{"id":61003,"date":"2021-06-30T02:16:49","date_gmt":"2021-06-30T02:16:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mixedracestudies.org\/?p=61003"},"modified":"2021-06-30T02:19:46","modified_gmt":"2021-06-30T02:19:46","slug":"racial-mixture-and-musical-mash-ups-in-the-life-and-art-of-bruno-mars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mixedracestudies.org\/wp\/?p=61003","title":{"rendered":"Racial Mixture and Musical Mash-ups in the Life and Art of Bruno Mars"},"content":{"rendered":"

Racial Mixture and Musical Mash-ups in the Life and Art of Bruno Mars<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Lexington Books<\/a> (an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield<\/a>)
\nNovember 2020
\n154 pages
\nTrim: 6\u00bd x 9
\nHardback ISBN: 978-1-7936-1982-2
\neBook ISBN: 978-1-7936-1983-9<\/p>\n

Melinda A. Mills<\/strong><\/a>, Visiting Instructor
\nDepartment of Women’s and Gender Studies
\nUniversity of South Florida, Tampa, Florida<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

This book argues that Bruno Mars<\/a> is uniquely positioned to borrow from his heritage and experiential knowledge as well as his musical talent, performative expertise, and hybrid identities (culturally, ethnically, and racially) to remix music that can create “new music nostalgia.” Melinda Mills attends to the ways that Mars is precariously positioned in relation to all of the racial and ethnic groups that constitute his known background and argues that this complexity serves him well in the contemporary moment. Engaging in the performative politics of blackness allows Mars to advocate for social justice<\/a> by employing his artistic agency. Through his entertainment and the everyday practice of joy, Mars models a way of moving through the world that counters its harsh realities. Through his music and perfomance, Mars provides a way for a reconceptualization of race and a reimagining of the future.<\/p>\n

Table of Contents<\/strong><\/p>\n