Bruno Mars is a man of many talents when it comes to the music industry, and he started out at an early age. He began impersonating Elvis Presley when he was three and learned to play the piano, guitar, and drums not long after. Was Bruno Mars in a band?
Bruno Mars was part of his family’s band, the Love Notes, from the ages 4 to 12, before it disbanded due to his parents divorcing. After the Love Notes ceased, he started playing guitar and singing with his Dad’s new band, and eventually started opening for them.
Music has always been a love of Mars, and for a while between his family’s group breaking up and starting up with his Dad’s group, he really missed the spotlight and performing regularly. Perhaps he always knew that one day he would have his own band on stage with him each night.
The Hooligans
The name of the 7-man band that plays with Bruno Mars is The Hooligans. The majority of the members have been with Mars since the beginning, in 2010, including his older brother Eric, who has been his drummer from Day 1. The band serves as his backup vocals and dancers as well.
Current members of The Hooligans include:
- Phredley Brown – keyboard (2010–2012), lead guitar (2012–present), backing vocals (2010–present)
- Jamareo Artis – bass guitar (2010–present)
- Eric Hernandez – drums (2010–present)
- Kameron Whalum – trombone (2010–present), backing vocals (2018–present)
- Dwayne Dugger – saxophone (2010–present), keyboards (2017–present)
- James King – trumpet (2010–present), backing vocals (2018–present)
- John Fossit – keyboard (2012–present)
In addition to the current members, there are two previous members. One was only with the band until 2012, and the other Phil Lawrence, was injured on tour in 2018 and left the band. He and Mars go way back to 2006 and have written and produced several songs, including many on Mars’ three albums. Though Lawerence didn’t return to the band when he healed, instead wanting to focus on his own stuff and his family, he and Mars remain close.
Session Musicians
While The Hooligans made some guest appearances on Bruno Mars’ third album, 24K Magic, they are not used as his studio band, also known as session musicians. Session musicians originated due to a lack of talent with the main act or band.
Not as much talent is needed to get away with sounding good on a live stage as there is required when recording an album. So the session musicians and singers were often tops in their fields and most often anonymous to those outside the music industry.
Nowadays more and more of the main talent are talented in more areas than just the singing, and the live bands give more energy, so session musicians are not being used as often as they once were.
Musical Influences
In addition to being influenced by Elvis Presley, due to his performances as an impersonator, Mars had several other artists he looked up to. One of his biggest influences was also an impersonation act of his, and that was Michael Jackson.
He has a long list of other artists that he credits for providing him with inspiration over the years, including Jimi Hendrix, who inspired his guitar playing, something that Mars still adds to each of his live shows.
Other Musical Acts
In addition to working with his band, he has also worked with other musical talents, providing vocals, either as a duet, ensemble, or background vocals. He has also written music for some of the top names in the industry, though he has previously said that he has moved away from that now, focusing more on his own career.
Bruno Mars has already had quite the musical life and he’s still only in his mid-thirties. I’m sure looking back at 3-year-old Peter Hernandez, several people couldn’t have imagined that he would be playing packed stadiums as the lead performer, with a band of seven, including his older brother, backing him up.