TuneAttic: find music, know music
TuneAttic: find music, know music
TuneAttic: find music, know music
TuneAttic: find music, know music
TuneAttic: find music, know music
TuneAttic: find music, know music
Sebastian Ingrosso

Sebastian Ingrosso is a Swedish house DJ and producer of Italian descent.  Remixing since 1999 and producing since 2001 Ingrosso has always worked closely with fellow Swedish house producers Steve Agnello and Axwell, collectively known as the Swedish House Mafia.  Ingrosso also runs his own record label Refune.

Sebastian Ingrosso scales of success
Sebastian Ingrosso timeline
'Together'
(Axtone Records 2005)
'Subliminal Sessions Eight'
(Subliminal 2005)

Early Years: 1999 to 2006

Sebastian Ingrosso is of Italian descent but grew up in Sweden.  He first learned music production skills as a teenager in his father’s recording studio and had his first remix released in 1999. 

Ingrosso’s first three releases were as part of Outfunk along with childhood friend Steve Angello.  Angello would become a long term collaboration partner and part of the Swedish House Mafia.  From the off, Outfunk’s releases such as‘Lost in Music’ (Joia Records, 2003) delivered the upfront dance-floor house sound that Ingrosso would become renowned for.   Subsequent early releases from Ingrosso saw him continue to hone his style, such as on the ‘Stockholm Disco’ E.P. with fellow Swede John Dahlbäck (Joia Records, 2004). 

In ‘Cross the Sky’ (Size Records, 2004) – another collaboration with Angello, this time under the alias General Moders – Ingrosso put a driving house beat and funky disco bass under a looped pop song sample, a technique that he has continued to use throughout his career.

In 2005 Ingrosso teamed up with Axwell, another fellow Swede house producer and the third future member of the Swedish House Mafia.  The track, ‘Together’ (Axtone Records, 2005) and another later collaboration ‘It’s True’ (Axtone Records, 2005) were more vocal driven, commercial and radio friendly than Ingrosso’s earlier productions.  Ingrosso continued to release more commercial tracks, such as ‘I Can’t get Enough’ featuring Alexandra Prince on vocals (Data Records, 2006), but he also produced more minimal, underground tracks such as ‘Click’ with Steve Angello (Joia Records, 2006).

'Miami 2 Ibiza'
(Virgin 2010)
'Until One'
(Virgin 2010)
'Sensation White
Amsterdam 2009
Later Years: 2007 to present

By 2008 Sebastian Ingrosso’s profile was in the ascendancy and resulted in the big break of producing, along with Steve Angello, David Guetta’s pop-house hit ‘Everytime We Touch’.

Despite this mainstream commercial success Ingrosso’s creative output in 2008 was more diverse than it had ever been, including the Michael Zager Band-sampling upfront disco house of ‘Body Crash’ (Positiva), the blissed out Ibiza house of ‘Chaa Chaa) (Size Records) and the dirty minimal tech-house of ‘555’ (Refune Records, 2008).  The fact that all three tracks were collaborations helps explain the diversity.

In 2009 Ingrosso teamed up with Laidback Luke and Steve Agnello for the upfront house track ‘Leave the World Behind’ (Axtone Records 2009).  Featuring the vocals of Deborah Cox, ‘Leave the World Behind’ combined a big piano riff, thumping kick drum and huge bass line to create dance floor smash that was Ingrosso’s biggest success to date.  The same year David Guetta returned to collaborate with Ingrosso, a testament to Ingrosso’s rapidly growing reputation considering the mainstream pop success Guetta was enjoying by this stage.  The track, ‘How Soon Is Now’ which featured Julie McKnight on vocals and also Dirty South, followed a similar blueprint to ‘Leave the World Behind’ with a big piano line underpinning a powerful vocal.

By 2010, Sebastian Ingrosso, Steve Agnello and Axwell teamed up for a series of releases under the alias Swedish House Mafia.  They had half-jokingly applied to them for some time and finally decided to actually use it as a band name.  Eric Prydz had also previously collaborated with various members under Swedish House Mafia alias.

The two big 2010 singles, ‘One (Your Name)’ and ‘Miami 2 Ibiza’ were overtly commercial with high quality promotional videos, big name male vocalists and an eye firmly set on an American audience.  The approach paid off, resulting in a level of mainstream global success none of the three Swede’s had achieved before, even when collaborating with David Guetta.  ‘Miami 2 Ibiza’ alone has 15 million views on YouTube.

Sebastian Ingrosso has over the course of a decade perfected a formula for upfront yet highly commercial house that sits as comfortably on the radio as it does the dancefloor. Along with Steve Agnello and Axwell he has been one of the driving forces of the new generation of Swedish house music producers which in turn have helped shape the entire mainstream house scene.

Sebastian Ingrosso learned his music production skills as a teenager in his father’s recording studio.