Beneath Your Beautiful

Album: Electronic Earth (2012)
Charted: 1 34
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This romantic ballad finds Labrinth duetting with "Heaven" songstress Emeli Sandé. Labrinth explained to The Sun: "Me and ("Cooler Than Me" singer) Mike Posner were working together and came up with this. Emeli came in later on. We decided to get her on the record because she's a great talent. I love her."
  • The song also featured on the repackaged deluxe edition of Sandé's debut album Our Version Of events, which was released on October 8, 2012.
  • After slipping out of the UK singles chart the previous week, the grammatically challenged "Beneath Your Beautiful" rebounded to #1 following a show-stealing performance by Emeli Sandé on the X Factor show.
  • Labrinth's only previous #1 was as an unaccredited vocalist on Tinie Tempah's debut single "Pass Out." He also achieved a brace of #2 singles, Tempah second single "Frisky" on which he was credited as a featured artist and his own solo hit "Earthquake."

    Emeli Sande had already topped the chart as a featured artist on Professor Green's "Read All About It."
  • The song was the last track to be lifted from Electronic Earth. "Usually when you're on your last single and you've gone to the end of your album, it's the first singles that explode," Labrinth commented to Digital Spy. "So to achieve a number one on the last single was quite sick."
  • The song jumped into the higher reaches of the US iTunes sales chart following a stellar TV performance by Labrinth and Sandé on America's Got Talent.
  • Asked by Billboard magazine why he picked Sandé as the female perspective on the track, Labrinth replied: "Emeli, I felt, had enough soul. And enough lyrical ability along with it to represent that area of the song."
  • Sophie Muller (Beyoncé, Rihanna, Lana Del Rey) directed the music video, which has Labrinth and Sandé performing the tune in front of a screen featuring photos of the two singers.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Prince

PrinceFact or Fiction

Prince is shrouded in mystery, making him an excellent candidate for Fact or Fiction. Is he really a Scientologist? Does he own an exotic animal?

Alan Merrill of The Arrows

Alan Merrill of The ArrowsSongwriter Interviews

In her days with The Runaways, Joan Jett saw The Arrows perform "I Love Rock And Roll," which Alan Merrill co-wrote - that story and much more from this glam rock pioneer.

Van Dyke Parks

Van Dyke ParksSongwriter Interviews

U2, Carly Simon, Joanna Newsom, Brian Wilson and Fiona Apple have all gone to Van Dyke Parks to make their songs exceptional.

Jesus Christ Superstar: Ted Neeley Tells the Inside Story

Jesus Christ Superstar: Ted Neeley Tells the Inside StorySong Writing

The in-depth discussion about the making of Jesus Christ Superstar with Ted Neeley, who played Jesus in the 1973 film.

Amy Grant

Amy GrantSongwriter Interviews

The top Contemporary Christian artist of all time on song inspirations and what she learned from Johnny Carson.

Janis Ian: Married in London, but not in New York

Janis Ian: Married in London, but not in New YorkSong Writing

Can you be married in one country but not another? Only if you're part of a gay couple. One of the first famous singers to come out as a lesbian, Janis wrote a song about it.