Fred again.. & Sampha

Biography

Fred again.. (Frederick John Philip Gibson, born 19 July 1993) and Sampha (Sampha Sisay) are two prominent UK artists who have frequently collaborated, blending electronic, house, R&B, and emotive pop elements. Fred began his career at age 16, joining an a cappella group mentored by family neighbor Brian Eno, and co-produced albums like Someday World and High Life with Eno and Karl Hyde in 2014. Sampha, a South London native, started making music in his early teens, breaking through in 2009 with a remix of the xx's 'Basic Space,' leading to early collaborations and his debut EP Sundanza on Young Turks. Their joint work exemplifies stutter house, house, and EDM styles, with Fred's innovative sampling of real-life voice notes and Sampha's fragile, expressive vocals creating deeply personal tracks.[3][1][4]

Fred's career exploded with the 2020 GANG mixtape alongside Headie One, featuring Sampha and FKA twigs, followed by the Actual Life trilogy (2021-2022), which sampled inspirational online videos and earned a Mercury Prize nomination for Actual Life 3. Sampha's 2017 debut album Process, recorded amid grieving his mother's death, topped UK charts and won the Mercury Prize, while he continued prolific collaborations. Together, they contributed to projects like GANG and Fred's ten days (2024), including the duet 'fear less,' marking transitions in Fred's style from Actual Life to new creative phases. Their partnership highlights Fred's production prowess—seen in hits for Ed Sheeran and George Ezra—and Sampha's sought-after songwriting across genres.[4][1][5][7]

Their legacy lies in elevating electronic and R&B through authentic, moment-captured music, with Fred headlining as the first electronic act at Reading & Leeds and Sampha influencing global stars. Collaborations like those on ten days with Four Tet and Anderson .Paak underscore their role in bridging underground and mainstream, fostering emotional depth in dance music amid Sam's ongoing contributions post-Process bonus edition in 2022.[3][7][1]

Fun Facts

• Fred again.. created his Actual Life albums using only an iPhone and laptop, sampling real-life voice notes from online videos during the 2020 lockdown to capture global emotions.
• Sampha's debut album Process was recorded while grieving his mother's death, with singles like 'Timmy's Prayer' co-written by Kanye West, and it won the 2017 Mercury Prize.
• Fred was the first electronic act to headline Reading & Leeds Festival and participated in the Red Bull Music Academy in Tokyo in 2014.
• Brian Eno was Fred's family neighbor, leading to early mentorship and collaborations starting at age 16.

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• Brian Eno - Mentor and early collaborator; family neighbor who hosted Fred's a cappella group at age 16 (Someday World, High Life (2014)) [2014 onwards]
• Brian Eno - Studied under Eno as a producer (Various early projects) [Early 2010s]

Key Collaborators

• Headie One - Mixtape partner (GANG (2020)) [2020]
• FKA twigs - Guest vocals on mixtape (GANG (2020)) [2020]
• Sampha - Frequent collaborator on vocals and features for Fred; reciprocal contributions (GANG (2020), ten days ('fear less', 2024)) [2020-2025]
• SBTRKT - Early collaborator for Sampha (Various tracks (2010-2011)) [2010-2011]
• Drake - Featured vocalist for Sampha ('Too Much' (2013), More Life (2017)) [2013-2017]
• Kanye West - Co-wrote and featured for Sampha ('Timmy's Prayer' (2016), The Life of Pablo) [2016]
• Four Tet - Contributor on album (ten days (2024)) [2024]
• Anderson .Paak - Vocals on tracks (ten days ('places to be', 2024)) [2024]

External Links

• Spotify
• Wikipedia