Mark Ronson is a name you may recall, but you might have a little difficulty placing it. That’s because his biggest recent hit, “Uptown Funk,” is more closely associated with the man singing lead vocals, Bruno Mars. It turns out, however, that he’s quite a name, perhaps more so than Mars.
The English DJ and producer got his big break by producing Adele’s debut album 19. Afterward, he would garner his first Grammy nominations by doing the same with the majority of Amy Winehouse’s breakout album Back to Black. In fact, that’s the connect to this song, “Valerie.”
While Ronson is without a doubt a wildly talented individual, his success can likely be partially attributed to his impressive upbringing. Both his mother and father has strong connections to famous Brits and politicians, and his mother also ended up remarrying the guitarist from Foreigner. At the age of eight, he moved with his mother to New York where be became friends with John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s son. Later in life, but before extending his influence beyond the NYC music scene as a DJ, Ronson even dated the daughter of Quincy Jones.
Ronson earned his first Grammy Awards in 2007, and collected more in 2008, with his trailblazing work with Amy Winehouse, who, as we all know, had a sound that was completely different than anything on the radio at the time. After Winehouse’s death, Ronson became a major patron of the foundation in her name. He can also be seen in the documentary about her called Amy.
I also liked the music of Amy Winehouse, which is why I like this video and song. I hope you enjoy it too.
Mark Ronson made his name as a DJ in New York before hitting it big with Adele and Amy Winehouse. (Photo credit: entertainment.ie)