Look up wang in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wang may refer to:

Names:

• Wang (surname), a common Chinese surname
• Titles in Chinese nobility
• A title in Korean nobility
• A title in Mongolian nobility

Places:

• Wang River in Thailand
• Wang Township, Minnesota, a township in the United States
• Wang, Bavaria, a town in the district of Freising, Bavaria, Germany
• Wang, Austria, a town in the district of Scheibbs in Lower Austria
• An abbreviation for the town of Wangaratta, Australia

Other:

• Wang (Tibetan Buddhism), a form of empowerment or initiation
• Wang (musical), an 1891 New York musical
• Wang Film Productions
• Wang Laboratories, an American computer company
• WANG, a radio station licensed to Havelock, North Carolina
• WLVG, a radio station licensed to Havelock, North Carolina formerly known as WANG-FM

See also[link]

• All pages beginning with "Wang"
• Huang
• Wong (disambiguation)
• Wang Chung (disambiguation)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Jeremy Kyle
Jeremy Kyle at Radio Festival 2010
Born	(1965-07-07) 7 July 1965 (age 46) Reading, England, United Kingdom
Nationality	British
Other names	Jezza
Education	University of Surrey
Occupation	Broadcaster
Years active	1996–present
Employer	ITV
Known for	The Jeremy Kyle Show
Spouse	Kirsty Rowley (m. 1989–1991) «start: (1989)–end+1: (1992)»"Marriage: Kirsty Rowley to Jeremy Kyle" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Jeremy_Kyle) (divorced) Carla Germaine (m. 2003) «start: (2003)»"Marriage: Carla Germaine to Jeremy Kyle" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Jeremy_Kyle)
Children	3 daughters, 1 son

Jeremy Kyle (born 7 July 1965)^[1] is an English radio and television presenter, best known for his British daytime television chat show on ITV, The Jeremy Kyle Show. Kyle is also the host of an American talk show of the same name which premiered on 19 September 2011.

Radio career[link]

From 1986-95, Kyle worked as a salesman for life insurance, recruitment, and radio advertising.^[2] He then became a radio presenter and after a brief stint at Orchard FM in Taunton and Leicester Sound in Leicester, he was signed by Kent's Invicta FM in 1996. In 1997, he joined BRMB in Birmingham, presenting the shows Late & Live and Jezza's Jukebox.^[3][4]

In 2000, Kyle moved to the Century FM network, taking this format with him. The show was called Jezza's Confessions. It was broadcast between 9pm and 1am. He won a Sony Award for Late & Live in 2001.^[2] On 1 July 2002, he made his first broadcast on Virgin Radio, presenting Jezza's Virgin Confessions every weekday from 8pm to midnight. In mid-2003, he broadcast the show from 9pm to 1am every weekday, and in January 2004 the show went out from 10pm to 1am, Sunday to Thursday. He left Virgin Radio in June 2004. From 5 September 2004, Kyle presented the Confessions show on London's Capital FM. The new programme aired Sunday to Thursday from 10pm to 1am with live calls on relationship issues of all kinds. Capital Confessions came to an end on 22 December 2005 to make way for The Jeremy Kyle Show, a similar show which ran from January 2006 to December 2006.

In late 2007, Kyle began a new show (The Jeremy Kyle Show), broadcasting across Gcap Media's One Network, of which Orchard FM, Invicta FM and BRMB, his previous employers, are a part. The programme differed from his previous shows in that he interviewed celebrities. Kyle also began broadcasting a new programme, on Essex FM, in November 2007.

Kyle joined Talksport on 21 September 2008 to present a lunchtime sports show every Sunday called The Jeremy Kyle Sunday Sports Show.

As a result of Talksport's Premiership coverage on a Sunday, Kyle's show was cancelled, and he left the station.^[5]

TV career[link]

In 2005 Kyle moved his format to ITV, with a programme also entitled The Jeremy Kyle Show. Here Kyle has reached his widest audience to date. His often aggressive manner with guests has been the source of both popularity and criticism. He is seemingly unafraid of reprisal from his guests, believing that speaking his mind is better than holding his peace. Guests sometimes take offence at Kyle's comments, one guest even attempting to throw a chair at him, whilst another threw an envelope at the back of his head, but he often justifies his criticism by claiming that he only wants to help them. Kyle recently claimed on air that his show was watched by 1.8 million viewers, a very high figure for a daytime chat show.

In September 2007, Judge Alan Berg described The Jeremy Kyle Show as trash which existed to "titillate bored members of the public with nothing better to do". He went on to say "It seems to me that the purpose of this show is to affect a morbid and depressing display of dysfunctional people whose lives are in turmoil" and added that it was "human bear-baiting".^[6] The judge so characterised it "after [a] husband was provoked into headbutting [his] wife's lover in front of [Kyle's] studio audience".^[7]

In February 2008, The Jeremy Kyle Show was again criticised in court after a man who found out during the recording of a show that he was not the father of his wife's baby later pointed an air rifle at her.^[8]

Other shows Kyle is involved with include Kyle's Academy, a ten-part series for ITV1 daytime which first aired on 18 June 2007.^[8] A team of experts (so-called life coaches and psychotherapists), headed by Kyle take five people and work with them over an intensive fortnight to help them on the road to a happier more fulfilled life. Kyle has also presented Half Ton Hospital, a show about morbidly obese people in the United States. In December 2009 he played himself in ITV1's comedy-drama The Fattest Man in Britain.

On 19 April 2011, Kyle began presenting a new documentary series called Military Driving School, where he visited the Defence School Of Transport in Yorkshire, following a group of new recruits as they undergo training as front line military drivers. He is the presenter of the ITV1 show High Stakes, which began on 11 October 2011. Billed as a game of "knowledge, risk, and tension," the show involves participants answering questions and stepping on the correct six squares on a grid in order to avoid trap numbers.^[9]

Writing career[link]

Kyle writes a column for Pick Me Up, a women's weekly magazine published by IPC.^[10] In his column, titled Jeremy Kyle Says..., Kyle adopts a frank style in responding to readers' problems that closely resembles the approach he takes on The Jeremy Kyle Show.

In 2009 Kyle wrote his first book, 'I'm Only Being Honest', about Britain's social problems and his views on how to solve them including recounts of his past and personal life.^[11]

Personal life[link]

Kyle was born in Reading, Berkshire.^[1] His father was an accountant and personal secretary to the Queen Mother.^[12] He attended the independent Reading Blue Coat School in Sonning, Berkshire^[2] and studied history and sociology at the University of Surrey.^[13]

He met his first wife, Kirsty Rowley, in 1988, when he was a recruitment consultant in an agency in Bristol.^[14] They became a couple within a fortnight, and were engaged within two months. They married in Almondsbury near Bristol seven months later, in July 1989. Their daughter, Harriet, was born in June 1990. The marriage ended just five months after the birth, in November 1990. His ex-wife has since claimed that Kyle had carefully concealed a destructive and expensive gambling habit from her over the course of their marriage.^[14]

He met former model Carla Germaine in 1999, while he was presenting on a BRMB radio show, and Germaine entered the controversial Two Strangers and a Wedding contest hosted by the station.^[15]

As the winner of the bride part of the contest, her prize was to marry the selected groom, Greg Cordell. Their marriage lasted only three months, after claims that Greg had an affair just days after their honeymoon, and she subsequently married Kyle in 2002.^[15][16][17] They have two daughters and a son together.

Kyle is a supporter of West Ham United.^[18] He suffers from obsessive–compulsive disorder and has stated that he "licks his mobile phone to make sure it's clean", as stated in his book "I'm Only Being Honest".^[19]

Kyle has described his opinion on "Broken Britain":

I think it starts with the breakdown of the family unit. Society should invest more in our kids. There should be community centres and youth clubs. And our benefits system – it's the greatest in the modern world. But there are loopholes and people taking advantage.^[12]

In October 2010, Kyle appeared at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham. He chaired "Getting Britain Back To Work" alongside George Osborne.^[20]

References[link]

External links[link]

• The Jeremy Kyle Show at itv.com

Yuja Wang (王羽佳)
Yuja Wang at Stadtcasino, Basel, on 19th March 2012.
Born	(1987-02-10) February 10, 1987 (age 25) Beijing, China
Nationality	Chinese
Alma mater	Central Conservatory of Music, Beijing Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, 2008
Occupation	Pianist

Yuja Wang (Chinese: 王羽佳; pinyin: Wáng Yǔjiā;^[1] born February 10, 1987^[2]) is a Chinese classical pianist. She was born in Beijing, began studying piano there at age six, and went on to study at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing.^[3]

Early life[link]

Wang comes from a musical family. She entered Beijing's Central Conservatory of Music at age seven and studied there for three years. At age 11, Wang was accepted as the youngest student in the Morningside Music Bridge International Music Festival at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Canada. ^[4]. After several summers of participating in the program, Wang moved to Canada at age 14 to continue her studies at the Mount Royal University Conservatory.^[5]

Career[link]

In 1998, Wang won 3rd Prize in the Ettlingen International Competition for Young Pianists, in Ettlingen, Germany. In 2001, she won Third Prize and Special Jury Prize (awarded to an especially superior finalist of less than 20 years in age, prize money of 500,000 Japanese Yen) in the Piano Section at the First Sendai International Music Competition in Sendai, Japan.^[6]

In 2003 Wang made her European debut with the Tonhalle Orchestra in Zurich, Switzerland, playing Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4 under the baton of David Zinman. She made her North American debut in Ottawa in the 2005–06 season replacing Radu Lupu performing the Beethoven concerto with Pinchas Zukerman conducting.

On September 11, 2005, Wang was named a 2006 biennial Gilmore Young Artist award winner, given to the most promising pianists age 21 and younger. As part of the award, she received $15,000, appeared at Gilmore Festival concerts, and had a new piano work commissioned for her.^[7]

Starting at age 15, she studied for five years with Gary Graffman, who was also Lang Lang's teacher, at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and graduated in May 2008. She is increasing the number of concerts she is playing, and has "developed a novel reputation" of replacing sick pianists, yet going on "to deliver a knockout performance."^[3][8]

In 2006–2007, she performed with the New York Philharmonic, the Houston Symphony, the Chicago Symphony, and San Francisco Symphony, the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Japan, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic in the Netherlands, the China Philharmonic in Beijing and the Guangzhou Symphony and the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival.

In March 2007, Wang replaced the legendary pianist Martha Argerich in concerts held in Boston.^[8] Argerich had cancelled her appearances with the Boston Symphony Orchestra on four subscription concerts from March 8 to March 13.^[8] Wang performed Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, with Charles Dutoit conducting, receiving highly favorable reviews.^[3]

On March 14, 2007, Wang was featured on National Public Radio's All Things Considered program.^[9]

Wang played twice in Albuquerque in summer 2007,^[10] and three concerts in Kansas City with its Symphony in November 2007.^[11]

On January 21, 2008, She played at Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, Michigan and, to standing ovations, returned to the stage repeatedly for a triple encore that included Gluck's Mélodie from Orfeo (Wang's transcription, after Giovanni Sgambati), Turkish March by Mozart (Volodos's transcription), and Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight of the Bumblebee (Cziffra's virtuosic arrangement).

On April 2, 2008, Wang played with the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields in Boston Symphony Hall, on a concert originally scheduled to be conducted from the keyboard by Murray Perahia and she performed in the 2008 Verbier Festival to great acclaim.

2008 residency at SPAC[link]

In the summer of 2008, Wang played two performances at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), for which she was introduced by SPAC President Marcia White.^[12][13] Wang was called a "new pianist star", "a phenom", "a whiz", and "a sensation" after her concerto concerts at SPAC in August 2008.^{[3][14][15][16]}

In her first concert, with the Saratoga Chamber Orchestra, Wang "performed Liszt’s prodigiously difficult" Sonata in B minor.^[15][16] A reviewer said that:

It’s a very long work that goes for almost 50 minutes [actually 30 minutes] of constant playing. Like much of Liszt’s music, this one ebbed and flowed from great dramatic moments to quiet ephemeral sections filled with a romantically ethereal melody. It took a page or so of music before Wang was completely involved emotionally, but once she was—wozzah. She has technique to burn. Her octave runs at lightning speed were incredible. The volume and big sound she got out of the piano, which in the big chordal passages sounded like giant footsteps, contrasted sharply with the lacy streams of notes. Her delicate stroking of the melody was like angels singing. Now and then, she’d lift off the piano stool in her intensity. Yet with all her passion, Wang was always in control. Her concentration was focused. She was unhesitating in pacing herself in accordance with the work’s demands. Her vision was a dramatic one. It was great stuff and the crowd loved it. Wang got a standing ovation and several curtain calls.

—Geraldine Freedman, in The Daily Gazette^[15]

Another reviewer wrote that:

Some say this music shows the different facets of the composer's personality, and Wang exposed the most gentle, languorous aspects of the piece every bit as perfectly as the hard-edged, pounding furor. Just 21, hair blunt-cut to hide her face in profile at the piano, Wang is a quiet, unaffected presence as she plays, utterly without body language except when the force of her arms on the keys lifts her slight frame from the bench. This young pianist is a technical whiz who makes every note speak for itself.

—Judith White, in The Saratogian^[16]

She also played Brahms' Horn Trio with the Philadelphia Orchestra concertmaster, David Kim, and Philadelphia's principal horn, Jennifer Montone, in which "Wang showed herself entirely capable of playing in ensemble."^[16]

For her second concert, she performed Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 1 at SPAC to spectacular reviews, in which it was noted that she "is probably not much older than Prokofiev when he wrote the work."^[14] One reviewer wrote:

Wang used punchy, dry articulated fingerwork and strongly accented the pulses, which only added to the flavor. In the inner slow movement with its plaintive melody, Wang stroked the keys tenderly and gave the lovely melody good lift. The orchestra under Charles Dutoit was solidly enthusiastic. The crowd went wild with whistles and cheers and gave her a standing ovation and several curtain calls. Wang was a real-life star....

—Geraldine Freedman, in The Daily Gazette^[14]

Recording contract[link]

In January 2009, Wang signed an exclusive recording contract for five discs with Deutsche Grammophon.^[17] In March, she made her debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. On April 15, 2009 Wang performed at the Youtube Symphony Orchestra event held in New York at Carnegie Hall. In May, she performed Sergei Prokofiev's Piano Concerto number 2 with the San Francisco Symphony.^[18] In August, she played his third Piano Concerto under Claudio Abbado in the Opening Concert of the Lucerne Festival, with live broadcast and telecast in the Swiss first national programm SF 1.^[19] In June/July, she appeared, like the year before, at the Verbier Festival, and in November, she had her first solo concert in Zurich at the prestiguous Tonhalle Zurich (her second visit after her famous European debut here in 2003, see above), with a program featuring Liszt, Schumann, and Chopin.^[20]

Personal life[link]

Wang currently lives in New York City, but travels most of the time playing concerts around the world.

Discography[link]

Wang has released four CDs with Deutsche Grammophon: Sonatas & Etudes in 2009; Transformation in 2010; Rachmaninov in 2011;^[21] and Fantasia in March 2012.^[22]

In addition, EuroArts has released a DVD on which she performs Sergei Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Major, with Abbado conducting.^[23]

Although there are reports that Wang released a debut CD in 1995,^[24][25][26] there is little information available about it.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Yuja Wang at Allmusic
• Profile of Yuja Wang on Opus3 Artists site

Joanna Wang
Chinese name	王若琳 (Traditional)
Pinyin	Wáng Ruòlín (Mandarin)
Birth name	Wang Ruolin
Born	(1988-08-01) August 1, 1988 (age 23) Taipei, Republic of China (Taiwan)
Other name(s)	Joanna
Occupation	Singer-songwriter
Genre(s)	Folk
Instrument(s)	Vocals, Guitar, Piano, Kazoo
Label(s)	Sony Music Taiwan
Years active	2008 - Present
Parents	Wang Chi-ping and Ginnie Fan
Influences	Queen, Paul McCartney, Oingo Boingo, Yoeko Kurahashi
Official Website	official website

Joanna Wang (Chinese: 王若琳; pinyin: Wáng Ruòlín) is a Taiwanese singer-songwriter, daughter of renowned music producer Wang Chi-ping (王治平).^[1] Born in Taipei but raised in Los Angeles, California, Wang dropped out from Gabrielino High School when she was 16. Her debut album, Start From Here, was released in January 2008 as a double-disc set, one in English and the other in Chinese. The album reached #1 in Taiwan and has been popular throughout Southeast Asia. In June 2008, it was released in Japan. Her second album, Joanna & 王若琳, which includes her all-original endeavor, The Adult Storybook, was released in January 2009.

Career[link]

As she was raised in the United States, Wang was exposed to many classic pop music acts, including but not limited to: The Beatles, Queen, and Oingo Boingo. Among her major influences are Danny Elfman, Yoeko Kurahashi (倉橋ヨエコ), Paul McCartney, and video game soundtracks, most notably those from the Castlevania, Zelda, and Mario series. She has stated in her YouTube videos^[2] and in interviews^[3][4] that she dislikes the debut and rejects it as her own work.

Wang is a left-handed guitarist.

She has performed some of her own work and has covered various popular songs in English and in Chinese on Taiwanese television programs.

Awards[link]

• 2008: Singapore Hit Awards 2008 - Outstanding Newcomer
• 2008: 9th CCTV-MTV Music Awards - Most Popular New Female Artist of the Year in Hong Kong and Taiwan
• 2008: Metro Hits Music Awards - Metroshowbiz Hits Mandarin Songwriter Singer Big Award
• 2008: Metro Hits Music Awards - Metro Radio Hits Most Voted Newcomer Award
• 2008: China Mobile Wireless Music Awards - Most Potential New Female Singer
• 2008: 2008 Beijing Chinese Pop Music Awards - Best Composer-Singer Newcomer

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Start from Here (2008)
• Joanna & 王若琳 (2009)
• The Adult Storybook (2009)
• The Things We Do for Love (2011)
• The Adventures of Bernie the Schoolboy (2011)

Notes[link]

References[link]

• "Taiwan New Jazz Star Starts from Beijing", China Radio International, 2008-04-08.
• Brownlow, Ron. "Step into the spotlight", Taipei Times, 2006-12-08.

External links[link]

• Joanna Wang Official Site
• Joanna YouTube Channel
• Joanna Hong Kong Fans Forum

This biographical article related to Taiwan is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars performing in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 19, 2010
Background information
Birth name	Peter Gene Hernandez
Born	(1985-10-08) October 8, 1985 (age 26)[1] Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Genres	Reggae fusion, pop, soul, R&B
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, record producer, model, dancer
Instruments	Vocals, drums, guitar, keyboard, bass, piano, harmonica
Years active	2005–present
Labels	Atlantic, Elektra
Associated acts	The Smeezingtons
Website	www.brunomars.com

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

Mars had an unsuccessful stint with Motown Records, but then 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 Ke$ha, and "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan. 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.^[2] Mars 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 musical genres. He has worked with an assortment of artists from various 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 Little Richard,^[3] 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."^[4] Worldwide, Mars became the best-selling digital artist in 2011. He had three singles in the top ten, including first place with "Just The Way You Are," which sold 12.5 million copies.^[5] Mars won Best International Male Solo Artist at the BRIT Awards in 2012.^[6] Bruno Mars has sold 5 million albums and 36 million singles worldwide.^[7]

Early life[link]

Bruno Mars was born Peter Gene Hernandez on October 8th, 1985, and raised in the Waikiki neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii, by parents Pete Hernandez, of Puerto Rican descent, and Bernadette "Bernie," a Filipina.^{[8][9][10][11]} His mother emigrated to Hawaii from the Philippines as a child and his father moved to the island from Brooklyn, New York.^[12] Mars' parents met while performing in a show, where his mother was a hula dancer and his father played percussion.^[12] At the age of two, he was nicknamed "Bruno" by his father, because of his resemblance to legendary professional wrestler Bruno Sammartino.^[13]

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.^[14][15] In addition to being a dancer, his mother was a singer and his father used his musical ability to perform Little Richard rock n roll music.^[3] Mars' uncle was an Elvis impersonator. By the age of three his uncle had Mars up on the stage performing. He also performed songs by artists such as Michael Jackson, The Isley Brothers, and The Temptations.^[10] 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.^[16]

In 1990, Mars was featured in MidWeek as "Little Elvis", going on to have a cameo in the film Honeymoon in Vegas in 1992.^[10][17] He later reflected on the influence Presley had on his music: "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."^[18] In 2010, he also acknowledged his Hawaiian roots and musical family as an influence, explaining, "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...I've just been surrounded by it."^[19] 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.^[10][17] 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 [any] pizzazz, and a lot of girls say I’m out of this world, so I was like I guess I'm from Mars."^[20]

Career[link]

[edit] 2004–10: Career beginnings and It's Better If You Don't Understand

Bruno Mars performing in Houston, Texas in November 2010.

Shortly after moving to Los Angeles, Mars signed to Motown Records in 2004, in a deal that "went nowhere".^[21] 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.^[21] In 2006, Lawrence introduced Mars to his future manager at Atlantic Records, Aaron Bay-Schuck.^[22] After hearing him play a couple of songs on the guitar, Bay-Schuck wanted to sign him immediately, but it took about three years for Atlantic records to finally sign Mars to the label.^[22] In the meantime, Bay-Schuck hired Mars and the Smeezingtons to write and produce songs for the label's artists.^[22] 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.^[22] Bay-Schuck credits this as a period of "self-discovery" that contributed significantly to Mars' later success.^[22]

Before becoming a successful solo artist, Hernandez was an acknowledged music producer, writing songs for Alexandra Burke, Travie McCoy, Adam Levine, Brandy, Sean Kingston, and Flo Rida.^[14][23] He also co-wrote the Sugababes' hit song "Get Sexy" and provided backing vocals on their album Sweet 7.^[24][25] His first musical appearance as a singer was in Far East Movement's second studio album Animal, featured on the track "3D".^[26] He was also featured on pastor and hip hop artist Jaeson Ma's debut single "Love" in August 2009.^[27][28] He reached prominence as a solo artist after being featured on and co-writing B.o.B's "Nothin' on You" and Travie McCoy's "Billionaire"; both songs peaked within the top ten of many charts worldwide.^{[29][30][31][32]} He said of them, "I think those songs weren't meant to be full-sung songs. If I'd sung all of "Nothin' on You", it might've sounded like some '90s R&B." Following this success, Mars released his debut extended play (EP), titled It's Better If You Don't Understand, on May 11, 2010.^[33] The EP peaked at the 99th position on the Billboard 200 and produced one single, "The Other Side", featuring singers Cee Lo Green and B.o.B.^[34][35] Mars collaborated with Green once more in August 2010 by co-writing his single "Fuck You!". He performed a medley of "Nothin' on You" and "Airplanes" with B.o.B and Hayley Williams at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards on September 12, 2010.^[36]

[edit] 2010–present: Doo-Wops & Hooligans

Bruno Mars' debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans, was released digitally on October 4, and saw its physical release on October 5, 2010.^[37][38] The lead single, "Just the Way You Are", was released on July 19, 2010,^[39] and has reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 as well as several other charts worldwide.^[40][41] The music video was released on September 8, 2010.^[42] The second single, "Grenade", was released September 28, 2010, and has also seen successful international chart performance.^[43][44] In the United States, Doo-Wops & Hooligans debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 for the week of October 13, 2010, selling 55,000 copies.^[2] The album also received generally positive reviews from critics. Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt praised Mars for his "instant-access melodies" and "sly snatches of dance-floor swagger", but noted weaknesses in songs deviant from his conventional pop and soul genres.^[45] He opened for Maroon 5 on the fall leg of the Hands All Over Tour starting October 6, 2010 and co-headlined with McCoy on a European tour starting October 18, 2010.^[38]

On September 19, 2010, Mars was arrested in Las Vegas for possession of cocaine.^[46] When talking to a police officer, Mars reportedly stated that what he did was "foolish" and that "he has never used drugs before".^[47][48] Mars pled guilty to felony drug possession, and in return for his plea, he was told that the charges would be erased from his criminal record as long as he stayed out of trouble for a year, paid a $2,000 fine, did 200 hours of community service and completed a drug counseling course.^[49]

On February 13, 2011, Mars won his first Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, having received six nominations; Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Nothin' on You", Record of the Year for "Nothin' on You" and "Fuck You", Song of the Year for "Fuck You", and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical at the 53rd Grammy Awards.

On September 16, 2011, Bad Meets Evil released their single, "Lighters", which featured Mars in the song. The song was met with mixed reviews from critics and many criticized Mars for doing this type of song.^[50] On September 22, 2011, it was announced on Mars' website that his new song "It Will Rain" will appear on The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack which was released on November 8.^[51] On October 30, 2011, Mars gave an exclusive performance of "Runaway Baby" on the results show of The X Factor UK, the same day that Mars received six nominations for a Grammy Award; Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for Doo-Wops & Hooligans, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for "Grenade", and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical at the 54th Grammy Awards. During the ceremony, Mars performed "Runaway Baby" but he did not win any awards as Adele won in all the categories he was nominated in and also lost to Paul Epworth for Producer of the Year.

Mars has confirmed on Twitter that his work on his second album has begun.^[52] On March 22, 2012, it was announced that Mars had signed a worldwide publishing deal with BMG Chrysalis US.^[53]

Musical style[link]

Mars performing on November 24, 2010. Mars plays several instruments including piano, guitar, bass and congas.^[54]

Mars' music has been noted for displaying a wide variety of styles and influences, including pop,^[55] rock,^[55] reggae,^[55] R&B,^[56] soul,^[45] and hip hop.^[57] 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."^[58] 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."^[4] 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.^[59] In high school, he began listening to classic rock groups such as The Police, Led Zeppelin, and the Beatles.^[59] All of these genres of music have influenced Mars' musical style; he observed that "It’s not easy to [create] songs with that mixture of rock and soul and hip-hop, and there’s only a handful of them."^[59] Mars also stated that he is a fan of Alicia Keys, Jessie J, Jack White and The Saturdays.^[60]

In addition, Mars claims that his work with other artists influenced his musical style, saying that "'Nothin' on You' had a Motown vibe, 'Billionaire' was a reggae acoustic guitar-driven song, though one of my favorites is the Cee-Lo [Green] song ['Fuck You']. 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."^[61] 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."^[61] 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."^[12] Lyrically, many of Mars' songs have been described as "feel-good", carefree, and optimistic,^[62] 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.^[45][63]

Discography[link]

• Doo-Wops & Hooligans (2010)
• TBA (2012)

Tours[link]

• Doo-Wops & Hooligans tour (2010–2011)

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bruno Mars

• Official website
• Bruno Mars on Twitter
• Bruno Mars at the Internet Movie Database