Labrinth facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Labrinth
Labrinth in 2016
Background information
Birth name	Timothy Lee McKenzie
Born	(1989-01-04) 4 January 1989 (age 36) Hackney, London, England
Genres	Pop R&B hip hop electronic grime soul rock funk
Occupations	Singer songwriter rapper record producer
Years active	2009–present
Labels	Columbia RCA Syco

Timothy Lee McKenzie (born January 4, 1989), known as Labrinth, is a talented English singer, songwriter, rapper, and music producer. He creates many different types of music, like pop, R&B, and hip hop.

In 2010, Labrinth signed with Simon Cowell's record label, Syco Music. He first worked with rapper Tinie Tempah on popular songs like "Pass Out" and "Frisky." His first solo song, "Let the Sun Shine," also became a big hit. All these songs reached the top five in the UK music charts!

His first album, Electronic Earth, came out in 2012. It became very popular, reaching number two in the UK. The song "Beneath Your Beautiful" was a huge success. It was his first song to reach the top 40 in the US and hit number one in the UK. In 2014, he released "Jealous," which also became a big hit.

In 2018, Labrinth started a supergroup called LSD. He formed it with Australian singer Sia and American DJ Diplo. Their first album, also called LSD, came out in 2019.

Labrinth also writes music for TV shows. In 2019, he created the music for the HBO show Euphoria. This music was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards and won one for the song "All for Us." His second album, Imagination & the Misfit Kid, was released in November 2019. He continued to compose for Euphoria in 2022, earning more Emmy nominations.

Many people call Labrinth "one of the most important British musicians of his generation." He has worked with many famous artists as a songwriter and producer. These include Beyoncé, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Eminem, Kanye West, and the Weeknd. His work on the Weeknd's album Beauty Behind the Madness was nominated for a Grammy Award. He also helped create the soundtrack for The Lion King: The Gift. He co-wrote the song "Spirit" for this project.

Early Life and Music Beginnings

Timothy McKenzie was born and grew up in Hackney, London. His family is from Jamaica. He comes from a very musical family. He has eight brothers and sisters. Their home was always filled with the sounds of black gospel music. His parents loved this type of music.

When he was young, he and his eight siblings formed a band. They called themselves Mac 9. Labrinth went to Stoke Newington School. He started working on his music career while he was still in school. His brother, Mac, is also a music producer. Mac showed McKenzie how to make music in his studio when Labrinth was 15 years old.

Music Career Highlights

Starting Out: 2009–2010

Labrinth began his career by producing a song called "Dead End." This song was for the artist Master Shortie's album A.D.H.D. in 2009. This song made people notice McKenzie as a talented producer and songwriter. A music publishing company, EMI Music Publishing, offered him a deal.

From 2010 to 2011, Labrinth helped mentor a group called Urban Development Vocal Collective (UDVC). He worked with his sister, ShezAr. He also produced many songs for this group. The singers from UDVC also sang backup for Labrinth's own songs.

McKenzie was a guest artist on Tinie Tempah's first song, "Pass Out." This song came out on February 28, 2010. Labrinth also produced and helped write the song. "Pass Out" became number one in the UK music charts. It also did well in Ireland and Australia. The song stayed at number one in the UK for two weeks. It won "Best British Single" at the 2011 Brit Awards. It also won "Best Contemporary Song" at the 2011 Ivor Novello Awards. The song sold over 600,000 copies!

A few months later, Labrinth and Tinie Tempah worked together again. They released Tempah's second song, "Frisky." McKenzie also helped write and produce this song. "Frisky" reached number two in the UK. It was number one in Scotland and number three in Ireland. In 2010, McKenzie also wrote songs for other artists. These included Professor Green and Ola Svensson.

Joining Syco and Electronic Earth: 2010–2012

Because of his success as a writer and producer, Simon Cowell's record label, Syco, signed Labrinth in June 2010. This was a special moment for Syco. Labrinth was the first artist they signed in six years who didn't come from one of Cowell's TV talent shows.

Labrinth released his first solo song, "Let the Sun Shine," on September 27, 2010. It reached number three in the UK. He was also featured on Devlin's song "Let It Go" in 2011. Labrinth also helped make a new version of the song "Express Yourself."

Over the next year, Labrinth produced songs for artists like Yasmin and Ms. Dynamite. He also worked on the 2011 Children in Need charity song "Teardrop." He performed on this song too.

Labrinth released his second solo song, "Earthquake," on October 23, 2011. It featured Tinie Tempah. The song reached number two in the UK charts. It sold over 115,000 copies in its first week! "Earthquake" also did well in other countries. It reached number twelve in Ireland and number five in New Zealand.

After releasing a third song, "Last Time," Labrinth released his first album. It was called Electronic Earth and came out on April 2, 2012.

In May 2012, Labrinth performed at the Cheltenham Racecourse. This was to celebrate the Olympic torch coming through Cheltenham. He also performed at several university shows. In June, he performed in Norway for a huge crowd of 90,000 people.

The song "Beneath Your Beautiful," which features Emeli Sandé, became the album's sixth song. It reached number one in the UK in November 2012. It was also Labrinth's first song to enter the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US.

In July 2012, Labrinth worked with Rihanna. He helped write and produce her song "Lost In Paradise." This song was on her album Unapologetic. Labrinth also worked with Ed Sheeran. He produced Sheeran's song "Watchtower" with Devlin. In 2014, Labrinth worked with Sheeran again. He produced Sheeran's song "Save Myself" from the 2017 album ÷.

On December 25, 2012, Labrinth released a free music collection called Atomic EP. It featured many artists like Plan B, Devlin, Wretch 32, and Ed Sheeran.

Working on Euphoria and Imagination & the Misfit Kid: 2019–2022

After releasing his song "Miracle" in June 2019, Labrinth started composing music for TV. He became the main composer for season 1 of the HBO show Euphoria. The show's creator, Sam Levinson, asked Labrinth to create music for the series. This happened while Labrinth was working on his second solo album.

Some of Labrinth's own songs are also in the show. These include "Mount Everest" and "All For Us," which features the show's main actress, Zendaya. The show's music was released on October 4, 2019. Labrinth's music for Euphoria was praised. People said it "perfectly complemented the journey of the main character."

In 2020, Labrinth was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on Euphoria. He won for "All for Us" and also won an Ivor Novello Award for Best Television Soundtrack.

Labrinth also helped write and produce Beyoncé's song "Spirit" in July 2019. This song was from the soundtrack of The Lion King movie. The song was nominated for Grammy and Golden Globe awards. That year, Labrinth also worked with Kanye West. He helped produce and sang on the song "God Is."

On October 31, 2019, Labrinth announced his second album. It was called Imagination & the Misfit Kid. The album has 15 songs and features Zendaya and Sia. It was released on November 22, 2019. The song "Imagination" was used in an Apple advertisement in July 2020.

On October 9, 2020, Labrinth released his song "No Ordinary." This song was used in the launch trailer for the Xbox Series X/S. Labrinth also wrote and produced two songs for Sam Smith that year. One was "Love Goes," which he also sang on. The other was a Christmas song called "The Lighthouse Keeper."

Labrinth composed the music for the Netflix original film, Malcolm & Marie. He also featured on Major Lazer's song "Titans" in March 2021. In 2022, he continued to compose music for Euphoria's second season. He also made a small appearance in one episode, performing the song "I'm Tired."

Recent Work: 2023–Present

Labrinth's third solo album, called Ends & Begins, was released on April 28, 2023. Before the album came out, he released songs like "Kill for Your Love" and "Never Felt So Alone."

Labrinth performed at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2023. Zendaya made a surprise appearance during his performance.

Discography

Studio Albums

• Electronic Earth (2012)
• Imagination & the Misfit Kid (2019)
• Ends & Begins (2023)

Soundtrack Albums

• Euphoria (Original Score from the HBO Series) (2019)
• Euphoria Season 2 Official Score (From the HBO Original Series) (2022)
• The Kitchen (Score from the Netflix Film) (2024)

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Labrinth para niños