Marques and Omari: The Dynamic Duo

19-year-old Omari Grandberry needed a mentor and he didn't have far to search. His 22-year-old brother Marques Houston had already made his mark in the hip hop industry with his work in the R&B group IMX, then went on to succeed in television with a recurring role on "Sister Sister" which you can still catch in syndication. It was Marques who helped with the production of Omari's B2K hit album Pandemonium! through his entertainment management company The Ultimate Group.

Scores of fans were recently saddened when B2K broke up at the height of their popularity. When we spoke with the two brothers in L.A., we got a hint that at least a mending of old friendships among group members is in progress. It's a touchy subject with friends and family in the mix. J-Boog of B2K is Marques's cousin. A few games of basketball and talking it out may lead the group to reconcile. They take being role models for young people seriously.

For now, it's movies, not music in the spotlight for Marques and Omari. They play best friends in the new hip-hop dance film You Got Served. On meeting the brothers, we could see similar but different styles at play. Both were wearing sporty gear but Omari's longer hair is braided and older bro Marques goes in for a very short close-to-the-head do. Omari had on a huge map of the world watch in diamonds and gold with a bright red band. Nothing subtle about this ambitious duo. They are very pleasantly in your face.

TeenHollywood: Marques, how have you seen yourself grow as an actor from sitcom to film?

Marques: I think as an actor you never actually see growth in yourself, maybe other people see it. All I can do is critique myself when I see "Sister Sister" or stuff that I've done. I'm always my worst critic and I'm always just trying to do better. Whatever I do as far as acting, I just try to give 110%. Just do my best at it.

TeenHollywood: Was this role in You Got Served difficult for you, with all the dance moves you had to do?

Marques: I've been dancing pretty much my whole life so it wasn't difficult at all. The most difficult part was getting into the character "Elgin" and playing best friends with my brother Omarion who plays "David". Just getting in to the whole feel of the character and getting into the zone and all the battles and the competition. We really had to get into a competitive attitude and a competitive spirit to actually pull it off.

TeenHollywood: This is the most serious character you have played, was it a challenge for you?

Marques: Yeah, it was definitely a challenge but I never walk away from a challenge. When Chris (Stokes, the director/writer) first came to me with the script he was like 'do you think you can do it?' and I was like 'of course, I'm gonna' step up to the plate'. So it was definitely a good challenge for me because it was a serious role with the lifestyle of Elgin.

TeenHollywood: How do you guys feel about Samuel L. Jackson's controversial comments last year that hip hop artists and other musicians shouldn't be acting because it should be the gig of an actor?

Omari: I can kinda understand where he's coming from as far as what he does as an actor. I respect that and I understand that but at the same time in the realm of what we do, there's no rules in the game. Some athletes were rappers. There's no rules, that's my take on it.

Marques: I get what he was trying to say because sometimes you can see a movie and there may be an artist in there that got the role because he was an artist and it's not good. But who's to say who's an actor and who's not? Who's to say 'where did he come from?'. Samuel L. came from whatever he was doing before he started acting and chances are he's a phenomenal actor so it doesn't matter where you start. If it's your dream to be an actor than that's your preference. But I understand what he was trying to say because some roles are just given away to musicians [Omarion agrees] instead of given to the people that are out there and their life is acting.

TeenHollywood: With everybody knowing that you are in B2K, Omari, was it tough not to be in a singing role?

Omari: Well for me no. This movie wasn't based around us being a group, It was definitely displayed and written so it would show our acting abilities and this is something I've been thinking about for a long time, just really getting into the movie side. I never wanted to do a role that's corny and that doesn't show versatility and that doesn't show that you're not just a singer. I'm acting now and I'm bettering myself.

TeenHollywood: Are you hoping that this film is something that can grab that older audience?

Omari: Yeah, most definitely. I think since we've been out since we were younger, our audience has grown up with us and I think it's going to be an easy transition. I look at myself as a role model so I just take on the responsibilities in knowing that.

Marques: I feel that the fan base going is going to be definitely younger to go see this film but a lot of older people are interested in the movie because of the positive message for the kids that's in this film. There is competition and everybody likes to compete whether it's through sports or gymnastics, dance, cheerleading, like in Bring It On people who really didn't know a lot about cheerleading went to see that film just for the competition or Drumline. I went to go see Drumline and I never knew anything about the Drumline. People love competition, people love to see battling, people love to see that whole energy and everything. I think hopefully with this movie it will open up a wider fan base for us.

TeenHollywood: Speaking of competition, how's the family dynamic going when you guys are in a movie together like this?

Marques: [laughs] It doesn't matter to us. We don't compete like that with each other.

TeenHollywood. Omari, do you ask your bro (Marques) for advice or does he just volunteer it?

Omari: Nah, I come to him with it because he is the seasoned actor and I respect that about him. Being that this was my first time, I definitely came to him and was like 'how do you remember the scene?' because I had a little trouble with my lines [laughs. I was like 'how do I remember my lines?' He definitely helped me with that.

TeenHollywood: Can you talk about why B2K broke up?

Omari: Basically my view on it is that me and my guys, we've been together since we were 14 or 15 and we've been pursuing this for quite some time. At one point in time you are going to want to go to college, you're gonna wanna go and do your own thing and pursue your own dreams by yourself and go through your own things and I think we're just at that point right now where everybody just wants to do their own thing and everybody's growing up.

TeenHollywood: Were there some hard feelings?

Omari: Yeah, but in any relationship there's always things that [break apart].

Marques: Whenever somebody is mad, you can get into an argument with your wife, your girlfriend, your brother or somebody and there's gonna be things that are said that you don't mean. The shock of the members actually splitting wasn't as big a shock as the things that were said afterwards by the other three members. That's what was really shocking. These guys were like brothers. Anytime you have a relationship like that there's gonna be some animosity between you. You're gonna fight like brothers, but to go publicly and say all these things that weren't true, that was the thing that kinda hurt.

TeenHollywood: Has it healed? Have you guys talked?

Omari: Yeah we're trying

Marques: At least because the friendship is what's important.

TeenHollywood: Is there a possibility that B2K might be getting back together?

Omari: As of right now I don't know, I don't know what the future holds, you never know. People gotta understand the thing with guys and pride and it takes a little time to really just get over that and just be the bigger man.

Marques: There's no hard feelings. We don't hate them and they don't hate us. Like I said the important thing is that it was hurtful to see a friendship broken up by business. The important thing is to get the personal relationship back.

TeenHollywood: The director [Chris Stokes] was saying that you wanted to do the Fat Albert movie together. Do you have anything lined up?

Marques: Yeah definitely. We're probably going to do Fat Albert together and we have another movie that's definitely scheduled in March that we're about to shoot called Crazy House. It's a scary movie and then we've got You Got Served 2.

Omari: We're trying to do the whole Martin Lawrence and Will Smith thing, that whole Bad Boys thing [laughs]. Definitely we want to do Beverly Hills Cop or something like that.

Marques: We gotta get action packed! I just want to do one scene where I've got my gun and I'm jumping and flipping in slow motion. [laughs]

TeenHollywood: On You Got Served, have you guys ever seen this kind of street battle with dancing before?

Marques: Oh yeah. It's competition, like I said, everybody loves to compete. Omari: Well they have some B-boy summits and different competitions and it's really real out there, kinda like what we play in the story like it's our life With David and Elgin this is our life, this is our money. Elgin is trying to put his sister through college and take care of his mom at the same time and be the man of the house and this is what they do for the money.

TeenHollywood: So there really is more organization to it that what we think? .

Marques: They have that and they have Venice Beach where you just battle or you go to clubs and somebody just starts going at it and then somebody will start going back at him and before you know it there's this big circle and this big battle in the middle but people don't really know about it. It's all hidden and underground.

TeenHollywood: Some of those moves are absolutely astounding I don't know how any of you guys can do it.

Marques: We are really athletic. It's like sports. You have to get your body in shape, eat the right things, and work out. It was definitely a challenge.

TeenHollywood: How much input did you have in some of the dance steps as opposed to your choreographer.

Omari: When we were dancing with everybody it wasn't like 'okay, let me get some personal time'. There was none of that. It was like 'dancers –everybody's right here and one and two" you kind of got to go with it. It was fun for me.

Marques: The only thing we had as far as our creativity was putting our own flavour to the moves and stuff.

TeenHollywood: Omari, how was it doing your first love gig? Was it as much fun as it looked like or was it scary?

Omari: [laughs] Actually it was an up and down feeling because when you really have to get into a role and make it real you almost have to really like that person (in real life)for that role.

TeenHollywood: Did you have to audition against other people?

Marques: We didn't have to go audition against anybody else (Omari jumps in and says that he did have to audition). Chris had us definitely in mind for the characters but it was not written around music. We didn't want to do that because of statements like Samuel L. saying stuff like that. You never want to do those kinds of roles where you suck as an actor but you're in the movie singing. I don't think that when people go see this movie they're gonna be like 'they could have gotten better actors.'

TeenHollywood: Okay, some personal life stuff. If you guys were going to go on an ideal date, what would you like to do ?

Omari: I like to go bowling. I'm pretty good I've got my own [bowling] ball.

Marques: I'm not into dating. I'm more into getting to know somebody over the phone or going to visit them or them coming to see you and getting more personal. I feel like dating is old fashioned. When you're on a date the guy's trying to be on his best behaviour and the girl is trying to her best and you don't really get the real situation. [It's better when] you're just on the phone or you invite somebody to where you're at, something more personal, something not so 'date' where I pull out the chair and stuff.

TeenHollywood: Who do you guys listen to when you listen to music?

Omari: I listen to everything. I like a little jazz sometimes, listen to a little classical when I need to get my mind straightened out. I'm an overall kinda guy.

Marques: It's funny because I don't listen to a lot of R & B or Hip Hop because that's the field that I'm in. I listen to a lot of alternative music. I really like Maroon 5. (Omari agrees). We went to a Teen People party and they were tight, off the hook so they're one of my favourite groups right now.

TeenHollywood: The Hip Hop industry gets a lot of negative press, how would you hope to change that?

Marques: We definitely know that this movie will reach a lot of people out there who are going through a similar situation like the character of Elgin; having to grow up without a father. There's a lot of kids out there who have to grow up without a father and resort to selling drugs. The point of it is that you don't have to go that route. You don't have to go to violence. The [dance] battle and what we do is our own way of positively dealing with our frustrations and our anger at growing up in the hood with no money. That's our joy and that's how we vent everything instead of going to get a gun and going to shoot somebody and starting a gang. We start a crew and you go battle and you win money that way.

Omari: Another way I was thinking it could influence everybody is that we're artists wanting to do the acting thing and we're showing everybody out there that there is no limit. There's nothing that you can't do. If a swimmer wanted to become a biker, it shouldn't matter. There's no limit.

TeenHollywood: Who was the person that gave you the best advice in your life and what was it?

Marques: Our manager Chris gave us the best advice and that was just to stay humble and always be a positive person and stay away from negative stuff.

Omari: Good advice comes from everywhere. Somebody that you don't even know can give you some good advice so I think it's really important to just keep your eyes and ears open.

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Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.