Bruno Mars

A born entertainer with a stage name ideal for a showman, Bruno Mars is not only a charismatic performer but also a songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist, and all-around studio collaborator whose Grammy nominations and awards have recognized his full range of talent. Putting a modern pop twist on styles such as early rock & roll and R&B, new wave, and reggae, Mars came to prominence in 2010, the year his name appeared at or near the top of the Billboard Hot 100 with B.o.B’s “Nothin’ on You,” his own “Just the Way You Are,” and CeeLo Green’s “Fuck You” — all three of which he had a hand in writing and producing. Those hits, along with Mars’ multi-platinum debut album Doo-Wops & Hooligans, led to a total of 13 Grammy nominations and a win for Male Pop Vocal Performance. Mars was only getting started. His 2012 return Unorthodox Jukebox, chart-topping Mark Ronson collaboration “Uptown Funk,” and production for Adele’s 25, followed by his 2016-issued third album 24K Magic, combined for ten Grammys including wins in three of the Big Four categories. Having contemporized several shades of funk, mid-’80s pop, and new jack swing on 24K Magic, Mars then teamed with touring partner Anderson .Paak to record a set of knowing retro-soul under the name Silk Sonic. Their 2021 LP An Evening with Silk Sonic became Mars’ fourth platinum album with the number one pop hit “Leave the Door Open” alone taking four Grammys. The duo’s 2022 cover of Con Funk Shun’s “Love’s Train,” fronted by Mars with typically raspy conviction, has since become an R&B radio staple.
Born Peter Hernandez in 1985 in Honolulu, Hawaii, Mars kicked off his career at the age of four by fronting his uncle’s band, becoming Oahu’s youngest Elvis impersonator in the process. Ten years later, he was impersonating the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, as part of the Legends in Concert show. After graduating high school in 2003, he took his uncle’s advice and moved to California to pursue a music career. He eventually met songwriter Philip Lawrence, who convinced Mars to try his hand at writing songs for other artists. The two dubbed themselves the Smeezingtons and co-wrote Brandy’s “Long Distance.” The duo scored their first number one hit in 2009, when they co-authored Flo Rida’s international smash “Right Round.”
By 2010, Mars seemed to be everywhere: singing alongside B.o.B on the chart-topping “Nothin’ on You,” co-writing “Billionaire,” and collaborating with CeeLo Green on the Grammy-nominated hit “Fuck You.” He also began issuing his own material, starting with the May 2010 release of his first EP, It's Better If You Don't Understand. Doo-Wops & Hooligans, his full-length debut, appeared later that year and quickly produced a number one single, “Just the Way You Are.” He hit number one again with “Grenade” and remained in the Top Ten with “The Lazy Song” and “It Will Rain.” In 2012, Mars both hosted and performed as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live, debuting tracks from his upcoming album.
That record, the genre-jumping effort Unorthodox Jukebox, was released later in the year and featured the chart-topping single “Locked Out of Heaven,” along with production from Mark Ronson, Diplo, and others. “Locked Out of Heaven” topped the Hot 100, and the album reached number two in the U.S. The second single, “When I Was Your Man,” also hit number one. Unorthodox Jukebox later won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album. All that success made Mars a natural for one of the world’s most prestigious gigs, the half-time show for Super Bowl XLVIII, where he performed with Red Hot Chili Peppers in 2014. Mars later fronted Mark Ronson’s “Uptown Funk,” a song he co-wrote that was among the most popular singles of that year. It topped charts around the globe (becoming his sixth number one) and took home several Grammy Awards, including Record of the Year.
In 2016, Mars returned with another funk-flavored hit, “24K Magic,” and its parent album of the same title. Influenced by soul, funk, and ’90s R&B, 24K Magic peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 and produced Mars’ seventh chart-topper, “That’s What I Like,” as well as “Finesse” with rapper Cardi B and “Versace on the Floor,” which was also released as a remix by David Guetta. The album took home the Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. In February 2019, Mars again collaborated with Cardi B on the track “Please Me,” which landed at number three on the Billboard Hot 100. That July, he paired with Ed Sheeran and Chris Stapleton on the song “Blow.”
In early 2021, Mars teamed with Anderson .Paak — who opened the European leg of the 24K Magic World Tour — as Silk Sonic. After releasing their first single, “Leave the Door Open,” in March, the duo made their television debut with a performance at the 2021 Grammy Awards. A year later, the pair dominated the 2022 Grammys ceremony, taking home awards for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best R&B Performance, and Best R&B Song for “Leave the Door Open” from their global Top Ten debut An Evening with Silk Sonic. Also in 2022, the duo returned to the airwaves with a faithful cover of Con Funk Shun’s 1982 deep quiet storm classic “Love’s Train.” ~ David Jeffries & Andy Kellman