If you’re travelling through downtown Vancouver on the SkyTrain this week, you may hear a new voice on the PA system. Popstar Bruno Mars is in town this week and next for an impressive five-show run at BC Place on Oct. 14, 16, 17, 20 and 21, and he’ll be lending his voice to announcements at Stadium-Chinatown Station on concert days. Mars has recorded two sappy messages to fit with the theme of his Romantic Tour. In one, he says, “To everybody taking the train, it’s Bruno Mars. It’s about to get real romantic tonight. I love you.” The other begins the same way and adds “Thank you so much for coming to the Romantic Tour. I hope to see you all very soon. I love you.” Celebrity voices like actor Seth Rogan and soccer legend Christine Sinclair have been featured on SkyTrain announcements in the past, but TransLink says Mars is the first music artist. TransLink says the stunt is a way to generate advertising revenue via Warner Music Canada. “Most people don’t expect to hear Bruno Mars while they’re heading to work, school, or a concert. That’s what makes this so much fun, because it brings the concert experience to SkyTrain customers,” TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn said, in a news release Wednesday. “It’s a unique way to brighten someone’s trip while generating additional revenue that helps support transit service across the region.” Mars’ mini-residency at BC Place breaks the record for most shows at the stadium during a single tour, after Taylor Swift performed three nights on her Eras Tour last year.
