Want to see Bruno Mars at Preakness LIVE? You’ll have to stay late.

Published 5/17/2023 6:03 p.m. EDT, Updated 5/18/2023 10:42 a.m. EDT

Preakness Stakes and Pimlico Race Course, have announced that fourteen-time GRAMMY Award-winner Bruno Mars will headline Preakness LIVE, the star-studded grand finale of Preakness Weekend on Saturday, May 20

Are you planning on seeing Bruno Mars at Preakness LIVE? You’ll have to wait until after the final race ends — but it’s for good reason.

Last year, music performances were spread out between Friday and Saturday with acts such as Lauryn Hill, Megan Thee Stallion and Marshmello taking the stage, often at the same time the horses were racing. This year, the idea is to “take the best of both worlds” so the diverse fans at Preakness get the chance to experience both the entertainment and racing, according to Tiffani Steer, vice president of communications for 1/ST.

“We want Preakness LIVE to represent the community of Baltimore and want all in attendance to get to witness it as well as the usual racing,” Steer said. So attendees don’t have to choose between the two experiences, performances from artists at LIVE will occur while the horse races are paused, and not during.

Once the race ends Saturday evening, all Preakness ticket holders — even those who didn’t purchase LIVE-specific ones — have the opportunity to move to the Infield to witness Bruno Mars’ headlining performance at 8 p.m. There are plans in place to ensure the audience will be able to transition safely between locations, Steer said, and there will be additional security to handle traffic as well as extra lights and surveillance teams.

You can find the full schedule of performances for Preakness LIVE below:

11:10 a.m. — Martin 2 Smoove

12:30 p.m. — DJ Quicksilva

2:15 p.m. — Chantel Jeffries

3:35 p.m. — Zack Bia

5:10 p.m. — Sofi Tukker

8:00 p.m. — Bruno Mars

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