ANDERSON .PAAK SAYS TOURING WITH BRUNO MARS IS 'CAKE': 'WHEN WE'RE TOGETHER, WE ARE FREE'

Mars and .Paak are performing around the world on Mars' The Romantic Tour through the end of the year

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Key Takeaways

• Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars are touring globally on Mars' The Romantic Tour from April to October
• .Paak is performing as DJ Pee .Wee and with Mars, including hits like "Leave the Door Open" and "Smokin' Out the Window"
• .Paak talks touring and fatherhood, crediting family support for managing it all

Anderson .Paak is living the dream as he tours the world with best buddy Bruno Mars.

The artist, 40, is part of the musical duo Silk Sonic alongside Mars. They're performing together from April to October on Mars' The Romantic Tour, his first major string of global shows in almost a decade. The tour will hit stadiums in Houston, Nashville, Chicago, Toronto, Paris, Amsterdam and more.

.Paak is opening every show on the tour as DJ Pee .Wee, his DJ alter ego, and as himself during the Silk Sonic portion of the set. The duo is performing their smash hits like "Leave the Door Open," which earned them a Grammy for Song of the Year in 2022, and "Smokin' Out the Window."

"This is cake. This is like a luxury tour, you know?" .Paak tells PEOPLE, exclusively in an April interview. "I've been on tours, and it's nothing like being on a stadium tour, with the good catering, the huge rooms, thousands of people, and I'm getting to play fun music."

.Paak says fans are in "for a treat" at their shows, and that he was so excited to return to the live stage with Mars following their 2022 Las Vegas residency, An Evening with Silk Sonic.

"It's like we're back again, like we never left, and doing the choreo and playing these songs," he explains. "A lot of people didn't see our residency, so people are seeing this for the first time. It's amazing. No greater feeling."

"When we're together, it's something different," .Paak continues. "When we're together, we are free. I feel like we're tapped into who we really are, and it's nothing like it."

.Paak, dad to sons Soul, 15, and Shine, 8, says it hasn't been easy balancing all the travel with fatherhood. He says he's grateful to his ex-wife Jaylyn Chang for her steady presence, as well as his sisters and family at home.

"It's very difficult, and the balance is very uneven unless you have a great partner," the star says while speaking to PEOPLE on behalf of Visa. "It takes a village when someone's working and on the road all the time. Time doesn't stop and the kids keep growing and there has to be somebody there that's nurturing and watching them. It's not about how much time you spend, but what you do with the time you spend with them."

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.Paak recently made his directorial debut in the film K-Pops!, which he stars in with son Soul. He says the project was a "great time" and an opportunity for the two to be together.

"It was just so awesome being able to be on set, see him grow, see him work so hard, and also establish a real bond with my son," he tells PEOPLE. "It's tough because you go on the road, you're gone and everything, so the kids grow up fast, and when you are able to tap into what they love and just hang out and just be a dad — that was my most favorite part."

While .Paak says he would love to work with Soul again (if the teen has any interest), he thinks his son will likely stick with his music for now. Soul plays guitar, bass and drums, and might make an appearance in .Paak's next musical project.

Says .Paak, "I think the sky's the limit for that young man. He's more talented than I'll ever be."

Read the original article on People

2026-05-16T10:01:30Z