The pop music world received the exciting news this week that Bruno Mars will be returning in 2026 with The Romantic, his first solo album in 10 years.
Bruno, 40, last released an album of his own work in 2016 – 24K Magic went double Platinum in the UK and produced a run of major hit singles.
He released collaboration album An Evening With Silk Sonic alongside singer and rapper Anderson .Paak, which reached the top 10 on the UK album charts.
Since then, Bruno has collaborated with Lady Gaga, Sexxy Red, and Rosé, and now he’s confirmed that he’ll be returning fully with The Romantic, set for release on February 27.
The lead single I Just Might was made available to stream on Friday morning, giving fans a taster of what’s to come from Bruno’s next project.
In order to get the inside track on The Romantic, Metro spoke to a well-placed source who’s ready to reveal what the record sounds like and explain why it’s taken so long to get here.
The source exclusively told us: ‘Bruno realised that music has become disposable, so took his time away to create a record his fans would appreciate over time.’
‘[He wants to] set himself apart from artists who need to release music every month to stay relevant,’ the source added, perhaps taking aim at some of Bruno’s contemporaries.
‘He’s following the Sade model and has filmed a documentary [that has] documented his time away.’
The band Sade, named after their singer Sade Adu, has been active since 1982 but has only released six albums in that time, with the last of them – Soldier of Love – arriving in 2010.
They were one of the most successful pop acts of the 1980s and 1990s, thanks to singles like Your Love Is King, Smooth Operator, and No Ordinary Love.
Sade performed at Live Aid as part of the legendary line-up on that memorable day in 1985, and proved to have greater success in America despite being from the UK.
The announcement of a new album for Bruno comes after bizarre debt rumours began spiralling in 2025, with speculation that he’d racked up millions of dollars in gambling losses.
Across 2023 and 2024, sources claimed to News Nation that Bruno was in debt to MGM Resorts International, where he performs his long-running Las Vegas residency show.
Bruno joked in a January 2025 social media post that he was ‘almost out of debt’, appearing to dismiss the rumours, while MGM themselves also denied this was the case.
‘MGM and Bruno’s partnership is longstanding and rooted in mutual respect. Any speculation otherwise is completely false; he has no debt with MGM.
‘We’re proud of our relationship with Bruno Mars, one of the world’s most thrilling and dynamic performers. Together, we are excited to continue creating unforgettable experiences for our guests,’ they said.
It has been estimated that the 16-time Grammy winner is worth approximately $175million (£131m) these days, and that number might only go up if The Romantic performs well.
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