It does not happen very often in Israel: a hot, relevant artist who tops the charts around the world comes to Israel for two performances in Yarkon Park. Bruno Mars will take the stage Wednesday night and Saturday night to perform for about 130,000 Israelis, who bought out all the concert tickets within hours.
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It took years of attempts and contacts from different producers in Israel until March when Mars' team gave the go-ahead. In between, the singer was pressured by representatives of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement, who tried to prevent his arrival in Israel. In the end, the producers Guy Beser and Shay Mor Yosef, owners of Bluestone Group's Live Nation Israel, managed to bring the artist, and it was quite clear that one performance would not be enough in light of the demand. According to the ticket waiting list, Mars could also fill a third and fourth show. The two Israeli producers, by the way, staged the Mars' shows in Saudi Arabia and Georgia as well.
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Bruno Mars takes the stage this week for two sold-out concerts in Tel Aviv's Yarkon Park
(Photo: Courtesy of Live Nation Israel)
According to the list of songs at the show held before they arrived in Israel, the singer is expected to perform his biggest hits, such as "Billionaire," "Grenade" and "Just The Way You Are." Mars' band plans to travel between shows in the Dead Sea and Jerusalem, and he may join them. After the performance, the singer continues directly to Qatar, for a performance in Doha.
Wednesday night's performance is expected to open at about 9:00 p.m., after warm-up acts Agam Buhbut and Jonathan Mergui. The police warn of heavy traffic expected in the area. The gates will open at 6 p.m. The production announced it will increase transportation for the disabled.
Bruno Mars was born 37 years ago as Peter Gene Hernandez in Honolulu, Hawaii, to a half-Jewish Puerto Rican father with Ukrainian and Hungarian roots, and a Filipino mother of Spanish origins. The love for music runs through the veins of the Hernandez family and has played a significant role in all of their lives.
His mother, Bernadette San Pedro Bute, Filipino-Spanish, grew up in the worlds of dance and music. From a young age, Mars was exposed to various musical genres, including rock 'n' roll, reggae, and later on, R&B and hip-hop. He began imitating the King of Rock 'n' Roll, Elvis Presley, at two years old, and by the age of four began performing with the family's band
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Bruno Mars was born 37 years ago as Peter Gene Hernandez in Honolulu, Hawaii
(Photo: Courtesy of B.M.)
He received the nickname Bruno from his father due to his resemblance to the American-Italian wrestler Bruno Sammartino. Later he adopted the "surname" Mars. It happened when he lived in a slum in Los Angeles, and the girls there told him that he was probably from another world, from Mars.
After appearing in bands, he officially embarked on a solo career in 2010 with a first album that included a huge hit, "Just the Way You Are." The album marked the rise of Mars, and since then came more hits on a global scale and two successful studio albums. He has sold over 130 million copies of his albums to date, making him one of the most successful singers in history.