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
Instruments	Vocals • keyboards
Years active	2009–present
Labels	Columbia RCA Syco

Timothy Lee McKenzie (born January 4, 1989), known as Labrinth, is a British singer, songwriter, rapper, and music producer. He became famous for his unique blend of pop, R&B, and electronic music.

Labrinth signed with Simon Cowell's record label Syco Music in 2010. He first worked with British rapper Tinie Tempah, appearing on hit songs like "Pass Out" and "Frisky". His first solo song, "Let the Sun Shine", also became a top-five hit in the UK.

His first album, Electronic Earth (2012), reached number two on the UK charts. It included the popular song "Beneath Your Beautiful", which was his first song to enter the top 40 in the US. This song also hit number one in the UK and was nominated for a Brit Award. In 2014, he released "Jealous", which became a Platinum-selling song in the UK.

In 2018, Labrinth formed a supergroup called LSD with Australian singer Sia and American DJ Diplo. They released their first album in 2019. That same year, Labrinth created the music for the HBO TV show Euphoria. His work on Euphoria earned him two Primetime Emmy Award nominations, winning one for the song "All for Us". His second album, Imagination & the Misfit Kid, came out in November 2019.

Labrinth continued to compose music for Euphoria in 2022. The music for the second season was released in April 2022. He received two more Emmy nominations for songs from the show, "I'm Tired" and "Elliot's Song", which he wrote with Zendaya. Many people consider Labrinth to be one of the most important British musicians of his time. He has also worked with many famous artists like Beyoncé, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Eminem, Kanye West, and the Weeknd. His work on the Weeknd's album Beauty Behind the Madness earned him a Grammy Award nomination. He also helped produce the soundtrack for The Lion King: The Gift and co-wrote "Spirit" for which he received several award nominations.

Early Life and Musical Beginnings

Timothy Lee McKenzie grew up in Hackney, London. His family is from Jamaica. He comes from a very musical family with eight brothers and sisters. Their home was always filled with the sounds of black gospel music, which their parents loved. When he was young, he and his siblings even formed a band called Mac 9.

Labrinth went to Stoke Newington School. He started working on his music career while he was still in school. His older brother, Mac, who is also a music producer, showed him how to create music in his studio when Labrinth was just 15 years old. His cousin is the Irish boxer Tommy McCarthy.

Career Highlights

Starting Out in Music (2009–2010)

Labrinth began his career by producing a song called "Dead End" for the artist Master Shortie in 2009. This song helped people notice Labrinth as a talented producer and songwriter. He then signed a music publishing deal with EMI Music Publishing. From 2010 to 2011, Labrinth helped mentor a group called the Urban Development Vocal Collective (UDVC). He also produced many songs for them.

In February 2010, Labrinth was a guest artist on Tinie Tempah's first song, "Pass Out". He also produced and helped write this song. "Pass Out" became a number-one hit in the UK. It won Best British Single at the 2011 Brit Awards. A few months later, Labrinth and Tinie Tempah worked together again on "Frisky". This song reached number two in the UK.

During 2010, Labrinth also wrote music for other well-known artists.

Signing with 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 big moment because Labrinth was the first artist signed by Syco in six years who hadn't been on one of Cowell's TV talent shows.

Labrinth released his first solo song, "Let the Sun Shine", in September 2010. It reached number three in the UK. He also appeared on Devlin's song "Let It Go" in 2011.

Over the next year, Labrinth produced songs for other artists. He also helped with the 2011 Children in Need charity song "Teardrop", where he was also a performer.

His second solo song, "Earthquake", came out in October 2011 and featured Tinie Tempah. It debuted at number two in the UK. The song also did well in other countries like New Zealand and Australia. After releasing a third song, "Last Time", Labrinth released his first album, Electronic Earth, on April 2, 2012.

Labrinth performing in 2013

In May 2012, Labrinth performed at the Cheltenham racecourse to celebrate the Olympic torch passing through. He also performed at several university events. In June, he performed for 90,000 people in Norway. The song "Beneath Your Beautiful", featuring Emeli Sandé, became the album's sixth song and reached number one in the UK in November 2012. It also entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US.

In July 2012, Labrinth worked with Rihanna, helping to write and produce her song "Lost In Paradise". He also worked with Ed Sheeran and Devlin on their song "Watchtower".

On December 25, 2012, Labrinth released a free collection of songs called the Atomic EP. It featured many artists like Plan B and Ed Sheeran.

Collaborations and LSD (2013–2019)

Labrinth started working on his second album in 2013. He also appeared on two songs for Tinie Tempah's album Demonstration. In July 2013, he was featured on NBC's Today show, where he performed "Beneath Your Beautiful".

In October 2014, Labrinth released his song "Jealous", which he wrote in Nashville. It reached number 7 on the UK Singles Chart. Famous artists like Adele and Jessie Ware have praised this song.

In August 2015, Labrinth was featured on and co-produced the song "Losers" on the Weeknd's album Beauty Behind the Madness. This work earned him his first Grammy Award nomination for Album of the Year. He later co-produced "Stargirl Interlude" on the Weeknd's 2016 album Starboy. Labrinth also sang on "Fragile" with Kygo.

In 2016, Labrinth worked with Mike Posner on his album At Night, Alone.. Labrinth was featured on and co-wrote the song "Silence". He also produced and was featured in "Make Me (Cry)", the first song by Noah Cyrus. This song reached number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100. Labrinth and Cyrus continued to work together on several more songs. In December 2016, Labrinth performed a mix of Madonna's songs at the Billboard Women in Music event, chosen by Madonna herself.

In May 2017, Labrinth was featured on Sia's song "To Be Human" from the Wonder Woman movie soundtrack. In September 2017, Apple used Labrinth's song "Misbehaving" to announce their Apple Watch Series 3.

On May 3, 2018, Labrinth became a member of the supergroup LSD with Sia and music producer Diplo. They released their first song, "Genius", that same day. They then released "Audio" and "Thunderclouds". "Thunderclouds" was used to promote the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 and became LSD's highest-charting song. In November 2018, the group received a Grammy Award nomination for a remix of their song "Audio". Labrinth also co-produced and was featured on Nicki Minaj's song "Majesty" with Eminem.

In January 2019, Labrinth appeared in a Mini Countryman car ad, singing a version of "Don't Fence Me In". LSD released their first album, Labrinth, Sia & Diplo Present... LSD, on April 12, 2019. They also released a video for "No New Friends" and performed the song live on Ellen.

Euphoria and Imagination & the Misfit Kid (2019–2022)

After releasing his song "Miracle" in June 2019, Labrinth started composing music for the HBO TV show Euphoria. The show's creator, Sam Levinson, asked Labrinth to create music for the series while he was working on his own album. Some of Labrinth's original songs, like "Mount Everest" and "All for Us" (featuring Zendaya), were also used in the show. The show's music was released in October 2019. Labrinth's music for Euphoria was praised for mixing electronic, R&B, dance, and hip-hop sounds. In 2020, Labrinth received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for his work on Euphoria, winning one for the song "All for Us". He also won an Ivor Novello Award for Best Television Soundtrack.

Labrinth co-wrote and produced Beyoncé's July 2019 song "Spirit" from The Lion King soundtrack. This song was nominated for Grammy and Golden Globe awards. That year, Labrinth also worked with Kanye West, co-producing and singing on "God Is" from his album Jesus Is King.

On October 31, 2019, Labrinth announced his second album, Imagination & the Misfit Kid, with the song "Where the Wild Things". The album, which features Zendaya and Sia, was released on November 22, 2019. The song "Imagination" was used in an Apple advertisement in July 2020.

In October 2020, Labrinth released "No Ordinary", which was used in the Xbox Series X/S launch trailer. He also wrote and produced two songs for Sam Smith that year, including "Love Goes" and a Christmas song "The Lighthouse Keeper".

Labrinth composed the music for the Netflix original film, Malcolm & Marie, and was featured on Major Lazer's "Titans" in March 2021.

In 2022, he returned to compose music for Euphoria's second season. He also made a small appearance in episode four, performing "I'm Tired". The music for the second season was released in April 2022.

Recent Work (2023–Present)

Labrinth's third solo album, Ends & Begins, was released on April 28, 2023. It included 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

Labrinth has received many awards and nominations for his music. Here are some of them:

See also

In Spanish: Labrinth para niños