Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), known as Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and dancer. He is known for his stage performances, retro showmanship and for performing in a wide range of musical styles including R&B, funk, pop, soul, reggae, hip hop, and rock. Mars is accompanied by his band, The Hooligans, who play a variety of instruments such as electric guitar, bass, piano, keyboards, drums and horns, and also serve as backup singers and dancers.
Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, Mars moved to Los Angeles in 2003 to pursue a musical career. After being dropped by Motown Records, Mars signed a recording contract with Atlantic Records in 2009. In the same year, he co-founded the production team The Smeezingtons, responsible for various successful singles for Mars himself and other artists. Mars rose to fame in 2010 with the release of the successful singles "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B and "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy, both of which featured his vocals on the hooks. His debut studio album Doo-Wops & Hooligans (2010) peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the United States and reached the top of the albums charts in Canada, Germany, Netherlands and the United Kingdom. It spawned the international number-one singles "Just the Way You Are", "Grenade", and "The Lazy Song". The former won a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. In 2011, Mars recorded the single "It Will Rain" for the film The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (2011).
Mars' second album, Unorthodox Jukebox (2012), peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200, Australia, Canada, Switzerland, and in the UK, winning a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album. Its singles "Locked Out of Heaven" and "When I Was Your Man" reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 songs chart. In 2014, Mars collaborated with Mark Ronson on "Uptown Funk", which topped many music charts worldwide, including the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK. It won two Grammys, Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. In 2016, Shampoo Press & Curl replaced The Smeezingtons on the composition of Mars' third studio album, the R&B-focused, 24K Magic. The record debuted at number two in the United States, Canada, France, and New Zealand and received seven Grammys, in conjunction with major categories Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Song of the Year. It yielded the successful singles "24K Magic", "That's What I Like", and "Finesse".
Mars has sold over 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling artists of all time. He has released seven number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 since his career launched in 2010, attaining his first five faster than any male artist since Elvis Presley. As a songwriter, he was included in Music Week and Billboard magazines as one of the best songwriters of 2011 and 2013, respectively. Mars has received several awards and nominations, including 11 Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards, nine American Music Awards, 10 Soul Train Awards and holds three Guinness World Records. He has appeared in Time's 100 most influential people in the world (2011) and Forbes' lists of lists of 30 under 30 (2013), the world's most powerful celebrities (2014), and Celebrity 100 (2018).
