Bruno Mars is a 13-time Grammy Award nominee whose debut album has been certified 39x platinum worldwide, has sold over 45 million singles worldwide, and has over 1 billion views on YouTube. Doo-Wops and Hooligans was released in October 2010 and named “the year’s finest pop debut: 10 near-perfect songs,” by Rolling Stone.
Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985 in Waikiki, Hawaii), better known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is a Filipino-Puerto Rican American singer-songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist signed to Atlantic Records. He is most well known for his hit Just The Way You Are, which went #1 in 9 countries in 2010. He is also known for singing/co-writing the hooks for the #1 hit Nothin’ On You by B.o.B, and Billionaire by Travie McCoy; he also co-wrote the international hits Right Round by Flo Rida and Wavin’ Flag by K’naan.
Bruno Mars was born and raised in the Waikiki neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii by parents Pete and Bernadette “Bernie” Hernandez, of Puerto Rican and Filipino descent. Hernandez was one of six children and came from a musical family giving him a diverse mix of reggae, rock, hip hop, and R&B. From a young age, he was impersonating and performing songs by artists such as Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, The Isley Brothers, and The Temptations. In 1990, Hernandez was featured in MidWeek as “Little Elvis”, going on to have a cameo in Honeymoon in Vegas in 1992. “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,” he stated.
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Band founders Patricia Day and Kim Nekroman first met when Day’s now-defunct band, the punk rock group Peanut Pump Gun, opened for Nekroman’s psychobilly band, Nekromantix, at a festival in Cologne, Germany in 1996. Despite both belonging to the subculture scene of Copenhagen, Denmark, the two had never met before, but they became friends over their mutual interest in alternative music. The two would eventually marry.
Day and Nekroman decided to form a band where they could experiment with many genres outside of their normal bands, and decided to start by switching instruments. Nekroman taught Day how to play an upright bass, while she taught him how to play guitar. The two began auditioning for a drummer, with Nekromantix guitarist Peter Sandorff even being a possible choice. They eventually chose Niedermeier to drum, a friend of Day’s and a member of the band Strawberry Slaughterhouse, and officially started HorrorPops in 1998. After touring for a while as a trio, the band recruited Niedermeier’s old bandmate, Caz the Clash, as a second guitarist.
In 2000, Day recruited two friends, Mille and Kamilla Vanilla, co-workers at the body piercing shop she worked at to act as go-go dancers for the band’s live show. The group also recorded a 7 song demo for use in a press kit, but it was somehow leaked to the public, and resulted in two of the group’s singles becoming club hits in Denmark. The group spent the next few years touring Europe, until 2003, when they began recording 6 more demo tracks. During this time, Caz the Clash became a father and left the band to focus on parenting. He was replaced by another Strawberry Slaughterhouse member, Karsten. Hellcat Records, Tim Armstrong’s (of Rancid) record label, decided to sign HorrorPops based on their demos. The band was able to release a vinyl single in September 2003, and began a U.S. headlining tour.
The band’s first full-length album, Hell Yeah!, was released in February 2004, but problems with getting work visas resulted in the band having to cancel U.S. tour dates. The band was able to make up for this loss via an opening stint for the Offspring in Europe. Mille left the band a short while later to go back to school, and was replaced with Naomi. The band soon relocated from Denmark to Los Angeles, California. The band’s second album, Bring It On!, was released on September 13, 2005. Their third album, released on February 5, 2008, is called Kiss Kiss Kill Kill.
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Darryl McDaniels or “DMC” as most of the world knows him, first made his start in the music business as one third of the ground breaking rap group Run-DMC and quickly became the most popular in terms of fans and influence. He has been in the public eye for the past 20 years, since forming the now legendary, defunct group, RUN-D.M.C with Joseph (Rev. Run) Simmons and the late, great Jason (Jam Master Jay) Mizell. Also one of the founding members of this multi-platinum music group, selling over 30 million singles and albums worldwide, it would be hard to overstate his influence on popular culture. He helped transform Rap and Hip Hop into the most popular music in the world, while building a fan base that rivals the biggest acts in Rock ‘n’ Roll.
As the first and greatest of Hip Hop’s superstars, Run-DMC succeeded beyond anyone’s wildest dreams – their own included – by embodying for the world endlessly creative subculture of young black New York. They were the first rappers to earn a gold album, the first to earn a platinum album, the first to go multi-platinum, the first to have their videos played on MTV, the first to appear on American Bandstand and Saturday Night Live, and the first rap band to grace the cover of Rolling Stone and Spin.
DMC has recently added another list of firsts to his life – his first book entitled “King of Rock: Respect, Responsibility and My Life with Run-DMC” (St. Martins). The book, written by DMC with Bruce Haring with the forward by rapper/actor Will Smith, offers a flavored tale of his rise within the music business while stressing the importance of respect and responsibility in today’s society. It has received rave reviews nationwide. Entertainment weekly called it “strangely compelling, bravely honest… plenty of entertaining anecdotes about life back in the day to keep you turning the pages. Like Will Smith, McDaniels is a born charmer.” Publisher’s Weekly says the book is “hard hitting yet sensitive… he (McDaniiels) argues astutely that ‘very few of the rappers will admit they’re creating a fictional character,’ and thereby create problems for themselves.”
In addition to the new book, DMC released his own musical project entitled Checks, Thugs, Rock-N-Roll.
Pitbull (whose given name is Armando Christian Pérez) launched his own Polo Grounds Music/J Records imprint (Mr. 305 Records), introduced his specialty vodka Voli, partnered with Sheets, the dissolvable energy strip, inked major sponsorship deals with blue-chip brands Kodak, Dr. Pepper, Bud Light and capitalized on his enormous popularity in the community by releasing his first Spanish-language album, Armando, which features the Top 5 Latin Billboard pop single “Bon Bon.”
To top it all off, the Miami native was awarded his hometown’s Key to the City as a thank-you for the positive PR he has brought Florida’s nightlife capitol. So when Pitbull explains that he’s titled his new album Planet Pit because he feels as if the world is his right now, he’s not just blowing smoke. “I’m not suggesting I run the world, I just feel like I’ve built my own planet,” he says. “I’m catching a lot of people’s ears, whether it’s with my music or appearing on someone else’s track.
When ‘I Know You Want Me [Calle Ocho]’ took off, I started traveling the world, and I saw the impact that a global hit can have — the way it brings people together. So now I’ve set my goals even higher. Going in to make Planet Pit, I said, ‘Okay, Pitbull was cool, Mr. 305 was great — now it’s time for Mr. Worldwide.You need to generate a lot of heat if you want to be Mr. Worldwide, but if there’s one thing Pitbull has — besides a way with rapid-fire rhymes, billion-dollar beats, and globally infectious hooks — it’s charm by the boatload. Always impeccably dressed in a sharp suit and shades, Pit enters a room trailed by his pals happily bantering away in Spanish, a gorgeous girl, and members of his management team.
Even while juggling a constant stream of incoming texts and emails on his two smartphones, Pit has the ability to make everyone he meets feel at home, addressing them as “Mama” or “Papo,” and asking if they need anything.
He’s the consummate professional: confident and charismatic — a true star.Pit’s magnetic personality electrifies Planet Pit — a spicy, stylish stew of raps, beats, and hooks influenced by the music Pit has absorbed growing up and living in Miami, which claims a wide range of dance-driven sounds thanks to the Cuban, Dominican, Colombian, and Caribbean people who make it their home.
“I grew up with salsa, merengue, bachata, booty-shaking music, freestyle music, then came hip hop for me. So you throw all that in a pot, which we call a paella in Spanish — that’s what I’m trying to do with this album,” says Pit, who performed in such far-flung locales as France, Indonesia, South Africa, Brazil, and Singapore, among others, while promoting Rebelution. “It embodies a bit of everywhere I’ve been. For example, ‘Shake Señora’ has got T-Pain, who’s from Tallahassee and Sean Paul who brings the Jamaican feel. I’m trying to be the ambassador; the bridge builder who brings elements from all over the world and puts it all together so it sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard before.” Read more…..mtv.com
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Havana Brown always planned on being a singer – it’s just becoming a world-famous DJ kind of got in the way.
The Melbourne glamour has just released her sizzling debut single ‘We Run The Night’, but she first started singing at the modest age of six. Admittedly though, her ‘performances’ back then were a little different…
“I’d put together shows at family dinners and drag along my poor cousins, who didn’t know how to dance or sing. I don’t know how entertained everyone was,” Brown recalls with a laugh. “I was really into R&B, like Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation and Bobby Brown.”
After countless years of singing lessons, performing in dance troupes and cheerleading for her hometown Aussie Rules and basketball teams, Brown got serious about making her own music right after leaving high school.
She started working with Panos Liassi, a Melbourne-based London DJ/producer and one half of R&B/reggae partystarters, Supafly Inc. Such was their musical connection, she ended up following him to the UK to form a Fugees-style group called Fishbowl with two other members. They got signed to the Polydor UK label almost instantly, but sadly, in-fighting saw the act split before they even got to release a single.
“When I look back, it was a pretty dark time,” says Brown. “Getting signed is a big deal for a new artist. You think, woah, this is it! But it wasn’t…”
Like anyone suffering a break up, Brown threw herself into the party scene and one night, she had a dancefloor epiphany of her own: the DJ had the best job in the room and she wanted in.
After learning the basics from Panos, she scraped together enough money from her four-quid-an-hour job to buy her first pair of decks and started hitting up bars with her demo.
Her persistence finally paid off when she scored her first residency at London’s exclusive Kabaret nightclub. “I told the promoters I’d play my first gig for free and they could throw me off after the first song. I don’t think they even thought I’d turn up the next night. When I did, they were like ‘oh, you were serious?’ I ended up playing for an hour and they loved it.”
Arriving back in Australia at the end of 2006, Brown – in her own words – “worked her little tush off” to keep her DJ dream alive. After working the club circuit, she became the first female DJ in Australia to sign a major label record deal with Universal Music in 2008, released her first mix CD, Crave, and topped the year off opening for the Pussycat Dolls on their promo tour.
The Dolls’ management were so impressed with her DJ-with-dancers show, they asked her back for their full tour in 2009. And as word spread, Brown found herself supporting the cream of the pop crop, including Rihanna, Chris Brown, Lady Gaga and Britney Spears, with the latter inviting her on her European tour a year later.
Since then, Brown’s star has only gotten brighter. These days, she boasts weekly radio mixup shows in Australia and abroad (on the popular Radio FG France dance network), has sold over 150,000 copies of her Crave series (now up to Volume 5) and played events as dazzling and diverse as the official Grammy’s After Party and the Singapore F1 Grand Prix alongside Beyonce and the Black Eyed Peas. Along the way, she’s also clocked up more than 100,000 loyal Facebook fans.
Now, twenty years since that first giddy singing lesson, she’s ready to retake the mic and launch that long-overdue singing career. And she’s not afraid to say she’s a little bit nervous…
“It’s exciting, nerve-wracking and intimidating all at the same time,” she says. “I’ve been working on this for a while and I didn’t want to release anything until I was completely satisfied with it. I can’t wait for people to hear this song.”
Written and produced by dance duo More Mega, first single ‘We Run The Night’ is the perfect introduction to the talents and tastes of Havana Brown. A certified dancefloor detonator, the song’s as epic as it is euphoric with an insanely infectious breakdown that’s guaranteed to throw the crowd into overdrive.
“It’s created for both the clubs and the radio,” she reveals. “That was really important for me and it was very difficult to pull off. As for the track, it’s about how music makes me feel.”
Brown says her vast experience as a DJ playing other people’s tunes has also had a huge impact on how she approaches her own.
“In the past, I wasn’t quite sure what type of artist I want to be. But now, after DJing and Fishbowl falling apart, which has been a blessing in disguise, now I’m very confident about what I want.”
At the same time, she realises that some people can be just as dismissive of female pop singers as they are of female DJs. But that, she says, only motivates her more.
“It actually drives me more when people say bad things,” she confesses. “It doesn’t make me angry, it’s more ‘I’m just going to annoy you even more by going out there even harder.’”
“I know I’m putting myself out there in a different way,” she adds. “Originally I was behind the console playing other people’s music but now I’m up front performing my own. I’m revealing myself – it’s like being naked.”
So far, Havana’s career as a jet-setting DJ has been nothing short of dazzling, but now she’s ready to shine in a whole new light. Ladies and gentlemen, introducing Havana Brown the artist.
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Darryl McDaniels or “DMC” as most of the world knows him, first made his start in the music business as one third of the ground breaking rap group Run-DMC and quickly became the most popular in terms of fans and influence. He has been in the public eye for the past 20 years, since forming the now legendary, defunct group, RUN-D.M.C with Joseph (Rev. Run) Simmons and the late, great Jason (Jam Master Jay) Mizell. Also one of the founding members of this multi-platinum music group, selling over 30 million singles and albums worldwide, it would be hard to overstate his influence on popular culture. He helped transform Rap and Hip Hop into the most popular music in the world, while building a fan base that rivals the biggest acts in Rock ‘n’ Roll.
As the first and greatest of Hip Hop’s superstars, Run-DMC succeeded beyond anyone’s wildest dreams – their own included – by embodying for the world endlessly creative subculture of young black New York. They were the first rappers to earn a gold album, the first to earn a platinum album, the first to go multi-platinum, the first to have their videos played on MTV, the first to appear on American Bandstand and Saturday Night Live, and the first rap band to grace the cover of Rolling Stone and Spin.
DMC has recently added another list of firsts to his life – his first book entitled “King of Rock: Respect, Responsibility and My Life with Run-DMC” (St. Martins). The book, written by DMC with Bruce Haring with the forward by rapper/actor Will Smith, offers a flavored tale of his rise within the music business while stressing the importance of respect and responsibility in today’s society. It has received rave reviews nationwide. Entertainment weekly called it “strangely compelling, bravely honest… plenty of entertaining anecdotes about life back in the day to keep you turning the pages. Like Will Smith, McDaniels is a born charmer.” Publisher’s Weekly says the book is “hard hitting yet sensitive… he (McDaniiels) argues astutely that ‘very few of the rappers will admit they’re creating a fictional character,’ and thereby create problems for themselves.”
In addition to the new book, DMC released his own musical project entitled Checks, Thugs, Rock-N-Roll.
Bing Crosby – It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas
To most Americans, he was the eternal Crooner: a much celebrated and beloved performer of unparalleled popularity. Yet Bing Crosby was far more than that: He was an architect of 20th century entertainment, a force in the development of three industries that barely existed when he came into the world: recordings, motion pictures, and broadcasting. As the most successful recording artist of all time; an abiding star of movies, radio, and television; and a firm believer in the wonders of technology, he helped to transform and define the cultural life not only of the United States, but of the world.
When Harry Lillis Crosby was born, on May 3, 1903, to a working-class Catholic Irish-Anglo family with deep roots in the American Northwest, there was little reason to think he would amount to much. Though an obviously intelligent and conscientious student, his primary interests were sports (he won many swimming medals), school plays, and music–he played drums (not very well), sang, and whistled. At Gonzaga University, he decided to study law because he could think of nothing better at the time and it pleased his parents. He left law school two months before graduating.
Music lured him away. It had always been part of the Crosby household. His father, who played mandolin, led the family in song and bought one of the first phonographs in Spokane, Washington. Harry was the fourth of seven siblings. Nicknamed Bing for his love of a newspaper parody, “The Bingville Bugle,” he listened to everything; he attended the vaudeville shows that came through town, regaling his friends afterward with detailed accountings of each act. He landed a backstage job when the legendary Al Jolson performed in Spokane, and studied his every gesture from the wings.
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Pitbull (whose given name is Armando Christian Pérez) launched his own Polo Grounds Music/J Records imprint (Mr. 305 Records), introduced his specialty vodka Voli, partnered with Sheets, the dissolvable energy strip, inked major sponsorship deals with blue-chip brands Kodak, Dr. Pepper, Bud Light and capitalized on his enormous popularity in the community by releasing his first Spanish-language album, Armando, which features the Top 5 Latin Billboard pop single “Bon Bon.”
To top it all off, the Miami native was awarded his hometown’s Key to the City as a thank-you for the positive PR he has brought Florida’s nightlife capitol. So when Pitbull explains that he’s titled his new album Planet Pit because he feels as if the world is his right now, he’s not just blowing smoke. “I’m not suggesting I run the world, I just feel like I’ve built my own planet,” he says. “I’m catching a lot of people’s ears, whether it’s with my music or appearing on someone else’s track.
When ‘I Know You Want Me [Calle Ocho]’ took off, I started traveling the world, and I saw the impact that a global hit can have — the way it brings people together. So now I’ve set my goals even higher. Going in to make Planet Pit, I said, ‘Okay, Pitbull was cool, Mr. 305 was great — now it’s time for Mr. Worldwide.You need to generate a lot of heat if you want to be Mr. Worldwide, but if there’s one thing Pitbull has — besides a way with rapid-fire rhymes, billion-dollar beats, and globally infectious hooks — it’s charm by the boatload. Always impeccably dressed in a sharp suit and shades, Pit enters a room trailed by his pals happily bantering away in Spanish, a gorgeous girl, and members of his management team.
Even while juggling a constant stream of incoming texts and emails on his two smartphones, Pit has the ability to make everyone he meets feel at home, addressing them as “Mama” or “Papo,” and asking if they need anything.
He’s the consummate professional: confident and charismatic — a true star.Pit’s magnetic personality electrifies Planet Pit — a spicy, stylish stew of raps, beats, and hooks influenced by the music Pit has absorbed growing up and living in Miami, which claims a wide range of dance-driven sounds thanks to the Cuban, Dominican, Colombian, and Caribbean people who make it their home.
“I grew up with salsa, merengue, bachata, booty-shaking music, freestyle music, then came hip hop for me. So you throw all that in a pot, which we call a paella in Spanish — that’s what I’m trying to do with this album,” says Pit, who performed in such far-flung locales as France, Indonesia, South Africa, Brazil, and Singapore, among others, while promoting Rebelution. “It embodies a bit of everywhere I’ve been. For example, ‘Shake Señora’ has got T-Pain, who’s from Tallahassee and Sean Paul who brings the Jamaican feel. I’m trying to be the ambassador; the bridge builder who brings elements from all over the world and puts it all together so it sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard before.” Read more…..mtv.com
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Want a song dedicated to you?
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Darryl McDaniels or “DMC” as most of the world knows him, first made his start in the music business as one third of the ground breaking rap group Run-DMC and quickly became the most popular in terms of fans and influence. He has been in the public eye for the past 20 years, since forming the now legendary, defunct group, RUN-D.M.C with Joseph (Rev. Run) Simmons and the late, great Jason (Jam Master Jay) Mizell. Also one of the founding members of this multi-platinum music group, selling over 30 million singles and albums worldwide, it would be hard to overstate his influence on popular culture. He helped transform Rap and Hip Hop into the most popular music in the world, while building a fan base that rivals the biggest acts in Rock ‘n’ Roll.
As the first and greatest of Hip Hop’s superstars, Run-DMC succeeded beyond anyone’s wildest dreams – their own included – by embodying for the world endlessly creative subculture of young black New York. They were the first rappers to earn a gold album, the first to earn a platinum album, the first to go multi-platinum, the first to have their videos played on MTV, the first to appear on American Bandstand and Saturday Night Live, and the first rap band to grace the cover of Rolling Stone and Spin.
DMC has recently added another list of firsts to his life – his first book entitled “King of Rock: Respect, Responsibility and My Life with Run-DMC” (St. Martins). The book, written by DMC with Bruce Haring with the forward by rapper/actor Will Smith, offers a flavored tale of his rise within the music business while stressing the importance of respect and responsibility in today’s society. It has received rave reviews nationwide. Entertainment weekly called it “strangely compelling, bravely honest… plenty of entertaining anecdotes about life back in the day to keep you turning the pages. Like Will Smith, McDaniels is a born charmer.” Publisher’s Weekly says the book is “hard hitting yet sensitive… he (McDaniiels) argues astutely that ‘very few of the rappers will admit they’re creating a fictional character,’ and thereby create problems for themselves.”
In addition to the new book, DMC released his own musical project entitled Checks, Thugs, Rock-N-Roll.
Lopez’s musical career also began to take off, as she released her debut Latin pop album, On the 6 in June 1999. The album, fueled by the success of her hit single, “If You Had My Love,” went platinum within two weeks, making Lopez—along with Ricky Martin—one of the most influential examples of the growing Latin cultural influence in pop music.
Early in 2000, Lopez was nominated for Best Dance Performance for her second hit single “Waiting for Tonight,” but lost the award to veteran diva Cher. In the summer of 2000, she starred in the science fiction-thriller The Cell, in which she plays a child psychologist helping to track a terrifying serial killer. The same year, she starred in Enough, a portrayal of spousal abuse.
The popularity of the multi-talented Lopez reached new heights in early 2001, when her album, J. Lo debuted at No. 1 on the pop charts, while her film, the romantic comedy The Wedding Planner, shot to the top spot at the box office in its first week of release. In December 2002, she performed another one-two punch with the release of the record This Is Me … Then and a starring role in the comedy Maid in Manhattan, which was a box office hit, if not a critical one. In 2003, she co-starred with Ben Affleck in the box office bomb, Gigli. Other projects included Jersey Girl (also with Affleck) and An Unfinished Life, in which she played a single mom taken in by her father-in-law played by Robert Redford. She also starred opposite Richard Gere inShall We Dance?, a remake of the top-grossing Japanese flick.
