MADOKA BIO

Veteran music producer and DJ Mark Venneri has been part of the music industry for over 25 years. Under the Madoka name, he manages Metamotional Music and Private Reality Records.

From a simple start as a teenager experimenting with cheap cassette decks, toy keyboards, and second-hand DJ mixers to the complex, lush and layered music of his self-described Saturated Sound today, Mark has always been considered an innovator by critics and fans alike. He was instantly attracted to the underground electronic music scene after discovering an early warehouse rave in Philadelphia in 1991. Creatively, he has been reshaping his musical vision ever since that inspiring moment.

Mark first established himself as a bedroom DJ under the name DJ Relate. During the mid-1990s, he played house parties and club nights in Philadelphia and the Midwest. He also helped organize and promote a variety of large-scale events as part of a collective of local DJs. From 1996 to 1998, he hosted Grooveshop, his college radio show on KCOU 88.1 FM.

In 1998, he introduced his unique sound to the world with his first 12-inch vinyl record. He marketed the release on his Private Reality Records, promoting it at the Miami Winter Music Conference that same year along with the help of a good friend.

In 2000, Mark moved to New York City to lay the foundation for the next phase of his musical journey and introduced his newly forged artist name Madoka. During that period, he spent the entire year developing the direction of his music, focusing intensely on the craft of his production quality.

He materialized some solid ideas by the spring of 2001, and the creative restructuring resulted in Madoka’s My City demo. While shopping around My City to select record labels and powerhouse DJs, he received valuable feedback from many industry leaders, including a call from Plastic Fantastic Records in the UK. They seized the moment and signed “Dive.” The tune would ultimately be paired with a Mo Shic & Zidan remix for international release and would later be heavily supported by Sasha and Digweed on their Delta Heavy tour.

Mark used the accomplishment as creative fuel. With a solid effort now under his belt and mass appeal building, his production style continued to evolve.

In early 2002, Mark was thrilled to accept the opportunity of a lifetime for his imprint, announcing a multi-year vinyl production and distribution deal with 3 Beat Label Management UK (3BLM). The arrangement included work on all future releases, incorporating Private Reality into 3BLM’s impressive stable of leading labels.

Over the next five years, he delivered a steady stream of Madoka singles and remixes that found homes on various record labels, including Deep, Deep Focus, SAW, Definity, Shinemusic, Babylon, and Mo-Do. His music was featured on several DJ compilations such as Max Graham’s Shine, Trendroid’s Transport 6, Andy Jarrod’s Vapourized Volume 3, Steve Gerrard’s Thinking Out Loud, and Kazell’s Driven.

His success continued as his now-classic single “Metamotional” found its way onto one of 2006’s most critically-acclaimed compilations: Ben Watts’ Buzzin’ Fly, Volume 3. The song maintained a year of heavy rotation with Watt which began with his BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix in February 2005.

In October 2004, Mark turned his attention from his vinyl endeavor with Private Reality to the rising digital domain. He launched his new record label Metamotional Music, paying homage to one of his favorite songs.

2005 reignited his passion for performing and marked his return to the DJ arena. He played global events in destinations such as Tokyo, Amsterdam, Turkey, Bulgaria, Vienna, New York, and Jacksonville Beach. In 2007, he released his first full-length Madoka album entitled A Cure for Loneliness on Metamotional Music. The collection featured a fresh set of eight original songs, setting a new creative standard for the label.

Mark resurrected both record labels in 2015 and redesigned the Metamotional website, integrating an online music store called MetaShop to release his music. A refined Madoka sound emerged and he marked his return that same year with his Beacon EP. The new release kickstarted the next chapter in his ever-evolving musical story.

More recently, he unleashed his album Speak For Yourself. The record is his first full-length set since 2007’s A Cure For Loneliness. Speak is a fresh, focused, steady, and slow-building collection of new material from Madoka, firmly setting the stage for the future of his Saturated Sound. The album was followed by new singles “Future Unwritten” and “Future Written.”

revised: may / 2021

DISCOGRAPHY
(1997 TO NOW)

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