Bruno Mars (Peter Gene Hernandez) was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on October 8, 1985, to his parents, Bernadette San Pedro Hernandez and Peter Hernandez. He was also accompanied by his older siblings of 5: Eric, Jamie, Tiara, Tahiti, and Presley. These people all played an important role in his future career and life. For example, his older brother Eric is the drummer of his group, The Hooligans, and to show his love for his parents, he had their names tatted on himself. Besides his close family dynamic, Bruno Mars also had a great relationship with his uncle Johnny. This great relationship allowed him to get a jump start on his career at an early age. 

How did he get a jump start on his career, you may ask? According to the Revolver Club’s article, “The Youngest King: Bruno Mars’ Early Days as Elvis,” “Bruno’s journey into music started even before most kids learned to tie their shoelaces. At just three years old, he took on the role of the world’s youngest Elvis impersonator, encouraged by none other than his uncle, who was an Elvis impersonator himself.” Due to his newfound love of impersonating Elvis and singing, founded by his uncle, Bruno Mars jumpstarted his career by performing at local places as an Elvis impersonator and even tagging along to his parents’ band (The Love Notes) and would perform with them. As the years went by and he gained more skill in impersonation and signing, Bruno Mars began even to impersonate more famous singers. When he was a teenager, he impersonated the popular pop star Michael Jackson at revues in his area. All of this sparked up a dream of his: to be an aspiring artist in the music industry. Due to this newfound dream, he learned to play guitar, piano, bass, and percussion instruments.

After he graduated from high school in 2003, he decided to move to Los Angeles to start his career as a world-renowned musician. Shortly after moving, he signed a deal in 2004 with the record labeled Mowtown. Mars was stoked because famous artists he loved, like Michael Jackson, had signed up with this company. Although the hype of this company was in the air, Bruno and Mowtown didn’t exactly see eye to eye. Motown didn’t believe they had a clear image of Mars, so shortly after they signed him, they dropped him. In an interview with a CNN reporter, Mars was asked, “Did a part of you believe that? That you weren’t good enough?” the reporter asked, referring to how Bruno felt after being dropped by Motown. “You definitely have those nights where you feel a little insecure, but I didn’t want to give up. My goal was I’m not going to go back home. I’m not going to go back to Hawiia and face my friends and family saying it didn’t pan out. I got to do something.” said Bruno. This is exactly what Mars did: practice and grow himself before signing a new deal with Atlantic Records in 2009. 

By doing so, he unlocked many new opportunities and even had to consider his stage name (Bruno Mars). Mars said he came up with the first part of the stage name when his father called him Bruno throughout his childhood after saying he resembled the famous wrestler Bruno Sammartino. He then adapted the last part of his stage name by aspiring the joke he made with many women. When they called them out of this world, he would respond with the phrase, “I guess I’m from Mars.” This is how his stage name was created. 

After his signing, he collaborated with B.O.B. on songs like “Billionaire” and “Nothing on You” before eventually hitting off with a great start on his first song, “Just The Way You Are.” After so many years of success and growing popularity, as of 2024, Bruno Mars’ popularity increased especially with his new song “Die With a Smile” with Lady Gaga. So, with his loving fanbase, inspiring story, and great skills, it is safe to say that Bruno Mars is very successful in his career and his life.