A favorite of Prince, Las Vegas act relaunches
The vocal group Mo5aic was first presented to Las Vegas audiences by the great stand-up George Wallace. The Flamingo Showroom headliner was among the earliest four-wall operators on the Strip, leasing the venue and carving space for handpicked guest stars.
Premiering in 2006, Mo5aic was effectively Wallace’s house band, producing all music with no instruments. Five guys, five mics, becoming a Vegas sensation 15 minutes at a time.
One night, Prince was at the back of Wallace’s audience, unnoticed and unannounced. The band members didn’t realize it until after the show.
“He walked in very quietly, and everything was business as usual with George keeping us on stage and telling jokes and it was all fun and cool,” says band leader Joshua Danger — legal name of Joshua Huslig — as Mo5aic preps for its Vegas revival at 9:30 p.m. Thursday at Vegas Theatre Company in the Arts District. “Well, after the show that night, I got a phone call, somebody with Prince’s camp. And when they called me, they kept referring to him as P, just the letter P.”
P was intrigued by Mo5aic.
“They’re like, ‘P really likes you guys, and we’re curious what your schedule is.’ And I’m thinking, ‘Who are they talking about?’ I had no idea,” Danger says. “Come to find out it was Prince, and I’m going, ‘Prince, like, the prince of Arabia?’ No, it was the real Prince.”
The identity now in focus, Mo5aic was invited to open for, and perform with, Prince at his 3121 club at the Rio. The “1999” superstar was headlining the adjacent Rio Showroom.
“We performed with him a few times at 3121,” Danger says. “Afterward we had been invited to this big, luxurious space they had for high rollers and celebrities, and it was customized with this purple marble and his symbol on the floor.”
The “little afterparty” was hosted by a DJ before Mo5iac took over. The room was dim, with purple lighting. After about 15 minutes of soft conversation, the guys heard the unmistakable clickety-clack of heels on that purple floor.
“This starts getting louder, and then we realize, ‘Hey, it’s Prince,’ ” Danger says. “He walks into the room, past us, and out the other side. He didn’t say a word. Then he comes walking back through the other way, and he’s gone again. We’re like, ‘OK, maybe this is just a thing he does.’ About 10 minutes later, he comes walking back through, with a complete costume change. It was like a comedy routine.”
The superstar came and went several times, in different outfits. The Mo5aic crew finally understood he was in a photo shoot in the main corridor, putting up Cher numbers for costume changes.
In this activity the band began its performance.
“We just sort of spontaneously broke out into some harmonies, singing along with the track,” Danger says. “I’m not joking when I say, we started singing for about 10 seconds. Then Prince swoops in from around the corner with his hand cupped behind his ear, like he’s listening. He starts grooving. Then he goes, ‘With Mo5aic around, who needs a DJ?” and just disappears.”
That comment was a purple rainstorm of marketing.
“We actually use that quote to this day,” Danger says.
Having won over the legendary audience of one, Mo5aic has embarked on a career on land and sea, performing at arenas, clubs and cruise lines. The band was the first headliner on Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, the world’s largest cruise ship.
The roster has been juggled, and reassembled for their return, intact, to Las Vegas. Danger, Heath Burgett, Jordan Rogers, Corwyn Hodge and Kenny Urban are reintroducing themselves to those who don’t recall the days with Wallace.
From the hottest clubs to packed arenas, their vast musical and stylistic range has wowed audiences across the globe.
All have prospered outside the Mo5aic format. Rogers is a former backing singer for Christina Aguilera. Urban is a world-champion beat boxer.
The vocalist’s sound is an audio illusion, if there can be such a thing. Audience members have looked for musicians, or wondered about backing tracks. There are none in the band’s broad-ranging set list.
“We’ll do the Top 40 through the decades,” Danger says. “It’s all well-known stuff, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Bruno Mars and a whole bunch of surprises in between.” We’ll have our ear cupped for “P,” too.
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A multiple-Grammy Award-winning songwriter is being honored at an off-Strip venue in the first quarter of ‘25. A big name, this. Updates to follow.
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Cool Hang Alert
How about a hang in Boulder City? The ’60s and ’70s cover band Rock You Up is hosting at Maxx’s Oasis from 8-11:30 p.m. Friday, a show and Halloween party. Costumes also. It’s a whole thing at the club on 708 Nevada Way. No cover; food and fizzy drinks available.
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.
