9781422276204

Chapter 2:

Never Alone on the Road to the Top

Words to Understand

percussionist: someone who plays a percussion instrument, such as the drums, the triangle, or the tambourine. performative: this adjective refers to anything relating to the idea of an artist’s performance. shoehorned: to force someone or something into a space it is not suited for it, usually against that person or thing’s will. homage: to pay special honor or attention to someone or something.

Mars’s Family Life Parents S ome of the most influential people in Mars’s life were his parents. To put it mildly, they were very musical: His dad, Pete Hernandez, is a percussionist who specialized in playing Latin music, while his mother, Bernadette San Pedro Hernandez (née Bayot) was a hula dancer and singer who died in 2013. When Bruno Mars was born on October 8, 1985, his parents were performing a show

together in Hawaii. Through their mutual love of music, they encouraged Mars’s musical and performative talents from the age of two, giving him the confidence to step out on his own as a musician.

16

17

Bruno Mars

Bruno Mars

HIP-HOP & R&B