LAS VEGAS â The Las Vegas Stripâs newest concert space will open its doors just before the new year with a performance by pop star Bruno Mars
Mars will play shows on Dec. 29 and 31 at a new Eastern European glass factory-themed venue at the Cosmopolitan Las Vegas, and then return six more times during 2014, casino management announced on Tuesday.
The 3,000-capacity theater, called the Chelsea, features glass chandeliers, brick walls, a grand staircase, high ceilings and a vintage wooden bar.
The Cosmopolitan is touting the space as an âavant gardeâ venue where fans can get an up-close look at stars who usually play arenas. By contrast, the Coliseum at Caesars Palace, where singer Celine Dion performed her long-running residency, seats 4,000.
CEO John Unwin told The Associated Press earlier in the year that the space would be an antidote to vanilla venues along the Strip. Asked about the projectâs price tag, Cosmopolitan spokeswoman Alyssa Anderson said the company does not disclose capital costs.
In a statement, Mars warned Vegas to get ready for him and the Hooligans, his eight-piece backup band.
The 27-year-old songwriter and producer turned frontman will lead his audience in the New Yearâs countdown, taking on a role often performed up and down the Strip by Sin City regulars like Kim Kardashian and Nicki Minaj. Tickets start at $150.
Mars was picked to perform at the Superbowl halftime show in February. His debut album, âDoo-Wops & Hooligans,â was released in 2010.
The last major Las Vegas resort approved before the Great Recession, the $3.9 billion Cosmopolitan was built by a German investment bank after its original developer defaulted.
It has recovered from the brink of bankruptcy and has branded itself as a âdecidedly differentâ kind of casino, eschewing the kitschy themes common among its competitors, and catering to a more urbane kind of gambler and club-goer.
The 50,000 square-foot space that will become the industrial-chic Chelsea has sat empty since the Cosmopolitan opened in 2010. In preparation for its opening, hotel-casinoâs existing concert venue, previously called the Chelsea Ballroom, has been renamed the Belmont.
This being Vegas, the casino is marketing the Mars concerts as part of a package that includes a two nights in the hotel and âVIP check in.â The package starts at $1,800.
One day after pop princess Britney Spearsâ official confirmation that sheâs signed on for a two-year Planet Hollywood residency comes hush-hush Wicked Whispers & Racy Rumors that pop superstar Bruno Mars will follow her high-heeled Louboutins right along.
Iâll probably be laughed at again as I was when I broke the Britney residency story nobody believed, but Bruno is definitely coming to the Strip.
It begs the question â since things come in threes â as to whom will be the third pop superstar to join the Stripâs already star-studded âlegacyâ music brigade of Celine Dion, Shania Twain, Sir Elton John and Rod Stewart. Las Vegas has become the Pop Music Capital of the World!
I have exclusively learned that Bruno has won a mini-residency and will star at one of two new theaters that the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas will have open by New Yearâs Eve. Full details of his âburst runsâ of 15 to 20 shows at a time will be announced shortly after his Saturday performance at the 2013 iHeartRadio Music Festival at MGM Grand Garden Arena.
I previously reported that the financial backers producing âAbsintheâ had a new show that will eventually go into the Cosmopolitanâs main theater. Now Iâm hearing additional rumors that their show will follow Brunoâs and that the Cosmopolitan is adding another more intimate 1,000-seat venue.
Additionally, there are specific whispers that the Cosmopolitan has plans to open a new restaurant to add to its collection of highly successful dining options â and this would be the second right on the casino floor joining the 24-hour Henry.
I've been a fan since Nothing On You. I felt he was someone with an extraordinary gift, but didn't become obsessed with Bruno till the first time I heard LOOH.
Bruno Mars has not only proven to be a master at creating multiple hit songs, but heâs also solidified himself as one of todayâs top live performers. In addition to being named the halftime performer at next yearâs Super Bowl XLVIII, Mars recently wrapped his first sold-out headlining tour of North American arenas. The 42-date Moonshine Jungle Tour grossed $40.5 million and drew more than 565,000 fans, according to Billboard Boxscore.
In an extremely rare interview, John Marx, a partner in the music division at William Morris Endeavor (WME), tells Billboard.biz that booking the Moonshine Jungle Tour was one of the most exciting experiences in his 37-year career in the touring space.âI stopped giving interviews years ago, but I had to do this for Bruno, because heâs that special,â says Marx, who is also part of the WME teams that book such heavyweight touring acts as Lady Gaga, Usher, Peter Gabriel, Sheryl Crow and Justin Timberlake. âThis whole project has been exciting, unique and special.â
The North American leg of the Moonshine Jungle Tour began June 22 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C., and finished Sept. 1 at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico Jose Miguel Agrelot. Support acts on various dates included Ellie Goulding and Fitz & the Tantrums. The trek was in support of Marsâ second album, âUnorthodox Jukebox,â which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 (subsequently reaching No. 1) and has thus far sold some 1.7 million copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Following a performance at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas on Sept. 21, Mars will travel to the United Kingdom and Europe for a two-month arena tour. Mars also has a handful of Australian/New Zealand concerts scheduled for early 2014, and will play another 40 dates in North America beginning next June, according to Marx In addition to Marx, Marsâ team at WME also includes Tony Goldring (international booking), Sara Newkirk Simon and Michele Bernstein. Mars is co-managed by the Creed CompanyâsBrandon Creed and Kevin Beisler.
Here, Marx gives Billboard.biz a fascinating inside look at the booking strategy behind Bruno Marsâ sold-out North American headlining tour, his thoughts on the artistâs Super Bowl announcement, why he was confident Mars could jump from theaters to arenas, the "wisdom" of presales, how Ellie Goulding was chosen as support and why Mars will be an arena-headlining act for years to come, and much more.  Â
Billboard.biz: First off, what are your thoughts on Bruno Mars being announced as the halftime performer at the 2014 Super Bowl?
John Marx: Everyone on the team couldn't be more excited for Bruno. There's no bigger stage than the Super Bowl, and the NFL's choice speaks to Bruno's power as a performer, and solidifies him as a global superstar. We're looking forward to what will surely be an incredible show.
How long have you worked with Mars?Â
I started with Bruno about two years ago. Matt Galle from Paradigm had put that tour together. I was hired after that.
Prior to this North American arena tour, Mars was mostly playing theaters and ballrooms in support of his 2010 debut album, âDoo-Wops & Hooligans.â What was the strategy behind booking the Moonshine Jungle Tour and why were you confident he could jump to arenas?Â
The strategy started back in January of 2012. At that point, we decided we were going to do arenas. Part of that was based on his prior success on the road -- not only in terms of the tickets that had been sold, but more so in terms of how dynamic of a performer he was. So when one goes about taking that leap from smaller venues to arenas, itâs never an easy one. Analytics only give you so much. The rest of it has to do with whatâs in your gut and what you think. You hope youâre right, but you take precautions to make sure that you donât leave any empty seats.
With that in mind, when we started to look at the venues, they were all ones that could be cut down. We had, generally, three different configurations going before we even sold past the 180-degrees. This would allow us to go on sale with our initial cities -- which I believe were five -- and we got a good look at how it was selling, and whether there was any price resistance. That was our first breath of relief after a year or so of putting this together, and believing we were right.
Ellie Goulding was the support act on the majority of dates. In 2012, sheâs had four hit singles on the Billboard Hot 100 with âLights,â âAnything Could Happen,â âI Need Your Loveâ and âBurn.â Did you feel that including her on the tour would give it an extra boost in ticket sales?Â
Well, of course. Anytime youâre swinging for the fences, you want to buy as much insurance as you can. So that was the pervasive thought with all of us who were driving the ship. We solicited all of the agencies and asked for everybodyâs suggestions. At the end of the day, it was Bruno who picked Ellie. It was wonderful, because [WME] represented her and that probably made it a little easier to put everything together. We think it was a great choice.
What were some of the ticket sales trends you observed in various markets? Â
First of all, we priced each market differently. Ours were priced for the market. P1 tickets in some of the markets were $62, and in the major markets P1 tickets were $130 or $140. Generally speaking we had four different price points. In the secondary cities where we had a less expensive ticket, we had maybe two or three different price points. But what you look for when you go on sale is if itâs selling front to back. If it isnât, youâve obviously priced your tickets in the front too high -- or, rather, too many of those P1 tickets. And youâll find a valley between the very excellent seats that diehard fans must have, and that next P2 ticket. We didnât experience any of that.
We were all on the phone together for that first round of dates that went up. It was almost like a war room. We were online live through Ticketmaster. As soon as you go on sale, you open the virtual gates; people come in and you see how many people are looking and holding, and how many of those translate to sales, and how fast it goes. It was a very exciting moment for everybody on that call, because we had a situation in L.A. at Staples Center where the Jay Z/Justin Timberlake show (at the Rose Bowl on July 28) had just dropped on top of what was going to be our option day -- the second day at Staples. (Bruno Mars performed back-to-back concerts at Staples Center on July 27-28). [Jay Z/Justin Timberlake] had just gone on sale and sold out, I think the week prior to us going on sale with our first Staples date. AEG was concerned about that. I, on the other hand, was still bullish.
We went on sale and it was selling so quickly in virtual time that we decided to roll into the second show and put that on sale. As soon as we saw we had virtually cleaned out the first show in real time, we lit up the second show and that cleaned out. We left 20,000 people in the virtual waiting room that wouldâve potentially bought other tickets. This couldâve easily gone, we believe, to three or maybe four days (at Staples Center). At the end of the day, we sold out 30,000 tickets and we were happy with that. We decided to close it at that.
We had a one-plus-one in Denver at [Red Rocks Amphitheatre], which we actually chose ⊠because [Pepsi Center] in Denver doesnât really cut down. And being from Colorado, by way of attending the university there and understanding the way the city works and the appreciation people have for Red Rocks, we thought it would be a great play for him. We had the second show ready to go. That too, like Staples Center, we rolled into on the on-sale and sold both out that day -- 18,000 tickets in Denver.Were there any other markets where you couldâve added multiple bookings because of high demand?   Â
We picked 42 dates, which is ambitious. Generally, the mistake people make is picking too many cities. Artists can generally play 24 dates and when you get beyond that sales start dropping off, and thatâs when it gets a little bit dangerous. Not only were we bullish on what we thought he could sell, but we protected that with how we opened up the venues. We did go pretty deep into the markets. We couldâve easily done a second Chicago date, but we decided to go with Minneapolis instead, which sold out on the on sale. We did hold a second Toronto, which we ended up re-launching and putting on sale. We eventually sold 30,000 tickets in that city.
Why do you think the Moonshine Jungle Tour sold so well from the very start?
Originally, the tour was going to go in February. The record was a little late in coming, even though we booked it a year in advance. Iâve had a lot of success with my artists touring in the first quarter, because everyone generally waits until the summer. This year, everyone decided to tour in the first quarter. So not only were we late with our product, but there was a great deal of traffic during that time. So we pushed it back to summertime. We then decided the way it was going to be launched was off of the Grammys. Right after the Grammy performance (on Feb. 10), we announced the tour was going to happen. We didnât give any details. We then fed it daily, or weekly, with new information. Two days later we announced the cities, and a few days after that we announced the dates and venues. Very untypical of the things way roll -- usually one announces and you go on sale later that week. We announced and went on sale two-and-a-half weeks later with the first round of dates. That was one thing that made it different. A lot of people thought we were crazy.
Did all 42 dates sell out?And there was a second thing that made it different. I was reading the American Express and Citibank proposals, and all of a sudden the light bulb went off in my head. I said, âI donât think we should do a presale.â I spoke to Michele Bernstein, the head of marketing at WME, who was driving point in the marketing space. I asked what she thought and she agreed with me. Then we spoke with [Bruno Mars managers Brandon Creed and Kevin Beisler] and everyone agreed to not do a presale. Some people thought it was a good idea, but generally in the beginning everyone thought it was a terrible idea. Pretty much every local buyer called me after it went on sale and told us they thought the absence of any presale was a very strong contributing factor toward the overall success of this tour. I donât think there was one buyer out there after this went on sale that didnât cite that as a very key element in the way this was launched.
Every date sold out, except in St. Louis (Scottrade Center). We increased the capacity to 16,000 and sold out 14,000. Not only did every date sell out, but the stage was built so that we could have great sight lines with the hoped-for success we could open up into 240-degrees and maybe beyond. We ended up opening and selling 270-degrees, setting records in a lot of venues. Painstaking care was given to making sure that all the seats we opened in those areas could have a good experience with the show. I have to give credit to our production manager, Joel Forman, who was the one hands-on with that, in terms of opening up those seats.
Mars' latest album, âUnorthodox Jukebox,â has already produced four hits on the Billboard Hot 100. Did you see ticket sale spikes as those hits started to gain traction at radio?  Â
When we went on sale, we already had âLocked Out of Heavenâ as a huge success. Itâs the type of song that really motivates people to purchase a ticket. It has that live element to it; it was a very active track. So between that and the Grammy performance, we had a great launch pad to go up with. But the question is, do you see spikes with hits? Of course. In the pop world, they say, âHit records cure cancer.â So they can do just about anything, including spiking sales. But in the case of Bruno, everything was very consistent. When we went up, we generally went up and out. And on some of those dates that were a little bit slower, I donât think anything went up with less than 7,000 tickets.
If you could go back and book the tour again, is there anything youâd do differently?
Iâm not bragging, because thatâs not who I am or who we are as a team. But we got it right. We had a long time to prepare for it. But moreover, the record companyâs (Atlantic Records) contribution, in terms of bringing the song home, and obviously Bruno and the Smeezingtons for writing such incredible music. Everything came together perfectly. Usually in my life I use experience to understand things better and always improve the next time around. Honestly, I donât know what I wouldâve done differently. It worked that well, and it was because of the efforts of everybody.
Do you think this tour solidifies Bruno Mars as an arena-headlining act for years to come?Â
Absolutely -- and not just an arena act in North America. We we went on sale, I want to say in April, for a very ambitious tour in Australia. That is now 80% sold out. Most of the counts are in the 14,000 to 15,000 range and the grosses are all above $1 million per night. And the dates donât take place until February. So weâve sold out two Sydney dates, two Melbourne dates and weâre going to be adding more. We have a total of nine dates on sale there. He is a certifiable, global phenomena that will find arenas a small venue in the years ahead. Youâll see this guy play wherever he wants to play.Â
Have there been talks about when Mars will tour North America again?Â
We have that already planned out. It will start in June and end around mid-August (2014). I canât reveal the cities and dates, but weâve got about another 40 dates.
This yearâs Super Bowl halftime show was mired in controversy before it even began. After her lip-syncing fiasco at President Obamaâs re-inauguration, Beyonce had to go big to show her detractors that, yes, she could sing live (um, duh). The year before,Madonna put forth a good showing at the halftime showcase, thoughM.I.A.âs middle finger ended up the talk of the town. And then, of course, the less said about the Black Eyed Peas, the better.
For 2014, the NFLâs biggest spectacle may have found its knight in shining armor: a relevant, crowd-pleasing, modern pop artist whose back-to-basics musical and performance aesthetic is the shot in the arm the show needs.
Over the weekend, it was confirmed that Bruno Mars would be holding the reins for the Super Bowlâs halftime show this season. A minute-long clip posted to the pop singerâs YouTube account confirmed the decision, featuring footage of Mars from 1990 â when Mars was a four-year-old Elvis impersonator that toured the country and even got a brief role in the film Honeymoon in Vegas â to present.
By all accounts, Marsâ appointment as the next halftime performer makes sense. Lots and lots of sense, and not just from a demographics point of view, though it certainly does bode well in that particular arena.
Sure, the guy only has two albums to his credit, both coming in the last three years â 2010âČs Doo-Wops & Hooligans and 2012âČs Unorthodox Jukebox. Heâs certainly not the performer thatâs going to be getting a Lifetime Achievement Award at the GRAMMYs or the VMAs anytime soon. Brunoâs a household name in pop these days, though not one of its all-consuming divas.
But boy, can the dude put on a straightforward, no-holds-barred performance.
Thatâs what the difference will be when Mars and his energetic backing band head to New Jersey next February. An array of singles â four No. 1 hits total â plus a collection of superb, danceable tracks that didnât even hit radio (see: âRunaway Babyâ) will equal musical nirvana at Super Bowl XLVIII.
Consider these points.
Mars burst onto the scene in 2010 with high-profile guest spots on two major summer songs, B.o.B.âs âNothinâ On Youâ and Travie McCoyâs âBillionaire,â as well as a writer/producer credit on 2010 Song of the Summer, Cee Lo Greenâs âF**k You.â He followed it up with his own âJust the Way You Are,â a five-times-platinum, No. 1 jam that established Mars as more than just an artist to watch. Its follow-up, âGrenade,â sealed his fate as a pop radio mainstay, the kind of artist whose biggest hits will be played for years to come.
Doo-Wops & Hooligans was a formidable effort that was largely pop and R&B, but with the occasional rock, soul and even reggae slants. Though relying primarily on Top 40 power ballads, the album featured the breezy acoustic pop of âThe Lazy Songâ and the â60s R&B jam âRunaway Baby,â the latter of which solidified Marsâ standing as a bona fide showman at the 2012 GRAMMYs. He was nominated for four awards, won zero, and still made a solid showing. (A year earlier, Mars was featured in a group performance alongside B.o.B. and Janelle Monae, took home the GRAMMY for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for âJust the Way You Are,â and nabbed nominations for Record, Song and Producer of the Year.)
âRunaway Babyâ was one of the 2012 GRAMMYsâ first performances and kicked off the show with an infectious energy. Decked out in suave all gold-and-black everything, Mars showed off some downright sexy dance moves coupled with an impassioned backing band. âSo get off your rich asses and letâs have some fun!â he proclaimed, before getting his James Brown on with a rollicking, horn-infused dance breakdown that got the crowd on its feet.
Also that month, Mars went overseas for the BRIT Awards, laying down a smooth, lounge-y take on âJust the Way You Areâ that reinvented the tune completely, with a particularly satisfying bassline that showed the singerâs penchant for taking his own songs and twisting them to serve his every need.
And then came Unorthodox Jukebox.
Marsâ first release had all the makings of a genre-bending record, but Jukebox solidified Mars as a bona fide pop chameleon, beginning with the Police-owing âLocked Out of Heaven,â in which the 27-year-old does his best Sting impression before belting out a full-on rock chorus.
The song got the GRAMMY treatment once again earlier this year, with Sting himself joining Mars and Rihanna in the showâs tribute to Bob Marley.
That was just the start of bigger things to come. âTreasureâ is amazing just the way it is, a throwback tune with a retro disco feel that was a perfect summer song for lounging by the pool. Especially if said pool played an Adult Contemporary radio station specializing in songs both you and your parents and even their parents could enjoy.
Then there was âGorilla,â which brought Marsâ most recent live acclaim, featuring a stimulating laser show, ebbing-and-flowing horns and an â80s arena rock sensibility in what was arguably the 2013 MTV Video Music Awardsâ best performance and will likely become the cornerstone of his Super Bowl set in that it literally seems made for the show.
As the clips above show, Mars is the epitome of a modern-day performer that can bridge the gap between the old and the new. He has a current appeal that brings in younger, hip viewers while not alienating the NFLâs older demographic, which In comparison, the past few years havenât done. Beyonce was fantastic but was an affair that didnât feature as much musical variety that Mars will likely achieve. Madonna tried to bring in more current acts but still seemed mostly dated. Again, letâs not talk about the Black Eyed Peas.
With Mars, youâre getting a performer that can give you impassioned pop ballads (âWhen I Was Your Manâ) one minute, and a soulful R&B jam (âRunaway Babyâ) the next. The man has enough singles that have broken into the mainstream to fill an entire setlist, and heâs shown that his sleepier hits can be rearranged for better use on a larger stage.
His performances tend to trim the unnecessary fat that can come in terms of major gimmicks, too. For instance, in his âGorillaâ VMAs performance, Mars moves just a few feet the entire song but is still absolutely mesmerizing, recalling the good olâ days when a performer just needed a microphone and a mic stand.
Plus, jumping throughout different genres gives Mars an eclectic roster of potential guest stars. A Sting spot on Marsâs reggae-tinged material has already been done, but how about a complete Police reunion? Getting someone like Earth Wind & Fire on âTreasureâ isnât a far-flung concept. âGorillaâ is just begging for a Peter Gabriel or Phil Collins guest spot, and we know how the Super Bowl loves their classic rockers.
Point is: give Bruno a chance here. He may not have the 10-page resume of some of his predecessors, but for now, Mars is one of the best choices the show could possibly choose if it wants to bring in younger viewers â and win over older viewers with throwback tunes.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Grammy-winner Bruno Mars will sing at halftime of the Super Bowl in February, a person familiar with the NFL's entertainment plans told The Associated Press on Saturday.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcement had been made. The official word is expected to come at an event in New York's Times Square on Sunday.
The NFL's regular season began on Thursday, and the Super Bowl will be on Feb. 2 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Halftime shows have drawn more than 100 million television viewers in the United States alone in past years.
Beyonce was the star of this year's Super Bowl halftime show in February in New Orleans, where the Baltimore Ravens beat the San Francisco 49ers 34-31.
Mars is one of pop music's top acts, with several No. 1 hits, including his most recent, "When I Was Your Man."
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