Keith Flint is known to fans as the band's frontman. The Prodigy. He put a lot of effort into the "promotion" of the group. His authorship belongs to a significant number of top tracks and full-length LPs. Significant attention deserves the stage image of the artist. He appeared before the public, trying on the image of a maniac and a madman.
His life was cut short in the prime of his life. Keith committed suicide. Millions of The Prodigy fans have been orphaned. They were left without their idol.
Childhood and youth
He was born on September 17, 1969 in Redbridge, London. Flint was brought up in a family that is neither ideal nor prosperous.
The head of the family was a very tough and unpleasant person. Even in childhood, a mutual hatred for each other appeared between his father and Keith. The vicious circle was broken years later. After graduating from school, Keith left home and stopped communicating with his parents.
In one of his later interviews, Keith talked about how he got a strict upbringing from his father. In addition, in childhood, doctors diagnosed the boy with Dyslexia. He had difficulty remembering any information. The father was often angry with his son for not picking up on his thoughts. He even studied with psychologists, but the practice did not lead to anything. Keith claimed that his whole life is a long road to self-destruction.
Due to the frequent relocation of parents, Keith had to change several schools. He did not study very well, and the behavior of the teachers did not cause complaints. He was a quiet boy and did not cause inconvenience with his behavior.
Youthful maximalism
He spent his free time in a peculiar way. After school, he closed the door, turned on heavy music, sometimes beat his head against the wall. He had no plans for the future. Flint did not plan to study at the university, get a profession and a good position. When the head of the family drove his son out of the house, he began to travel.
Life has made its own adjustments, and he still had to take up the work. He worked as a laborer, as well as a merchant on the street rows. He earned enough money to live.
When he returned to the UK, he lived in Braintree. He took a job as a roofer. He changed his image. Flint started wearing an Afghan coat. In addition, he grew his hair, for which he received the nickname Sheepdog. He began to study dance. Keith was delighted with the music of Pink Floyd and the rave. The guy was a frequent guest at freeway parties.
At one of the parties, he met Lyra Thornhill. The man was dancing funk. The guys have become one of the most fascinating couples. Against the background of other musicians, they were distinguished by their originality. Soon the dancers met Liam Howlett.
The creative path of Keith Flint
When Flint heard Howlett's compositions at The Barn rave club in Braintree, he asked for an encore. Keith didn't sing then, didn't even think about picking up a microphone. He simply offered Howlett the services of a professional dancer. In the team, Liam took the place of the keyboardist.
The Prodigy was formed in the 1990s of the last century. The team became popular after the trinity of Howlett - Flint - Thornhill was joined by MC Maxim Reality and dancer Sharkey. A year later, the band presented their debut LP. Keith Flint became the face of the band, although he didn't actually sing until the mid-1990s.
Keith's face was decorated with piercings, and there were numerous tattoos on his body. The vocalist's eyes were lined with black eyeliner and his hair was dyed pink. The musician also interested the audience with non-standard behavior. During the performance, he jumped around the stage, shouting obscene language and shouting curses. The image of the frontman was complemented by bright stage costumes.
As a vocalist, Keith showed himself only in 1995. It was then that the musicians recorded the legendary single Firestarter. Finally, the audience saw not only the stage image, but was also able to appreciate the artist's vocal abilities. Flint's vocals were far from perfect. He managed to fall in love with music lovers thanks to the growling timbre and expression. In the mid-1990s, he changed his hairstyle. The frontman shaved off part of his hair and left the famous horns on the sides.
As part of a musical project, he recorded dozens of tracks that became immortal hits. The band's most successful LP that Flint contributed to was The Fat of the Land.
The creations of a non-standard group were recognized as terrible and insane. Parents wrote statements to the police about Flint. They asked for only one thing - to remove from the screens an artist who needs psychiatric help.
Before meeting with his wife, Keith did not live, but simply existed. The only occupation that kept him in this sinful world was music. Before meeting with his official wife, he talked a lot about suicide.
Details of privacy
Until the early 2000s, the artist was seen in a relationship with one of the popular presenters. The sweet couple was even given the nickname "Beauty and the Beast." Against the background of Flint Gale (the artist's lover) was an angel.
Soon the couple broke up, and Mayumi Kai took the place of Gayla. Flint said that when he first saw Kai, something immediately jumped in his heart. She quickly appeared in his life and completely changed it. The girl motivated the guy to leave bad habits. Keith stopped using drugs and alcohol. He quit smoking and changed his stage image. In 2006, the couple signed.
Flint loved his wife very much, but the couple was in no hurry to have children. At first he was an exemplary family man. He built a luxurious house for his family and spent considerable time with his wife. He also cultivated ornamental plants. Alas, the right habits did not last long.
In addition, sport quickly "burst" into his life. He was involved in various martial arts. Flint loved to run in the morning. His life began to resemble a real fairy tale.
The singer had another hobby - motorcycle racing. He took part in competitions, even created the Team Traction Control team.
Interesting facts about Keith Flint
- In the group, he was not only a vocalist, but also a dancer.
- In 1996, several tracks of the band took a leading position as the most listened to. They were: Firestarter and Breathe. The songs were sung by Keith.
- He constantly experimented with sound. Thanks to this, the fans of the band received selected and original music.
- No Tourists is the band's seventh LP, released in 2018. The collection was nominated for a Grammy Award. This is the last record where Flint's voice can be heard.
- He had several attempts to leave the group. He wanted to study philosophy.
Death of Keith Flint
The artist had an unbalanced character. This is confirmed by everyone who knew him. From time to time he talked about methods of suicide. Adding fuel to the fire was the fact that he had previously suffered from drug addiction. Keith said that he would not be able to commit suicide, because he considers himself a coward, and those close to him will not forgive him.
On March 4, 2019, he passed away. The singer did not live to see his 50th birthday for only six months. When the police visited the artist's house, they said that he did not die from a violent death. It was later revealed that the cause of death was suicide. Before committing suicide, he took drugs containing drugs. And then he washed them down with a significant amount of alcohol. He died by hanging.
