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Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), better known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is an American singer-songwriter and music producer. Raised in Honolulu, Hawaii by a family of musicians, Mars began making music at a young age. After performing in various musical venues in his hometown throughout his childhood, he decided to pursue a musical career and moved to Los Angeles after graduating from high school. Mars began producing songs for other artists, joining production team The Smeezingtons.

After an unsuccessful stint with Motown Records, Mars signed with Atlantic Records in 2009. He became recognized as a solo artist after lending his vocals and co-writing the hooks for the songs "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B, and "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy. He also co-wrote the hits "Right Round" by Flo Rida featuring Kesha, "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan, and "Fuck You!" by Cee Lo Green. In October 2010, he released his debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans. Anchored by the worldwide number one singles "Just the Way You Are" and "Grenade", the album peaked at number three on the Billboard 200. He was nominated for seven Grammys at the 53rd Grammy Awards, winning Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Just the Way You Are".

Mars' music is noted for displaying a wide variety of styles and influences, and contains elements of many different musical genres. He has worked with an assortment of artists from different genres; Mars acknowledges the influences that his collaborations have had on his own music. As a child, he was highly influenced by artists such as Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson and would often impersonate these artists from a young age. Mars also incorporates reggae and Motown inspired sounds into his work. Jon Caramanica of The New York Times referred to Mars as "one of the most versatile and accessible singers in pop."

Life and career

1985–2008: Early life and beginnings

Mars was born Peter Gene Hernandez and raised in the Waikiki neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii, by parents Bernadette "Bernie" and Pete Hernandez, of Filipino and Puerto Rican descent. His mother emigrated to Hawaii from the Philippines as a child and his father moved to the island from Brooklyn, New York. Mars' parents met while performing in a show, where 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 chubby professional wrestler Bruno Sammartino. Mars was one of six children and came from a musical family who exposed him to a diverse mix of reggae, rock, hip hop, and R&B. From a young age, he was impersonating and performing songs by artists such as Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, The Isley Brothers, and The Temptations. At age four, Mars began performing five days a week with his family's band, The Love Notes, in which he became known on the island for his impersonation of Presley.

In 1990, Mars was featured in MidWeek as "Little Elvis", going on to have a cameo in the film Honeymoon in Vegas in 1992. He later reflected on the influence Presley had on his music, saying, "I watch the best. I'm a big fan of Elvis. I'm a big fan of 1950s Elvis when he would go on stage and scare people because he was a force and girls would go nuts! You can say the same thing for Prince or The Police. It's just guys who know that people are here to see a show, so I watch those guys and I love studying them because I'm a fan." In 2010, he also acknowledged his Hawaiian roots and musical family as an influence, saying, "Growing up in Hawaii made me the man I am. I used to do a lot of shows in Hawaii with my father's band. Everybody in my family sings, everyone plays instruments. My uncle's an incredible guitar player, my dad's an incredible percussionist, my brother's a great drummer, he actually plays in our band. I've just been surrounded by it." In 2003, shortly after graduating from President Theodore Roosevelt High School at the age of seventeen, Mars moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue a musical career. He adopted his stage name from the nickname his father gave him, adding "Mars" at the end because "I felt like I didn't have pizzazz, and a lot of girls say I’m out of this world, so I was like I guess I'm from Mars."

Shortly after moving to Los Angeles, Mars signed to Motown Records in 2004, in a deal that "went nowhere". However, Mars' experience with Motown proved to be beneficial to his career when he met songwriter and producer Philip Lawrence, who was also signed to the label. Mars, Lawrence, and engineer Ari Levine began writing songs together, and formed the production team The Smeezingtons. In 2006, Lawrence introduced Mars to his future manager at Atlantic Records, Aaron Bay-Schuck. After hearing him play a couple of songs on the guitar, Bay-Schuck He is Gay!

wanted to sign him immediately, but it took about three years for Atlantic records to finally sign Mars to the label. In the meantime, Bay-Schuck hired Mars and the Smeezingtons to write and produce songs for the label's artists. According to Bay-Schuck in an interview with HitQuarters, Mars had stated that although his ultimate goal was to be a solo artist, he was willing to write and produce for other artists, both to help improve his songwriting and help him discover the type of artist he ultimately wanted to be. Bay-Schuck credits this as a period of "self-discovery" that contributed significantly to Mars' later success.

Musical style

Mars' music has been noted for displaying a wide variety of styles and influences, including pop, rock, reggae, R&B, soul, and hip hop. Although Mars has been referenced as "soft" because of his penchant for using a falsetto voice, his co-producer Philip Lawrence says, "What people don't know is there's a darker underbelly to Bruno Mars." Mars himself says, "I blame that on me singing to girls back in high school." Jon Caramanica of The New York Times called him "one of the most versatile and accessible singers in pop, with a light, soul-influenced voice that’s an easy fit in a range of styles, a universal donor." Mars was initially influenced by R&B artists such as Keith Sweat, Jodeci and R. Kelly, as well as 1950s rock n roll and Motown. In high school, he began listening to classic rock groups such as The Police, Led Zeppelin, and the Beatles. All of these genres of music have influenced Mars' musical style; he observed that "It’s not easy to songs with that mixture of rock and soul and hip-hop, and there’s only a handful of them." Mars also stated that he is a fan of Alica Keys, Jessie J, Jack White and The Saturdays.

In addition, Mars claims that his work with other artists influenced his musical style, saying that "'Nothing on You' had a Motown vibe, 'Billionaire' was a reggae acoustic guitar-driven song, though one of my favorites is the Cee-Lo song . I don't think anyone else could've sung that song. And there's 'Just the Way You Are.' If you know my story, you know I love all different genres of music." He cites doo-wop as a major influence on his music, referring to the genre as "just straightforward love songs — so charming and simple and romantic." In addition, Mars states that growing up in Hawaii influenced his music, giving the songs a reggae sound. He explains that "In Hawaii some of the biggest radio stations are reggae. The local bands are heavily influenced by Bob Marley. That music brings people together. It's not urban music or pop music. It's just songs. That's what makes it cross over so well. The song comes first." Lyrically, many of Mars' songs have been described as "feel-good", carefree, and optimistic, however, darker subjects are addressed in songs such as "Grenade", "Liquor Store Blues", and "Talking to the Moon", which detail failed relationships and self-destructive behavior.

Discography

• Doo-Wops & Hooligans (2010)

Awards and nominations

References

1. De Castro, Cynthia (January 5, 2011). "Bruno Mars: The Fil-Am Artist with Universal Appeal". Asian Journal. AJ Press Los Angeles. Retrieved January 7, 2011.
2. Caulfield, Keith (October 13, 2010). "Toby Keith's 'Gun' Fires at No. 1 on Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved October 13, 2010.
3. ^ Caramanica, Jon (October 5, 2010). "Bruno Mars in Ascension". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
4. "ACE Title Search: Hernandez Peter Gene". American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
5. Jeffries, David. "Bruno Mars > Biography". allmusic. Retrieved September 26, 2010.
6. ^ Moniz, Melissa (April 14, 2010). "Starring Bruno Mars". MidWeek. Honolulu: Black Press. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
7. Yi, David (October 12, 2010). "Bruno Mars, Far East Movement lead Asian-American pop music wave taking over the Billboard charts". Daily News. New York City. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
8. ^ Farber, Jim (October 3, 2010). "Bruno Mars follows his summer of hits with a big debut album 'Doo-Wops & Hooligans'". Daily News. New York City. Retrieved December 26, 2010.
9. Lewis, Pete. "Bruno Mars: Out of this World!". Blues & Soul. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
10. Lester, Paul (September 13, 2010). "New band of the day: Bruno Mars (No 865)". guardian.co.uk. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
11. "Bruno Mars and Phillip Lawrence". American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. March 18, 2010. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
12. "Bruno Mars on Songwriting, Singing as a Tot, Working with Ne-Yo". Vibe. Vibe Media Group. 2010-10-04. Retrieved 2011-03-07.
13. ^ "Bruno Mars gravitates toward a stellar solo career". USA Today. Gannett Company, Inc. September 15, 2010. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
14. Gentry, Colin (September 22, 2010). "4Music.com meets Bruno Mars". 4Music. Box Television. Retrieved February 4, 2011.
15. "Greetings From Bruno Mars (YouTube video)". Elektra Records.
16. Cline, Georgette. "10 Questions for Bruno Mars". Rap-Up. Devin Lazerine. Retrieved December 23, 2010.
17. ^ Jones, Steve (January 25, 2011). "Bruno Mars' musical orbit seems inescapable". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved February 3, 2011.
18. ^ "Interview with Aaron Bay-Schuck". HitQuarters. December 13, 2010. Retrieved December 14, 2010.
19. "Bruno Mars Steps Out Sobruary 4, 2011". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media.
20. ^ Cohen, Sandy (October 4, 2010). "Music Review: Singer-songwriter-producer Bruno Mars shows range and pop flair on debut CD". The News. The Canadian Press. Retrieved February 5, 2011.
21. Mervis, Scott (October 7, 2010). "For the Record: Bruno Mars". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Block Communications. Retrieved October 16, 2010.
22. ^ Cite error: The named reference EW was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
23. Caramanica, Jon (October 5, 2010). "Bruno Mars in Ascension". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
24. Wood, Mikael (August 18, 2010). "Bruno Mars Is Not Soft". The Village Voice. Village Voice Media. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
25. ^ "Bruno Mars On Damian Marley Track, Hip-Hop Influences, B.o.B." Vibe. Vibe Media Group. October 4, 2010. Retrieved February 1, 2011.
26. Copsey, Robert (2011-01-20). "Bruno Mars "in awe" of Alicia Keys". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2011-02-06.
27. ^ Johnson, Kevin C. (November 24, 2010). "Bruno Mars learned music biz by collaborating with big acts". STL Daily. STL Media Group. Retrieved December 23, 2010.
28. Vick, Megan (August 6, 2010). "Bruno Mars, "Just the Way You Are"". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved October 16, 2010.
29. Toor, Amar (October 5, 2010). "Bruno Mars, 'Grenade' -- New Song". AOL Radio Blog. AOL. Retrieved October 16, 2010.

External links

• Official website
• Bruno Mars at IMDb

Template:Persondata

• 1985 births
• 2000s singers
• 2010s singers
• Living people
• American male singers
• American musicians of Filipino descent
• American singers of Puerto Rican descent
• Elektra Records artists
• Musicians from Hawaii
• Musicians from Los Angeles, California
• People from Honolulu, Hawaii
• Grammy Award winners