For the last few months, Bruno Mars’ name has been synonymous with the mention of Atlanta rapper B.o.B for their teamwork on the refreshing No. 1 record “Nothin’ on You.” Now the Hawaiian and Puerto Rican singer comes into his own with the release of his EP, It’s Better If You Don’t Understand.

The effort, which features four songs, was solely produced by The Smeezingtons—a production camp comprised of Bruno, Phil Lawrence, and Ari Levine. While the trio was initially busy working on projects with the likes of Chad Hugo from The Neptunes, they finally turned their attention to the EP. “We have a song called ‘Talking to the Moon,’ which was actually the first song we wrote when we really got into my project, because we were working with everybody else,” Bruno tells staging-rapup.kinsta.cloud.

In the spirit of his father’s hometown, the 23-year-old guitar player dedicated a track to one of New York City’s five boroughs. “My dad is originally from Brooklyn,” Bruno states. “I think that everyone can agree that New York is a special place, so one song is called ‘Somewhere in Brooklyn.’ [The premise of that song is that] she’s somewhere in Brooklyn and I’m gonna find her.”

As for the two remaining records, Bruno calls upon the stylings of B.o.B and Cee-Lo to assist him on “The Other Side,” and sings an acoustic version of “Count on Me,” a tune that taps into his “Hawaii-boy roots.”

Bruno Mars’ debut EP, It’s Better If You Don’t Understand, is set for release on May 11 via Elektra Records. Tracklisting below.

1. “Somewhere in Brooklyn”
2. “The Other Side” feat. B.o.B and Cee-Lo
3. “Count on Me”
4. “Talking to the Moon”

–Georgette Cline