John Mayer is my favorite singer/songwriter, and I've recently heard that he has a pet chimp named Apollo. Is this true?
—Norah B., California
No. The 27-year-old songsmith and Apollo are merely professional acquaintances—they did a photo session together a few years ago for a music magazine and haven't seen each other since. Mayer's probably been too busy touring to take care of a high-maintenance pet like a chimpanzee anyway. A native of Fairfield, Conn. (pop. 57,340), Mayer attended Berklee School of Music, but left to focus his energies on songwriting. "The very nature of standing in front of a mic with a guitar that's in tune, the millions of songs that could happen at that moment, I love that," he says. He moved to Atlanta in 1998 and immediately started playing the local clubs. He quickly gathered a core group of fans and eventually released an album on his own. His talent got him noticed beyond Atlanta, and in 2000 he signed a record contract with Aware/Columbia. His first album, Room For Squares, sold 3 million copies, and he won a Best Male Pop Vocal Performance Grammy for his hit, Your Body Is A Wonderland. His new album, Heavier Things, recently debuted at the top of the Billboard albums chart, thanks in part to his hit Bigger Than My Body.
