LOS ANGELES, CA — While the world was at a standstill due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak used their free time during quarantine to make music as the newly formed band “Silk Sonic.”
The two Grammy award-winning artists surprised fans when they took to Twitter to announce that an album was on the way.
“We locked in and made an album. The band’s called Silk Sonic,” Mars said via Twitter.
Their first single “Leave the Door Open” and its accompanying video were released on Friday, March 5.
The song, which showcased sounds and melodies reminiscent to quintessential 60s R&B love songs, showcased Mars’ silky-smooth voice mixed brilliantly with Paak’s funk-soul flair.
A release date for the album, which also set to feature an appearance from Parliament Funkadelic legend Bootsy Collins, has yet to be announced but the band’s first single is definitely a treat for the fans who have been hoping to hear music from both artists for quite some time.
Mars’ last musical credits were both in 2019 when he collaborated with Cardi B on the song “Please Me” and made a guest appearance on Ed Sheeran’s No. 6 Collaborations Project track “Blow.”
His last album, 2016’s 24k Magic, earned six Grammys including “Record of the Year” and “Album of the Year”.
Paak earned two Grammys for his 2019 album Ventura, nabbing “Best Melodic Rap Performance” and “Best Music Video” at the 2020 Grammys.
In an interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Mars and Paak reflected on how the album organically came about and spoke about how ideas originated as far back as 2017 when Paak was the opening act during the first European leg of Mars’ 24k Magic World Tour.
“It snow-balled, it was like ‘Well you wanna come back tomorrow?’” Mars said during the interview. “And we kept coming up with music, it felt like why you fall in love with music in the first place.”
Under his new alter ego Ricky Regal, Mars also announced his new collection with Lacoste which will feature sports and luxury inspired apparel, slides and other accessories.
“When I’m on stage I go by Bruno Mars. When I’m making lavish luxurious garments I go by Ricky Regal,” Mars said via Instagram.
The Lacoste x Ricky Regal collection launched in select retailers worldwide on March 5 and will be available in select Lacoste stores beginning March 8.
