s reheating nachos.” And then everyone’s just talking about it and it started getting way more streams, so here we are.

OTTENBERG: So when it’s a flop, you’re just like, “whatever”? You just move on to the next thing, right?

BOONE: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Actually, I haven’t really thought about that. But yeah, when it doesn’t do as well as you’d hoped, you’ve just got to take that in the gut and get going.

OTTENBERG: Flip onto the next thing. Well, I’m a Booner. I’m a fan. I have one more thing to ask you. Do you eat whatever you want?

BOONE: I eat absolutely whatever I want. Can I tell you what I had for breakfast this morning?

OTTENBERG: I want to know really badly.

BOONE: I had a full glass of chocolate milk and Fruity Pebbles, three bowls of Fruity Pebbles.

OTTENBERG: Wow.

BOONE: The first bowl was really big. Second bowl, I didn’t think I could have another one, so I had a small one, but then I realized that I still had room. So I would say, it was equivalent to two big bowls, but it was actually three.

OTTENBERG: What’s your favorite candy?

BOONE: Blue Raspberry Sour Patch Kids.

OTTENBERG: What’s your beauty regimen?

BOONE: I need to get face wash. I just wash my face with a wet towel and I do my hair with Cantu curling cream. Those are the only two things I do.

OTTENBERG: Any advice for the kids at home?

BOONE: Yes. Please just do what makes you happy. I believe that everyone on earth has a really solid skill, at least one thing you’re really good at, at least one thing you can find passion in, so find that thing and just figure out a way to make it your job because if you do what you love every day, it is the coolest thing ever. And I’m very lucky to be able to do that.

OTTENBERG: Fuck yeah. I like a show-off, but a show-off that’s genuine, with a kind heart. Also, the dick-rearranging at the Grammys, and your apology after…

BOONE: You know what? That was actually genuine, though. That thing was hiked up so far up my front side you’d think that I had woman parts. It was really up there.

OTTENBERG: No one thinks you have a woman part, Benson.

BOONE: Well, I hope not.

OTTENBERG: But you learned a little bit about how to cut your pants after that, no?

BOONE: Yes, yes. I had a talk with my stylist, I’m like, “Hey. We’ve got to give just a little bit more room there and then we’ll be good.”