Phillip Mandelbaum

Philophrosyne Philomelus "Phillip" Mandelbaum (born 28 November 1990), also known by his stage name Phil M (stylized as PhilM), is an American guitarist and singer, who is a member of the alternative/indie band Curriculum. Mandelbaum is one of the founding members of the band and has been since the band formed in 2006. Mandelbaum also sings background vocals on most of Curriculum songs though the vocals are predominantly by the band's lead singer Gregory Preston Athanasiadis.

In 2013, Mandelbaum signed with the South Korean record label S.M. Entertainment and the Japanese label Avex Group to launch his solo career in South Korea and Japan. His Asian debut single, "의학 Medicine", and its English version, "Your Love's A Drug", was released in the UK, US, South Korea, and Japan in February 2013.

Early life
Phillip Mandelbaum was born as Philophrosyne Philomelus Mandelbaum in New York City on 28 November 1990. He is of Jewish, Arabic, Indian, Japanese, Korean, and Native American descent; his "Greek-sounding" name comes from his parent's extreme fondness of Greek mythology. When Mandelbaum grew older, and though he wasn't ashamed of his given name, he began to call himself "Phillip" because thought it was as "funner" as his given name since it was simple and easy for others to pronounce.

Mandelbaum grew up in a wealthy well-to-do family in New York City and is the youngest of three children. Generations of his family have amassed their fortunes by getting involved in sex-oriented businesses and practices. His maternal grandfather ran a series of burlesque clubs and bars and also a multi-million dollar toy company, his maternal grandmother taught classes on Kama Sutra, his paternal grandfather both ran a brothel, his father was an AVN award-winning pornographic actor in the 1980s and 1990s and now runs his own highly popular and profitable adult film company, his mother has written a series of best-selling erotic novels and sex advice books, his older brother is a former male escort and now also an AVN award-winning pornographic actor, and his sister is a former stripper/exotic dancer and is now a journalist for a popular sex-oriented publication.

Despite his family's involvement in many aspects of the sex industry, all of them discouraged and banned Mandelbaum from joining in on the "family business", seeing as he was "the baby of the family" and "too innocent" for the sex industry. Instead, they suggested he pursue a career in business, medicine, or even music, the latter which he decided to pursue. As a result, Mandelbaum is the only one in his family not involved in the sex industry.

Mandelbaum was rumored to have dated women significantly older than him during his teenage years, which is something he denies. Mandelbaum attended Glen Ridge High School in New Jersey alongside with his Curriculum bandmates Gregory Preston Athanasiadis, Wyatt van Cleef, and Dana Breckenridge. Mandelbaum and Athanasiadis have been best friends since they were three years old, and Mandelbaum knew van Cleef and Breckenridge since middle school. Mandelbaum graduated in the top five percentile of his class and later went to Columbia University, where he eventually dropped out to spend time focusing on his career with Curriculum, as their popularity was taking off.

Career
Mandelbaum co-founded Curriculum alongside with Gregory Preston Athanasiadis, Wyatt van Cleef, and Dana Breckenridge in 2006 and they have been together ever since. In 2011, the band released their debut single "So Mainstream" which became a big international hit. Their debut album, Syllabus, released in February 2012, has also proven to be internationally successful. The album spawned two more singles that have since reached the top ten in the UK and have gone to attain chart success internationally.

2013 to present: Solo career
In late 2012, while Curriculum was on a "mini-hiatus", Mandelbaum met with the executives of S.M. Entertainment, one of the top three record labels in South Korea to discuss the possibility of signing Curriculum to their label. Instead, the label was only interested in him because of his well-known bubbly personality and his "adorable" looks. Mandelbaum also met with executives of the Avex Group in Japan and they too were interested in signing only Mandelbaum instead of Curriculum. Mandelbaum talked things over with his bandmates who swiftly gave him their blessing. Mandelbaum's deal with S.M. and Avex were finalized in 2013.

Mandelbaum, now going under Phil M (or PhilM), announced that his debut solo single "의학 Medicine" will be released in South Korea and Japan (in their respective languages) in Spring 2013. An English version of the track, his cover of the unusued Helena Rossi song "Your Love's A Drug", will be released in the US and UK in February 2013.

Artistry
Though he is mainly a guitarist for Curriculum, Mandelbaum oftentimes sings background vocals on most/some of the songs by the band. His voice is said to be limited and not to have much range but is also described as "decent, tolerable, and oftentimes soothing". Most of the vocals on Curriculum's song, including background, are mainly sung by the band's lead singer Gregory Preston Athanasiadis. Mandelbaum is more known and praised for his guitar-playing skills in the band.

Image
Mandelbaum is known for his "bubbly and very happy" personality. He is very optimistic, very excitable at times, and gets easily impressed by things. He has a penchant for dance music and often calls this time of music or anything uptemo "dancey". His personality can compared to that of Blonde Ambition, SARA!, or some of the other "blonde-acting" pop starlets in the music industry. Mandelbaum is noted to be "the first male ever to start acting like blonde - though nevermind the fact that he's a brunette with short hair".

Personal life
Mandelbaum is currently single.

Discography
See Curriculum discography