Clean Bandit: The Life Story Behind the Rather Be Hitmakers
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Clean Bandit make music that should not work, and that is why it works so well. They mix classical instruments like the violin and the cello with dance beats, pop singers and electronic sounds, and the result is bright, joyful and completely their own. When their song Rather Be reached the top of the charts in 2014, it sounded like nothing else on the radio: a classical melody, a dance beat, and a voice singing about love with a warmth that made people smile. It was a new sound, and it came from a group of friends who had studied music together at Cambridge.
The band formed in Cambridge in 2008, and its core members are Grace Chatto, who plays the cello, Jack Patterson, who plays bass and keyboards, and Luke Patterson, who plays drums. A fourth member, Neil Amin-Smith, played the violin in the early years and left in 2016. The band’s name, Clean Bandit, came from a joke about a Russian phrase, and it stuck. They began by making music videos and remixes, and they built their sound slowly, learning how to put classical strings beside electronic beats without losing either one.
Their journey has brought them a Grammy Award, number one hits in Britain and around the world, and songs that are still played at weddings, parties and festivals. Rather Be, featuring Jess Glynne, won a Grammy for Best Dance Recording. Rockabye, featuring Sean Paul and Anne-Marie, became a huge hit in 2016. Symphony, featuring Zara Larsson, followed in 2017. Their albums, New Eyes in 2014 and What Is Love? in 2018, showed a band that loved working with other singers and that never stopped trying new sounds.
Students at Cambridge
Grace Chatto, Jack Patterson and Neil Amin-Smith met while studying at the University of Cambridge, one of the oldest and most famous universities in England. Chatto studied music, Patterson studied architecture, and Amin-Smith studied music as well. Cambridge gave them a place where young people who loved classical music could meet young people who loved dance music, and the band grew out of that meeting. They were not trying to be a pop band at first. They were trying to see what would happen if they put a string quartet beside a dance beat.
Jack Patterson’s brother, Luke Patterson, joined on drums, and the group began to make music together in student rooms and small venues. They played classical pieces, they played dance music, and they began to write their own songs. The early work was experimental, and it was fun. They made music videos for their friends, they remixed songs by other artists, and they learned how to produce music on computers. The band’s sound was built in those student years, one small experiment at a time.
Cambridge also taught them how to work hard. Studying at a famous university is demanding, and the band members had to balance their studies with their music. That balance taught them discipline, and it taught them how to finish a project even when time was short. They did not have a lot of money, and they did not have a big studio, but they had each other, and they had the belief that their strange mix of sounds could work. That belief kept them going through the early years, when few people outside Cambridge knew their name.
By 2008, the band had a name and a clear idea of what they wanted to be. They called themselves Clean Bandit, and they began to release music online. Their early songs were shared by friends, and the friends shared them again, and the circle widened. People who heard them noticed the difference. This was not a normal dance band, and it was not a normal classical group. It was something new, and the newness was exciting.
Rather Be and a Grammy
The band’s breakthrough came with Rather Be, a song featuring the singer Jess Glynne, released in 2014. The song was bright and joyful, with a violin melody that sounded like a classical piece and a dance beat that made people move. Glynne’s voice was warm and strong, and the words were about loving someone so much that you would rather be with them than anywhere else in the world. The song became a number one hit in Britain, and it became a hit around the world as well.
Rather Be won the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording in 2015, one of the biggest honours in music. For a band that had started in student rooms in Cambridge, it was a remarkable moment. The Grammy said that their strange mix of sounds was not just a curiosity. It was a new kind of dance music, and the world was ready for it. The band accepted the award with joy, and they used the attention to reach new listeners.
Their debut album, New Eyes, was released in 2014, and it included Rather Be as well as other songs like Extraordinary, featuring Sharna Bass, and Come Over, featuring Stylo G. The album showed the band’s love of working with other singers. Instead of having one lead singer, Clean Bandit worked with many different voices, choosing the right singer for each song. That way of working became their signature. They were not a band with a star singer. They were a band that made music with friends, and each song had a different voice.
Touring for New Eyes took them around the world, and their live shows became famous for their energy. Chatto played the cello on stage, Amin-Smith played the violin, and the Patterson brothers drove the beat. The shows were joyful, with the band smiling and dancing as they played. Audiences loved the mix of classical instruments and dance music, and the band learned how to bring their studio sound to a large stage without losing its warmth.
Rockabye, Symphony and a New Line Up
After the success of Rather Be, Clean Bandit faced a hard moment. In 2016, Neil Amin-Smith left the band, and the group had to learn how to work as a trio. Amin-Smith had been a key part of their sound, and his violin had given many of their songs their classical feeling. The band did not try to replace him with another violinist. They changed their sound, using more electronic sounds and working with more singers, and they found a new way forward.
Rockabye, released in 2016, was the song that showed the new Clean Bandit. It featured Sean Paul and Anne-Marie, and it told the story of a single mother working hard to care for her child. The song was bright and catchy, but the words were serious, and that mix made it powerful. It became a number one hit in Britain and a huge hit around the world, and it showed that the band could still make big songs without their original violinist.
Symphony, released in 2017 and featuring Zara Larsson, was another huge hit. It was a song about love and loss, with a melody that stayed in the mind and a beat that made people dance. The song became one of the band’s most loved tracks, and it was played at weddings, on the radio and in clubs around the world. The band’s second album, What Is Love?, was released in 2018, and it included both Rockabye and Symphony, as well as other songs with singers like Demi Lovato, Marina and Luis Fonsi.
The album showed the band’s way of working at its best. Each song had a different singer, a different feeling, and a different story, but all of them had the Clean Bandit sound: bright, joyful and full of strings and beats. The band had learned how to make an album from many different voices, and the result was a record that felt like a party with many friends, each one bringing a different gift.
Working With Singers Around the World
One of the most interesting things about Clean Bandit is the way they work with other singers. Most bands have one singer, and the audience learns that voice. Clean Bandit have worked with dozens of singers, from Jess Glynne to Zara Larsson, from Anne-Marie to Demi Lovato, and each song sounds different because each voice is different. That way of working takes a special skill: the band must listen to a singer, understand what makes their voice special, and write a song that fits them.
The band’s studio in London became a place where singers from around the world came to work. They would arrive with an idea, the band would play them a beat, and together they would build a song. That process was collaborative and joyful, and it gave the band a wide range of songs. A song with Sean Paul sounded different from a song with Zara Larsson, and a song with Marina sounded different from a song with Luis Fonsi. But all of them had the same bright feeling, the same love of melody, and the same belief that a pop song can be both fun and honest.
That way of working also helped the band stay fresh. Instead of writing the same kind of song again and again, they were always learning from a new singer. Each collaboration taught them something new about melody, about rhythm, and about the way a voice can carry a feeling. The band’s music grew because of those collaborations, and their audience grew too, because each new singer brought their own fans to the band’s songs.
The band have also worked with singers from many countries, and their music has travelled around the world. Their songs have been hits in Britain, in Europe, in America and beyond, and they have played festivals in many countries. That worldwide success comes from the universality of their sound: a good melody, a strong beat, and a voice singing about love are things that people understand in every country, in every language.
The Sound of Strings and Beats
Clean Bandit’s sound is built on a simple idea: classical instruments and dance beats belong together. The violin and the cello can play melodies that are beautiful and sad, and the dance beat can make those melodies move. When the two are put together, the result is music that is both elegant and joyful. It is music that can be played in a concert hall and in a nightclub, and that is a rare achievement.
Grace Chatto’s cello is at the centre of that sound. The cello is a warm and deep instrument, and Chatto plays it with a feeling that makes the songs human. Jack Patterson’s keyboards and bass give the songs their shape, and Luke Patterson’s drums give them their energy. Together, the three of them make a sound that is bigger than any one instrument. It is the sound of friends who have played together for many years, and who know each other’s playing by heart.
The band’s music videos are also part of their story. From the early days, they made videos that were funny, colourful and full of life. Their videos often told a small story, with the band playing in strange places and the singers acting out the song’s words. Those videos helped their songs travel online, and they showed the band’s sense of humour. Clean Bandit have never taken themselves too seriously, and that lightness is part of why people love them.
Their sound has influenced other musicians, who have learned from them that classical music and pop music can live together. Many young artists now mix strings with beats, and many of them point to Clean Bandit as one of the bands that showed it could be done. The band never set out to be teachers, but their example has taught a lesson anyway: a good idea, even a strange one, can become a new sound if you work at it with care.
Still Making Music, Still Together
In the years since What Is Love?, Clean Bandit have continued to release new songs and to work with new singers. They have released tracks with artists from many countries, they have played festivals around the world, and they have kept the same trio at the centre: Chatto, Jack Patterson and Luke Patterson. They have not rushed a third album, and they have taken their time to find the right songs. That patience is part of their way of working. They would rather release one good song than ten songs that do not feel right.
The band’s story is also a story about friendship. The three core members have known each other for many years, and they have been through success, through the loss of a band member, and through the pressure of fame together. They have stayed together because they still enjoy making music with each other, and because they still believe in the strange idea that started the band: that a cello and a dance beat belong together.
Looking back, the story of Clean Bandit is a story of a new sound. They started as students in Cambridge, they mixed classical music with dance music, they won a Grammy, they had number one hits with many different singers, and they did it all with joy and humour. Their songs are still played at weddings, at parties and on the radio, and they still make people smile. That is a good legacy for a band that began with a joke and a strange idea.
The Music Videos and the Visual Joke
Clean Bandit have always loved making music videos, and their videos are part of why their songs travel so far. From the early days in Cambridge, they made videos for their friends, with small budgets, funny ideas, and a sense of joy that made people share them online. Those early videos were not polished. They were playful, with the band playing in strange places, with friends dancing, with jokes that made people smile. That playfulness became part of the band’s identity, and it stayed with them even after they became famous.
The video for Rather Be is a good example. It tells a small story about a woman in Tokyo, about love, about the city, and about the feeling of being far from home. The video is beautiful and funny at the same time, and it carries the song to people who might never have heard the band otherwise. A good music video does not just show the band playing. It tells a story, and Clean Bandit’s videos tell stories that are warm, funny and human. That is why their songs are shared so widely online.
The video for Rockabye tells a different kind of story, about a single mother working hard to care for her child. The video is serious and moving, and it shows that the band can make a video that is not just a joke. It can make a video that tells a real story about a real life, and that story makes the song stronger. When a listener watches the video, they understand the words better, and they feel the song more deeply. That is the power of a good video, and Clean Bandit understand it.
Their videos also show the band’s love of classical music and dance music together. In many of their videos, Grace Chatto plays the cello in a strange place, a street, a field, a rooftop, and the contrast between the classical instrument and the modern setting makes people smile. That visual joke is the same as the musical joke: a cello and a dance beat should not work together, but they do, and the surprise is part of the joy. The band’s videos make that surprise visible, and that is why they are so memorable.
Making videos also taught the band how to work with other artists. A video needs a director, a camera, actors, and a story, and the band learned how to collaborate with many kinds of people. That skill helped them in the studio as well, where they work with many different singers. Collaboration is at the heart of Clean Bandit, in their music and in their videos, and it is the reason their work feels like a party with many friends, each one bringing a different gift.
The band’s videos have also helped their songs in other countries. A video can be understood without words, and a funny or beautiful video can travel across borders even when the lyrics are in English. Clean Bandit’s videos have been watched millions of times around the world, and they have brought the band’s music to listeners in many countries. That worldwide reach comes from the universality of their images: a good melody, a strong beat, a smile, and a story about love are things that people understand everywhere.
What I find most interesting about their videos is that they never take themselves too seriously. Even when the song is serious, the video has a lightness, a humour, a sense that the band are enjoying themselves. That lightness is part of why people love them. A band that can laugh at itself is a band that is comfortable with itself, and that comfort makes the audience comfortable too. Clean Bandit have that comfort, and it is the result of many years of making music and videos together, as friends.
The band’s later singles have kept that same spirit of collaboration. They have worked with singers from many countries, and each new song has brought a new voice to their sound. That way of working means the band never run out of ideas, because each singer brings a new melody, a new feeling, and a new story. It also means their audience never knows what the next song will sound like, and that surprise is part of the joy of following Clean Bandit. A band that is always meeting new voices is a band that is always learning, and that learning keeps the music fresh.
Their tours in recent years have also shown how much people love hearing strings and beats together in a live room. When Chatto plays the cello on stage, the crowd can see the instrument, can hear its warm sound, and can feel the difference between a live string and a recorded one. That live feeling is something a computer cannot copy, and it is the reason their concerts feel special. A Clean Bandit show is a reminder that pop music can be played by real musicians, with real instruments, and that the result can be both joyful and beautiful.
My Take:
When I listen to Clean Bandit, the first thing I feel is happiness. Their songs are bright, they make me want to move, and they sound like a party where everyone is welcome. But underneath that happiness, there is always a real feeling, and I think that mix is what makes them special. Rather Be is a joyful song, but it is also a song about loving someone so much that you would rather be with them than anywhere else. Rockabye is a catchy song, but it is also a song about a mother working hard for her child. That mix of joy and truth feels honest to me, because real life is often like that: happy on the outside, serious on the inside.
I think the most admirable part of their story is the courage to mix two kinds of music that most people keep apart. Classical music and dance music are often seen as opposites: one is serious and old, the other is fun and new. Clean Bandit put them together, and the result was a new sound that nobody had heard before. That takes courage, because a strange idea can easily fail. But the band believed in their idea, they worked at it for years, and the world eventually caught up with them. I think young musicians should remember that. The strangest idea in the room can become the best idea, if you have the patience to make it work.
I also admire Grace Chatto, and the way she plays the cello on a pop stage. The cello is not a normal pop instrument, and a cellist is not a normal pop star. But Chatto stands on stage, plays her cello, and makes it look like the most natural thing in the world. She shows that a classical musician can be a pop star without losing her training, and that a pop band can be smarter than people expect. I think that is an important lesson. A band does not need to follow the rules about what instruments belong in pop music. It can bring its own instruments, its own training, and its own ideas, and the audience will follow if the songs are good.
There is a sadness in their story, too, and it is the sadness of losing a band member. When Neil Amin-Smith left in 2016, the band lost a friend and a key part of their sound. His violin had given many of their early songs their classical feeling, and the band had to find a new way forward without him. I think they did it well, with Rockabye and Symphony showing that they could still make big songs as a trio. But I also think the loss changed them, and that change is part of their story. A band that loses a member must grieve and grow at the same time, and Clean Bandit did both with grace.
Another thing I notice is how much their music depends on other singers. Jess Glynne, Zara Larsson, Anne-Marie, Sean Paul, Demi Lovato: each one brought a different voice to the band’s songs, and each song sounds different because of that voice. That way of working is generous, because it shares the spotlight with many people. But it also means that the band themselves are sometimes hard to see. People remember the singer, and they forget the three musicians who made the song. I think that is unfair, because Chatto and the Patterson brothers are the heart of the band. Their music is the reason the singers sound so good, and they deserve more credit than they sometimes get.
I find their Grammy win especially moving, because it was a recognition of a new sound. Rather Be won Best Dance Recording in 2015, and that award said that dance music could be made with a violin and a cello, not just with computers. I think that message matters for young musicians. It tells them that they do not need to copy the sound of the moment. They can bring their own training, their own instruments, and their own ideas, and the world will listen if the music is good. Clean Bandit proved that, and I am glad the Grammy went to a band that had earned it by being brave.
If I have a criticism, it is only that their albums can sometimes feel like collections of singles rather than complete records. Because each song has a different singer, the albums can feel uneven, with one song sounding very different from the next. That is the price of their way of working, and I would not want them to lose it. But I do think a listener who is new to the band can feel lost, because there is no single voice that tells you who Clean Bandit are. You need to listen to many songs before the picture becomes clear. That is not a real fault, though. It is a sign that the band is richer than a single singer, and that richness is worth the effort.
I also think about their live shows, and how joyful they must be. A Clean Bandit concert is a party, with strings, beats and singers all together on stage, and the crowd dancing and singing along. I would love to be in that crowd, to hear the cello and the violin beside the dance beat, and to feel the joy that the band clearly feels when they play. That is a rare feeling in pop music, where so many shows are polished and distant. Clean Bandit feel close and human, and that closeness is part of why people love them.
When I compare Clean Bandit with other pop acts of their time, what stands out is their cleverness. They are not just a pop band. They are musicians who studied music, who understand classical harmony, and who use that knowledge to make pop songs that are smarter than they sound. That cleverness is hidden under a bright and joyful surface, and I think that is the best kind of cleverness: the kind that makes you smile first, and think later. A song that is both fun and smart is a rare thing, and Clean Bandit make many such songs.
For a young reader, I think the clearest lesson is about mixing ideas. Clean Bandit mixed classical music with dance music, and the result was a new sound. That lesson matters far beyond music. It matters for anyone who has two different interests and is told to choose one. Their story says you do not need to choose. You can put the two things together, and the result can be better than either one alone. That is a hopeful thought, and it is one I will carry with me.
I also take a personal lesson from their patience. They started as students in Cambridge, they made music videos for friends, they remixed other people’s songs, and they built their sound slowly, one experiment at a time. They did not become famous overnight. They became famous after years of work, and the fame lasted because the work was good. That tells me that slow work, done with care, can still win. I do not need to rush. I can build something piece by piece, and if it is honest, people will find it.
In the end, I think Clean Bandit matter because they prove that pop music can be both joyful and clever. Their songs make people dance, and they also make people think about love, about family, and about the strange beauty of mixing old and new sounds. When I hear Rather Be today, I still feel the happiness, I still feel the love, and I still feel the surprise that a cello and a dance beat can sound so good together. That is a good pop song, and it is a good legacy for a band that started with a joke and a strange idea.
One more thought stays with me, and it is about the future. I do not know when their third album will come, and I do not need to know. I trust that when it comes, it will sound like them: bright, joyful, and full of strings and beats. That trust is something a band earns over many years, and Clean Bandit have earned it. I will keep listening, not because they are the loudest band in the world, but because they are one of the most joyful, and joy in music is rarer than it should be.
I also think about what I would say to a friend who had never heard Clean Bandit. I would start with Rather Be, because it is their most famous song, and then I would play Rockabye, and then Symphony, and I would let the friend hear how the band works with different singers. That is the best way to meet this band: through the voices first, and then through the strings and beats that hold those voices together.
There is another lesson in their story that I keep coming back to, and it is about the value of mixing ideas. Clean Bandit mixed classical music with dance music, and the result was a new sound. That tells me that a person does not need to choose between two interests. They can put them together, and the result can be better than either one alone. That is a hopeful thought, and it is one I will carry with me into my own work.
I also wonder what their next album will sound like, and I find that I do not mind not knowing. Some bands make me want to guess, to predict, to follow every rumour. Clean Bandit make me want to wait. I trust that when the record comes, it will be bright, it will be joyful, and it will sound like them. That trust is a rare thing to feel about a band, and it is the result of many years of good work. A band that has never let me down earns the right to be waited for.
When I think about Grace Chatto’s cello, I think about how it has changed over the years. On the first album it sounded like a classical instrument in a pop song, a surprise. On the later albums it sounds like the heart of the band, a voice that is always there, warm and deep. That change is not about technique. It is about confidence, and confidence grows slowly, through years of playing, through years of standing on stage, through years of learning that your instrument belongs in pop music. I find that growth hopeful, because it shows that a musician, like a person, can become stronger with time.
I also think about the listeners who found this band during hard times. Many people discovered Clean Bandit at a wedding, at a party, at a moment of joy, and the songs became part of their happiest memories. Those listeners did not find the band in a quiet room. They found them in a crowd, dancing, and the songs stayed with them when they went home. That is a special kind of success: not a hit that everyone hears at once, but a song that becomes part of a person’s life, and stays.
If I could ask the band one question, I would ask them how they choose a singer for a song, how they know which voice fits which melody. I suspect the answer would be simple: they listen, they try, and they trust their ears. That simplicity is the heart of their story, and it is the reason their music still sounds fresh. A band that listens to itself will always sound honest, and honesty is the rarest sound in popular music.
In the end, what I carry from Clean Bandit is a feeling of joy. Their music does not shout, it does not beg, and it does not try to be everything at once. It is a bright, clever sound, made by three friends who listen to each other, and it reaches people all over the world. That is enough, and it is more than enough. It is a reminder that joyful work, done with care, can still be heard, even in the noisiest of times.
Frequently Asked Questions
How did Clean Bandit form?
Clean Bandit formed in Cambridge in 2008, after Grace Chatto, Jack Patterson and Neil Amin-Smith met while studying at the University of Cambridge. Jack’s brother Luke Patterson joined on drums, and the group began mixing classical strings with dance beats.
What is Clean Bandit’s most famous song?
Rather Be, featuring Jess Glynne, is their most famous song, a number one hit in Britain that won the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording in 2015. Rockabye and Symphony are also huge hits from later years.
Why did Neil Amin-Smith leave Clean Bandit?
Neil Amin-Smith, the band’s violinist in the early years, left the group in 2016. The remaining trio of Grace Chatto, Jack Patterson and Luke Patterson continued, changing their sound and finding new success with Rockabye and Symphony.
What albums has Clean Bandit released?
Their studio albums are New Eyes from 2014 and What Is Love? from 2018. New Eyes included Rather Be, while What Is Love? included Rockabye, Symphony and songs with singers like Demi Lovato and Zara Larsson.
Who sings on Clean Bandit songs?
Clean Bandit work with many different singers, choosing the right voice for each song. Jess Glynne sang Rather Be, Anne-Marie and Sean Paul sang Rockabye, and Zara Larsson sang Symphony, among many other collaborations.
Where does the name Clean Bandit come from?
The name came from a joke about a Russian phrase, and the band kept it from their early student days in Cambridge. It has stayed with them ever since, even as they became famous around the world.
Is Clean Bandit still making music?
Yes, the trio of Grace Chatto, Jack Patterson and Luke Patterson have continued to release new songs and play festivals in the years since What Is Love?, working with singers from many countries and taking their time over new music.
