Gorillaz are an English virtual band formed in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, from London. The band primarily consists of four fictional members: 2-D, Murdoc Niccals, Noodle, and Russel Hobbs (drums). Their universe is presented in media such as music videos, interviews, comic strips and short cartoons. Gorillaz' music has featured collaborations with a wide range of featured artists, with Albarn as the only permanent musical contributor.
Damon Albarn is an English-Icelandic musician, singer-songwriter and composer. He is the frontman of the rock band Blur and the co-creator and primary musical contributor of the virtual band Gorillaz.
Think Tank is the seventh studio album by the English rock band Blur, released on 5 May 2003. Continuing the jam-based studio constructions of the group's previous album, 13 (1999), the album expanded on the use of sampled rhythm loops and brooding, heavy electronic sounds. There are also heavy influences from dance music, hip hop, dub, jazz, and African music, an indication of songwriter Damon Albarn's expanding musical interests.
Richard Russell is an English record producer and the owner of British record label XL Recordings.
Jeffrey Wootton is an English musician, guitarist and songwriter from Manchester. He has been the lead guitarist in the Gorillaz since 2010.
Jessica Lois Ware is an English singer, songwriter and broadcaster. Ware came to prominence following the release of her debut studio album, Devotion (2012), which peaked at number five on the UK Albums Chart, produced the single "Wildest Moments", and was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize. Her second studio album, Tough Love (2014), reached number nine in the UK and produced the songs "Tough Love" and "Say You Love Me", which was followed by her third studio album, Glasshouse (2017), which reached number seven in the UK.
Roderick William George "Rodaidh" McDonald is a Scottish record producer and record company executive. He was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and currently resides in Los Angeles, California, United States. His production and mixing credits include The xx, King Krule, Adele, Sampha, Daughter, Savages, The Horrors, Bobby Womack, Vampire Weekend, Hot Chip, and Gil Scott-Heron.
Disclosure is an English electronic music duo consisting of brothers Howard and Guy Lawrence. They grew up in Reigate, Surrey. Their debut studio album, Settle, released on 3 June 2013, by PMR Records, was nominated for Best Dance/Electronica Album at the 2014 Grammy Awards. They released a second studio album, Caracal, on 25 September 2015 which was also nominated for Best Dance/Electronic Album at the 2016 Grammy Awards. Their third studio album, Energy, was released on 28 August 2020, and was nominated for Best Dance/Electronic Album at the 2021 Grammy Awards, alongside the fourth single from the album, "My High", which was nominated for Best Dance Recording.
Samuel Frederick Smith is an English singer and songwriter. In October 2012, they featured on Disclosure's breakthrough single "Latch", which peaked at number eleven on the UK Singles Chart. They were featured on Naughty Boy's "La La La", which became a number one single in May 2013. In December 2013, Smith was nominated for the 2014 Brit Critics' Choice Award and the BBC's Sound of 2014 poll, winning both.
Everyday Robots is the debut solo studio album by British musician Damon Albarn, best known as the frontman of Blur and Gorillaz. Described by Albarn as his "most personal record", the album was co-produced by Richard Russell and released on 25 April 2014. It features guest contributions from musician and producer Brian Eno, singer Natasha Khan and the Leytonstone City Mission Choir. It was nominated for the 2014 Mercury Prize for best album.
"Mr Tembo" is the fourth single released by English recording artist, songwriter and Blur/Gorillaz frontman, Damon Albarn, from his debut solo studio album Everyday Robots. Its release as a single was limited to the United States. The track features The Leytonstone City Mission Choir and contains a sample of "Lions", from the 1959 album Way Out Humor as written and performed by Richard Buckley. The track is produced by both Albarn and Richard Russell, whom Albarn had previously worked with on Bobby Womack's comeback album The Bravest Man in the Universe and on the DRC Music album, Kinshasa One Two.
"Heavy Seas of Love" is the fifth single by Damon Albarn, from his solo debut album, Everyday Robots. It was released as a single in digital formats on 27 April 2014, via Warner Bros. Records in the US. The song features Brian Eno and The Leytonstone City Mission Choir.
"Safe with Me" is a song by British singer Sam Smith, from their debut EP Nirvana (2013). It peaked at number 86 on the UK Singles Chart. The song was written by Sam Smith and Two Inch Punch, the latter also producing the song.
Maison Des Jeunes is a 2013 album by musician Damon Albarn in collaboration with African musicians for the Africa Express project that Albarn launched in early 2013.
Tough Love is the second studio album by English singer Jessie Ware. It was released on 13 October 2014 in the United Kingdom and 24 October 2014 in the United States. The album was supported by the singles "Tough Love", "Say You Love Me", "You & I (Forever)" and "Champagne Kisses".
"Tough Love" is a song by British singer Jessie Ware from her second studio album, Tough Love (2014). It was written by Ware, Benny Blanco, and Benjamin Ash and produced by the latter under the production pseudonym BenZel. The song was released in the United Kingdom as a digital download on 23 June 2014 as the lead single from the album. It peaked at number 34 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Ware's first domestic top 40 entry. Critically acclaimed, "Tough Love" was included on Pitchfork's list of the 100 best songs of 2014.
"Champagne Kisses" is a song by British singer Jessie Ware from her second studio album, Tough Love (2014). The song serves as the album's fourth official single, and a digital download containing two official remixes of the song was released in the United Kingdom on 20 April 2015. "Champagne Kisses" was written by Ware, Benny Blanco and Ben Ash, and was produced by BenZel.
Rory Charles Graham, better known as Rag'n'Bone Man, is an English singer. He is known for his deep baritone voice. His first hit single, "Human", was released in 2016, and his debut album of the same name was released in 2017. The album became the fastest selling debut album by a male for the decade and has since achieved 4× Platinum certification. At the 2017 Brit Awards, he was named British Breakthrough Act and received the Critics' Choice Award and went on to receive a further Brit Award for Best British Single, with the title track in 2018.
PMR Records is an independent record label founded by Ben and Daniel Parmar in 2011. Initially building recognition as a quintessentially British outlet plugged in to local dance/electronic music culture, with a keen awareness of the trajectory of pop music, PMR was responsible for the early development of Disclosure, Jessie Ware and Jamie Woon who have gone on to have mainstream success. It also nurtured specialist dance/electronic music acts such as Julio Bashmore and T.Williams.
Remi Kabaka Jr. is a British record producer, art director, percussionist and voice actor best known as the drummer and producer for British virtual band Gorillaz. He became a music producer for the band in 2015 after several years of providing the voice of Russel Hobbs and was listed as an A&R producer alongside Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett in the 2019 documentary Gorillaz: Reject False Icons. In 2007, Kabaka created the audiovisual collective Gorillaz Sound System.
