Maaike Kito Lebbing, known professionally as Kito, is an Australian record producer, songwriter and DJ currently based in Los Angeles, California. Between 2011 and 2014, she was a member of the duo Kito & Reija Lee, and in 2012 collaborated with Feadz on Electric Empire. She has released an EP in 2018 called Haani and a number of singles, and has remixed songs for others as well as producing songs. In 2019 she was nominated for the Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year (Los Angeles) at the 2020 Global APRA Music Awards.
Biography
Kito grew up in the small town of Denmark, Western Australia,[1] and first began producing music as a teenager using FruityLoops.[2] At 17, Kito moved to Perth to study fashion, however soon quit and began working at a record store while studying music for a year at TAFE.[1] Kito began working as a DJ at nightclubs in Perth, and in 2006 travelled to Europe for a year, which led her to develop a love of dubstep and inspired her to become a full-time musician.[1]
In 2008, she debuted her first releases through Skream's Disfigured Dubz label.[2] Kito later sent demos of hers which she had created with friend and vocalist Reija Lee to producer Diplo on MySpace, which caused him to sign them to his label Mad Decent as a duo.[2][3]Kito & Reija Lee relocated to London in 2011,[4][3] releasing their debut extended playSweet Talk in the same year, as well as remixing Beyoncé's "Run the World (Girls)".[5] Kito collaborated with Feadz in 2012 on the EP Electric Empire,[6][7] and in 2013, rapper Trinidad James sampled the group's song "Run for Cover" for his song "Females Welcomed", which was also later used as a sample for Big Boi, T.I. and Ludacris' song "King Shit".[8] The group released a second EP in 2014, II,[8] however disbanded in 2015. Kito remained in London and worked as a producer, creating songs for musicians such as Mabel, and worked on Jorja Smith's 2018 debut album Lost & Found.[4]
After a break-up in 2017, Kito moved back to her hometown in Western Australia, and recorded her second solo EP, Haani.[9] The EP, released in the following year, featured collaborations with musicians such as Elley Duhé, Broods and Hudson Mohawke.[9] She soon relocated to Los Angeles,[10] and after signing to Astralwerks/EMI Music Australia released "Wild Girl", a collaboration with Empress Of,[11] soon followed by "Alone with You" featuring AlunaGeorge.[12]
