IMS Day 3

IMS Day 3: What Amy Winehouse Taught Mark Ronson

By Gary Smith, Ibiza

The third and final day of the International Music Summit (IMS) dance music conference in Ibiza ended on a high, with producer Mark Ronson revealing how he got his break.

“I started DJing at hip-hop clubs in 1993 because I couldn’t rap or play an instrument,” he said. “It was just my way of expressing my love of music, but then I met Puffy and Jay-Z who respected what I was doing, which was great for my confidence.”

It was not, however, until meeting Amy Winehouse and Lily Allen that he felt like a real producer.

“Production for me was making beats, then I suddenly found myself in the studio with the Dap Kings who… really brought the arrangements alive,” he said. “I also learnt from Amy that there’s no point in pussyfooting around people’s feelings. Much better to say it how it is and move on.”

Earlier in the day, Caroline Protheroe, manager of David Guetta, took part in the Boom Boom Now panel.

“All genres happen in waves to some degree,” she said. “And for me, based on what is now happening in the U.S., there is no doubt that we are about to see dance music going through another boom.”

She added: “The Electric Daisy [Carnival in L.A.] attracted 120,000 people last year, only featuring dance acts, and this year we expect closer to 200,000. Despite that, media coverage for rock events remains disproportionately high with the smaller Coachella getting much more coverage.”

Source: Billboard.biz

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