It feels like anything Bruno Mars touches nowadays becomes a huge hit. Even between extended hiatuses between albums, he’s maintained his status as one of pop’s premier stars. However, one of his biggest hits never saw the light of day. Recently, producers and songwriters James Fauntleroy and Dernst “D’Mile” Emile II spoke with Variety about the massive hit song “Die With A Smile,” a Grammy-winning record that spent a staggering 60 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. However, let them tell it, the record was close to living a life of a dusty demo on a hard drive.
Three years ago, Bruno Mars had toyed around with the record on and off. A few lines for a verse here, a bit of the hook there. But eventually, it was tossed into the pile of other unfinished, unreleased demos. However, Bruno learned about Lady Gaga starring in the Joaquin Phoenix-led film Joker: Folie a Deux. He knew he had the right song for it. “He was such a genius for pulling that out of the back of his subconscious memory because of the timing of that movie, which is also how Lady Gaga came into his mind as a collaborator,” Fauntleroy tells Variety.
A ‘Joker’ Sequel Is the Reason We Have ‘Die With a Smile’
Initially, the idea was to pair the wispy guitar ballad for the film’s soundtrack or her separate concept album to the movie. But when that didn’t line up, it didn’t deter Bruno Mars and co. from finishing the vision. “When we found out that wasn’t gonna be a thing, he had already kind of started the ball rolling, because the power of Bruno compels you,” Fauntleroy continues.
Apparently, it didn’t take much convincing for Lady Gaga to fall head over heels for the Bruno Mars ballad. Immediately, she gravitated towards the chords, learned them, and the magic was made from there. “I knew she could play the piano, but watching her actually sit down like a musician and learn the chords, so much so that she actually asked for a pen and paper and wrote the chords down … This is unheard of,” Fauntleroy recalls of Gaga working with Bruno Mars. “She learned the f–king song, dude, right there. And they were performing, singing it together. And that’s when I should have known it was going to be something special.”
“It was like some Quincy-Michael shit,” guitarist Andrew Watt says. “Bruno jumping in the booth, then her jumping in the booth and going back and forth. There was a point where we were all on guitars and she was on the piano. It was like being in Fleetwood Mac or something.”
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