"Express Yourself" is a song by English musician

Labrinth Timothy Lee McKenzie (born 4 January 1989), better known by his stage name Labrinth, is an English singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Labrinth signed as a recording artist with Simon Cowell's record label Syco Music in 2010, ini ...

. Written by Labrinth and Charles Wright, it was released as the fourth

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

from his debut studio album, ''

Electronic Earth ''Electronic Earth'' is the debut studio album by English recording artist Labrinth released 2 April 2012, via Syco Music. The album peaked at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart. Background The album was released on 2 April 2012, by Simon Cowell' ...

'' on 7 May 2012. It interpolates " Express Yourself" by

Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band is an American soul and funk band. Formed in the early 1960s, they had the most visibility from 1967 to 1973 when the band had 9 singles reach Billboard's pop and/or rhythm and blues charts, ...

, which was the same song sampled by

N.W.A. N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip-hop group formed in Compton, California in 1987. Among the earliest and most significant figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, the group is widely considered one of the great ...

in their 1988 song of the same name, and the famous drum break from

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

's "

Funky Drummer "Funky Drummer" is a song by James Brown recorded in 1969 and released as a single in 1970. Its drum break, Musical improvisation, improvised by Clyde Stubblefield, is one of the most frequently sampling (music), sampled music recordings. Recor ...

". Labrinth premiered the song live during the results show of the fourth live-semi final of the sixth series of ''

Britain's Got Talent ''Britain's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated to ''BGT'') is a televised British talent show competition, and part of the global '' Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. Presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly (colloquial ...

'', on 9 May 2012. Maxumi Magazine commented that the track demonstrates "Labrinth's

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...

like ability to make cracking use of samples that pay homage to their originators whilst forming the basis for inventive new tunes".

Don Diablo Don Pepijn Schipper (; born 27 February 1980), better known by his stage name Don Diablo, is a Dutch DJ, digital artist, record producer, musician and songwriter of electronic dance music. He is one of the pioneers of the future house genre and ...

remixed the single, due to be released as part of the digital EP, but he later revealed via his

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

that the remix missed the deadline and therefore was not included on the iTunes package. This song is featured in a Windows 8 commercial.

Reception

Digitalspy.co.uk reviewed the single saying "From the gospel-inspired chorus in "

Let the Sun Shine "Let the Sun Shine" is the debut single from English musician, Labrinth. It was produced and written by Labrinth and Da Digglar, and was released on 27 September 2010 on Simco Ltd and Sony Records. The single is available on iTunes as an exten ...

" to the hi-wired grime beats on "

Earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

", Labrinth is quickly earning himself a reputation as the chameleon of the pop world. Better yet, it appears he still has plenty more ideas tucked up his sleeve, having told us he wants to put out eight singles from his debut LP ''Electronic Earth''. So what of release number four? The singer has tried his hand at

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

, interweaving singing legend Charles Wright's melody with his own contemporary and distinctly personal lyrics. "I don't make the papers, I'm far from

JLS JLS (initialism for Jack the Lad Swing) are a British boy band consisting of members Aston Merrygold, Oritsé Williams, Marvin Humes, and JB Gill; Williams formed the band. They initially signed with Tracklacers production company New Tr ...

/Ain't got the ''

X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

'', I'm not what they expect," he admits over funk-driven guitars, before the chorus of trumpets and sparkly synths shower down. It's a suit that fits him remarkably well, though given his history, we won't allow ourselves to enjoy it too much."

Music video

Several images of the music video were posted to

's official Facebook page prior to the release of the video. The official video was shot by French directorial duo

Jonas & François Jonas & François (Jonas Euvremer, François Rousselet), born in 1982, is a French directing team of music videos and commercials. They are signed to Division Paris for global rep. Videography 2006 :Kavinsky - "Testarossa Autodrive" 2007 :Just ...

. It was released on 16 May 2012, at a total length of three minutes and thirty-two seconds. The video depicts Labrinth parodying such programmes as ''

The Fresh Prince of Bel Air ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' is an American television sitcom created by Andy and Susan Borowitz that aired on NBC from September 10, 1990, to May 20, 1996. The series stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart ...

'', where he brings back the rotating throne from the sitcom's opening titles, ''

Ice Age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...

'' and ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...

'', recreating scenes from the show's opening sequences and also he is seen performing on a floor with comic book artworks covering it. The video uses the single remix of "Express Yourself", rather than the album version.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

In popular culture

* Featured in a 2020 commercial for Social Finance, Inc., (commonly known as

SoFi SoFi Technologies, Inc. (abbreviated as SoFi) is an American personal finance and financial technology company. Founded in 2011 at Stanford University, it operates as a direct bank and provides its technology platform to other financial institu ...

). *Used during the end credits of

Noel Clarke Noel Anthony Clarke (born 6 December 1975) is an English actor, writer, director and producer. Rising to prominence for playing Mickey Smith in ''Doctor Who'' (2005–2006, 2008, 2010), he received critical acclaim for writing, directing, and ...

's 2012 British sports film ''

Fast Girls ''Fast Girls'' is a 2012 British sports drama film directed by Regan Hall, and produced by Damian Jones. The film was written by Jay Basu, Roy Williams, and Noel Clarke. The film stars Lenora Crichlow, Lily James, Bradley James, and Rupert ...

References

{{authority control Labrinth songs 2012 singles Song recordings produced by Labrinth 2012 songs Syco Music singles Songs written by Labrinth