| Mark Ralph | |
| Birth Name: | Mark Ralph |
| Birth Date: | 1974 5, df=y |
| Birth Place: | Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England |
| Genre: | Pop, electronic, reggae fusion, rock |
| Occupation: | Record producer, songwriter, musician, remixer |
| Years Active: | 1992–present |
Mark Ralph (born 2 May 1974) is a British record producer,[1] [2] mixer and songwriter.[3] Spanning a wide range of genres, he is known for his contributuions to records from artists including Years & Years,[4] Jax Jones,[5] Clean Bandit, Aitch,[6] Georgia,[7] Sub Focus, Rudimental,[8] Plan B,[9] The Snuts, Gryffin, Zara Larsson,[10] George Fitzgerald, Tom Walker,[11] Eats Everything, A1 x J1, DJ Regard, Sam Ryder, Jess Glynne, Becky Hill, Rag'n'Bone Man[12] and more.
As of December 2022, Ralph has 12 Number 1 records under his belt across the UK Single and Album Charts, and was the inaugural recipient of the Producer of the Year award at the 2016 A&R Awards,[13] for which he has been nominated a total of five times, most recently in 2022.
Born in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England,[14] Ralph started his career at the age of 18 as a session guitarist, playing and recording with a long list of artists including Pet Shop Boys, Ringo Starr, Sly & Robbie, Screaming Lord Sutch, Edwyn Collins, Gwen Stefani, Ronnie Wood, and Roy Ayers.[15]
Having collaborated with artists across a wide range of genres, Ralph had a desire to cross into the world of music production, with his first producer cut coming as a member of the critically acclaimed electronic trio the Filthy Dukes.[16] Releasing their only album “Nonsense in the Dark” in 2009, Ralph, as a member of Filthy Dukes, remixed the likes of Bloc Party, Florence and the Machine, The Temper Trap, Lady Gaga and Passion Pit, allowing him to develop an understanding of various sounds and genres.[17]
In 2010, Ralph continued his move into music production, producing and mixing chart albums for artists including Hot Chip, Franz Ferdinand and Hot Natured.[18]
Ralph continued to develop his production style across multiple genres throughout the 2010s. In 2014, he began his extensive creative relationship with Years & Years, co-producing their single Desire alongside Two Inch Punch. His production and songwriting work on the band’s single King saw him secure his first UK Number 1 single in 2015 as well as an Ivor Novello Award nomination for "PRS Most Performed Work".
Ralph’s relationship with Years & Years continued into 2015 with the release of their debut album Communion,[19] with production credits across the record including the Number 2 single “Shine” and top-20 single “Eyes Shut”.[20] Communion hit the top of the charts in 13 countries, including Number 1 in the UK Albums Chart.[21]
In 2016, Ralph cemented his position in the world of dance music through collaborations with artists including Clean Bandit, Pete Tong[22] [23] and TIEKS.[24] He co-produced and mixed Clean Bandit’s international hit single “Rockabye”, which spent nine weeks at Number 1 on the UK Singles Chart and received nominations for both Best British Single and British Artist Video of the Year at the 2017 BRIT Awards.[25]
Ralph’s work with Pete Tong saw him collaborate with a 60-piece contemporary orchestra to create an album of dance music classics, which was released to critical acclaim in November 2016.[26] The album was Pete Tong’s first release to hit the top spot on the UK Albums Chart.[27]
Ralph worked on three of the UK Official Charts’ Top 40 Biggest Songs of 2017, with both Clean Bandit’s “Symphony" and Jax Jones’ “You Don’t Know Me” making the top ten. His work on Clean Bandit’s “Rockabye” reached number 23 in the year-long chart.[28] [29]
Off the back of his success in the mid 2010s, Ralph’s involvement in the British recorded music continued to increased into 2018. He produced Rudimental’s UK Number 1 Single “These Days”, featuring Jess Glynne, Macklemore & Dan Caplen,[30] as well as Friendly Fires’ “Heaven Let Me In”, and Raye’s “Friends”. In November of the same year, Ralph wrote, produced and mixed Jax Jones ft. Years and Years’ single “Play”.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ralph based himself within his studio complex Club Ralph to continue working on music remotely. His musical output increased as a result, with multiple critically acclaimed releases hitting shelves throughout the course of the year.
From 2020 to the present, Ralph has been working with a wide range of acts, including Aitch, Tom Grennan,[31] Georgia, 220 Kid, Clean Bandit, Years & Years, Jax Jones, Bad Boy Chiller Crew, Eats Everything, George Fitzgerald, Zara Larsson, The Snuts, Sub Focus, Becky Hill, Sam Ryder, Rita Ora, Kawala, Sea Girls, Sigala, James Arthur and more across production, songwriting and mixing.
Further collaborations in recent years include 220 Kid & Gracey’s “Don’t Need Love” which received a BRIT Award Nomination for Best British Single, “Starstruck” by Years & Years ft. Kylie Minogue, “Where Did You Go” by Jax Jones & MNEK, a global hit, and Sam Ryder’s “Spaceman”, which was performed at the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest, coming second to Ukraine.
In 2023, Ralph’s work on Shania Twain’s album Queen Of Me saw him receive another UK Number 1 Album credit.[32]
Club Ralph is a recording studio complex with five studios under one roof in West London. The complex has a focus on developing new talent, producers and songwriters under Ralph’s supervision.
Ralph, and in turn Club Ralph, is fully certified to work in spatial audio through Dolby Atmos. Recent work with Atmos includes Years & Years’ “Outside”, “Montero” and “100% Pure Love”.
See main article: Mark Ralph production discography.