Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, musician, and dancer. He is known for his fantastic stage performances and for his wide range of musical styles, such as pop, R&B, funk, soul, reggae, disco, and rock.
Peter Gene Hernandez was born on October 8, 1985, in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Peter Hernandez and Bernadette San Pedro Bayot, and was raised in the Waikiki neighborhood of Honolulu. His father is of half Puerto Rican and half Ashkenazi Jewish descent (from Ukraine and Hungary), and is originally from Brooklyn, New York.
His mother emigrated from the Philippines to Hawaii and was of Filipino and Spanish ancestry. His parents met while performing in a show in which his mother was a hula dancer and his father played percussion. At the age of two, he was nicknamed “Bruno” by his father because of his resemblance to professional wrestler Bruno Sammartino.
In 2009, he co-founded the production team The Smeezingtons, responsible for various successful singles for Mars himself and other artists. He rose to fame in 2010 buoyed by the success of “Nothin’ on You” by B.o.B and “Billionaire” by Travie McCoy, both of which featured his vocals.
That year, Mars released his debut studio album Doo-Wops & Hooligans, which blended pop with reggae pop and R&B. It spawned the international number-one singles “Just the Way You Are”, “Grenade”, and “The Lazy Song”.
Drawing inspiration from disco, funk, rock, reggae and soul genres, his second studio album, Unorthodox Jukebox (2012), was his first number one on the Billboard 200. It amassed two Billboard Hot 100 number-one hits, “Locked Out of Heaven” and “When I Was Your Man”.
Full Name: Peter Gene Hernandez
Stage Name: Bruno Mars
Date of Birth: October 8, 1985
Age: 36
Education: President Theodore Roosevelt High School
Nationality: American
Profession: Singer, Songwriter, Record Producer, Musician, Dancer
Genre: Pop, R&B, Funk, Soul, Reggae, Rock
Net-worth: $175 Million
Career: Mars signed a record contract with Motown Records in 2004, but the deal “went nowhere”, leading him to have a conversation with will.i.am’s management, which also turned out to be fruitless.
After Mars was dropped by the label less than a year after being signed, he stayed in Los Angeles and landed a music publishing deal in 2005 with American record producers Steve Lindsey and Cameron Strang at Westside Independent.
Mars was an acknowledged music producer, writing songs for the likes of Alexandra Burke, Adam Levine, Brandy, Sean Kingston, and Flo Rida.
He also co-wrote the Sugababes’ hit song “Get Sexy” (2009) and provided backing vocals on their album Sweet 7 (2010).
In 2009, he was featured as a singer on Far East Movement’s second studio album, Animal, on the track “3D”.
He reached prominence as a solo artist after being featured on, and composing (as part of the production group the Smeezingtons) American rapper B.o.B’s “Nothin’ on You” (2009) and McCoy’s “Billionaire” (2010); both songs peaked within the top ten of various music charts, with the former charting at number one on both the United States Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart.
In February 2019, Cardi B and Mars released a single together, “Please Me”. It peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.
The single also reached the top-20 of Canada, New Zealand and the UK. Five months later, British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran, American singer-songwriter Chris Stapleton, and Mars collaborated on, “Blow”, for the former’s fourth studio album, No.6 Collaborations Project (2019).
On February 26, 2021, Mars and American rapper Anderson .Paak announced that they have recorded an album together under the band name Silk Sonic.
Their debut album, An Evening with Silk Sonic, was released on November 12, 2021, and it features American musician Bootsy Collins as a special guest host. It debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 and entered at the top-five in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.
Seven of the nine songs from the album charted on the Billboard Hot 100 the same week.
Three singles were released in 2021: “Leave the Door Open”, “Skate, and “Smokin Out the Window”. “Leave the Door Open”, the lead single, peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and in New Zealand.
“Skate” reached the Top 20 in the U.S. and Canada. “Smokin Out the Window” peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100 and number four in New Zealand.
All three singles were Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs top-five entries, with “Leave The Door Open” peaking at number one.
In early 2022, Silk Sonic started their debut concert residency titled An Evening With Silk Sonic at Park MGM. The duo won Best Group at the BET Awards 2021 and International Group of the Year at the 2022 Brit Awards.
They received three awards at the 2021 Soul Train Music Awards, including Song of the Year for “Leave the Door Open”. The music video for the latter song won Best R&B Video and Best Editing at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards.
At the 2022 Grammy Awards, Silk Sonic was nominated for Record of the Year, Song of The Year, Best R&B Performance, and Best R&B Song for “Leave the Door Open”.
Endorsements:
In 2011, Mars appeared in two commercials for Bench. He and model Joan Smalls were photographed in 1950s influenced suits in Puerto Rico as part of the clothing line “La Isla Bonita” for Vogue.
On March 5, 2021, Mars, under his designer alter ego, Ricky Regal, released a luxury 1970s-inspired sportswear with Lacoste, entitled Lacoste x Ricky Regal.
Personal Life:
Mars began dating model Jessica Caban in 2011. The two remain a couple as of 2019, residing together in a mansion in the Hollywood Hills with a Rottweiler named Geronimo.
In 2014, Mars donated US$100,000 to the orphans of Bantay Bata, who were among the victims of Typhoon Haiyan, in order to raise the morale of those who lost their families and homes.
The singer performed at the Make It Right gala, whose campaign goal is to “help build homes for people in need.” He also performed at the Robin Hood Foundation’s 2014 annual benefit to “fight poverty in New York City by supporting nonprofit organizations with financial and technical assistance.”
In November 2018, Mars donated 24,000 meals in aid to the Salvation Army Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division’s 48th annual Thanksgiving Dinner.
In 2020, he donated $1 million to the MGM Resorts Foundation, in order to assist MGM employees with financial difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Awards:
Mars has earned numerous awards and honors throughout his career, including 11 Grammy Awards, four Brit Awards, four Guinness World Record 11 American and 13 Soul Train Music Awards.
In 2011, he made Time magazine’s 100 list, and his former songwriting and record producing team, the Smeezingtons, earned several accolades.
In 2014, Mars topped Forbes magazine’s ’30 Under 30′ list, a tally of the brightest stars in 15 different fields under the age of 30 in the US.
At the 2018 Grammys, he became the second artist to win Record and Song of the Year with two different songs from the same album.
In 2019, Billboard ranked Mars at number 41 on its list of Greatest of All Time Artists and at number 14 on the list of Top Touring Artists of the 2010s.
In the same year, iHeartRadio Canada placed him on theirs “Icons of the Decade” of the 2010s, while Insider gave him an honorable mention on their 2010s list.
In 2021, Billboard named Mars the third Top Artist of the 2010s.
Mars has sold 26 million albums as of 2016,[136] and a total of 200 million singles as of 2020.
In 2021, he became the first artist to receive five diamond certified songs in the United States.
As of September 2021, Billboard reported that Mars has earned $604.4 million from concerts. He is one of fewer than 30 artists to cross the $600 million threshold in Boxscore history.
