Bruno Mars defended himself from old claims that he engages in the cultural appropriation of black music despite not being black.
“It’s just – it’s Twitter, man,” said the 35-year-old at The Breakfast Club during an appearance with Anderson Paak, with whom he formed the Silk Sonic group.
In the interview Bruno, son of a Filipino mother and a Puerto Rican and Jewish father, highlighted that he frequently cites his black influences.
His side: Bruno Mars defended himself from old allegations that he engages in the cultural appropriation of black music despite not being black
Host Charlamagne Tha God asked Bruno: ‘You know, people love to accuse you of being a cultural thief, which I find interesting because you are a black person. What would you say to these people? ‘
Bruno replied: ‘I would say that you cannot see an interview, you cannot find an interview in which I am not talking about the artists who came before me.’
He continued, ‘And the only reason I’m here is because of James Brown. It’s because of the prince, Michael [Jackson]. That is the only reason I am here. ‘
The Runaway Baby singer remembers ‘growing up as a child watching Bobby Brown saying,’ Okay, if that’s what it takes to do that, then I have to learn to do the Running Man. I have to learn to do the Moonwalk. ‘
Side by side: ‘It’s just – it’s Twitter, man,’ said the 35-year-old at The Breakfast Club during an appearance with Anderson Paak with whom he formed the Silk Sonic group.
Bruno, whose successes include Uptown Funk, said: ‘And this song comes from love. If you can’t hear it, I don’t know what to say.
Charlamagne seemed to agree, saying that when Bruno paid tribute to New Jack Swing pioneer Teddy Riley at the 2018 Grammy, ‘that was a tribute’.
As the interview continued, Bruno argued that ‘we are using inspiration on our sleeves. What’s the point if we, as musicians, can’t learn from the guys who came before us? Why did they do that? ‘
He shared his ‘hope that later, in the future, there will be a band taking what we did and inverting it and going crazy and putting their own touch on it, because if they don’t, what is the point of us doing this?’
Credit when due: In the interview, Bruno, the son of a Filipino mother and a Puerto Rican and Jewish father, pointed out that he frequently cites his black influences
Bruno said that the criticism he receives’ comes with the show and has real merit in what people say about black artists not receiving flowers, you know? And I am defending with this, I am with this. ‘
During his acceptance speech at the 2018 Grammy Awards, he cited artists such as Teddy Riley, Babyface, Terry Lewis and Jimmy Jam.
Over the years, Bruno’s many black influences have praised him and some have taken his side amid the growing claims of cultural appropriation.
About half a decade ago, Jimmy Jam called Bruno ‘a perfect example of hard work and true talent equaling true excellence’ and in 2018 he tweeted a Billboard article supporting Bruno against critics who call him a culture vulture.
‘What would you say to these people?’: Charlamagne asked Bruno: ‘You know, people love to accuse you of being a cultural thief, which I find interesting because you are a person of color
Three years ago, Stevie Wonder also threw herself into the debate, calling the accusations against Bruno ‘bulls ***’ in an interview with TMZ.
“God created music for everyone to enjoy, so we can’t limit ourselves to different spheres and insecurities,” said Stevie, calling Bruno “a great talent”.
Teddy Riley expressed his satisfaction that Bruno brought the New Jack Swing to a new generation of listeners.
Icon: Several of Bruno’s black influences praised him and some took his side amid claims of cultural appropriation, including Jimmy Jam (photo)
“First of all, it increases our stock – Babyface, Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis and me – and that puts us even more in the game and helps sustain us,” he told Essence.
Teddy explained that ‘the most incredible gift to be given, for me, is someone paying homage. So, I feel wonderful about it. ‘
After Bruno mentioned him at the 2018 Grammy Awards, Babyface told Billboard that he was “humiliated and honored” by the tribute.
‘I am very proud of him and his achievements. I had the opportunity to enter the studio, work and write with him, and I had a lot of respect for his work ethic because he was very close to how I did it and how I do it. I think he’s a genius in his approach and one of the best artists we’ve had in a long, long time. ‘
As can be seen on stage: Three years ago Stevie Wonder also threw herself into the debate, calling the accusations against Bruno ‘bulls ***’ in an interview with TMZ