Bruno Mars has won fans over with his silky-toned vocals and nice guy sincerity. His current single, "Just the Way You Are," is sitting at the top of the charts and his debut album, Doo-wops and Hooligans, is set for release next week. In a way, you could say Bruno's been bowling strikes in the music industry this year. So maybe his invitation to a select group of bloggers for a night out bowling at Lucky Strike in NYC was a metaphor for his rising star?
Ever the gracious host, Bruno was affable and friendly. He smiled, shook hands and doled out plenty of hugs. As Bruno talked with people about his music, he engaged them, looking them in the eye when he spoke. And with the ladies, Bruno was a smooth operator, using his charm and humor to his advantage. When it came time for doing some actual bowling though, Bruno was no slouch either.
Watch this video of Bruno bowling below
In between turns of bowling, Bruno chatted about his new music and life as a rookie of the year. He recently had the opportunity to perform at the VMAs with B.o.B. If you looked closely at the performance and watched Bruno's hands, they were trembling. "Yeah, I was nervous. I've never played 'Nothin' On You' on the piano before, I always do it on the guitar. So I was trying to make sure I didn't mess up," Bruno said. "But it was a great experience."
Phil Lawrence, Bruno's producer-in-crime, was also at the event, kicking it with the new media and shooting the breeze. Phil makes up one third of the Smeezingtons, which includes Bruno and Ari Levine. Collectively they are the production group responsible for the songs on Bruno's album as well as some material with Cee-Lo. But Phil is also a performer and is in fact included in Bruno's live act. That was Phil onstage beside Bruno during the "Nothin' On You" solo remix, filling in for B.o.B. And Phil also drops a rasta-approved version of "Money" for the "Billionaire" solo remix too. Is there a solo career in the cards for Phil? He laughed when asked and indicated it was a possibility, but wouldn't confirm anything concrete.
The next single from Bruno's album is set to be "Grenade." The song was debuted at his NYC show at the Bowery Ballroom, but the studio version sounds quite different from the stripped-down, rock ballad version he premiered. "Yeah, we had to change it to make it more radio-friendly," Bruno admitted. "That other version, we'll keep it as the live version. But hopefully you'll enjoy the song regardless."
As the event came to a close, Bruno made his rounds and said his goodbyes. There's a palpable exciting energy about being around the next big thing and his warm approachable demeanor helped the bloggers get to know him a little better. Bruno's debut album is slated to hit stores next week on Oct. 5. Be sure to pick up a copy.
