Mark Ronson pays tribute to Amy Winehouse as he wins BRITs Outstanding Contribution award

Riley Calderon

Published: March 1, 2026 7:44 PM ET

Mark Ronson pays tribute to Amy Winehouse as he wins BRITs Outstanding Contribution award

Mark Ronson accepted the Outstanding Contribution to Music prize at the 2026 Brit Awards and paid an emotional tribute to the late Amy Winehouse, a moment that drew praise and criticism and spotlighted long-running ties in his career.

Mark Ronson accepts Outstanding Contribution award

At the ceremony in Manchester, Mark Ronson, 50, collected the Outstanding Contribution to Music prize. He said, "It means so much to me to get this award, " and later described the honour as the most "meaningful honour" of his career, adding earlier this month: "This is the most meaningful honour of my career. I think of the times I've watched artists I revere accept this same award. The idea that I'm now standing in that lineage feels impossible. " He received the award from Skepta.

Tribute to Amy Winehouse on stage

Ronson made Amy Winehouse a central part of his set. He recalled that this week marks 20 years since he first met the late musician and said the pair wrote the hit "Back to Black" on the "same day" — an event he said changed his life forever. On stage he performed "Ooh Wee" with Ghostface Killah and delivered a rendition of "Back to Black" that included a clip of Winehouse speaking fondly of him and footage of "Valerie" alongside her band The Dap-Kings. The set moved on to "Uptown Funk" and was followed by a surprise appearance from Dua Lipa, who sang "Dance The Night" from the Barbie soundtrack and the collaboration "Electricity. "

Dionne Bromfield criticises the tribute

Amy Winehouse's goddaughter, Dionne Bromfield, 30, said she felt the Brit Awards missed an opportunity by not involving her in the tribute. Many viewers also believed a more personal touch could have been added. Bromfield initially reacted with a shrugging emoji and then issued a statement saying, "I want to be clear, this was never about me being on a stage for the sake of being seen or 'the look'. This is much deeper than that. " She added that "since Amy's passing, I've faced years of specific people within the industry and surrounding it, making it incredibly difficult for me to move forward and progress in my career. "

Bromfield — who first came to public attention after performing on Strictly Come Dancing with Winehouse on backing vocals — said the Brits "wasn't just about 'one moment'" and called seeing "so many of the people she loved musically included, while I wasn't" an "insult not just to me, but more importantly to Amy and her legacy. " She concluded: "I'm not one to air my dirty laundry, but there's only so much someone can take and sometimes things need to be called out. " In exchanges with fans she also said she "hasn't released music in a long time, and it hasn't been for lack of trying. I'll let you go figure... " and replied to a fan, "You would think! It definitely was NOT an oversight... " Bromfield was 15 when Winehouse died in 2011 at age 27 from alcohol poisoning.

Ronson reflects on a "dream" career

After receiving the gong, Mark Ronson reflected on what he called a "dream" career. He is noted in the coverage for collaborations on chart hits including Bruno Mars' "Uptown Funk" and Miley Cyrus's "Nothing Breaks Like A Heart. " One line in the wider coverage states that "Cyrus portrayed the titular double-life-leading pop star for four seasons, from 2006 to 2011. "

Other results and headlines from the weekend

Alongside the Ronson moment, Olivia Dean took home four awards at the ceremony, winning in every category for which she was nominated.

The broader set of headlines published with the event coverage included a range of unrelated items: a sports note that Crooks' fifth 40-point game tied her with Brittney Griner for the most 40-point games in Big 12 history; a tech mention that the AI Workmate Concept has an Intel Core Ultra processor, 64GB of memory and a built-in Pico projector; and that the ThinkPad X13 Detachable is presented as the lineup's spin on the Surface Pro. Other items noted that Wall Street was reacting to joint attacks from the US and Israel on Iran, with oil and currencies showing the greatest jumps, and that the Lenovo Modular AI PC concept is an ambitious mashup of a traditional clamshell and a dual-screen notebook with hot-swappable ports. Sports scheduling items included Iran being selected for Group G and scheduled to play New Zealand, Belgium and Egypt from June 15-26; a comment that Grichuk still hits left-handed pitching well, the role the Yankees envision for him; and that Jess McClain was led off the course with the lead during the final stretch by the lead bike in Atlanta. In college basketball coverage, UConn remains the No. 1 overall seed and is joined on the seed line by Texas in the NCAA women's basketball tournament committee's second and final Top 16 reveal on Sunday.

Mark Ronson said the music he made with Amy Winehouse provided the platform for later collaborations — thanking Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars and Dua Lipa — and added, "The music I made with Amy is the reason any of them know who I am anyway, so that's why I will also treasure her voice, her talent, our bond, all of it. " He was born in London but raised in New York, and he said of his British roots: "I left England as a kid, but this country runs through everything I've made. The UK artists I've worked with - their brilliance and refusal to compromise - shaped not just my work but how I understand what music should do. And more than anything, it's the crowds here who've sustained and showed up for me. The fans, the festival crowds, the record buyers and streamers - the love has always been overwhelming. I'm beyond grateful for all of it. "

What is scheduled next is unclear in the provided context.