Almost 10 years since his last solo project, Bruno Mars released his fourth studio album, “The Romantic.” The 16-time Grammy Award-winning global superstar took to his Instagram on Jan. 7 to announce that new music would be released that Friday, accompanied by a picture of the album cover. With over 2 million likes and 28 thousand comments, fans were ecstatic at the news.
The first single, “I Just Might,” was released on Jan. 9, along with its accompanying music video. A highly anticipated start to a new era, it spent the first two weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. In fact, the single just re-entered the charts at the No. 1 slot, spending a third week on the charts since its release. The song’s beat is infectious with a ‘70s-type groove, emphasized with the music video’s choreography and wardrobe. Mars, as always, works his magic to make another party hit, creating the perfect tune to dance along to. He sings, “Hey, Mr. DJ (Oh, oh, oh) / Play a song for this pretty little lady (Oh, oh, oh) / ‘Cause if she dance as good as she look right now (Oh, oh, oh) / I just might, I just might make her my baby.” With catchy, repeated chorus, it is almost impossible not to sing along, too.
The second single, “Risk It All,” was released on Feb. 27, along with the rest of the album. Its accompanying music video was also released simultaneously. It performed exceptionally well upon its release, jumping to the No. 1 slot atop the Billboard 200. There is an immediate shift from the first single, as this new single contains many Latin elements. Rolling Stone’s Maya Georgi notes that the song “evokes a Mexican bolero, which is a romantic ballad that originated in Cuba” and that it also “credits a bevy of session musicians, including a saxophonist, a whopping six violins, two viola players, a cello player and a conga player.” At a much slower pace than its predecessor, this single shows Mars expressing his desire to settle down with the love of his life, professing his devotion to her. He sings, “I would swim across the sea just to show you / Sacrifice my life just to hold you / I could go on and on / To prove that you belong here in my arms.” What follows is a sensual, passionate Spanish guitar solo that beautifully complements the genuine expression of desire and pining throughout the song.
At just over 30 minutes in duration, “The Romantic” is quite short compared to the average album. However, that does not mean that Mars did not deliver as usual. The release has nine tracks: “Risk It All,” “Cha Cha Cha,” “I Just Might,” “God Was Showing Off,” “Why You Wanna Fight?,” “On My Soul,” “Something Serious,” “Nothing Left” and “Dance with Me.” Songs like “Cha Cha Cha,” “God Was Showing Off” and “Why You Wanna Fight?” bring a seductive, sensual vibe to the album, which is not out of the ordinary for Mars. “On My Soul” and “Something Serious” evoke the true desire for settling down and taking a step back from the player lifestyle the superstar has been accustomed to — he appears to want to love one woman for the rest of his life, devoting his whole heart to her. With lyrics like “I wanna give you my name” in the former and “Don’t you want some pretty babies?” in the latter, Mars presents the idea of marriage and kids after nearly two decades of his career. “Dance with Me” and “Nothing Left” are slightly reminiscent of Mars’s early days, particularly his “Unorthodox Jukebox” era from 2012 — especially since the former contains slight sonic similarities to “If I Knew,” while the latter contains a similar melodic line as in “When I Was Your Man.” Mars’s impressive and powerful range clearly shines through, proving that the superstar’s voice is just as entrancing and magical as ever.
The night before the album’s release, iHeartRadio and TikTok hosted “Romantic Radio with Bruno Mars: An iHeartRadio Album Preview.” Photos and videos can still easily be found online even after the livestream. iHeartRadio recalls the magic of the special event: “Bruno Mars stepped in as the world’s ultimate music advisor. Fans were invited to submit their love stories … via the iHeartRadio app’s TalkBack feature on Love Songs Radio leading up to the event and on TikTok LIVE during the event for a chance to receive a song dedication and advice directly from Bruno.” There were even special guest callers during the album preview: Victoria Monét, Anderson .Paak and ROSÉ.
As if the new music itself is not exciting enough, Mars announced on Instagram shortly after the announcement of the first single that he would be embarking on “The Romantic Tour” in promotion of the new release. The international tour, running from April 10 through Oct. 14, features special guest artists Anderson .Paak as DJ Pee .Wee, Leon Thomas, Raye and Victoria Monét.
Bruno Mars’s newest album, “The Romantic,” is available now on all streaming platforms.
