With two chart-topping songs under his belt, Bruno Mars and his silky smooth vocals are in high demand. The Hawaiian-born singer and songwriter plays hookman on B.o.B.'s breakout hit "Nothin' On You" and Travie McCoy's solo debut single "Billionaire." Both songs have seen extraordinary success with the B.o.B. collaboration riding at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for two consecutive weeks.
Born Peter Hernandez, Bruno came into the music industry with little to his name. Abandoning the easy-going, laid-back Hawaiian lifestyle for the hectic grind of L.A., Bruno worked his way into the industry as a songwriter, helping to craft songs for people like Flo Rida, Brandy and K'Naan. Bruno checked in with Bark + Bite and answered some questions about his upcoming album, his adoration for young Elvis and Michael Jackson and his collaborations with Cee-Lo.
Q: The music you've been featured on so far has an organic, live instrumentation sound to it that goes against the electronic sound that is dominating pop music today. Can you tell us about that?
A: I just come from a musical family and my idols are cats that play music. I grew up watching bands and that was what I always wanted to do, watch live shows. And I feel like a lot of that has went away, as far as the pop side, you know that electro stuff. Which is great stuff, but I feel like no one was really doing the "Nothin' On You" sound, which is almost like live hip hop. You know we've got live drums in that song and live guitar, bass, piano. The whole track is really a band playing. That's kind of our sound. That's what we're bringing to the table right now.
Q: But you did mention on Twitter that you were going into the studio with Diplo and Switch. Does that mean you'll be experimenting with electronic sounds or that Diplo will be delving into live instrumentation?
A: Yeah, I was in the studio with them the other day. Those guys are awesome. They do everything. Those guys are just sickos when it comes to producing. I really wanted to just get in with them and see how they work to see if we can start doing some music together. Cause I'm a huge fan of Santogold and M.I.A. And their production is just so next level.
Photo credit: Harper Smith
Q: "Billionaire" has a noticeable reggae vibe to it. Do you have a deep appreciation for reggae music? Any particular favorite songs or musicians?
A: Oh yeah. I grew up in Hawaii and Hawaii...it's just Bob Marley everyday. Huge fan of the Police. Huge fan of Sublime. And I also like Beres Hammond. Some of the greatest songs to me in my book are some reggae songs. It's feel good music.
Q: Let's talk about your EP, "It's Better If You Don't Understand." Would you consider the EP more of an appetizer or a preview of what your debut will sound like?
A: That's an appetizer. I basically went into the label with "Nothin' On You," "Billionaire" and these four songs in my back pocket. And after the success of "Nothin' On You," they told me 'I think we should release these.' They were meant to go on the album, but they were saying, 'People are really gravitating to your voice and it'd probably be best to hear you sing a full-length song.' So I was all about it. It's helping me gain fans and letting people know that I'm out there and my album is coming.
Q: How far along are you with the album? Is it looking like it's gonna be released this year?
A: I'm hoping that it's gonna be the top of January. After you do songs like "Nothin' On You" and "Billionaire" you get so wrapped up because you gotta start performing them. So we're doing TV dates and we're doing shows. By the end of this month, I'm really locking down and it's just gonna be album time. I'd like to get a single for myself out this year and hopefully drop my album at the top of the year 2011.
Q: One of the standout tracks from the EP is "The Other Side" featuring Cee-Lo and B.O.B. Will you be working together with Cee-Lo more on the album?
A: We're actually working on his album. We're trying to do some songs for him. He's one of the best artists I've ever worked with. I've been a fan, ever since "Crazy" came out and I've been chasing that song since it came out, aspiring to write something as great as that. Meeting him and actually working with him, you understand where those songs came from. That was really his f**king heart and soul in those songs. I'm trying to get him to write on my album to write some songs for me, but we've got some good stuff on Cee-Lo's album. I'm really excited about that.
Q: Who else are you writing and producing for?
A: I just got in with Mike Posner. We did a fun song that we have to finish up. Who else am I getting in with? I'm getting in with Benny Blanco when I go up to New York. Other than that, it's me time right now.
Q: In other interviews you cited Elvis and Michael Jackson as inspirations growing up. What is it about them that inspires you?
A: For me it was the young Elvis. He was doing rock 'n' roll at a time when it was kind of frowned upon. And he would just do it to me so viciously. He would go up on stage and he would shake. They told him not to shake but he would do it anyway. He just loved that music. At the time it was black music and he would sing black music, but he would do it so confidently. And I'm just a big fan of the way he was a performer. I like to watch that. I like to watch rock stars. I like to watch guys that are up on stage and know that they are killing it.
And no one's better than Michael Jackson when it comes to that. It's like confidence and swag on a million when he was on stage. He was like 'I'm killing this. I'm singing the greatest song in the world and I'm dancing for you like I'm not even human. And I'm gonna blow your f**king face away.' So that's why I like those guys cause they would just leave it all right there on stage.
Photo credit: Harper Smith
Q: Spinning off of that question, you've been mostly a low-key, guitar and stool performer. What can we expect in your solo performances once you release your album?
A: I am working on more songs where I can really, really belt them out. You're not gonna catch me moonwalking or putting on a glove. But that's what we're working on in the studio right now, showcasing the other side of Bruno Mars.
Q: So Usher has nothing to worry about? You're not gonna be trying to do "OMG"-type dancing or pop-locking?
A: *laughs* No, man. Those guys are good at that stuff.
Q: What's it been like becoming famous overnight?
A: It's surreal. I mean the song blew up. You had this rapper doing this funky pocket thing and me singing this sweet melody. It was such a unique, different song. It's like hip hop's [Joe Cocker's] "You Are So Beautiful." You know, it's just a way to say to a girl, "You are so beautiful" in a hip hop way. The fans, it's unreal. You come in this thing confident, you gotta know that you're doing something and this is what you wanna do. So in a way, you expect it, but then in a way it's just like wow, it really f**king happened.
Q: Any fears or concerns about becoming famous in this day and age of blogs, tabloids and Twitter?
A: We live in a different time now and there's a lot of things that are out there. People have so much access to you. But you know, I'm not worried. I'm a cool dude. Anything that I do, I'm proud to say or I'll take full responsibility for it. So it's really if I got my head on right and I ain't doin' no dumb s**t, I'll be aight.
More photos of Bruno Mars:
Photos courtesy of Atlantic Records
