Biographic - Sunday August 13, 2017 Comic Strip Licensing and Permissions

Transcript

Bruno Mars was born Peter Gene Hernandez in Honolulu Hawaii, on October 8, 1985. His dad, the founding member of a vocal group called The Love Notes, nicknamed him Bruno after wrestler Bruno Sammartino. He was still a toddler when he was drafted into the group, which also featured his mom and uncle, like an Elvis Presley impersonator! Following appearances on CNN and "The Arsenio Hall Show," Bruno was featured doing his Elvis routine in the 1992 movie "Honeymoon in Vegas" By his teens, he was an established cabaret artist performing on Hawaii's tourist hotel circuit, but he grew restless. At 18, he followed his brother Eric, a drummer, to try his luck in Los Angeles, a short-lived record deal fizzled out, so he played with his brother in a bar band called Sex Panther before forming the hit production and writing team The Smeezingtons with two partners. Bruno rose to prominence when he was featured on the hits "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B and Travie McCoy's Billionaire. By the time The Smeezington's collaborated with Ceelo Green on the track known as "Forget You" in its more mainstream incarnation, Bruno's star was rising! His debut album 2010s "Doo-Wops & Hooligans" included the U.S. No, 1 singles "Just the Way You Are" and "Grenade." His second album, the chart-topping "Unorthodox Jukebox" spawned No. 1 hits "Locked Out of Heaven" and "When I Was Your Man." He teamed up with producer Mark Ronson on the global smash "Uptown Funk" which topped the U.S. charts for 14 weeks! Following two acclaimed super bowl halftime show appearances, his third album "24K Magic" was released in late 2016. The album's second single "That's What I Like" gave Bruno's his seventh Billboard chart-topping hit. Bruno, who has won five Grammys and sold more than 120 million records to date, is currently midway through his third headlining world tour, playing stadiums throughout North America this summer.

Tags