About a week ago (shout out to Bobby Shmurda) the Internet exploded when The Grapevine debated whether or not Bruno Mars is a cultural appropriator.
There were some who believed the reason the 24k Magic artist took home album of the year at this year’s Grammys is because he’s a non-black musician who sings predominately black music. Others believed given his Puerto Rican and Filipino background, making him a person of color automatically means he’s not an appropriator.
The debate waged on for a few days prompting several outlets to weigh in on the conversation. TMZ caught up with Stevie Wonder in Beverly Hills Saturday (March 17) as he was leaving Mr. Chow, and asked the 29-time Grammy winning music legend his thoughts on Bruno Mars.
“Here’s the thing, God created music for all of us to enjoy,” Wonder said while zipping up his coat. “So we cannot limit ourselves by people’s fears and insecurities. He’s a great talent, so all the other stuff is just bulls—. He was inspired by great musicians and great artists and songwriters. So it’s cool.”
When TMZ asked if where Bruno Mars, real name Peter Hernandez, received his inspiration from merits him a “pass” Wonder quickly corrected him by saying there’s no pass being given because God created music for everyone.
This article originally appeared in Vibe.