It took more than a year for Labrinth to finally release “Never Felt So Alone,” one of his Euphoria season two standouts originally left off the show’s soundtrack — but it was well worth the wait. That’s because none other than Billie Eilish joined him for the song’s official release, a collaboration the 34-year-old producer revealed has been a long time in the making.
“I’ve been a fan of Billie for a long time,” Lab told Eddie Francis on Apple Music 1’s New Music Daily show in an interview that aired Friday (April 7). “I think she’s an amazing artist. I remember Noah [Cyrus] was doing some of the same shows Billie was in that time, and everybody kept on coming back talking about this Billie Eilish girl.”
“Then I think the first time I heard her on a record was ‘Bury a Friend,” he continued, noting he’d also met Finneas, Eilish’s brother and producer, years beforehand. “And I was just like, ‘This is a sick record.’”
It wasn’t until Lab sent “Never Felt So Alone” to Eilish that he discovered that she’d been a fan of his for just as long as he’d been following her. “Once I started piecing the song together, I was just like, “Do you know what? I think this is the moment where I think Billie would be a sick addition,’” the “Mount Everest” musician said.
“When we spoke, she was like, ‘Lab, I’ve been listening to your music for years.” I was like, ‘What?’ It was like, ‘Billie? What? You?’ She was like, ‘Yeah, been a fan.’ She was like, ‘I love this song as well, so I would love to do it with you.’”
The two artists first started teasing their team-up in the weeks leading up to its Friday release, with Eilish leaving comments on Labrinth’s promotional Instagram posts about the track. A figure that resembled her then appeared in a trippy teaser video for the project.
The clues extend even farther back, though, as the two performed the song together during Labrinth’s guest appearance at Eilish’s December hometown shows at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif.
“That was big for me because I felt like we both get each other musically,” he added of the new collaboration. “It didn’t feel foreign to me, and I love what she’s done on the record.”
Lab also explained why it took so long for “Never Felt So Alone” to be released alongside its fellow soundtrack songs: It had actually been intended for his upcoming album, which he’d sent to Euphoria creator Sam Levinson. “I sent him my album alongside composing music for the show, and they ended up using it on the show,” he recalled. “But I always planned in the future to make it into a song, and I just always loved that hook.”
“Then when it showed up in Euphoria, it just seemed like everybody felt the same way I did, but I always planned to make that into a song,” he added. “I just loved it so much. And I was like, ‘I’m going to turn this thing into something.’ And this was the moment I was just like, ‘I feel like I’m ready to do it.’”
Listen to “Never Felt So Alone” featuring Billie Eilish below:
