Philip Lawrence

Philip Martin Lawrence II (born July 17, 1974) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur and voice actor, best known for his work with the songwriting and production team the Smeezingtons, alongside Bruno Mars and Ari Levine (in 2014, he lent his resonant baritone voice to make the synth-like bass line "dohs" in the song "Uptown Funk"). He has won eight Grammy Awards for his work. Lawrence's latest recording project, 24K Magic, won at the Grammys in the categories Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best R&B Song, Best R&B Album, and Best R&B Performance. He is also a voice actor, as he is the current voice of Sebastian since 2007, replacing Samuel E. Wright.

Lawrence was first widely recognized in 2010 when he received five nominations at that year's Grammy Awards, including his first nomination for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical. Between 2010 and 2012 he received ten Grammy nominations, and in 2013 won his first Grammy award with Bruno Mars for "Best Pop Vocal Album" for Unorthodox Jukebox. He returned again to the Super Bowl in 2016, performing parallel to Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, and Coldplay for another Halftime Show performance. Along with composing and producing hits for Bruno Mars, Lawrence has produced/wrote for Adele, Flo Rida, Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa, CeeLo Green and others.

Lawrence appeared in the Blue Sky Studios animated film Rio 2 as the character and voice of "Felipe". He also wrote, performed, and produced the song "It's a Jungle Out Here", as well as co-wrote "Welcome Back", for the soundtrack performed by Bruno Mars.

Lawrence founded CMNTY Culture, a multimedia venture that combines recorded music, film, television and theater production in one space. The first artist release under the CMNTY label is RMR, who took the world by storm with his genre defying song Rascal. In 2016, he purchased Record Plant recording studio in Los Angeles, California. Record Plant closed on July 8, 2024. He attended Reitz Memorial High School. He began taking songwriting seriously in college, and developed his core entertainment skills during his time as a performer at Walt Disney World in Florida. Over the course of the next 6 years, the team wrote and produced chart topping hits for a variety of musicians including Flo Rida, Matisyahu, B.o.B., CeeLo Green, Snoop Dogg, Wiz Khalifa, Adam Lambert, Adele and others. During this time, the trio also built the foundations for Bruno Mars and the Hooligans.

The trio has since separated amicably, with Lawrence and Mars continuing on with Bruno Mars and the Hooligans, and forming a new production company named Shampoo, Press & Curl with Christopher Brody Brown. Between 2010 and 2012, they completed their first world tour, Doo-Wops & Hooligans Tour, as well as the American Hooligans in Wondaland Tour with Janelle Monáe. Both tours gave the band the opportunity for mass exposure in multiple countries across the world. The success of this album earned Lawrence his first Grammy Award in 2013 for Best Pop Vocal Album. The world tour for Unorthodox Jukebox was the Moonshine Jungle Tour, which further spread their worldwide exposure and secured a $156 million box office gross over the course of the tour. It also marked the group's transition from theaters and ballrooms to stadiums and arenas, due to their increasing popularity and the success of their debut tour.

Their third album, 24k Magic (2016) marked the group's first album with the new songwriting and production team Shampoo, Press & Curl, consisting of Lawrence, Mars and Christopher Brody Brown. This has been the most successful album of the franchise, and swept the 2018 Grammy Awards, taking home wins for Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best R&B Song, Best R&B Album and Best R&B Performance. Along with their success at the Grammy Awards, the group also completed their most successful world tour to date, the 24k Magic World Tour, which has grossed more than $350 million worldwide.

In early 2018, Lawrence left the 24K Magic World Tour due to "an injury"., however was later confirmed on 26 June 2020, that he left as his wife had discovered he had been cheating on her. He did not return to the tour, choosing to focus instead on his other creative and business endeavors, leaving the Hooligans behind. In 2022, however, he did rejoin the Hooligans onstage during their mid-October concerts at Allianz Stadium. In 2026, Lawrence confirmed that he would not partake in The Romantic Tour, citing his recent marriage and wanting to spend more time with his children.

Lawrence has written music for Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (2020).

Influences Lawrence has composed and produced in a variety of musical genres and styles throughout his career, such as Pop, Rock, Hip-Hop, R&B, Reggae, Funk, Soul, Folk. He attributes his abilities to his upbringing in a very musical home.

Discography

Studio Albums Letters I Never Sent (2013)

Tours and residencies Tours Doo-Wops & Hooligans Tour (2010–12) Moonshine Jungle Tour (2013–14) 24K Magic World Tour (2017–18)

Co-headlining European tour with Travie McCoy (2010) (European select dates)

Opening act Hands All Over Tour (Maroon 5) (2010) (North American select dates)

Residencies Bruno Mars at The Chelsea, Las Vegas (2013–14) Bruno Mars at Park MGM (2017–18)

Filmography Film Rio 2 (2014) - Felipe (voice) Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (2020) - Trio Singer Peacemaker (2023) - Grandad (voice)

Television The High Fructose Adventures of Annoying Orange (2012) - Mix Master BLT, Granola Disney Comics in Motion (2019) - Sebastian (voice)

Video games The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer (2005) - Lucius Best/Frozone Disney Princess: Enchanted Journey (2007) - Sebastian Disney TH!NK Fast (2008) - Sebastian Kinect Rush: A Disney-Pixar Adventure (2012) - Lucius Best/Frozone Disney Princess: My Fairytale Adventure (2012) - Sebastian, Librarian, Man #1 Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom (2012) - Sebastian

Theme parks The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Undersea Adventure (2011) - Sebastian