The Source caught up with prized Super Welterweight fighter Jermell Charlo to talk all things music and how he prepares for a fight, check it out below

Days after his win over Joachim Alcine, Jermell Charlo, 25, is celebrating a dominating performance in a fight that many believed to be a mismatch from jump. But with a new trainer and the opening of his very own gym to train in, an impressive performance was exactly what he set out to prove when he coined his training camp leading into this fight “The Rebirth.”

Relying on speed and punch tactics, Jermell dominated the entire fight with 110 punches landing out of 233 thrown (47%). With a KO in the 6th round inevitably crumbling his opponent, Jermell continued his trailblazing efforts and managed to maintain his perfect record, improving to 27-0 with 12 KO’s.

The Source sat down with the undefeated fighter to hear what powered him through this his intense training camp and what type of music he listened to in order to stay focused in the ring. Check out the interview below.

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Now with your training, is there anything you will be doing differently that you don’t do regularly?

Jermell Charlo: I have different punches coming out of the arsenal and I’m doing a  little different things in cardio. I would go running one day, sprint one day, ride the bike one day and go swimming one day. I was actually relieving the pressure from my back. I actually went through camp with no injuries and I usually go through camp with numerous injuries.

So with you going into training camp with a new and fresh state of mind, what is some music that you find yourself playing in the gym which gets you in your zone?

Jermell Charlo: Ok, it’s kind of weird right. I’m from the Jazz era so I listen to what’s calm and rhythmic and something you can listen too. We listen to a bunch of things you can move too, we do not listen to all “turn-up” music or a bunch of Future. When I’m in the ring I like to be calm and I think music has an effect on the way I punch and my accuracy. So, as for a playlist, we listening to Party (Partynextdoor) right now, Bryson Tiller, Trey Songz and just really good music. Now if we are going to make it a little more Hip Hop, we throw some Wayne, Drake and Wale. Wale is actually one of my favorite artists. I don’t listen to Chief Keef, I don’t listen to Tupac or Biggie or anybody during that time. The generation has changed and I don’t want to be stuck in that time.

Gotcha. It’s good to hear the many perspectives of athletes and how they get ready to perform. Most athletes want to listen to “turn-up” music like Future, Rick Ross and Young Thug, but to hear an athlete express that “chill” music gets him in his groove is refreshing. That said, the type of music you listen to dictates your fighting style and how you fight in the ring?

JC: Exactly. See, there is a difference between music that inspires you and music that motivates you. I just think that some of the music that I listen to inspires me. For example, I listen to Drake because he talks about what he’s been through and how he came up or Wale because he talks about “how we ain’t even supposed to here”. Like Common’s “Finding Forever” album, I can listen to that album forever. To me, it’s all good music and that’s what I love.

So you just mentioned Bryson Tiller as one of the artists you like listening to when you are in the gym. What are some songs off his new project “TrapSoul” that you are really feeling?

JC: “Sorry Not Sorry” is dope, “Rambo” is cool and of course “Don’t”. Another artist that I’m really into is Ace Hood. He works really hard and is motivation.

That seems like your niche. You come off as an athlete that aspires to be motivational and judging by your music tastes, they directly correlate to your personality. So who is one artist that you are looking forward to hearing a new album from?

JC: I think Chris Brown “Royalty” may be the sh*t right now. Because of him embracing being a father and me relating to that, I feel this album is going to be great

So besides the people you already mentioned, who are your top five favorite artists?

JC: Michael Jackson, Wale, Trey Songz, Common and Chris Brown.

Do you come out to any songs by any of the artists you mentioned?

JC: Honestly, there is no formula. It really takes till the last minute for me to pick a song. One time I came out to Spanish music haha..People think I’m spanish and want to roll the “r” in my last name haha…. I was in a Spanish town so I made it hella cool.

Haha, that’s dope. Thanks for sitting down with us

*Pictures by Josh Jordan/Premier Boxing Champions*

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