There's no denying that Bruno Mars is a force to be reckoned with in the music industry.
Since his first studio album "Doo-Wops & Hooligans" came out in 2010, he's been topping charts
around the world.
Two singles from the album, "Just the Way You Are" and "Grenade," topped Billboard's
Hot 100 chart — and he was only 25 at the time.
Since then, Billboard reports that he's continued his chart-topping reign, with 2014's "Uptown
Funk" being his most popular track.
The single spent a solid 14 weeks at the No. 1 spot in 2015.
Not too shabby!
The Hawaii native has also accumulated 11 Grammy awards, among other wins from the American
Music Awards, Teen Choice Awards, and MTV Music Awards, to name a few.
There's no doubt that Mars is exceptionally talented, but that's not the only characteristic
that has fans swooning over him.
He has a charismatic flair that's evident in his very iconic, eye-catching style.
Flair Magazine describes it as being, quote, "along both lines of casual and dressy," which
he achieves by merging sporty with luxury.
He also has an engaging sense of humor, which he demonstrated as an SNL host in 2012 and
as a guest on James Corden's popular "Carpool Karaoke."
Plus, his revelation to Rolling Stone about his struggles with perfectionism and anxiety
makes him super relatable to many of his fans.
With all these endearing qualities, it's hard to imagine that he has any sort of scandal
to his name — but he does.
Here's the crime you didn't know Bruno Mars committed.
In 2010, just as his rise to fame had begun and his first single became a global hit,
news headlines announced that Bruno Mars, whose real name is Peter Hernandez, had been,
as MTV put it:
"[...] arrested on suspicion of narcotics possession."
At the time of his highly-publicized arrest, Mars was at the Las Vegas Hard Rock Hotel
& Casino where hotel security found him in the bathroom with:
"[...] a bag of a white, powdery substance."
The substance was later revealed to be 2.6 grams of cocaine.
TMZ released details of the shocking police report, in which the then-24-year-old Mars:
"[...] admitted he did a foolish thing and has never used drugs before."
His self-admitted foolishness didn't end there, however.
His viral mugshot, which is forever immortalized online, went on to feed further unflattering
headlines.
CNN noted he was smiling, quote, "like he was at the Grammy Awards" rather than looking
remorseful or concerned about the situation.
He received ample criticism for the mugshot from other media outlets as well.
The Tampa Bay Times referred to it as "a silly mugshot" and E! News described it as an "ear-to-ear
grin in [a] criminal pic."
And Mars himself has admitted that he can't quite explain the broad grin.
In a 2013 interview with GQ, he simply laughed it off by saying:
"I have no idea.
It was a picture."
If the mugshot implied Bruno Mars wasn't taking his arrest seriously, he made up for that
by expressing remorse in various ways.
He pled guilty, according to the BBC, accepting a fine of $2,000, 12 months of probation,
and community service that would wipe his record clean.
He admitted feeling regret about the incident in 2013 to GQ, but said:
"I was young, man!
I was in f---ing Vegas.
I wasn't thinking."
He added that he was, quote, "really intoxicated" and that his memory of the night was very
foggy.
Mars continued:
"I try every day to forget and keep pushing."
The drug charge for Mars was unexpected and inconsistent with his "wholesome" image.
But Billboard Editor Craig Marks argued that the arrest would help broaden Mars' fan base,
saying:
"I don't think he meant it to come off that way, but his arrest shows that he has a little
bit of edge I suppose."
In a 2012 interview with CNN, Mars said he didn't want to be defined by the incident.
"I hope I'm here today because of my achievements and because of my music.
I want to be known and hopefully respected because of that."
Thankfully, it seems he's done exactly that, as evidenced by his successful and controversy-free
career.
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