Dear Superstar: Adam Levine

He may be able to walk to his childhood house from the penthouse hotel suite he’s using at the moment, but Adam Levine has taken the long way to get here. He struggled for years in bands, first as singer for grunge–pop asterisks Kara’s Flowers and then with Maroon 5. The latter may be megaplatinum best sellers who earned a Best New Artist Grammy in 2005 — but that prize papers over how their Songs About Jane CD floundered for over a year before catching on, not to mention the get–in–the–van era prior to that. Sitting at a ginormous conference table covered in what appears to be silver–painted snakeskin, Levine talks about growing up just a few minutes from the Roosevelt Hotel. He was born at nearby Cedars–Sinai Hospital — “like all the other Los Angeles Jews,” he quips.

Maroon 5 are holed up here, making final plans for the release of their new CD, It Won’t Be Soon Before Long. “Yeah, it’s a little strange because we’ve become very domesticated in the past two and a half years since we’ve come off the road,” Levine says. “I’ve been all about having friends over for dinner. Doing the kinds of things that are as relaxing as possible, knowing that eventually I’d be gone again.”

That’s his story, and he’s sticking to it — although, fact is, Adam Levine spent much of his post–fame downtime living large at the Chateau Marmont, schmoozing at L.A.’s fashion week (where he performed at an after party with Justin Timberlake) and playing poker three times a week — “I just like screwing around with my buddies,” he says with a shrug. “We buy in for $60 — it’s not like we’re big ballin’.”

With his blue–eyed–soul band, Levine pushes his voice to the highest part of his range — he’s not afraid to sound like a sensitive guy. He says he knew Maroon 5 had it made when he first noticed fans singing along to “This Love” — and crying. How sensitive he really is is another matter: This is a guy who allegedly broke up with Jessica Simpson via text message (“REALLY BUSY. NEED SPACE.”) and has been linked with assorted other actresses and models.

As for the new CD, “It’s a little different from Songs About Jane,” Levine declares. “More straight–ahead, four–on–the–floor rhythms, as opposed to R&B.” He’s playing with a fancy pair of sunglasses and looks dapper in an expensive–looking gray Italian suit. He’s gazing out at a panoramic view of the Hollywood Hills. Nope, no big baller here. Not hardly.

Tabloids have called you a “manwhore” — do you think you’ve earned it?
madison_erlich, Newtown, PA
I happen not to be single right now. But if being single and enjoying being 28 and having a wonderful time is being a manwhore, then I’m a manwhore. I certainly don’t behave badly, and I treat everybody with respect, regardless of who they are. I don’t apologize for my behavior; it’s certainly exaggerated in the press.

Your lyrics can get pretty steamy. Are you a dirty talker?
Greg.Webber, Los Angeles
No. I’m a dirty thinker.

You’ve been linked to Paris Hilton, Jessica Simpson, Maria Sharapova and Natalie Portman. Out of those four, without naming names, how many total bases did you rack up, out of 16?
Jugglefish, Nashville
This interview is like Media Training 101: how to answer questions without really answering them. Gentlemen don’t answer questions like that in the press. That’s my answer.

Ever had sex to your own music?
lonelyandonly, Beaconsfield, IA
No. I’m not a fucking narcissist. [Long pause] Well, I’m not narcissistic enough to do that.

When was the last time you saw Jane, the bad breakup who inspired Songs About Jane?
Cindybeanz, Port Arthur, TX
I think I saw her six or eight months ago. We’re on great terms, close friends. We speak every once in a while. No bad blood.

Describe your bar mitzvah.
Fred_fk, Port Jefferson, NY
I didn’t have one. I didn’t want to have a bar mitzvah because I didn’t feel that it was honest. A lot of kids around me were having bar mitzvahs to cash in, and I thought, If I wanted to be good with God, I certainly wouldn’t want to do that! I didn’t feel it was sincere. Plus, I didn’t want to learn all that Hebrew.

You’ve gotten busy in two videos. Ever accidentally “popped a rod”?
benderrender, Corvallis, OR
Oh, my God, no. No. Being sexually aroused and being in a video are two very different things.

Your first band got signed to a major label while you were in high school. Have you ever had a real job?
swim4life82, Idaho City, ID
Several. One was a two–week stint at the diner chain Johnny Rockets. I was a terrible, terrible waiter and got fired. And I was also a writer’s assistant on a television show called Judging Amy. I wasn’t very good at that, either. Basically, I was writing lyrics while I was on the job, and that’s where I compiled all the lyrics that ended up on Songs About Jane.

You broke your sternum last year while lifting weights. Can’t you afford a spotter?
Crazy995an, Alvaton, KY
Yes, I have gotten spotters since then. No more sternal fractures. It was one of the most painful things I’ve ever experienced. It was really an embarrassing story, but I might as well tell it: I was working out backstage with the kind of cable pulleys that you put onto a doorstop. James Valentine, our guitar player, opened the door and basically this really thick rubber cable with a metal carabiner on the end of it snapped with the force of what seemed like a bullet, and hit me right in the middle of my chest. It could have killed me. It lacerated my chest right down the middle, and I had to go to the hospital. I did perform that night, though. They pumped me full of drugs, and I was so high that I actually wanted to play.

Which Hollywood stereotype is more accurate: everyone’s gay or everyone’s on cocaine?
E.Edelman, Blue Springs, MO
Both. Everyone’s gay and on cocaine in Hollywood.

When you were in music school, what subject did you suck at?
stickyicky, Avalon, NJ
I failed guitar, which is really sad. It’s mostly because I didn’t show up. I actually went toward the end and said, “What can I do to make it up?” And the teacher said, “Don’t worry about it, man — ” he was all hippied out “ — you’re fine.” Then he put an F on my transcript. I’ll never forget him: Margolin, you dirty bastard!

Ever write something that was just too wimpy to record?
missilecontrol, Charleston, SC
“This Love.” Then I recorded it.

What’s the worst gig you’ve ever played?
whyredfrenzee5, Baltimore, VT
Probably it was a show years ago, in a small town in Oregon. We played this bar, and there was nobody there. Halfway through our set the bartender left, so there was literally not one person in the building. We were great, though! We finished our set and put our things in the van and cried ourselves to sleep.

What’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever done with your money?
Still_here_say, Hope, AR
I think that the dumbest thing anyone can do with their money is to gamble with it in Las Vegas. Me, I play blackjack.

Why did you trade one awful band name, Kara’s Flowers, for another?
victhousand, Elkins Park, PA
Why did you take the time out of your life to ask that question? What’s in a name? The band makes the name; the name never makes the band. As we all know, the Beatles is a hideous name for a band. And they’re the best band that ever lived.