Clean Bandit are an English

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

group, formed in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

in 2008. They have had four number 1 hits and ten top 10 hits on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. They direct and produce their own music videos, many of which have been nominated for Brit Awards and VMAs, while two of them, "

Symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...

" and " Rockabye", each have over 1 billion views on YouTube, with Rockabye having reached over 2.7 billion views. The group currently consists of founder

Grace Chatto Grace Chatto (born 10 December 1985) is an English musician and singer who is the cellist, backing vocalist and occasional main vocalist, for the electronic music band Clean Bandit. Education Chatto attended Latymer School and Westminster S ...

and brothers Jack and Luke Patterson. Jack Patterson is the principal songwriter and has been awarded two Ivor Novellos for the writing of "

Rather Be "Rather Be" is a song by English electronic music group Clean Bandit, featuring vocals by Jess Glynne. It was released on 5 December 2013 as the fourth single from the group's debut studio album, ''New Eyes'' (2014). It also appears on the delu ...

". Many of their projects are known for blending elements of both classical and

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...

, and featuring guest vocalists. Notable collaborators include

Marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : ''marina'', "coast" or "shore") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships o ...

Demi Lovato Demetria Devonne Lovato ( ; born August 20, 1992), known as Demi Lovato, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. After appearing on the children's television series ''Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004), Lovato rose to prominence for pl ...

Jess Glynne Jessica Hannah Glynne (born 20 October 1989) is an English singer and songwriter. After signing with Atlantic Records, she rose to prominence in 2014 as a featured artist on the singles "Rather Be" by Clean Bandit and " My Love" by Route 94, bo ...

, Anne-Marie,

Sean Paul Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques OD (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican rapper and singer who is regarded as one of dancehall's most prolific artists. Paul's singles "Get Busy" and "Temperature" topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the ...

Zara Larsson Zara Maria Larsson (, ; born 16 December 1997) is a Swedish pop singer. In 2008, at the age of 10, she won the second season of the talent show '' Talang'', the Swedish version of the ''Got Talent'' format. Since then she has received recognit ...

Julia Michaels Julia is usually a feminine given name. It is a Latinate feminine form of the name Julio and Julius. (For further details on etymology, see the Wiktionary entry "Julius".) The given name ''Julia'' had been in use throughout Late Antiquity (e.g ...

Luis Fonsi Luis Alfonso Rodríguez López-Cepero (born April 15, 1978), known by his stage name Luis Fonsi (), is a Puerto Rican singer. He is known for multiple songs, one of them being " Despacito" featuring rapper Daddy Yankee. Fonsi received his first ...

Ellie Goulding Elena Jane Goulding ( ; born 30 December 1986) is an English singer and songwriter. Her career began when she met record producers Starsmith and Frankmusik, and she was later spotted by Jamie Lillywhite, who became her manager and Artists and ...

Iann Dior Michael Ian Olmo (born March 25, 1999), known professionally as Iann Dior (stylized in all lowercase), is a Puerto Rican rapper and singer based in Texas. He is most notably well-known for his 2020 hit single " Mood", a collaboration with 24kGo ...

, Mabel, and

Lizzo Melissa Viviane Jefferson (born April 27, 1988), known professionally as Lizzo, is an American singer, rapper, and flutist. Born in Detroit, Michigan, she moved to Houston, Texas with her family when she was 10 years old. After college she ...

. The band released their debut single " A+E" in 2012, followed by their 2013 single "

Mozart's House "Mozart's House" is a song by the English electronic music group Clean Bandit. It was released on 29 March 2013 as the second single from their first studio album, ''New Eyes'' (2014). The song peaked at number 17 on the UK Singles Chart. It in ...

", the latter of which reached number 17 on the

. In January 2014, they scored their first UK chart topping single with "Rather Be", a collaboration with

. The song also reached number 10 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In 2015, the song won the

Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording The Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Recording (formerly known as Best Dance Recording) is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists f ...

. The band's debut album ''

New Eyes ''New Eyes'' is the debut studio album by English electronic music group Clean Bandit, released on 30 May 2014 by Atlantic Records in Germany and Ireland, and 2 June 2014 in the United Kingdom, after suffering from several setbacks. The album i ...

'' was released in June 2014 and has received a gold certification from the BPI. Their 2016 single " Rockabye", which features Jamaican artist

and singer Anne-Marie, became their second number one hit in the UK and the Christmas number one single for 2016. The song became an international chart topper for the band, additionally charting at number nine in the US. "

" featuring

became their third UK number one single in 2017. Their second album, '' What Is Love?'', was released in November 2018. , Clean Bandit have sold over 13 million singles and 1.6 million albums worldwide.

History

2008–2012: Formation and career beginnings

Original band members

, Jack Patterson, Luke Patterson and Neil Amin-Smith met while studying as undergraduates at Jesus College,

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. At the time, Amin-Smith, who attended

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

was leading a string quartet together with Chatto, who attended

The Latymer School The Latymer School is a selective, Coeducation, mixed grammar school in Edmonton, London, Edmonton, London, England, established in 1624 by Edward Latymer. According to league tables, Latymer is one of the top state-schools in the country. Histo ...

. The original vocalist, Ssegawa-Ssekintu Kiwanuka, left to undertake a PhD in laser analytics. In 2011, Chatto and Jack Patterson formed their own film production company, Cleanfilm, to make music videos for themselves and other artists. The band's name, Clean Bandit, comes from a translation of a Russian phrase; the meaning is similar to the English phrase "complete bastard", though Patterson later stated that it is actually a more affectionate term similar to "utter rascal".

2012–2015: ''New Eyes''

In December 2012, Clean Bandit released their debut single "A+E", which peaked at number 100 on the

. In March 2013, they released their second single "

". The song peaked at number 17 on the

. Their third single " Dust Clears" charted at number 43 in the UK. The band's fourth single "

" featuring

was released on in January 2014 and topped the

. It was the fastest-selling song released in January since 1996 and ended 2014 as the year's second best-selling song in the UK (behind " Happy" by

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...

), selling over 1.13 million copies. "Rather Be" also reached number one in Austria, Finland, Germany, Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, whilst charting at number ten on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In April 2014, the band made their TV debut on BBC's '' Later... with Jools Holland''. The following month, they announced a 14-date headline tour of the UK. Retrieved 26 May 2014. The band's debut studio album ''

'', was released in June 2014 by

Atlantic Records UK Atlantic Records Group LLC is an umbrella label owned by Warner Music Group. It oversees several labels assigned to its Atlantic Records unit. In total, the label group has nearly three hundred artists on its roster. History In 2004, Time Warner ...

. In September 2014, they performed with the

BBC Philharmonic Orchestra The BBC Philharmonic is a national British broadcasting symphony orchestra and is one of five radio orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation. The Philharmonic is a department of the BBC North Group division based at Media ...

MediaCityUK MediaCityUK is a mixed-use property development on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal in Salford, Greater Manchester, England. The project was developed by Peel Media; its principal tenants are media organisations and the Quayside MediaCi ...

. In November, the band collaborated again with Jess Glynne, on their single " Real Love". It reached number two on the UK Singles Chart. The same month, the band performed as part of the charity group

Band Aid 30 Band Aid 30 is the 2014 incarnation of the charity supergroup Band Aid. The group was announced on 10 November 2014 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, with Geldof stating that he took the step after the United Nations had contacted him, saying help w ...

alongside other British and Irish pop acts, recording the latest version of the track "

Do They Know It's Christmas? "Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a charity song written in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was first recorded by Band Aid, a supergroup assembled by Geldof and Ure consisting of pop ...

" to raise money for the 2014 Ebola crisis in

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

. In February 2015, "Rather Be" won the

at the

57th Annual Grammy Awards The 57th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 8, 2015, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The show was broadcast live by CBS at 5:00 p.m. PST ( UTC−8). Rapper LL Cool J hosted the show for the fourth consecutive time ...

. The group recorded a 30-piece orchestral version of "Rather Be" at

Abbey Road Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music c ...

for

Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer Group plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks's or Marks & Sparks) is a major British multinational retailer with headquarters in Paddington, London that specialises in selling clothing, beauty, home ...

's Christmas 2015 advertising campaign. Clean Bandit 2

2016–2019: ''What Is Love?'' and Neil Amin-Smith's departure

In May 2016, the band released the single "

Tears Tears are a clear liquid secreted by the lacrimal glands (tear gland) found in the eyes of all land mammals. Tears are made up of water, electrolytes, proteins, lipids, and mucins that form layers on the surface of eyes. The different types of ...

" featuring ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...

'' 2015 winner

Louisa Johnson Louisa Johnson (born 11 January 1998), also known mononymously as Louisa, is a British singer. In 2015, she won the twelfth series of ''The X Factor''. She subsequently released her winner's single " Forever Young", which peaked at number nin ...

, which later appeared in their second studio album. The song peaked at number five in the UK, following a performance on ''

Britain's Got Talent ''Britain's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated to ''BGT'') is a televised British talent show competition, and part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. Presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly (colloquially ...

''. In October 2016, it was announced that violinist and pianist Neil Amin-Smith had decided to leave Clean Bandit. Two days later, the group released their first song as a three-piece without Amin-Smith: " Rockabye", which features rapper

and singer Anne-Marie. "Rockabye" became their second number one hit in the UK, and remained at the top spot for nine weeks. It went on to become the Christmas number one single for 2016. The song also reached number one in Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland. It additionally charted at number nine on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In March 2017, the trio released "

", a collaboration with Swedish singer

. The song topped the UK Singles Chart, becoming the group's third number one single in the country. They gave their first live performance of the song on ''

The Voice UK ''The Voice UK'' is a British singing competition television series. Created by John de Mol, it premiered on BBC One during the spring television cycle on 24 March 2012. Based on the original ''The Voice of Holland'', and part of ''The Voice ...

''. " Rockabye" was recorded at The Crypt Studio in London. In June, the band released the studio version of " Disconnect" with

Marina Diamandis Marina Lambrini Diamandis (; el, Μαρίνα-Λαμπρινή Διαμάντη; born 10 October 1985), known mononymously as Marina (often stylised in all caps), and previously by the stage name Marina and the Diamonds, is a Welsh singer and ...

. The track was previously performed at the 2015

Coachella Festival The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. I ...

In October 2017, the band announced the single " I Miss You", featuring renowned songwriter

. It charted within the top five of the UK and has been certified platinum. In May 2018, the band released the second album's fifth single, "

Solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Comics * ''Solo'' (DC Comics), a DC comics series * Solo, a 1996 mini-series from Dark Horse Comics Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''S ...

", featuring vocals from

. It topped the charts in the UK the following month and has received a platinum certification in the country. In November 2018, sixth single "

Baby An infant or baby is the very young offspring of human beings. ''Infant'' (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'unable to speak' or 'speechless') is a formal or specialised synonym for the common term ''baby''. The terms may also be used to ...

" was released, featuring

and

. Clean Bandit released their second album '' What Is Love?'' in November 2018. The album features collaborations with Rita Ora, Ellie Goulding, Craig David, Anne-Marie, and Charli XCX.

2020–present: Forthcoming third studio album and new projects

Against the backdrop of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, the band produced a 'House Party' event fortnightly in place of the live shows which they would've performed if the pandemic hadn't happened. Clean Bandit produced six of these house parties in total, from April to July, many featuring vocals from their singer Yasmin Green. In early August 2020, as their live home music performances gained credit, the band agreed with Global Citizen to host a 12-hour long 'Houseparty Against Hunger' on 8 August, to raise money for the charity to help fight poverty-related hunger. The event consisted of one hour-long sets from DJs around the world. Clean Bandit hosted the event and played at the start and end of proceedings, with their set-up the same as that used in their original house parties. Kirsten Joy, one of the band's singers, performed along with

Becky Hill Rebecca Claire Hill (born 14 February 1994) is a British singer from Bewdley, England. She rose to prominence after appearing on the first series of the then BBC (now ITV) talent contest ''The Voice UK'', auditioning with John Legend's "Ordin ...

Joel Corry Joel Corry (born 10 June 1989) is an English DJ, producer and television personality. He came to prominence in 2019 with the release of his single " Sorry", featuring vocals from Hayley May (who was not credited in the official music video), whi ...

MNEK Uzoechi Osisioma "Uzo" Emenike (born 9 November 1994), professionally known by his stage name MNEK (, ), is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. He has been nominated for a Grammy and a Brit Awards, Brit Award, and has received the ...

and a guest appearance from

. On 17 August, Clean Bandit announced they would be releasing a new single, titled " Tick Tock" with singer Mabel and rapper 24kGoldn. It was released on 21 August 2020. On 26 January 2021, Clean Bandit announced their new single "Higher" featuring American rapper

. The song was released on 29 January 2021. On 30 July 2021, Clean Bandit released their new single "

Drive Drive or The Drive may refer to: Motoring * Driving, the act of controlling a vehicle * Road trip, a journey on roads Roadways Roadways called "drives" may include: * Driveway, a private road for local access to structures, abbreviated "drive" ...

" with German DJ

Topic Topic, topics, TOPIC, topical, or topicality may refer to: Topic / Topics * Topić, a Slavic surname * ''Topics'' (Aristotle), a work by Aristotle * Topic (chocolate bar), a brand of confectionery bar * Topic (DJ), German musician * Topic (g ...

featuring Wes Nelson. On 24 September 2021, Clean Bandit released a remix of the famous 80s hit song

How Will I Know "How Will I Know" is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her Whitney Houston (album), self-titled debut studio album. The song was released on November 22, 1985, by Arista Records as the album's third Single (music), single. ...

in collaboration with

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston in ...

. On 18 February 2022, Clean Bandit released a new dance/electronic song featuring

A7S Alexander Michael Tidebrink Stomberg (born 3 May 1994), known by his stage name A7S, is a Swedish producer, songwriter, and singer. His collaboration "Breaking Me" with German artist Topic (DJ), Topic was released on 19 December 2019. It reached ...

called "Everything but You". On 9 September 2022, Clean Bandit released a new single "Sad Girls" with rapper

French the Kid French the Kid is a British rapper and singer. Born in Harold Hill, his family moved to Australia and France while he was a child. He moved back to the UK in his teens, beginning to release freestyles on Instagram in 2018. Early life French the ...

featuring Rema. On 21 September, Clean Bandit released another single, "Don't Leave Me Lonely" in collaboration with the songwriter

Elley Duhé Elley Duhé (born February 14, 1992) is an American singer. Born in Mobile, Alabama, she is best known for her 2018 single "Happy Now" with Zedd, which was certified platinum in the United States, and her 2020 single "Middle of the Night" which ...

Musical style

Clean Bandit are an electronic, electropop and dance-pop band. The band mixes electronic music with classical pieces by composers such as

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

and

Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, , group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and was regarded throughout his life as a major compo ...

Political views

In May 2017, Clean Bandit endorsed the Labour Party and

Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...

in the

2017 UK general election The 2017 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 8 June 2017, two years after the previous general election in 2015; it was the first since 1992 to be held on a day that did not coincide with any local elections. The governing C ...

. In June, the band supported a Labour Party rally in Birmingham. In June 2018, they headlined the Labour Live festival in London. In November 2019, they endorsed the Labour Party in the 2019 UK general election. In December 2019, along with 42 other leading cultural figures, they signed a letter stating that "Labour's election manifesto under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership offers a transformative plan that prioritises the needs of people and the planet over private profit and the vested interests of a few. " They endorsed

Rebecca Long-Bailey Rebecca Roseanne Long-Bailey (' Long; born 22 September 1979), is a British politician and former solicitor serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Salford and Eccles since 2015. A member of the Labour Party, Long-Bailey served in the Shadow ...

in the 2020 Labour Party leadership election.

Members

Current members *

– cello, keyboards, percussion, vocals * Jack Patterson – keyboards, vocals, piano, bass, guitar, violin, producer, DJ, saxophone * Luke Patterson – drums, percussion Current touring musicians * Stephanie Benedetti – violin * Yasmin Green – vocals * Kirsten Joy – vocals * Sam Skirrow – bass * Dan Paisley – guitar Former members * Neil Amin-Smith – violin, piano * Ssegawa-Ssekintu Kiwanuka – vocals Former touring musicians * Patrick Greenberg – bass * Simon Marlin – guitar * Braimah Kanneh-Mason – violin * Nikki Cislyn – vocals *

Florence Rawlings Florence Rawlings (born 26 September 1988) is an English singer from South London, England. She first met Dramatico Entertainment chairman Mike Batt when she was 13 years old. He was auditioning female vocalists, and two of them stood out to him ...

– vocals *

Elisabeth Troy Elisabeth Troy Antwi is a British singer and songwriter. She appeared on several top 40 hit singles in the UK, including MJ Cole's " Crazy Love" and "Hold On to Me" in 2000 and B.Traits' "Fever" in 2012.David Jhonson Roberts ''British Hit Singles ...

– vocals * Christina Hizon - vocals, piano * Ezinma – violin * David Gane – drums, percussion * Tom Varrall – guitar * Molly Fletcher – violin

Discography

* ''

'' (2014) * '' What Is Love?'' (2018)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Cleanfilm.co
{{Authority control 21st-century classical musicians 21st-century English musicians 2008 establishments in England Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge Atlantic Records artists Black Butter Records artists Grammy Award winners for dance and electronic music English electronic music groups English pop music groups Musical groups established in 2008 Musical groups from Cambridge Labour Party (UK) people