Former hula dancer Bernadette Hernandez passed away from a brain aneurysm

Jun 3, 2013 11:06 GMT  ·  By

Bruno Mars and his family are now in mourning as Bernadette Hernandez, the singer’s mother, passed away over the weekend at a hospital in Honolulu. She was only 55 years old.

E! News confirms that Mrs. Hernandez passed away from a brain aneurysm.

“Bernadette Hernandez, 55, died Saturday in Hawaii at Queens Medical Center in Honolulu,” the celebrity publication writes.

Bruno had been extremely close to his mother, who supported him and his siblings in whatever they did, encouraging them to pursue a career in showbiz.

“Mars wrote and recorded a song for his mom when he was just four years old, called ‘I Love You Mom,’ in which he sings, ‘I love you Mom, you are my favorite girl’,” E! says.

In older interviews, he also talked about how his mom’s constant support made him love music as much as he did, which, in turn, made him want even more to be an artist.

“Hernandez was a former hula dancer and singer who immigrated to Hawaii from the Philippines, and nurtured her son's music career,” the aforementioned media outlet writes.

In 2011, after the Grammy Awards, where her son was nominated seven times, Mrs. Hernandez gushed about him, saying she’d expected this but not so big.

“Bruno I am so so proud of you. I knew this was going to happen but not this extent. I still think of him as my baby and keep forgetting he is a grown man,” she said, as cited by the same media outlet.

“We're a very close family… I think that's what I want my kids to develop and carry on for the next generation,” she added.

In April this year, confirmation came that the singer’s sisters would be getting their own reality show on WE tv called The Lylas, starring Tiara, Tahiti, and Presley and documenting their move to Los Angeles to start a career in showbiz.