Young pop singer Cris Cab draws inspiration from a “gumbo” of global music.

While still in his mid-teens, Miami-born pop singer Cris Cab flooded the internet with one self-produced demo tape after another in hopes of attracting some interest. Little did he expect the likes of Pharrell Williams or Wyclef Jean to come around – but that’s exactly what happened. “I was starstruck,” Cab says. “Pharrell was someone I had looked up to since I was a little kid. His interest in my music was an incredible honor, and I am humbled by being able to work with him.”

Cab pens formulaic three – to four-minute tunes with coming-of-age self-discovery lyrics and sultry melodic pop licks against mostly reggae back beats. He draws from spending time in the Bahamas, Italy and the south of France, and also the music in his childhood home.

“When you’re real young, you don’t know about the different genres of music, it’s all just music,” Cab says. Looking back on his childhood, however, he recalls that his father was a fan of disco, listening to the Bee Gees, but also appreciated Earth, Wind and Fire and Barry White. Meanwhile, his brother listened exclusively to hip-hop.

“I kinda had it all growing up,” he says. “I get very inspired by a lot of old-school music. I try to take that kind of flavor, that kind of feeling and bring it into modern-day music.”

He credits his hometown for inspiration. “Miami is a huge melting pot. There’s Hispanics, Latinos, Cubans, Europeans – the flavors are out of control, so that’s what the music’s like – a giant bowl of gumbo.”

Cab credits Williams with pushing him over the top. “Pharrell gave me some great advice. I took it to heart and went back to him about a year later. He took me under his wing then and we worked up the tune ‘Liar, Liar’ together.”

The song became Cab’s first international hit and he was off to the races. Wyclef Jean, who Cab describes as “a big brother,” was another pivotal mentor. It goes both ways; Jean says of Cab, according to Cab’s website, “I haven’t felt this way about a new project since I worked on Supernatural with Carlos Santana.”

Cab credits working with those two musical giants as gamechangers for his career. “They taught me to not get caught up in trying to be like someone else,” he says. “Take bits and pieces from others, sure, but find your own flavors, your own style and then just push it.

“It feels amazing how people are finally noticing my music. I can tell they are really starting to listen. I just want to continue to spread the love and positivity.”

CRIS CAB 7pm Friday, March 29. Folktale Winery. 8940 Carmel Valley Road, Carmel. $25. 293-7500, eventbrite.com