MAKO Girls on New Single “AIN’T THINKIN BOUT YOU” Shaking Things Up!

On December 1, 2015, the dynamic sister trio, Mimi, A-Ni, and Kena Ochoa also known as the MAKO Girls out of Atlanta, first appeared here on The Hype Magazine courtesy of our Founder and CEO Dr. Jameelah “Just Jay” Wilkerson via an #OfficialHype interview titled “Who is MAKO Girls? #OfficialHype“, at the time the ladies were Mimi (14), A-Ni (12), and Kena (16). Now pretty much all grown up, the young ladies have literally watched their hard work payoff by seeing their new video for their new single “Ain’t Thinkin’ Bout You” hit the playlist for MTV!

By now, fans know what they get when they press play on a MAKO Girls video. They’re going to see an exhibition of true camaraderie between the Girls themselves — three young Atlantans who happen to be real-life sisters. They’ll see first-rate fashion from everybody onscreen, especially the three stars, who rock throwback gear and cutting-edge clothing with equal confidence. Most of all, they’re going to see dancing: first-rate dancing, in formation, executed with the sort of precision, synchronization, and exuberance that will never go out of fashion, but which has been all too scarce in contemporary music videos.

Dynamic choreography lit up the clip for “Ready,” the club burner that established MAKO Girls as a force in A-Town Pop and R&B. It was there again in “Leverage,” the undeniable, wildly catchy follow-up. In the video for “AIN’T THINKIN BOUT YOU,” the Girls’ latest single, the young sisters and director Kiki Ely shoot the works with four minutes of athletic, kinetic, immensely rewatchable dancing. They’ve gone back to the Girls’ old high school to make the video, and they’re dancing like they’ve just heard the recess bell.

That’s the only appropriate response to a track like “AIN’T THINKIN BOUT YOU,” a glorious kiss-off propelled by a slinky Atlanta-style beat and a whipped cream-thick bass synthesizer. It’s a showcase for the sisters’ harmonies and insouciance. When they tell their addressee that they’re not wasting a moment worrying about their judgment, the effect is downright liberating. In doing so, they’re carrying on the tradition of another Georgia singing trio: TLC. A-Town has waited a long time for successors to Chili, T-Boz, and Left Eye. Fans of R&B have found the group they’re looking for.

That’s not to say they don’t have an identity all their own. The “AIN’T THINKIN BOUT YOU” video foregrounds their personalities just as much as it shows off their moves. It’s telling that they set the clip in their old school: they want you to know exactly where they come from and how deep their roots go. They’ve remodeled the classroom into MAKO University, and whether they’re sitting at their desks or up in the aisles, they’re never still for long. The MAKO Girls can dance with notebooks in their hands. But they save their best moves for the school basketball court, where they can be as gymnastic and audacious as they’d like. Twice, Ely stops the clip and turns the chorus into something resembling a cheer. They’re proud of what they’ve accomplished already, they’ve got attitude to burn, and they’re going for the win.

In almost a full circle moment (since Just Jay isn’t doing this one), we got the sisters to weigh in on a few things!

Is there any special meaning for shooting the music video for “AIN’T THINK BOUT YOU” at a school?

The whole concept for the music video “AINT THINKIN BOUT YOU “was paying homage to HBCUs and black films such as Stomp the yard, Drum-line, and Sister Act. The school was a very important location to capture iconic scenes and to get the feel of an actually prep rally. Along with the fact that we all graduated from that exact same high school. It wasn’t only a walk down memory lane for us but it was also a full circle moment. We got a chance to represent our school and give some of the students an opportunity to participate in and amazing production.

If you were about to play your music for the first time for someone, what would you tell them to expect?

We would tell them to expect a lot of bass, great energy through each song, and lot of attitude/ swag. We add these to all of our songs, whether the song is talk about love, working hard, or even a girls night out!

Are there any specific music artists that inspired you guys to create music?

TLC was one of the biggest inspiration because of how timeless their music is and the messages in their music. We are also inspired by artist that we love to listen to like Melanie Martinez because of her creativity through an entire project you can see the vision or story she is trying to tell , Doja Cat has such a distinct sound that you know is her and we want to create that for us as well, and Ariana Grande is such as effortless singer and we aspire to sing and do vocal production the same way.

How did you guys get into music?

We started out in our own dance group doing different talent shows and showcases. Then got inspired by the boy group Mindless Behavior to do more than just dance. We loved seeing the process of how they became a group and were instantly ready to get to work, so we started researching vocal coaches, setting schedules, and writing our first song.

How long have you guys been making music for?

We have been making music together for 10 years.

What is the number one message that you try to express to your fans in your music?

Our number one message for our fans in our music is to have fun, work hard for what you would because that makes you the boss and be confident in yourself.

Is there a certain type of energy or feeling that you try to show in your music?

The energy that we show in our music is upbeat, fun and it instantly gets you a confidence boost.

What do you have planned for the future in 2024? Any new songs or albums that you are hoping to release soon?

Our plans for 2024 is to hit the festival stages, be in the build for award shows, collaborating with more artist and dropping more music. Kicking off the year we released an R&B track called “Snakes”, however there is so much more music being released this year! We also have live performances coming up couple show dates in March and a Women’s Conference on April 20th . And we are bringing back our 6th Annual Carnival Glow Party going down on April 6, 2024 a huge event that put together every year and tickets are available now on eventbrite.com we hope to see everyone there!

Keep up with the MAKO Girls: Website, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter (X), Instagram, TikTok

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Tags: Ain't Thinkin Bout You, Atlanta, Dancers, MAKO Girls, MTV, Music video, New Single, Singers, Songwriters, trio

About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.