Timbaland

Timbaland was born in Norfolk, Virginia on 10 March 1972. His real name is Timothy Zachary Mosley. Mosley earned four Grammy Awards and founded his own label, Mosley Music Group.

Timothy enjoyed hip-hop since childhood. At the end of the 1980’s, he started honing his DJing skills. Sometimes, the aspiring artist attended local parties in his native town and demonstrated his talents. After graduating high school, Mosley bought himself a cheap keyboard and continued practicing. His first project was a duo with a rapper Magloo. Soon the young men joined a group SBI, whose member was Pharrell Williams (part of the famous The Neptunes duo).

At about the same time, Melissa Arnette Elliotte was the rising star of Virginia. She performed under the pseudonym, Missy. In 1990, Missy formed a band Fayze and invited Tim Mosley to record a demo album.

During one of Fayze’s performances, DeVante Swing heard the musicians. At that time, he worked with the band Jodeci and had his own label, Swing Mob. Swing offered the band a contract. Missy and Mosley moved from Virginia to New York and began working on a new album. At that time, Fayze was renamed to Sista. It’s worth noting that DeVante Swing was the one, who came up with the pseudonym, Timbaland. It originated from the popular brand name Timberland.

Timothy started working in several Swing Mob projects, among which were Jodeci, Ginuwine, and Sista. The label wasn’t doing too well, and Sista had to forget about the album. The group left the company and decided to work independently.

Between 1996 and 2002, Timbaland worked as a producer for such musicians as Ludacris and Jay-Z. He also helped record several songs for Aliyah, who tragically died in 2001. It was a tough time for Mosley. He switched to working with Missy Elliott and Lil’ Kim.

Soon Timbaland got an offer to work on Justin Timberlake’s first solo album. In 2004, he worked on singles for Jay-Z, Xzibit, and Jennifer Lopez.

In 2006, the artist formed his own label, Mosley Music Group, which produced albums for such artists as Nelly Furtado, D.O.E., and Keri Hilson. Timbaland also worked on Timberlake’s new LP, FutureSex/LoveSounds.

While working as a producer, Timbaland was honing his singing skills. He helped record "Wait a Minute" for Pussycat Dolls and "Promiscuous" for Nelly Furtado. Mosley also worked with such celebrities as 50 Cent, Bjork, and Duran Duran.

In 2007, the rapper recorded his first solo album, Shock Value. He invited such artists as Nelly Furtado, 50 Cent, Dr. Dre, and Missy Elliot to work on the project. Mosley even managed to get assistance from Elton John. The single “Apologize”, recorded with OneRepublic became a huge hit.

The next year, Mosley returned to producing and started working with Ashlee Simpson, Madonna, Busta Rhymes, and others.

In 2009, Timbaland released a new LP with a simple name Shock Value II. Again, he invited numerous celebrities to help record it. This time, the famous producer and singer worked with Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, and Justin Timberlake. The single “If We Ever Meet Again” with Katy Perry became platinum.

He was nominated for a Grammy Award 13 times and won the prize four times: twice for Best Dance Recording and twice for Best R&B song (as a songwriter). At that time, many clubs wanted to book Timbaland for different events.

In 2013, the artist signed a contract with the label Roc Nation, which belonged to Jay-Z, and became the lead producer for Timberlake’s LP, The 20/20 Experience, which featured such singles as "Suit & Tie" and "Mirrors". At about the same time, Timbaland worked with Beyoncé on “Grown Woman”.

Between 2013 and 2016, Mosley worked on many solo projects and produced different songs for other artists.

In 2016, Timbaland joined his old friend Missy Elliot to record a single "Somebody Else Will" for her LP Charlene.

In 2018, the rapper released a mixtape, Drop.

Timbaland is working on a new LP, Textbook Timbo. The release date is currently unknown. The artist is releasing new songs on a regular basis. One of the latest singles is "Grab the Wheel". It was recorded with 6lack.