‘Euphoria’ Composer Labrinth on His Season 2 Cameo and Writing ‘I’m Tired’ With Zendaya
21.02.2022 - 20:05
/ variety.com
Ellise Shafer SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not seen the first six episodes of “Euphoria” Season 2.Labrinth doesn’t necessarily consider himself a composer.“I know I am, but I don’t look at myself that way,” the 33-year-old tells Variety. “I’m just transmitting energy that I hear and see and feel.”Indeed, when most people think of a score, they likely hear music that is purely instrumental and orchestral.
But Labrinth’s “Euphoria” compositions push that envelope, often incorporating his lush vocals and quick-witted raps. Though it’s atypical, the score fits perfectly in the world of East Highland, where teenagers navigate a dark world of lust, drugs and violence.
Labrinth gives credit to show creator Sam Levinson for seeing “dimensions in me that maybe I didn’t see,” and views himself as a songwriter, producer and composer rolled into one, akin to Burt Bacharach. “There was a time when composers and producers were almost in the same place,” he says.
“I would maybe look at myself in that lane, where it’s like, I get inspired with a song as well as an orchestral piece or a sound. I use every angle of what I do to convey an energy.”Over the past two seasons, Labrinth’s atmospheric, genre-twisting score has become just as much a phenomenon as “Euphoria” itself, earning him a 2020 Emmy win for outstanding music and lyrics for “All for Us” as well as a music composition for a series nomination.
And as Season 2 has taken off, with its first episode marking the strongest digital premiere of any episode of an HBO series, enthusiasm for the show’s original music has only grown stronger.“The music’s not over for people, and I think that’s what we figured out in the show,” Labrinth says. “As soon as Season 2 came out, the
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