Listen to Timbaland on Batanga

Timbaland was born and raised in Norfolk, Virginia. Originally a disc jockey known as "DJ Timmy Tim" or "DJ Tiny Tim", Timbaland began making hip hop backing tracks on a Casio keyboard. Rapper Missy Elliott heard his material and, taken by Timbaland’s unique sense of rhythm, began working with him.

Timbaland's first full credit production work was Ginuwine..the Bachelor for Ginuwine in 1996; the album was both a commercial and critical success. He was later contacted by Aaliyah to help produce her second album, One in a Million, which went on to sell over 15 million copies worldwide. In 2000, Timbaland produced several hit songs including Ludacris' "Rollout (My Business)", and contributed three singles to Aaliyah's self-titled third album.

In 2006, Timbaland collaborated with Nelly Furtadoand Justin Timberlake which resulted in multiple million selling albums and singles for both artists. In 2007, Timbaland released the album Shock Value, a commercial success, while 2008 saw Timbaland help produce Madonna's new album, Hard Candy. He married his longtime girlfriend Monique Idlett in June 2008.

Timbaland is one of the highest-paid people in the music industry, having earned $21 million in 2006, according to a 2007 Forbes article, "Hip Hop Cash Kings."