Mark Ronson


Mark Daniel Ronson is a British-American musician, DJ, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his collaborations with artists such as Amy Winehouse, Lady Gaga, Adele, Lily Allen, Robbie Williams, Miley Cyrus, Queens of the Stone Age, and Bruno Mars. He has received seven Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year for Winehouse's album Back to Black and two for Record of the Year singles "Rehab" and "Uptown Funk". He received an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Grammy Award for co-writing the song "Shallow" for the film A Star is Born.
Ronson was born in London and raised in New York City. His stepfather is Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones, which contributed to a childhood surrounded by music. While attending New York University, Ronson became a popular DJ in the hip hop scene. His debut album Here Comes the Fuzz failed to have an effect on the charts. In 2006, he received acclaim for producing albums for Lily Allen, Christina Aguilera, and Amy Winehouse. In 2007, Ronson released his second album, Version. The album reached number two in the UK and included three top ten singles and earned him the Brit Award for British Male Solo Artist. He subsequently released his third studio album, Record Collection, peaking at number two in the UK.
In 2014, Ronson released his single "Uptown Funk" featuring vocals from Bruno Mars. The single spent 14 consecutive weeks at number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, seven non-consecutive weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart and became one of the best-selling singles of all-time. His fourth studio album, Uptown Special, became his most successful album to date. In 2018, he founded his own label, Zelig Records, and formed the duo Silk City with fellow producer Diplo, for which he received the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording for the song "Electricity".
Beyond his work in entertainment, Ronson is dedicated to using his creative influence to help others. In 2015, he became a patron of the Amy Winehouse Foundation, which helps disadvantaged youth through music. He has also worked with the End the Silence campaign to raise money and awareness for the Hope and Homes for Children charity and most recently became an artist mentor at Turnaround Arts, a national program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which helps low-performing schools through arts education.

Early life

Mark Daniel Ronson was born 4 September 1975 in Notting Hill, London, to Jewish parents Laurence Ronson, a real-estate speculator and music manager, and Ann Dexter. His Jewish ancestors emigrated from Austria, Lithuania and Russia. He was brought up in a Masorti Jewish household and celebrated becoming a Bar Mitzvah. The Ronson family had been one of Britain's wealthiest families in the 1980s, but they lost $1 billion of their money in the property crash of the early 1990s. He is the nephew of businessman Gerald Ronson. Through his mother, he is also related to British Conservative politicians Sir Malcolm Rifkind and the late Leon Brittan, as well as Odeon Cinemas founder Oscar Deutsch. He is not related to the late English guitarist Mick Ronson.
After his parents divorced, his mother married Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones, which contributed to a childhood surrounded by music. Ronson has twin sisters who are two years younger: Charlotte Ronson, a fashion designer, and Samantha Ronson, a singer and DJ. Ronson, along with his mother, stepfather, and twin sisters, moved to New York City when he was eight years old. Living on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, he counted Sean Lennon among his childhood friends. At twelve, being a self-described music nerd, he pestered Rolling Stone founder Jann Wenner into an internship at the magazine. He attended high school at the private Collegiate School in Manhattan before attending Vassar College and then New York University. In 2008, he obtained American citizenship so that he could vote in that year's election.

Career

While attending New York University, Ronson became a regular at downtown hip hop spots and made his name as a DJ on the New York club scene in 1993, charging $50 per job. He soon became known for his diverse, genre-spanning selection. Influenced by funk, the hip hop scene of New York and the more rock influence of the UK he attracted a wider audience. He was soon a popular and sought after DJ in New York City, frequently booked for high-profile events and private parties. In 1999, Ronson was featured in an ad wearing Tommy Hilfiger denim in the recording studio for an ad campaign for the company.

2001–05: ''Here Comes the Fuzz'' and initial producing

Mark made the leap from DJ to producer after Nikka Costa's manager, Dominique Trenier, heard one of his sets and introduced the musicians. Ronson produced Costa's song "Everybody Got Their Something," and Ronson soon signed a record contract with Elektra Records. He had already produced tracks for Hilfiger ads and, in 2001, used the connection to have Costa's single "Like a Feather" used in an advertisement.
Ronson's debut album, Here Comes the Fuzz, was released in 2003. Despite poor initial sales it was generally well received by critics. As well as writing the songs on the album, Ronson created the beats, played guitar, keyboards, and bass. The album featured performances from artists from diverse genres, including Mos Def, Jack White, Sean Paul, Nappy Roots and Rivers Cuomo. The lead single and best known song from the album, "Ooh Wee," samples "Sunny" by Boney M and features the rappers Nate Dogg, Ghostface Killah, Trife Da God, and Saigon. The song charted at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart and was used in a number of films, including in Honey and on its soundtrack. Two weeks after releasing Here Comes the Fuzz, Elektra Records dropped him.
In 2004, Ronson formed his own record label, Allido Records, a subsidiary of Sony BMG's J Records, along with his longtime manager Rich Kleiman. The first artist he signed to Allido was rapper Saigon, who later left to sign with Just Blaze's Fort Knox Entertainment. He has signed Rhymefest, most well known for winning the Grammy for co-writing Kanye West's "Jesus Walks."

2006–09: ''Version''

On 2 April 2007, Ronson released a cover of The Smiths' track "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" under the title "Stop Me", featuring singer Daniel Merriweather. It reached number 2 in the UK singles charts, giving Ronson his highest-peaking single until 2014's "Uptown Funk". Ronson remixed the Bob Dylan song "Most Likely You Go Your Way And I'll Go Mine" in promotion for the three disc Bob Dylan set titled Dylan released October 2007. Ronson has also produced Candie Payne's "One More Chance " in 2007.
The album Version was well received by critics particularly in the UK and US. In May 2007 it was awarded the title Album of the Month by the British dance music magazine, Mixmag. On 23 June, Ronson made the cover of the Guardian newspaper's Guide magazine, alongside singer Lily Allen.
In June 2007, Ronson signed DC hip hop artist Wale to Allido Records. In late 2007, he focused on production, working with Daniel Merriweather on his debut album, and recording again with Amy Winehouse and Robbie Williams.
On 24 October 2007, Ronson performed a one-off set at The Roundhouse in Camden, London as part of the BBC Electric Proms 2007. The performance featured the BBC Concert Orchestra and included special guests Terry Hall, Sean Lennon, Tim Burgess, Alex Greenwald, Ricky Wilson, Charlie Waller, Adele and Kyle Falconer.
In December 2007, Ronson received his first Grammy Award nomination, for 'Producer of the Year, Non Classical'. Ronson's work with Amy Winehouse also received substantial accolades, gaining 6 nominations. Winehouse's "Back to Black" album, mostly produced by Ronson, was nominated for 'Album of the Year' and 'Best Pop Vocal Album'. Her song "Rehab" received nods for 'Best Female Pop Vocal Performance', 'Song of the Year' and 'Record of the Year'. Ronson would go on to win three Grammys: 'Producer of the Year' as well as 'Best Pop Vocal Album' and 'Record of the Year' in early February 2008.
Ronson is credited as producer on a mixtape album called Man in the Mirror, released in January 2008 by the rapper Rhymefest which is a tribute to the pop star Michael Jackson. The album features Rhymefest appearing to speak to Michael Jackson using archive audio from interviews with the pop star. The same month Ronson received three nominations for the Brit Awards, including 'Best Male Solo Artist,' 'Best Album' and 'Song of the Year'. Ronson won his first Brit for 'Best Male Solo Artist' in mid February 2008 over favourite Mika. He also performed a medley of "God Put a Smile upon Your Face" with Adele, "Stop Me" with Daniel Merriweather and "Valerie" with Amy Winehouse.
The performance allowed for a large boost in sales in the iTunes UK Top 100. "Valerie" would jump almost 30 spots in the days after the event, while "Just", "Stop Me" and "Oh My God" all appeared in the chart as well. That same week, Ronson appeared twice in the UK Top 40, with "Valerie" rebounding to number 13 and "Just" at number 31, his fourth Top 40 entry from "Version". The Brits performance also allowed for "Version" to climb 18 spots to number 4.
Around this time, Ronson received his first number one on an international chart for "Valerie," which spent four consecutive weeks at the top of the chart. He collaborated with Kaiser Chiefs on their third album.
Ronson toured the album "Version" extensively through both the UK and Europe during 2008. Notable sold-out performances at The Hammersmith Apollo and Brixton Academy. Ronson is known to champion new upcoming artists on the road with him, such as Sam Sparro and Julian Perretta. Ronson's string backing was provided by the all-female string quartet Demon Strings.
On 2 July 2008 in Paris, Mark Ronson performed live with Duran Duran for an invited audience. They played new arrangements by Ronson of some Duran Duran songs, along with tracks from the band's new album, Red Carpet Massacre. Ronson & the Version Players also performed songs from his album Version. Simon LeBon sang. As of March 2009 Ronson was working with the group on their 13th album. The Album, titled All You Need Is Now, was released digitally exclusively via Apple's iTunes on 21 December 2010, while the physical CD was released in March 2011 with additional tracks. In 2013–14 Ronson was once again in the studio producing Duran Duran's 14th album, Paper Gods, making it the first time the band have worked with the same producer on consecutive albums since Colin Thurston produced their first two albums in the 1980s.

2010–12: ''Record Collection''

In the Spring of 2010, Ronson confirmed the name of his new album Record Collection, and said that he hoped to have it out by September 2010. Additionally, Ronson announced the name of his new band, "The Business Intl.'", which is the alias adopted by Ronson on the third studio album. The first single "Bang Bang Bang". which featured rapper Q-Tip and singer MNDR was released on 12 July 2010, where it peaked at number 6 on the UK Singles Chart, giving Ronson his fourth Top 10 single. The single also entered the Irish Singles Chart, where it peaked at number 18. The second single from the album, "The Bike Song", was released on 19 September 2010 and features Kyle Falconer from The View and Spank Rock. The album was released on 27 September 2010. This is the first Ronson album on which he features as a singer.
Although Ronson had never met Michael Jackson he was given the vocal track to a song titled "Lovely Way", sung by Michael Jackson, in 2010 to produce for Jackson's posthumous album Michael. He submitted the track, but it did not make the track listing for Michael. Ronson said about the rumours surrounding the vocals on the track, "It was definitely him singing. I was given a vocal track to work with but I never actually met Michael. It's in the vein of Elton John's 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road' and John Lennon's 'Imagine'."
He provided the score for the 2011 film Arthur. Ronson was one of the artists featured in the 2012 documentary Re:GENERATION Music Project. His song "A La Modeliste" features Mos Def, Erykah Badu, Trombone Shorty, members of The Dap-Kings, and Zigaboo Modeliste.

2013–2017: ''Uptown Special'' and ''Amy''

On 30 October 2014, Ronson announced, via Twitter, a new single from his upcoming album, to be released on 10 November 2014. The single, "Uptown Funk," features Bruno Mars on vocals. On 22 November 2014, Ronson and Mars appeared as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live performing "Uptown Funk" and "Feel Right". "Uptown Funk" reached number one in the UK and US singles charts, and also became the all-time most streamed track in a single week in the UK, having been streamed a record 2.49 million times in a week. "Uptown Funk" reached the top 10 in nearly every country it charted; it spent fifteen weeks at number one on the Canadian Hot 100, fourteen weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, and seven weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart. In February 2015 the song won Ronson the Brit Award for British Single of the Year. As of December 2018, the song's music video on YouTube has amassed over 3.4 billion views.
In 2015, Ronson starred in the documentary film Amy about his late friend Amy Winehouse. His voice features in the film where he talks about his career and relationship with Winehouse and there is footage of Ronson from the recording session of the single "Back to Black" from March 2006 and also at Winehouse's funeral in London in July 2011. On 16 October 2015, Ronson became a patron of the Amy Winehouse Foundation. In January 2016, Ronson was nominated for two Brit Awards; Best British Male Solo Artist, and British Producer of the Year, at the 2016 Brit Awards.
At the 2016 Grammy Awards Ronson won two awards for "Uptown Funk", including Record Of The Year. Jason Iley, the head of Sony Music UK and Ronson's UK label Columbia Records, hailed Ronson as "a true gentleman" and "one of the most considerate, kind and humble artists in our industry." He added "the monumental success of Uptown Funk is so thoroughly deserved, and has established itself as, not only one of the Records Of The Year, but of our lifetime."
He went on to executive produce Lady Gaga's fifth album Joanne.
Ronson produced the Queens of the Stone Age's 2017 album Villains.

2018–present: Silk City, "Shallow" and ''Late Night Feelings''

In 2018, Ronson founded his own label, Zelig Records, an imprint of Columbia Records and the first artist he signed was singer King Princess. He also formed the duo Silk City with fellow producer Diplo. Their first single "Electricity" featuring Dua Lipa was released on 6 September and peaked at the US Dance Club Songs and received the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.
In May 2018, it was revealed that Ronson was working with Miley Cyrus in the studio. Their first collaboration "Nothing Breaks Like a Heart" was released in November 2018. Ronson also co-wrote the song "Shallow" for the film A Star Is Born with his frequent collaborators Lady Gaga, Andrew Wyatt, and Anthony Rossomando. The song earned Ronson an Academy Award and the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, as well as two Grammy nominations, winning the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.
On 12 April 2019, it was announced that Mark Ronson would release his fifth album Late Night Feelings, on 26 June 2019. The album features Miley Cyrus, Angel Olsen, Lykke Li and Camila Cabello. Ronson has described the album as a collection of "sad bangers," with the title track laying down a warm mid-tempo dance groove under Li's melancholy vocals.
On 12 October 2019, BBC Two broadcast the documentary Mark Ronson: From the Heart, directed by Carl Hindmarch.

Personal life

Ronson divides his time between London, Los Angeles and New York. Since childhood, he has been a fan of English Premier League football club Chelsea F.C., and has also been a fan of the New York Knicks basketball team.
In 2009 he participated in PETA's "Please Don't Wear Any Fur" campaign. In 2009 Ronson was voted the most stylish man in the UK by GQ magazine. In 2015 he was named one of the magazine's 50 best dressed British men. In 2011, a portrait of Ronson was painted by British artist Joe Simpson; the painting was exhibited around the UK, including a solo exhibition at the Royal Albert Hall in London. On 20 August 2019, Ronson, along with several other celebrities, invested in a funding round for Lowell Herb Co, a California cannabis brand. He is known to be "a dedicated cannabis consumer".

Relationships

In 2002, Ronson began dating the actress-singer Rashida Jones. They became engaged in March 2003, with Ronson proposing by creating a crossword puzzle with the message "Will you marry me." Their relationship ended approximately one year later.
On 3 September 2011, Ronson married French actress and singer Joséphine de La Baume, who had previously appeared in the music video for "The Bike Song". On 16 May 2017, it was reported that de La Baume had filed for divorce from Ronson, listing the separation date as 21 April 2017. The divorce was finalized in October 2018.

Lawsuit

In 2017, Lastrada Entertainment claimed that "Uptown Funk" infringed the copyright of Zapp & Roger's 1980 hit song "More Bounce to the Ounce". A total of three lawsuits had been filed by different parties.

Discography

Ronson created a video, along with directors Gary Breslin and Jordan Galland, called Circuit Breaker, which was an homage to the video game . In 2001, Ronson appeared in the Aaliyah music video "More Than a Woman" as a DJ.

Production discography

Albums

YearAlbumArtistDetails
1998The Flip Squad All-Star DJsThe Flip SquadProducer of "Turntables" and "Only Time You Love 'Em"
1999Home Field AdvantageThe High & MightyAdditional programming
2001Everybody Got Their SomethingNikka CostaCo-producer, co-writer
2001Zoolander Various artistsCo-producer of "Call Me" by Nikka Costa
2002The Bathroom WallJimmy FallonBass, backing vocals, keyboards, mixing
2002Dutty RockSean PaulProducer, instrumentation on "International Affair"
2002The Best of Saigon a.k.a.The
Yardfather Volume 1
SaigonProducer of "The Corner"
2003The Trouble with Being MyselfMacy GrayGuitar, programming, turntables
2003Here Comes the FuzzHimselfProducer, vocals, guitars, bass, beats, keyboards,
percussion, piano, turntables, horn arrangements
2005OsirusOl' Dirty BastardProducer and co-writer of "Dirty Dirty"
2005TheErthMoovsAroundTheSunTerry SullivanGuitar
2005Beef or ChickenTeriyaki BoyzProducer of "The Takeover"
2006Alright, StillLily AllenCo-producer, co-writer, beats, harp, synth strings,
percussion on "Littlest Things"
2006Blue CollarRhymefestCo-producer, co-writer, guitar, bass, keyboards, piano,
backing vocals, engineer
2006Back to BasicsChristina AguileraCo-producer, guitars, bass, beats, keyboards, engineer
2006Back to BlackAmy WinehouseProducer, co-writer of "Back to Black", percussion,
band arrangements, engineer
2006RudeboxRobbie WilliamsProducer, guitar, bass, beats, keyboards, turntables,
percussion, engineer
2006Half Nelson: Original Motion
Picture Soundtrack
Various artistsProducer
2006More FishGhostface KillahProducer of "You Know I'm No Good"
2007100 Miles & RunningWaleProducer of "Let's Ride" & "Smile"
2007VersionHimselfProducer, guitar, bass, beats, keyboards, piano,
percussion, engineer
2008Man in the MirrorRhymefestProducer
200819AdeleProducer, guitar, drums, programming on "Cold Shoulder"
2008ShineEstelleProducer, instrumentation on "Magnificent"
2008The Mixtape About NothingWaleProducer on "The Remake of a Remake "
& "The Chicago Falcon "
2008Sol-Angel and the Hadley St.
Dreams
Solange KnowlesCo-producer, co-writer of "6 O'Clock Blues"
2008NasNasProducer, co-writer of "Fried Chicken"
2008Off with Their HeadsKaiser ChiefsProducer, agogo bells, engineer
2008See Clear NowWileyProducer of "Cash in My Pocket"
2009All in OneBebel GilbertoCo-producer of "The Real Thing"
2009Can't Slow DownForeignerCo-producer
2009Back to the FeatureWale & 9th WonderProducer of "Pot Of Gold" & "Um Ricka"
2009The Atlantic OceanRichard SwiftCo-producer, synthesizer, engineer
2009Attention DeficitWaleProducer, co-composer of three tracks
2009Love & WarDaniel MerriweatherProducer, engineer
2009Welcome to the Walk AloneThe Rumble StripsProducer
2009A Son UniqueOl' Dirty BastardProducer of "Lift Ya Skirt "
2010Release MeThe LikeProducer, co-writer of "Trouble in Paradise"
2010Record CollectionMark Ronson &
The Business Intl.
Producer, composer, vocals, guitar, bass, beats,
keyboards, percussion, engineer
2010Q Soul Bossa NostraQuincy JonesProducer of "It's My Party"
2010All You Need Is NowDuran DuranProducer, additional guitar on "Leave a Light On"
2011Arabia MountainBlack LipsProducer
2011Amy WinehouseProducer of "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" &
"Valerie "
2011Arthur: Original Motion Picture
Soundtrack
Various artistsProducer, composer
2012Out of the GameRufus WainwrightProducer, bass, drum programming
2012Unorthodox JukeboxBruno MarsProducer, guitar, bass, beats, DJing, recording
2013NewPaul McCartneyProducer of "Alligator" and "New"
2014Midnight SunThe Ghost of a
Saber Tooth Tiger
Producer, bass
2015We FallEmile HaynieBass
2015Uptown SpecialHimselfProducer, guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, percussion,
programming
2015Paper GodsDuran DuranProducer, co-writer of "Pressure Off" and
"Only in Dreams"
2015Mr. WonderfulAction BronsonProducer, co-writer, guitar, bass, drums, keyboards,
turntables, programming
2015Mortdecai Himself & Geoff ZanelliComposer
2015At. Long. Last. ASAPASAP RockyProducer, co-writer, bass, keyboards, drum programming,
engineering on "Everyday"
2015Heart BlancheCeeLo GreenProducer, co-writer of "Mother May I"
201525AdeleProducer, synthesizers on "Lay Me Down"
2016The Jungle Book John DebneyProducer of "Trust in Me"
2016JoanneLady GagaProducer, co-writer, guitar, bass, keyboards, synthesizers
2016Suicide Squad: The AlbumVarious artistsProducer, co-writer, guitar, keyboards,
background vocals on "Standing in the Rain"
2016Ghostbusters Various artistsProducer, co-writer, guitar on "Get Ghost"
2017VillainsQueens of the Stone AgeProducer
2017Dua LipaDua LipaInstrumentation, programming on "IDGAF"
2018No ShameLily AllenProducer, co-writer of "Family Man" and "My One", guitar,
programming
2018God's Favorite CustomerFather John MistyBass on "Disappointing Diamonds Are the Rarest of
Them All"
2018Crazy Rich AsiansVarious artistsProducer, co-writer of "Vote"
2018))MC Paul BarmanProducer
2018A Star Is BornLady Gaga &
Bradley Cooper
Co-writer of "Shallow"
2019Father of the BrideVampire WeekendCo-writer of "This Life"
2019She Is ComingMiley CyrusCo-writer and producer of "The Most"
2019Late Night FeelingsHimselfProducer, guitar, bass, drums, piano, synthesizers,
programming

Singles