The collaboration between Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars, known as Silk Sonic, traces back to 2017 when Anderson .Paak opened for Bruno Mars on the European leg of his 24K Magic World Tour. A spontaneous jam session during the tour paved the way for an immediate chemistry that lingered until the world was thrown into quarantine. When Bruno Mars reached out to Anderson .Paak just before the lockdowns, the idea of their collaboration resurfaced and blossomed into a months-long project, eventually leading to the creation of the legendary setlist of doom. The iconic Bootsy Collins played a pivotal role in the birth of Silk Sonic, serving as the special guest host for their debut album, An Evening With Silk Sonic.
The much-anticipated debut of Silk Sonic happened on March 5th, 2021, unleashing their first single ‘Leave The Door Open’ to the world. In a remarkably short time, the track garnered over 230 million streams, 90 million official video views, and received rave reviews. Notably, Variety hailed the song as a potential Best R&B Song GRAMMY® winner from 1974. Following their plea to the GRAMMY® Awards to support Silk Sonic, the duo made a memorable debut performance with ‘Leave The Door Open,’ paying a heartfelt tribute to the legendary Little Richard.