Bruno Mars | Peter Gene Hernandez

Well, it sure looks like music undoubtedly runs in this family. With his parents having met during a performance, where his mother was a dancer and his dad a percussionist, it’s no surprise Bruno Mars grew up to have an incredible degree of fascination and talent for music. Today, Mars has garnered plenty of recognition for creating catchy tunes such as Locked Out of Heaven, Just the Way You Are, That’s What I Like, and Leave the Door Open.

It would be pretty cool to find someone who actually has Mars as their surname. Sadly, that’s just a part of the 24K Magic singer’s stage name. Born Peter Gene Hernandez, “Bruno” is the nickname his father gave him, referencing the singer’s resemblance to the late wrestler Bruno Sammartino. How about “Mars,” you ask? Well, as it turns out, it came from people frequently describing him as out of this world.