Bruno Mars Jokes He’s ‘Almost Out of Debt’ After Performing ‘APT.’ With ROSÉ on BLACKPINK’s Tour

Bruno Mars owes a debt of gratitude to ROSÉ for letting him perform “APT.” with her at a recent BLACKPINK tour stop.

In a post about the performance on Instagram, the American singer-songwriter thanked his duet partner and joked that the stint had helped him pay off his long-rumored gambling debts.

“Almost out of debt BehhhhhBehhhhh!!!” he wrote Monday (July 14), sharing a video of his and ROSÉ’s high-energy performance.”Preciate You ROSAAAAYYYYYY!!!!” he added, with the K-pop star replying in the comments, “ya welcome.”

ROSÉ also shared photos of herself and Mars hanging out behind the scenes and exchanging a hug on stage. “look at me and dis HUNK-O-RAMAA,” she captioned the snaps.

Mars’ quip references wildfire rumors that he at one point racked up $50 million in casino debt at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand, where he’d signed a long-term residency contract in 2016. The company quickly shut down the reports in March 2024, writing in a statement, “MGM and Bruno’s partnership is longstanding and rooted in mutual respect … Any speculation otherwise is completely false; he has no debt with MGM.”

The 16-time Grammy winner has also previously poked fun at the rumors. After becoming the first artist to ever surpass 150 million monthly listeners on Spotify, he wrote on Instagram, “I’ll be out of debt in no time.”

The duo’s posts come one day after Mars joined ROSÉ on BLACKPINK’s July 13 tour stop at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, where they surprised fans with a rare joint performance of their smash hit. Dropping last October, “APT.” reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 12 weeks atop the Billboard Global 200.

The track is just one of several high-profile collaborations Mars has unleashed lately. In January, he tapped Sexyy Red for a single titled “Fat Juicy & Wet,” and before that came Grammy-winning duet “Die With a Smile” with Lady Gaga.

See Mars’ post below.