Steve McCutcheon (born 15 January 1972), known professionally as Steve Mac, is a British record producer, songwriter and musician. He has contributed to 30 number one singles in the UK Singles Chart.[1][2]
Career
Early career
Mac got his break in the music industry in the early 1990s when he wrote and produced the Nomad hit “(I Wanna Give You) Devotion“, that reached no.2 in the UK Singles Chart. In 1992, he became part of dance group Undercover, who had several European hit singles, including “Baker Street” and “Never Let Her Slip Away“.[3] McCutcheon formed, with Darren Pearce, the duo Gems for Jem. Their single “Lifting Me Higher”, sampling the Evelyn Thomas song “High Energy“, topped the UK Dance Chart in May 1995.[4][5]
He then met songwriter Wayne Hector, with the pair striking up a partnership that has seen them co-write and produce a range of chart songs.
Mac has gone on to work with some of the most recognised names in the music industry. He has written, co-written and produced hits for musicians including Ed Sheeran, Melanie C, Pink, Westlife, Little Mix, and many other UK and international singers.[6]
From his Rokstone Studios in London, the artists he has written and produced for have racked up over 200 million sales worldwide during his career. As well as a string of no.1 UK and international hits, Mac has also penned top 10 singles for artists such as Calvin Harris, Demi Lovato, One Direction, The Saturdays, Leona Lewis, and Rita Ora, among others.[7][8][9]
Work with Westlife
The producer has had a long-standing collaboration with Irish boyband, Westlife, dating back to the late 1990s. This artistic partnership resulted in him co-writing and producing four no.1 UK singles for the band. He has co-produced another five no.1 hits and produced three top five singles. Mac also co-wrote and produced the band’s 2000 hit Christmas single, “What Makes a Man” reaching no.2 in the UK singles chart.
2010–2017
Mac won the first of his two Brit Awards in 2010 for co-writing and producing the no.1 single “Beat Again” for British pop/R&B band, JLS.[10]
In 2012, the producer worked with a host of artists including Little Mix, The Wanted, The Saturdays, Susan Boyle, Il Divo, Boyzone, and Gareth Gates.
Mac was recognised in 2012, and then again in 2013 by picking up the ASCAP Song of the Year Award. The awards were in recognition of co-writing and producing the hits “Glad You Came” for The Wanted, and “You Make Me Feel…” by Cobra Starship, respectively.
Between 2013 and 2015, Mac worked with several musicians include James Blunt, John Newman, Union J, Calvin Harris, The Vamps, and Demi Lovato. He made several contributions to both James Blunt’s Moon Landing album that reached no.2 in the UK album chart and The Vamps’ Wake Up album that was a top 10 hit.
Mac scored another number one hit in 2016 with “Rockabye” by Clean Bandit featuring Sean Paul and Anne-Marie. The song reached the top of the UK singles chart, staying there for nine consecutive weeks. The single also won in the EDM Winning Songs category alongside his other co-produced track for Clean Bandit and Zara Larsson, “Symphony“.
In 2017, Mac picked up the Songwriter of the Year and Producer of the Year at the Music Business Worldwide A&R Awards and the ASCAP Founders Award for “his pioneering contribution to music, global success and a 27 year body of work”.[11]
The same year, Mac co-wrote Ed Sheeran‘s No. 1 single “Shape of You” with Sheeran and Johnny McDaid. The song broke chart history, spending 14 weeks at the top of the UK chart, and remaining in the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 in the US for 33 weeks. It also claimed the unique achievement of being the most-streamed song of all time on Spotify.[12][13][14]
He also received another Grammy nomination for Pink’s US top twenty single “What About Us“, which he wrote and produced.
2018–present
2018 saw the producer work with some of music’s most prolific names such as Chvrches, Years & Years, Celine Dion, Little Mix, Craig David, and Westlife.
Mac won the 2018 Brit Award for British Producer of the Year.[15] As well as the Brit Award, he also won both Songwriter of the Year and Song of the Year at the Annual ASCAP Pop Music Awards 2018 in LA.[16]
In another award recognising Mac’s work, the multi-platinum hit “Shape of You” he co-wrote and produced for Ed Sheeran picked up both a Grammy Award[17] and the Ivor Novello Award for PRS for Music Most Performed Work in 2017.[18]
Awards
Brit Awards 2018:
British Producer of the Year
35th Annual ASCAP Pop Music Awards 2018
Songwriter of the Year:
Song of the Year – Shape of You, Ed Sheeran | Strip That Down, Liam Payne ft. Quavo | Rockabye, Clean Bandit ft. Sean Paul | What About Us, P!nk
Music Business Worldwide A&R Awards 2017
Producer of the Year
Songwriter of the Year
ASCAP Song of the Year Awards 2013
Glad You Came, The Wanted: (Co-writer & Co-producer)
ASCAP Song of the Year Awards 2012
You Make Me Feel… Cobra Starship: (Co-writer & Co-producer)
Brit Awards 2010
Song of the Year: Beat Again, JLS (Co-written with Wayne Hector)
BMI Awards 2001
Pop Award: Swear It Again, Westlife (Co-written with Wayne Hector)
Songwriting and production discography
References
- ^ “Producer Steve Mac wins BRIT award: His biggest hits and forgotten gems”. Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ “Steve Mac: ‘There are no rules to pop music now. It just has to be of great quality.’“. Music Business Worldwide. 20 April 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ “Steve Mac: ‘There are no rules to pop music now. It just has to be of great quality.’“. Music Business Worldwide. 20 April 2017.
- ^ “GEMS FOR JEM songs and albums – full Official Chart history”. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
- ^ “GEMS FOR JEM Lifting Me Higher (Box 21)” (PDF). Hit Music. 134: 13. 6 May 1995.
- ^ “Universal Music Publishing Group | UK”. Umusicpub.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ “Dua Lipa, The Amazons, Steve Mac And MNEK Honoured With Prestigious ASCAP Awards At Ceremony In London Tonight”. Aascap.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ “pagenotfound”. www.ascap.com.
- ^ ““I feel truly humbled”: Steve Mac announced as recipient of The BRIT Award 2018 for Best British Producer”. Musicweek.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ “Meet the secret winner of The X Factor”. The Independent. 12 December 2010. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ “Steve Mac, Dua Lipa honoured at ASCAP Awards London”. Musicweek.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ McIntyre, Hugh. “Ed Sheeran’s ‘Shape Of You’ Is Now The Most-Played Song Ever On Spotify”. Forbes. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ Desk, TV News. “Kendrick Lamar, Bruno Mars, & Ed Sheeran Lead the 2018 Billboard Music Awards Nominations with 15 Each”. BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ^ “shape of you | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company”. Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
- ^ “Steve Mac announced as recipient of the BRIT Award 2018 for Best British Producer – bpi”. www.bpi.co.uk. Archived from the original on 18 June 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
- ^ “Lana Del Rey, Portugal. The Man, Desmond Child, UMPG Win Big at ASCAP Pop Music Awards”. Billboard. 24 April 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
- ^ “P!nk”. GRAMMY.com. 15 February 2019. Retrieved 18 February 2019.[dead link]
- ^ “Johnny McDaid, Ed Sheeran and Steve Mac”. The Ivors. 1 June 2018. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
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